TERPENES AND THE DRYING PROCESS

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Growing your own herbs takes time and work, but when the unmistakable aroma of ready to harvest buds fills your tent you know it’s all worth it.

After harvesting, you still have to make it through the drying and curing process before you can enjoy your bud. Sounds easy, but this is the step a lot of grower’s stumble on.

The most common method for drying uses low temperatures and higher humidity levels, the 60/60 method. This method is recommended due to the conflicting information about terpenes.

What Are Terpenes?

Terpenes give all plants their individual scents. That noticeable skunky, piney, or lemony aroma comes from terpenes. There are over 20,000 different plant terpenes and the various herb strains contain multiple variations of just over 100 of them.

Terpenes are part of the plant’s essential oils and are created in the trichomes (mushroom-shaped crystals) on the plant. The different terpenes found in each strain contribute to the plant’s overall aroma.

Out of the 100+ terpenes found in a strain, there are only a handful that make up the majority of a strain’s terpene profile. This is where the confusion about drying starts.

Why Slow and Low Isn’t the Way to Go

The most common terpenes found in herb comprise over 90% of a strain’s overall terpene profile. These terpenes vaporize at temperatures over 300F. The remaining terpenes are so insignificant that they don’t typically register as a percentage of the terpene profile during laboratory testing.

Common terpenes found in herb strains:

Myrcene

Most common, making up to 65% or so of the terpene profile in some strains.

Aroma: Musky, earthy,
Effects: Relaxing, anti-inflammatory. High levels of Mycerene result in “couch lock”.
Vaporizes at 332F

Limonene

Second most abundant terpene, but not all strains have it.

Aroma: Citrus
Effects: Stress relief, elevated mood
Vaporizes at 348F

Pinene

Aroma: Pine
Effects: Increased energy
Vaporizes at 311F

Linalool

Aroma: Floral, lavender
Effects: Anxiety relief
Vaporizes at 388F

Terpinolene

Aroma: Pine, herbal
Effects: Anxiety relief
Vaporizes at 366F

It’s the insignificant terpenes though that have led to the belief that slow and low drying is the way to go. Even though this low-temp/high humidity method encourages mold growth, allows oxidation more time to break down terpenes, and longer, inconsistent dry downs of a harvest.

The majority of the remaining terpenes vaporize at temperatures starting at 100F, but the most volatile of them will vaporize at temps as low as 70F. These highly volatile terpenes are what you smell before harvesting, as they fill your room with their distinct aroma. It’s the idea of trying to save these most volatile terpenes that has contributed to the incorrect belief that slow, low drying is the way to dry.

The HerbsNOW dryer offers you a safe, consistent option for drying every time. Using HerbsNOW allows you to expand your grow due to its compact size. Plus, it retains the aroma and terpenes in your freshly harvested buds. When you use the HerbsNOW dryer your harvest will be dried consistently and safely every time, giving you the end result from your harvest that you expect.