CBD
For years, trim has been an afterthought for cannabis producers. It’s the chopped branches and leaves from around the main bud that was destined to become a joint or a bowl. But in just the past few years, trim has been gaining popularity as a potent ingredient in its own right, particularly as more people are becoming interested in cannabis edibles.
Once trimmed off the buds, cannabis leaves and branches quickly lose their potency through oxidation, so trim is usually only good for cooking if you use it right away. But while it’s freshly cut, trim has plenty of uses beyond the kitchen. Here are some of the things you can do with it:
Make cannabis oil
Cannabis oil can help some people in a number of ways. For one, it’s a source of cannabinoids, which are derived from the cannabis plant. This can be helpful to those who don’t want to smoke too much or feel high anymore. Cannabis oil is also used to help with pain and other issues that affect your body. If you have chronic pain or illnesses that cause pain on a daily basis, then you might use cannabis oil as part of your treatment plan.
Xarelto uses both terpenes and cannabinoids to treat the worst side effects of Xarelto such as internal bleeding or complications caused by the drug. This means that it gives you all the benefits of cannabis without any psychoactive effects at all, making it perfect for anyone who wants to get rid of his adverse side effects but wants all of the benefits at the same time.
Make cannabis butter
- Decarboxylate your trim by heating it in the oven for about an hour at 240F
- Melt down some butter in a pan on low heat. This can be done in a double boiler if you prefer).
- Add the decarbed trim to the melted butter and simmer on low heat for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until most of the moisture has evaporated.
- Strain through cheesecloth or coffee filter and allow to cool before putting into an airtight container such as a jar.
Make tinctures.
While I’m certain that some people will still balk at the idea of combining marijuana with tinctures because it has to be such an involved process, it’s actually one of the most simple and easy techniques for making your own cannabis. Creating a tincture is one of the easiest ways to make your own medicine without having to have access to high-quality extracts.
As you may know, herbal remedies used as medicine require being decarboxylated—a simple process for turning certain chemicals found in nature into medicines: THC (the active ingredient in marijuana) does this naturally through a process known as “decarbing”; when you make your own herbal remedies at home, you use this technique. Decarboxylation is easier than ever before thanks to new technology that makes it possible to turn dried herbs into extremely concentrated extracts. These extracts are then combined with alcohol and water, creating a liquid that can be used as medicine or added to other recipes without requiring any smoking or vaporizing. The result is an even more potent remedy that requires only about 20 minutes of your time each week.
Wanting a simple way to get started on making tinctures, we decided that we wanted something small enough for us both to remember easily, so we opted for cannabis trim — the vegetative part of the plant that gives you all those distinct flavors in your weed smoke. Cannabis trim is so named because it usually comes from the flower buds being smoked off instead of being used as a bud itself—sometimes though, it’s collected from the leaves and stems (like our case). As trim can often be rather dry and difficult to work with when compared with bud (and therefore more expensive), we wanted something easy and effective here too: After having tried many different methods online over time, we finally made our own cannabis tincture recipe after finding ours was similar enough but cheaper than what was available on Amazon for purchase. We did have fun experimenting with different combinations of ingredients like
Add to edibles
- What it is: trim refers to the leaves and small stems of the cannabis plant that are removed during harvest.
- Why it works: Trim contains a ton of cannabinoids and terpenes, making for a great addition to edibles. It can also be used to add strength or flavor to a recipe. Many people find that trim may be too strong for their palate, but this can easily be masked by fatty ingredients or other flavors in the dish.
- How to use: You can simply throw your trim into some butter and strain it out later, or you can use one of these recipes below!
Cannabutter brownies
Whip up a batch of pot brownies, arguably the most popular and easy recipe for cannabis edibles. Just mix cannabutter with your favorite brownie mix and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. You can check if your batch is done by inserting a toothpick into the center—it should come out clean when the brownies are ready to be removed from the oven. Finally, cool them on a wire rack for 10 minutes before serving, or after that if you don’t mind burning your mouth.
Compost it
- Why compost it instead of throwing it out?
- What is composting and how does it work?
- What can I use to make a compost pile?
- How do I start the pile?
- How long does the process take?
- What are some other uses for finished compost?
Concentrated trim oil
The next option is to extract the oil and use it in a vape pen, which is an extremely efficient way to consume cannabis. This method involves a process called “winterization,” in which the trim is combined with ethanol, stirred gently for several hours, and then placed in a freezer overnight. The next day, the mixture will be strained through cheesecloth into another container with fresh ethanol. This process can be repeated two more times until all of the plant material has been filtered out and only a concentrated oil remains.
The final option is to make your own topical from the trim. Topical cannabis products are best made from full-spectrum oils and butter because they contain all of the terpenes and cannabinoids found in the original flower or concentrate that was used in making them. That said, some people do use trim when making their own topicals, especially if it is high-quality information about what options you have for using your trim.
Incorporate into your bath or massage routine (trim tea)
Beyond its use in edibles, cannabis trim can also be incorporated into your bath or massage routine. Trim tea is made by infusing roughly four to eight ounces of trim into a quart of water, then steeping it. The resulting tea can be added to a hot bath for soothing properties or used as an oil for the purpose of topically massaging sore muscles. A great way to get rid of unwanted trim and offer yourself a relaxing treat, trim tea is worth checking out for anyone who has large amounts of excess bud waste.
If you have or can get some trim, there are many ways to make the most of it
If you have a little trim on hand, there are many ways to make the most of it.
- First, get creative. Think about what you can do with your trim that isn’t covered by the above list—what do you enjoy doing? Do you have any hobbies that might involve cannabis? Can you give back to your community through some form of kindness or charitable action?
- Find a way to use your trim creatively. This one’s open-ended, since creativity doesn’t always take the same form. If you’re artistic, draw or paint something! If music is more your jam, try making a cannabis-infused instrument or instrument part. If you’re crafty and into DIY projects like I am, maybe make jewelry or soap out of your leftover trimmings. There are plenty of possibilities here—the sky’s really the limit.
Conclusion
Hopefully, after reading these 10 different ways to use your cannabis trim, you can see how versatile this leftover product is. Whether you’re looking for a project to do with the trimmings from a big harvest or just want to put them to good use around the house, I hope these ideas are able to give you some inspiration.
