“Burping” cannabis nugs refers to the process of allowing moisture and CO₂ to escape from the sealed jars that nugs are cured in. This process relieves gaseous pressure and remove potentially harmful moisture from the curing environment. Burping is essential to curing potent and delicious buds.
The curing process significantly affects the quality of the final product and can be a make-or-break for your harvest. How you cure your buds will not only affect their potency, but also their flavour, aroma, and appearance.
Burping is an important part of the curing process that sometimes gets overlooked. This practice will not only improve the flavour, but also the potency of your nugs. Keep reading to find out more about why burping is an essential part of the curing process and how to burp your nugs like a pro.
Creating Potency and Flavor of Cannabis Through Proper Curing Techniques
The primary functions of curing are potency and flavor. As the chemical components of the plant matter break down over time, it shifts the taste from an overly earthy and green flavor to flavors that are more palatable and that we can more readily associate with particular strains.
This process is conducted by aerobic bacteria present in the plant at the time of harvest. The bacteria consume the chlorophyll in the cannabis making the taste and overall experience less harsh. Just like your grow, your curing buds thrive in a micro-environment dependent on specific conditions in order to nurture the process.
Stick With Glass Jars for Curing Cannabis
Now that you have properly cured some dynamite bud, it is time to prep it for storage. Storing your weed under proper conditions will preserve your THC content and allow for quality consumption at a later date. I think it goes without saying, but never use plastic bags for storage, or anything else.
Stick with your airtight glass jars. Some prefer dark-colored glass to prevent light from creeping in but if you are keeping your jars in a drawer or closet, clear jars are just fine. Glass doesn’t breathe like plastic. Avoid freezing your cannabis.
The freezing process turns the trichomes brittle. You can end up damaging your buds when there is really no need. Molds and mildews will spread at high temperatures, so never allow your stored weed to go above 77˚F. All in all, keep your airtight jars of cannabis in a cool and dark location that won’t be disturbed by your day-to-day routine.
For long-term storage, you still want to burp your jars once or twice a month just to let out the gasses your buds will continue to give off. The result will be cannabis that is as good, if not better than it was on the day it was stashed away.
HARVESTING, DRYING AND CURING YOUR CANNABIS
The process starts with harvesting. But how do you know that your plants are ready to harvest? Most strains are ready to harvest within 2 months of the beginning of their flowering period. But there are also several other ways to tell it’s go time, such as the colour changes of pistils and trichomes, and the dying off of some plant matter.
Harvesting usually commences through one of two processes: dry trimming or wet trimming. Wet trimming is the process of trimming cannabis buds before they have been dried. On the other hand, dry trimming is the same process, only after the buds have been dried on the branches first. There are advantages to either method and it usually just comes down to preference or the scale of the grow.
After trimming, comes drying. The drying process typically takes between 3 and 7 days, depending on conditions. In the case of dry trimming, it is done by hanging branches upside down from racks or hangers. You will know that your buds are dried and ready for curing if branch stems break when bending. With wet trimming, buds are placed on racks to dry.
The curing process should ideally begin when buds have a moisture level of about 30%–35%. More moisture than that will put buds at risk for the development of mildew and mould once they are sealed off. Too dry, and the final quality of the buds will suffer.
Some people choose to begin curing inside of paper bags, while others go straight for sealed glass jars. The curing process will not just affect the potency of the buds, but also their flavour. As the sealed off plant matter breaks down over time, the taste of the buds will change from earthy and grassy to the more enjoyable flavours that are commonly associated with marijuana.
WHAT IS BURPING AND WHY DO YOU NEED TO BURP YOUR BUDS?
Burping is an important part of the curing process. To “burp” your nugs essentially means to remove the air from the glass jars that your buds are being cured in. As marijuana buds are cured, moisture and CO₂ are released into the environment, in this case into the mason jars they are being cured in.
The concept is similar to how gas-induced pressure builds up in the human digestive system, resulting in a burp. As gas and moisture are released into the sealed jar, it must be burped out in order to protect the quality of the curing nugs.
However, the concept of burping is not unique to cannabis, it is actually a common technique in any sealed fermentation or maturation process. For example, fruits left to ferment in jars will also require a burp from time to time.
HOW TO BURP
Expelling moisture and gas from the curing environment is key to allowing the metabolic process to work. Exactly how this is done tends to vary from grower to grower.
The easiest way to burp nugs is by simply removing the sealed lids of curing jars for a short while. If using this method, the buds inside of the jars should be gently shaken around a little bit, in order to ensure everything gets out. Other growers prefer to burp their nugs more thoroughly by removing them from the jar altogether and spreading them out over a newspaper or similar material.
As a rule of thumb, growers should burp their cured buds at least once per day for at least 10 seconds. Most expert growers agree that when burping nugs every day, they should be ready for consumption within 3 weeks to a month.
However, this may need to be adjusted, depending on certain conditions. For instance, some growers prefer to burp their nugs for up to 30 minutes each day, whereas others believe burping weekly or bi-weekly to be better for their buds.
Some growers choose to use an RH (relative humidity) meter in order to determine the moisture level inside of their jars, and consequentially, how long they need to be burped for. If buds still show an RH level above 70% even after burping, this likely means that they need to be removed from the curing jar in order to be dried more thoroughly before curing again.
Yet some growers choose to stretch the curing process out for months and sometimes even years, claiming that the longer cannabis is cured for, the more potent and exquisite it becomes.