Most people throw cannabis leaves away, thinking that they are of no use. However, this is not correct. In fact, there are several amazing uses of leaves.
Leaves are the plant’s main energy gatherers. Green chlorophyll in the leaves assists in harvesting the energy of the sun, transforming it into vital fuel. This plant cannot live up to its full potential without having healthy leaves. Fortunately, the cannabis plants and CBD products are easily available at online dispensaries, such as MMJDirect, that provides the best quality of cannabis plants and its related products.
But it is the plant’s buds that are cultivated for recreational and medicinal use, meaning these leaves that are pruned during growing and processing are often used as a by-product, rather than as a valuable plant product.
Here, we’ll have a look at the various possible uses of these leaves to ensure you get the most out of each and every harvest of your plant.
Contents
Types of Cannabis Leaves
Source: SunWest Genetics
When deciding the use of cannabis leaves, it is important to have an understanding of the types of leaves the plant has. There are two types of leaves on this plant – fan leaf and sugar leaf:
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Fan Leaves
These are the broad type that protects most of the light gathering of this plant. These are often identified as the iconic symbol for the plant. On indica these plants, fan leaves are usually dark green with wider ‘fingers.’ On the other hand, sativa’s fan leaves are lighter in color with slender, lean “fingers.” This fan leaves on hybrid cannabis strains usually feature a mixture of two. Such leaves are usually cut during harvest and have low cannabinoid concentrations. While they are among the plants most under-recognized and underused parts, this fan leaves are full of resin, flavor, and phytonutrients that support health and wellness.
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Sugar Leaves
Sugar leaves are smaller leaves of cannabis which grow near the flowers or “buds” of the plant during the flowering stage of the plant. These types of leaves are often hidden, with only their tips peeking through the larger fan leaves. After harvest, sugar leaves are usually trimmed to make buds appear more attractive to consumers, either before or after drying and curing. These are usually coated in pure, delicious trichomes as if filled with a powdered sugar dusting, and contain higher cannabinoid levels than fan leaves.
Uses of Cannabis Leaves
1. Cannabis Leaves for Cooking
Source: Enegmac
Fan leaves are not smoked due to their lower THC content levels and less trichomes. Nevertheless, you can make edibles such as brownies or cake using fan leaves. The method of cooking and baking extracts much of the potency of a leave. The good thing is you’ll have enough leaves to use in your edibles. The marijuana stems can also be used in your cannabutter. But if you find that it is too much hassle to bake, you may check out bloomsociety.com for some of the ready made cannabis edibles
2. Cannabis Leaves for Making Juices
Source: Leafly
When you haven’t trimmed the cannabis leaves, and they are moist –then these leaves can be turned into juice. If you use the leaves while they are raw, they are considered superfoods. If ingested in a raw state, you will be able to absorb the cannabinoids in a better way. Hence, avoid drying the leaves after trimming. Rather, put the leaves in a mixer and mix with other ingredients to make a smoothie. You could add strawberry, banana, and coconut milk to it.
3. Cannabis Leaves for Homemade Pizza
Source: ark420
If you’re making homemade pizza, you might add these leaves as a pizza topping. Yet, first they must be dried up and grounded. And you can also use it as a herbal drug. In this form it has quite a lot of nutritional value. You should sprinkle this on your salads and pasta, too.
4. Cannabis Leaves for Making Tea
Source: Royal Queen Seeds
For making tea using the cannabis seeds. The cannabinoids found in the leaves are fat-soluble, rather than water-soluble. What do you mean by that? It means you can use it not only for making cannabutter but also for making tea. Pour the milk into a kettle, place the leaves in it, bring to a boil and then cook, allowing the odor and flavor to be transferred to the tea. This is great medicine for the mind and body.
5. Cannabis Leaves for Making Marijuana Cocktails
Source: Daily Mail
You can easily infuse these leaves and stems into your favorite cocktail or mocktail for an added kick of cannabinoids and terpenes. People can make a Green Dragon concentrate to infuse into alcoholic beverages, a form of this tincture made with alcohol.
After the leaves and stems of marijuana are grinded and decarboxylated, users can add the material in a jar with a lid. Add sufficient water to cover the material, and let the solution sit in a dark, cool area. Users can shake the jar every day for a week, after which the mixture can be strained to leave behind a concentrated tincture of it for use in alcohol mixes.
6. Cannabis Leaves for Bubble Hash
Source: Honest Marijuana
If you have a sufficient number of these type of leaves and stems, a bubble hash extraction can be performed to create some fairly active, solvent-free concentrates. Such extraction requires water, ice, and agitation to exclude resin glands from the material.
Firstly, the stems, leaves and water are put in a bucket sequenced with filtration bags made of screens similar to those used in dry sift kief production. The trichomes break off when stressed and drop to the floor, while the plant matter stays on the top.
The bags are separated after the material has settled, and the trichomes are removed. After that, the bubble wash is dried and ready to be used for smoking.
