Dry trimming means hanging branches or whole plants with their sugar leaves (and sometimes fan leaves) still attached, drying them, and trimming once the buds are dry enough to jar. The leaves curl around the buds as they dry, acting as a slow-release humidity shield.
In practice
Wet versus dry trim is grower preference in the GenetixBay view. The founder has trimmed hundreds of pounds and prefers dry trimming: he brushes dry buds free of their dried leaves rather than scissoring wet ones, even at the cost of a little trichome loss. It all gets used anyway, because the trim goes to processing.
Reasons growers dry trim: - slower, more even dry, especially in dry climates; - much less sticky, faster work per gram; - leaves crumble off easily once dry.
The costs: - more drying space; - more mould risk in humid rooms; - dry heads break off more readily with handling, so work gently and cool.
Trim once the small stems snap rather than bend.
Don't confuse with
- Wet trim: trimming fresh, before the dry.
- Machine trim: mechanical tumbling or cutting, wet or dry.
- Curing: after trimming, not instead of it.
