Can You Smoke Weed Stems? Check What Happens

February 19, 2024 by Mani Pandey

If you go by the ‘no waste’ principle, you can definitely smoke weed stems, but is it of any use?

Speaking technically, smoking the stem of cannabis is highly unlikely to have any psychoactive effects on the body. It is because they contain traces of compounds, the cannabinoids (CBD) and terpenes (THC), that make a person high.

However, there are plenty of ways to use weed stems, if not smoking.

Let’s understand what is considered weed stems and whether you can smoke weed.

Article Contains

What are Weed Stems?
Can You Smoke Weed Stems Or Eat Them?
Decarboxylating Weed Stems
What Happens If You Smoke Weed Stems?

What are Weed Stems?

The stem part of the cannabis plant is called the weed stem, through which the flower is attached. Usually, the leaves and buds of marijuana are sold as they are the potential carriers of cannabinoids and terpenes (1). However, in some cases, you may get leaves attached to the leaves, and it’s from where the temptation to smoke weed stems.

The amount of CBD and THC present in weed stems is minimal (2), making it ineffective while smoking to get the desired results.

Can You Smoke Weed Stems Or Eat Them?

While smoking will not make you feel high due to less concentration of CBD and THC, eating it raw is also not worth the hassle due to the unpleasant taste. Despite the bad taste, there are many risks involved in weed stem consumption or smoking.

Since the stems of a plant are more fibrous, when they dry, they burn faster than the flowers. As a result, excessive smoke is released. As you inhale this smoke, you may experience adverse effects such as:

Severe headache
Coughing
Sore throat
Abdominal pain
Nausea

So, what do you do with the weed stems?

Luckily, there are many ways to use weed stems and enjoy the benefits of little compounds and fiber present in them. However, before you start making some amazing recipes from the weed stem, decarboxylation is necessary.

Decarboxylating Weed Stems

Even though there are traces of CBD and THC in the weed stem, the process of decarboxylation can activate them in the cannabis plant (3). It can be done by exposing the stem to heat or light, such as baking.

Steps

Take a baking sheet and spread the weed stem evenly in a single layer.
Bake them in the oven at 107 degrees Celsius for 45 minutes.
Make sure each stem receives the heat and light to complete decarboxylation.

Now, these stems are ready to use in alternative ways.

1. Brew Tea

Tea is one of the common beverages, and people drink it for its herbal benefits and stimulation. You can brew some weed stems in your tea to enjoy a slightly different taste and grab the benefits of CBD.

Boil the crushed weed stems for at least 10 minutes and strain the concoction in a cup using a strainer. You may add some sugar or honey to enhance the taste.

2. Make Edibles

One of the most common alternative ways to use cannabis stem is making cannabutter. Even though you can make this special butter with cannabis flower, using a weed stem will only reduce its potency to some extent.

Steps

Take 1 cup of butter or coconut oil in a pan.
Add 8-10 grams of decarboxylated weed stems.
Pour 1 cup hot water and mix the contents.
Simmer on low heat until the butter melts completely.
Make sure the concoction doesn’t boil.

It will take around 2-3 hours for a complete infusion of cannabis stem, water, and oil or butter in a low flame. Once done, allow the cannabutter to cool; however, not to a solid state. Now, strain the mixture into a glass jar with an airtight cap.

Put the jar in the refrigerator for an hour to allow the cannabutter to cool and solidify. Remove the excess water from the jar.

Your cannabutter is ready to be used to prepare different recipes.

3. Topicals

The topical application of cannabis offers many benefits, especially for joint pains and acne. You can add crushed and powdered weed stems into natural oils such as coconut oil to prepare topical lotions. They can be used on the skin and lips.

4. Cocktails

Preparing weed stem-infused cocktails is another way to utilize this product. Add some decarboxylated weed stem to alcohol and let it stay for a few minutes to drain the compounds.

Drink it and enjoy!

5. Hemp Wicks

If you wonder if you can smoke weed stems, using hemp wicks is a great idea. you can prepare hemp wicks by following the steps-

Take weed stems, around 5 inches long.
Twist them into a rope.
Dip the rope into beeswax and let it dry.

Inhaling the hemp wicks is a lot safer than inhaling butane through smoking.

What Happens If You Smoke Weed Stems?

Just like smoking weed stems doesn’t result in getting high, smoking weed seeds is also of no use.

The concentration of THC in marijuana seeds is too low to give your psychoactive effects. At the same time, lighting them will create unnecessary crackles and pop. Also, the acrid smoke that will emerge from the seeds can lead to certain adverse effects, such as

Throat irritation
Lung damage
Headache and nausea

So, instead of smoking weed seeds or throwing them away, you can plant them and try growing your own stash. However, make sure you live in an area permitted for doing so.

Conclusion

Now that we know the answer to ‘Can you smoke weed stem?’ if you are still adamant, be prepared to get nothing but a wicked headache. Also, it will be harsh on your lungs.

Even though smoking weed stems is not a great idea, using them alternatively in tea, cannabutter, topical oils, and hemp wick preparation will be great. It will ensure that you use your resources effectively and make the most out of your marijuana.

References