What makes cannabis buds “harsh” to smoke?

by Nebula Haze

What causes buds to be harsh to smoke? Why does it seem so hit or miss? Sometimes you’ll have a harvest where some of the weed smokes great, and other weed from the same plant is harsh to smoke. If you have harsh buds and don’t understand why, today I’ll share the most common causes and how to fix/prevent them so your future weed is smooth smoking.

After today’s tutorial on how to prevent harshness, all your cannabis buds will be smooth and a joy to smoke

Today's cannabis tutorial teaches growers how to grow and produce cannabis that's smooth to smoke.

1.) Buds not dried properly

Improper drying after harvest is the #1 reason for harsh weed. Buds may become harsh from drying unevenly, drying in poor conditions, or the formation of mold/bacteria/microrganisms (often you can smell it but can’t see it). Sometimes the issue is actually that buds weren’t dried enough before being put in jars. Even slightly wet weed in jars may grow mold or bacteria, causing harshness.

Air-dried weed tends to be harsh when drying in…

  • heat – air-drying buds with a temperature over 75°F / 23°C will greatly increase the chance of mold and harshness. Mold grows especially poorly under 70°F.
  • high or low humidity – the ideal humidity is 50-55% RH. This helps buds dry slowly but without growing mold.
  • fan blowing directly on buds – causes buds to dry fast and unevenly, which may prevent chlorophyll from breaking down or buds from curing properly in jars
  • no air circulation – lack of air movement increases the chance of mold or bad microorganisms growing (air circulation helps remove excess moisture from sitting on the surface of buds so buds don’t “sweat” as much)
  • overly packed – fat buds that are dried too close together or packed in a small space tend to cause wet spots and prevent air from moving around the buds

Note: Air drying isn’t the only way to dry weed, but it is the easiest and most common method.

Air-drying cannabis isn't the only way to dry weed, but it's the most common (and typically the easiest) method

3 most important factors when air-drying buds:

  • Keep the space cool (most important), under 65°F / 18°C if possible. Obviously, that’s not always possible, but do the best you can to keep buds out of the heat while drying.
  • Humidity around 55% if possible (higher than that increases the chance of mold, lower tends to dry out buds too fast). However, humidity is much less important than temperature It’s better to have a cool temperature and incorrect humidity than perfect humidity but the air-drying space is hot.
  • Gentle airflow but no fans blowing on any buds (avoid spots of stagnant, unmoving air). For example, you might point a small fan at a wall in the drying space, or dry buds in a grow tent with the fan turned to the lowest setting.

Note: These guidelines are for air-drying cannabis buds (hanging them upside down to dry). These temperature and humidity guidelines don’t necessarily apply when buds are dried in an extremely controlled environment like a cannabis-specific bud dryer.

A grow tent with the exhaust fan set on low can be a great place to dry weed

When are cannabis buds done drying?

  • the smallest stems snap instead of bend (when they’re bendy it means there is still moisture trapped in the middle)
  • buds “pop” off instead of coming off in strings (strings also happen due to moisture in the stems, which means buds aren’t dried fully yet either)

At this point, put the buds into jars and start the curing process.

Learn how to dry and cure buds properly

 

2.) Smoking leaves

If you have sugar leaves that are covered in trichomes, what can you do with them? Do you trim them off after harvest and make hash or cannabutter? Or do you leave them on and smoke them?

Unfortunately, there is no consensus. If you ever spend a lot of time interacting with other cannabis-growing enthusiasts, you’ll come to learn there are as many opinions as there are ways to do things. So I made the following list to help guide you in figuring out what’s best for you.

Pros of Smoking Sugar Leaves

  • If you don’t trim off your sugar leaves after harvest, it will increase the total weight of your cannabis yield
  • If you’ve got a lot of sparkly leaves, buds may look prettier if you leave the sugar leaves on.
  • Leaving sugar leaves on after harvest slows down the drying process, which may increase smell/flavor if you’re drying in a dry environment.

Some strains produce so many trichomes that it’s hard to tell where the leaves stop and buds begin.

The buds from that plant were only lightly trimmed. The sugar leaves were as good to smoke as the buds

 

Cons of Smoking Sugar Leaves

  • The leaves may be more “harsh” to smoke than the buds themselves. Some people find their throat is easily irritated from smoking untrimmed buds
  • There is typically much less potency in leaves compared to buds (which are packed full of THC and other cannabinoids). That means you need to smoke far more leaves than buds to get the same effect.

So there are definitely pros and cons to trimming vs not trimming the sugar leaves.

This trichome-covered bud was grown under LED grow lights

3.) Poor Curing or Storage Conditions

You already learned about drying buds properly, which is the most important thing you can do to make sure buds are smooth to smoke. However, after buds are dried, they should be “cured” in jars for 2+ weeks (if possible) to make them even smoother to smoke, Curing buds has other benefits, too.

Why cure buds in jars after drying?

  • reduce harshness and make buds smoother to smoke
  • strengthens “weed smell” that often gets lost or muted in the drying stage
  • more pleasant “high” with less of a chance of unwanted mental effects
  • buds feel more potent to smoke, so you can smoke less to get the same effect

Curing buds in jars typically reduces harshness and makes buds smoother to smoke (even if buds were harsh after drying). It also makes bud effects feel more potent and pleasant.

How to cure buds perfectly every time

  • Make sure buds are dry before curing – you know buds are done drying when small stems snap instead of bend, and buds “pop off” without leaving strings
  • Put buds in an airtight container – glass mason jars are perfect because they’re airtight and won’t affect the flavor of buds like wood. Fill them about 80% of the way full
  • Keep jarred buds in a cool dark place if possible. Don’t leave them in the sun!
  • Open jars daily for 1-2 weeks – “Burp” your jars once a day for the first few weeks to let out excess moisture and give them some fresh air. I
  • (Recommended) Use hygrometers (they’re surprisingly cheap!) to monitor humidity in the jar so you know if they’re getting too wet
  • (Recommended) Use humidity packs to automatically maintain the humidity at the perfect level. Boveda and Boost offer humidity packs. Anything between 55-62% humidity will work well. Get the 62% for soft buds that burn slowly. Get the 55% or 58% version for longterm storage, and for faster burning buds.

Storage is important to keeping buds good for as long as possible. Buds that change hands frequently before getting sold likely weren’t stored properly. Even worse is when buds are stored in unsanitary conditions. In tests of commercially grown weed, some buds are contaminated with everything from e.coli to fecal matter. One of the best parts of growing your own weed is you can make sure they are safe to smoke.

Read our complete drying and curing tutorial

 

4.) Genetics

Certain strains tend to be harsh (ie “Strawberry Cough“). This has nothing to do with how you’re growing and everything to do with the genetics. Think about how smoking pine needles would harsh regardless of what you do to them or how you grow them. Some strains tend to be like that to a tiny extent. Luckily there are many “smooth” strains, and that is what most cannabis breeders are breeding for.

Some strains like Lemon OG tend to be harsh on the throat regardless of how it’s grown

Lemon OG tends to be a "harsh" strain to smoke

Suggested “smooth” strains:

Suggested autoflowering “smooth” strains:

 

5.) Mold or Bud Rot

Bud rot or mold can grow on buds while the plant is still alive, but even after harvest, it’s possible to get mold. Buds are made of 75% water and most commonly get mold during the drying process if the outsides are wet, especially if they’re touching each other. Another common culprit is when buds are stored without drying all the way first.

Never smoke any buds that had any signs of mold or bud rot while growing. This is white fuzzy mold.

No more mold or bud rot for your cannabis plants!

Bud rot makes buds brown and if you look closely you may be able to see white, brown, or gray fuzzy mold in the discolored buds. Not good to smoke!

Buds can also get moldy if they are dried in heat, high humidity, or get jarred before they’re fully dry. Gross!

Keep humidity low in the flowering stage to prevent gross bud mold like this

6.) Bugs

This is pretty self-explanatory. If you’ve got bugs, webbing, bug poop, or other signs of bugs on your weed, it tends to make it much harsher to smoke.

Tiny Specks - the first sign of spider mite damage on marijuana leaves

Some growers will actually “wash” their buds to clean them of problems from bugs. When growing outdoors, that may be necessary, but indoor growers should strive to keep bugs off their plants as the best way to grow clean smooth buds.

Learn how to identify and get rid of cannabis bugs or pests right away

 

7.) Pesticides or Foliar Sprays

In addition to just bugs, sometimes the treatment can cause harshness too. Regardless of whatever you’re doing with your plants, it’s always recommended to avoid getting anything on your buds, even “safe” or “all-natural” insecticides. Other types of foliar sprays (for example some growers will spray plants with light levels of nutrients) can also make buds harsh.

Don’t spray your buds with anything if at all possible

Learn about the safest insecticides to use with cannabis plants

 

8.) PGRs (Plant Growth Regulators)

These are much less common than they used to be. Basically PGRs are compounds you can give to plants while they’re growing to alter their growth patterns. They used to be sold over the counter in supplements aimed at cannabis growers, though they’ve now been (mostly) taken off the shelves. PGRs are systemic and can get deposited into the tissue of the buds, and commonly used to prevent plants from getting tall or increase yields.

Learn more about PGRs for growing weed

Using PGRs while growing weed makes them harsh. PGR-treated weed often has an orange tint. Don’t use PGR!

9.) Smoking Method

Some ways of smoking tend to burn the throat or cause harshness, while others tend to be more gentle.

Try to Do This

  • Only smoke buds that are properly dried and cured
  • Smoke with a piece that has a water chamber for smoke to pass through (bongs, water pipes, etc.)
  • Take small hits (smoke just a little weed at a time)
    • This also helps prevent there being smoke sitting in the bong, which quickly becomes acrid and harsh if you don’t smoke it right away
  • Consider vaporizing weed instead of smoking it

Smoke only good buds that have been properly dried and cured without pesticides or bug infestations

Today's cannabis tutorial teaches growers how to grow and produce cannabis that's smooth to smoke.

Vaporizers are the most gentle on your throat and lungs. I like the Arizer Extreme Q, which is a great tabletop vaporizer that has a ton of features and costs much less than similar vaporizers like The Volcano.

Smoking pieces with water chambers reduce harshness compared to smoking a joint or straight pipe. Remember to smoke just a little bit at a time to save your throat.

Avoid This

  • Don’t use joints, spliffs, one-hitters, straight pipes (anything without water chamber)
  • Don’t take big hits (avoid smoking too much at once)
  • Don’t let smoke sit in bong too long before smoking (it gets harsh if you don’t immediately smoke it)
  • Don’t smoke buds that are not fully dry

Joints are one of the harsher ways to smoke

A joint or blunt is one of the least efficient ways to consume cannabis

 

I hope this page helped give you some ideas on how you can smoke weed so it doesn’t hurt your lungs or feel harsh while smoking. If I missed anything, please contact me and let us know!

 

About the Author: Nebula Haze

I started growing weed in 2008 and co-founded GrowWeedEasy.com in 2010 to offer free tutorials about cannabis cultivation. I love weed and my goal is to help anyone (and everyone) grow their own weed at home. It’s pretty easy when you have the right information and tools. Check out the tutorials I’ve written on GrowWeedEasy.com or sign up for our weekly growing newsletter which I’ve sent out every Sunday since April 2012.

See you soon and happy growing!

Nebula says hi!

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