Did you know that when you trim your cannabis buds, you can use the excess leaves that you trim off to make medicine too. You can use it to make honey oil, rosin, edibles or topical cream. So, lets get into it.
Honey Oil
Honey oil is a concentrated cannabis product also known as hash oil. It gets its name from the amber colour of the oil, which resembles honey. It is made up of chemically extracted trichome heads in high concentration. You can make it at home, but if you’re not careful, it can be very dangerous. It must be done in an open air setting, preferably outside.
What You’ll Need:
- Cannabis trim
- PVC pipe (roughly 6 inches long)
- 2 end caps for the PVC pipe
- Drill to make holes in end caps
- Coffee filters
- Thick gloves (for holding the pipe when extracting)
- Double boiler pot
- A few cans of butane (as highly refined as you can find)
- Straight razor blade
- Heat safe glass vile or jar to store honey oil
How to Make Honey Oil
- First, you’re going to make a small enough hole in one of the end caps so that the tip for the butane can just fits in there.
- The second end cap needs to be opened up so that is basically just a ring that will hold down the coffee filter. This is the end where the honey oil will come out.
- Once the end caps are done you can put the one with the small hole on.
- Then, add in your trim making sure to pack it very tightly until it’s full.
- Finally, add a coffee filter on the other end and put the other end cap over it to hold it down.
- Now, go outside with the cans of butane, the pvc pipe filled with trim, the thick glove and the top of the double boiler pot
- With the glove on, hold the pvc over the double boiler pot and put the butane tip into the small hole and hold it in there until the liquid coming out is clear (this may take a few cans of butane)
- Once the liquid comes out clear, you can put the top of the double boiler on top of a pot of boiling water (this is also done outside) to purge out the butane so you’re only left with the honey oil
- You may have to re-boil water and do this a couple times to completely eliminate all the butane
- Once the butane is elimnated, you can use the straight edge razor blade to scrape the oil off the bottom or side of the pot
- Then, add it into the glass vile or jar
- You’ll want to give the jar or vile some heat from a lighter or boiling water to make sure you got all of the butane out *with lid off*
- Now, you’ve got some honey oil to enjoy!
Rosin
Rosin is a concentrated cannabis product that is created using heat and pressure to extract the trichome heads. This is my favourite concentrate because it’s extracted without the help of solvents. You can make this at home but you need to buy or make a Rosin press.
What You’ll Need:
- Cannabis trim
- Rosin bags (90 to 120 micron)
- Parchment paper
- 2 small magnets
- Rosin press
- Straight razor blade
- Silicon or glass container to hold rosin
How to Make Rosin
- First, you’ll want to turn your rosin bag inside out to avoid rosin getting trapped in the seams
- Then, fill the bag with cannabis trim (you can pre-press the bag, but it’s not necessary)
- Turn on the rosin press and set to your desired heat setting (I typically use between 170°F-220°F)
- While it’s heating up, get the parchment paper ready in the rosin press
- Once it’s heated up, place the bag in the press and close the press
- Start adding pressure slowly until you reach the desired pressure and then wait for about 3-5 minutes
- Once you’re done, release the pressure and pull out the parchment paper
- You can put it in the freezer for a couple minutes to make it a little easier to collect with the straight razor blade
- You can collect the rosin into your container with the razor and its ready to go
Edibles
Edibles are great to have for instances where you’d like to medicate but cannot smoke. When making edibles with trim, you’ll need to use more than you would if you were using buds. It all depends on the potency level you’d like. If you want weaker edibles, you can always use more butter or oil.
What You’ll Need:
- Cannabis trim (14g – 56g, depending on desired potency)
- Butter or oil of choice (2-3 cups of butter or oil)
- Mason jars (32OZ)
- Crockpot
- Cooking sheet (for decarboxylation)
- A small towel
- Container to store infused oil or butter
How to Make Cannabis Infused Butter or Oil
- First, you’ll want to decarboxylate your cannabis trim on a cooking sheet in the oven at 240°F for 40 minutes
- Once the trim is out of the oven and cooled a bit, add it to your mason jar with your butter or oil and put the lid on but not too tight
- Get the crockpot ready by putting a small towel down on the bottom to prevent cracking or breaking off the jar, then add enough warm water to cover your jars (be careful not to over fill)
- Once the water and jars are in there, turn it on high and keep a close eye on the temperature of the water
- Once you get the temperature to 185°F, turn the heat to low, cover with lid or aluminum foil if the jars are too big
- You need to try and maintain 185°F for 4 hours to infuse the oil or butter
- When you’ve infused the butter or oil, you can set up a funnel with cheesecloth to strain out the plant material and add the butter/oil to a new container
- Then, put the infused butter/oil in the refrigerator so it can cool down all the way
- When its cooled down, the butter will seperate the solid from the remaining liquid.
- You can store the solid part for future use in the fridge and discard the liquid
If you want to make THCA or CBDA extract, skip the decarboxylation step
To Use Infused Butter or Oil
Follow your recipe and substitute the regular butter or oil for infused butter or oil. It’s that simple.
Topical Cream
Topical cream will give you the benefits of cannabinoids without psychoactive effects. You apply it topically to your skin as a lotion, salve or cream. It’s good for arthritis & aches and pains.
What You’ll Need:
- 1 1/2 cups infused coconut oil
- 1/3 cup beeswax pellets
- 1 tsp sweet almond oil
- 1 tsp jojoba oil
- 2 tbsps shea butter
- 1 cup aloe vera gel
- 5-10 drops of essential oils of your choice (optional)
How to Make Medicated Topical Cream
- Follow the steps above to make infused coconut oil
- Add beeswax and shea butter to mason jar in a pot of water and melt
- Once it’s melted, add infused coconut oil, jojoba oil, sweet almond oil and essential oils (if using them)
- Mix until fully combined
- Pour mixture into a deep bowl and let cool slightly
- Then, using a hand mixer on low to medium low, add in the aloe vera gel very slowly until its all combined
- The mixer will help fluff up the cream a little bit
- Then store it on your container of choice in a cool, dark place to keep it fresh for longer
Now you can turn your cannabis trim into usable medicine!
