How to preserve cannabis
HOW DO YOU PRESERVE BUDS?
After months of taking care of our little plants, the time has come to store the cannabis buds. Many people ask us what is the best way to store cannabis and how to do it. In our online grow shop we tell you everything in detail!
If cannabis isn't preserved in optimal conditions, it loses properties over time, the amount of terpenes and cannabinoids decreases, losing quality, aroma, flavour and, above all, potency. If we have finished our harvest and luckily we have too much cannabis, we must find the best method for preserving it.
HOW TO STORE CANNABIS AFTER DRYING?
Cannabis must go through a drying period, that is, we must extract the water and moisture that is inside the buds. To find out how to dry cannabis plants, we recommend that you visit our post "How to dry cannabis buds". Once the buds are dried and cured, it will be time to store them.
Cannabis buds should be stored in airtight containers so that oxygen cannot penetrate the container and damage the material. Light is another problem that can affect our buds, so we recommend dark or opaque containers. If we don't have totally airtight containers, we should store them in places where external odours cannot penetrate and alter the organoleptic properties of the cannabis inside the container.
Another important factor is the temperature at which the pot is stored. We should store our cannabis in a place that is cool and dry. The temperature should be between 20 - 25.5 °C, while at the same time avoiding sudden changes in temperature. This will prevent the cannabinoids and terpenes from degrading, as well as slowing down their decarboxylation at lower temperatures.
The relative humidity of the environment should be 60%, because if the chosen container allows humidity to enter and it is high, we could suffer a mould attack. However, if the humidity is low, we will reduce the amount of cannabinoids and terpenes, losing flavour, aromas and potency.
WHERE TO STORE CANNABIS?
Cannabis can be stored in different containers, but that does not mean that all containers and materials are the right ones to store our harvest without losing quality.
Of all the pots out there, very few will actually help you to properly protect your weed. To find out where to store your buds in the best possible way we recommend you visit "Where to store cannabis buds".
HOW LONG CAN MARIJUANA BE STORED?
Cannabis can be kept fresh for a relatively long time, as long as the conditions in which it is stored are ideal. If it has been properly dried, cured and stored under normal conditions, we can keep our buds in good condition for six months to a year.
It should be noted that, depending on the strain, if we have correctly carried out all the established parameters and a bit of luck, our cannabis can be preserved for up to almost two years. So with effort, perseverance and care we can extend the quality, potency and flavour of our cannabis for a long time. Nothing tastes better than a joint of our best cannabis, grown and cared for as if it were our own child.
HOW TO STORE CANNABIS FOR YEATS TO COME
As we have been reading, cannabis does not last forever, both in quantity and quality. Cannabis degrades over time and loses potency and quality. We have been explaining how to preserve cannabis for a fairly long period of time, until it can be harvested again. But what happens if the cannabis we have is not ready to be consumed for quite some time?
How can we preserve our fresh weed so that it does not lose all its quality and potential?
To keep cannabis for a long time we have seen that we need a place with a good temperature between 20 - 25 °C (ideally 21 °C), with a relative humidity of 60% and dark. It may seem like a crazy idea, but if food can be kept for a long time in the freezer, why shouldn't it be possible?
The lower the temperature, the slower the process of degradation of the properties of cannabis, so a question comes to mind.
CAN CANNABIS BE STORED IN THE FRIDGE OR FREEZER?
The answer is yes, we can store cannabis in the fridge or freezer to slow down the ageing of cannabis. However, we have to be fully aware of how we should do it in order not to make any mistakes, because if we do it incorrectly we can lose all our treasure.
STORING CANNABIS IN THE FREEZER
If we respect all the aforementioned parameters and add friction, we will be able to keep the cannabis in the freezer for one or two years. Once the trichomes are frozen, they become very fragile, so if anything rubs, touches or hits the buds, the trichomes will break, losing all their effect and flavour.
The ideal way to keep cannabis in the freezer would be to store it in vacuum bags, inside an opaque vacuum canister. In addition, it is highly recommended to include a Boveda humidity regulator sachet in each container, so that freezing will not influence the creation of humidity inside the containers and will avoid creating pathogens such as mould or fungus. The opaque vacuum canister will protect the vacuum packed buds from light, both protect it from oxygen and humidity. Having included the Boveda sachets will ensure against the possibility of a hypothetical increase in humidity.
In this way, all the parameters that affect the preservation of the cannabis are controlled. However, we have added the problem of friction, the vacuum pot would also serve to protect the buds from any knocks that may occur. In any case, we must take the utmost care to avoid them, or we can completely lose all our well-preserved treasure.
The defrosting process is explained below. We must do it correctly, otherwise we may lose our buds.
STORING CANNABIS IN THE FRIDGE
The steps to follow to keep cannabis in the fridge are the same as if we wanted to freeze it. Good conservation and protection. This will slow down the ageing of cannabis and allow us to preserve it for longer.
Perhaps in the fridge is not the best way of preservation, but we should evaluate all the options we have and see which is the one that best suits us to keep our cannabis in the best possible conditions.
HOW TO DEFROST CANNABIS?
Cannabis should be thawed very slowly. If we try to defrost it all at once, the only thing we will achieve is to spoil it. Before taking the buds out of the container we must wait for them to thaw, otherwise we could break the trichomes.
Calle 25 recommends that you take out the entire container and store it in the fridge. After a few hours, when it has thawed, take it out of the fridge and out of the containers, leaving them to cool down so that the temperature inside increases. At all times make sure that the humidity of the buds is not too high, otherwise the outside of the buds could be affected. We recommend the use of thermohygrometers for this purpose. We could finish tempering the buds in a wooden box, so that the wood absorbs the humidity that the buds may give off, as if we were doing the curing process again.
When the buds are completely thawed, you can enjoy your cannabis.
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU STORE CANNABIS FOR TOO LONG?
We have explained how to store cannabis, but what would happen if we store cannabis for years and don't do it correctly?
The main problem with cannabis when it is exposed to light, heat and oxygen is that the cannabinoids degrade, i.e. we will lose the effect of the cannabis. Cannabinoids do not degrade quickly, but as the weeks go by, the potency will diminish.
But what happens if THC is degraded?
THC when degraded does not disappear, it is converted into another cannabinoid, CBN. CBN is a cannabinoid that, like THC, has psychoactive properties, but much milder. The degradation of THC occurs mainly when cannabis is exposed to heat and oxygen, although it is a slow process.
Because of the heat, terpenes dry out and evaporate. Terpenes are responsible for giving aroma and flavour, as a consequence of their volatilisation we will lose flavours, aromas, as well as producing rough smoke when smoking.
In short, if we do not preserve the buds correctly, we will lose quality, potency and many of the benefits of cannabis. It would be a shame to lose all the work done during months of cultivation and lose quality because of poor preservation.
TIPS FOR STORING CANNABIS
- Good drying and curing cannabis.
- Vacum containers.
- Opaque containers.
- Avoid direct contact with light and air.
- Avoid sudden changes in temperature.
- Control humidity stability.
If you have any other questions, the Calle25 team will be happy to help you answer all your questions. Do not hesitate to contact us.