The cannabis drying process is a key part of your operations as a grower, and different approaches to drying out your buds yield different results. The most traditional drying method is to hang the plants or branches upside down from strings, coat hangers, or plant yoyos in a dark, temperature-controlled room. Other drying methods involve hanging nets or drying racks, cardboard boxes, paper bags, drying bags, cannabis dehydrators, controlled environment drying units, and freeze dryers.
So, which is the best method of drying cannabis?
#1 Best Drying Method: Freeze Drying
Our #1 preferred cannabis drying method for caregivers, connoisseurs, and commercial operators is freeze drying—hands down. Freeze drying provides the quickest, easiest, and most space-efficient drying and curing process for growers and the best cannabinoid and terpene profile for consumers.
To freeze-dry fresh or frozen cannabis, you simply:
- Trim the fresh buds, or start with untrimmed flash-frozen buds (remove the fan leaves first). The fastest, easiest and best way to trim your buds is with a machine like the Original Resinator OG or Original Resinator XL, both of which can trim about a pound per minute thanks to the proprietary Cryo-Trim® process. Refer to our cannabis product pathways chart for more information on what you can achieve with the Resinator.
- Load the drying trays with frozen buds and place them in the pre-frozen freeze dryer (it’s important to maintain the cold chain in every step).
- Set the desired temperature and time schedule per the Crop-to-Cure SOP, which comes standard with every bundle purchase. Make sure the Digivac vacuum control system and parameters are set up correctly, as this is essential for success:
- The three most important parameters are the time, temperature, and vacuum pressure at each step of the process. The third parameter is especially important for terpene preservation. Terpenes will become volatile under deep vacuum pressure below 500 millitorr, which is why—when freeze drying buds or flowers—it’s very important to use a scientific freeze drier with a digital bleeder valve for the vacuum control. A home or pharmaceutical freeze dryer can work well for bubble hash or dry sift applications, but not for flower.
- Start the cycle to run. (A remote monitor system can be handy.)
- Upon completion of the cycle, remove the buds from the freeze dryer and leave them in a climate-controlled, dark environment for one to four hours to oxygenate and complete the curing process.
- Buds are ready for final touch up, testing, packaging and or consumption the next day.
All in all, the freeze-drying Crop-to-Cure™ process takes around 16-24 hours, allowing growers to get their products out to retailers in a fraction of the time that they would be able to with a traditional hang-dry method. Freeze-drying (referred to as lyophilization) also preserves the buds’ size, shape, color, as well as cannabinoid and terpene profiles, and the post-freeze-dry curing process allows the chlorophyll to break down quickly for a smooth and flavorful end product. The “Live Dried” SKU also fetches a higher price point on the shelf due to its premium quality and increased potency.
#2 Best Drying Method: Hang-Dry in a Controlled Environment
This is another popular method with commercial growers and home-grow enthusiasts. The grower sets up a dark room (generally with a racking system for hanging the plants), or grow tent with an air conditioner, dehumidifier, and fans to create an environment that’s set at 64 to 70°F (18 to 21°C) and 50-55% relative humidity.
Once the drying environment is set up, the wet product—whether whole-cut cannabis plants, branches, or trimmed buds—can be:
- Hung from a string or rope using plant yo-yos or coat hangers and often directly from wire racks
- Placed on mesh drying screens inside a zipped-up cannabis dryer pop-up bag
- De-stemmed and placed on drying racks
- Placed inside cardboard boxes or paper bags
While the buds dry, the grower typically uses a hygrometer to measure the temperature and humidity around the buds and tests the stems for “snapability.” When the stems break rather than bend—usually after one to two weeks—the buds are ready to be binned, placed in buckets, or jarred and left to cure.
#3 Best Drying Method: Industrial Controlled Drying Unit
The second-best method for cannabis drying is a commercial controlled drying unit. These units can be pretty bulky, but they provide a controlled environment for consistently dried buds every time.
Whereas a freeze-dryer uses very cold temperatures and a moisture vacuum, a controlled drying unit provides constant temperature and humidity levels that can be set by the grower for the optimal drying process for particular strains.
#4 Best Drying Method: Cannabis Dryer (Dehydrator)
Home growers who don’t need (or can’t afford) industrial equipment sometimes use a compact cannabis dryer such as the HerbsNOW dryer—which works a bit like a food dehydrator with a heating element and a fan—to dry up to six ounces of cannabis buds at a time.
After removing the fan leaves and the sugar leaves (if desired), the branches are placed upright like Christmas trees or laid out flat on the drying trays. After three or four days, the buds are usually sufficiently dry and can be jarred for a few weeks to cure.
#5 Least Preferred Method: Hang-Dry in an Uncontrolled Environment
The simplest method, and also the riskiest, is to hang cannabis plants upside-down in a fairly dry, dark, and well-ventilated room (with no environmental controls) and leave them there until the stems snap. There are several reasons why we don’t recommend this drying method:
- Excessive humidity coupled with a lack of air ventilation can encourage mold.
- Temperatures that are too low can significantly slow down drying times.
- An environment that’s too dry can make the cannabis crumbly and harsh.
- Temperatures that are too high can cause cannabinoids and terpenes to degrade.
In short, after spending time, money, and effort growing beautiful buds, you could lose the entire crop to mold or degradation.
Experiment to See What Works Best for You
From heavy-duty, industrial-grade equipment to paper bags and ad-hoc drying rooms, there are several ways to get cannabis buds dried. However, if you want the smoothest, most flavorful end product, freeze-drying is the way to go.
Whichever drying and curing process you ultimately choose, make sure that your buds are protected from light, contamination, and pests, and send samples for testing to see how your buds turned out.
After trying a few methods, having samples tested, and trying the end product for yourself, you’ll soon find the drying method that’s the most workable for your operation and produces the most consistent result.
