Is there really THC or CBD in cannabis stems?
They stick your fingers and poke through your papers, yes, but that doesn’t mean that weed stems are all bad. In fact, if you’re just throwing stems away after breaking up your bud for smoking or vaping, you’re wasting valuable THC, CBD or other cannabinoids. So, don't throw your weed stems away!
But how much THC is actually in your stems? And are some stems better than others? We put it to the test to see exactly how much THC is in weed stems from different parts of the nug after decarboxylating in the Ardent FX.
Experiment 1: Main Bud Stem
First we started with the main stem of the nug. This is the larger stem going up the middle of the bud, and usually has some side buds coming off it. Surprisingly, there were over 2% cannabinoids present in the main stem.
That means in 1 gram of these stems, there's approximately 20mg of THC, enough to make a nice edible or topical treatment. Definitely not something to waste.
See the full test result below to see the cannabinoid content in these stems:
Experiment 2: Side Stems
Our next experiment was on the smaller stems holding each individual bud together. When your joints and blunts rip while you’re rolling up, these little stems are often the culprits.
Don’t be fooled by how annoying they can be in that situation, because these stems are chock full of THC (or CBD if that’s what kind of buds you are starting with). Since they are deeper in the bud, they naturally have more cannabinoid-containing trichomes. On top of that, tiny pieces of the bud often stick to these smaller stems, boosting their potency.
You can see below that after activation in Ardent FX, 1 gram of these side stems had over 60 mg of THC per gram!
See the full test result below to see the cannabinoid content in these side stems:.
In summary, don't sleep on stems! They aren't just a throwaway product, but can actually be used to make useful therapies. Check back soon for more stem test results from CBD and CBG buds. In the meantime, make all of your favorite products for less AND make use of every part of the plant with Ardent’s precision tech.