How to Make Hash From Trim: Cold, Dry and Washing-Machine Methods

The best thing to do with trim, the sugar leaves and small stems you cut off your buds, is turn it into hash: dry sift it through screens, wash it in ice water while it's fresh frozen, or run it through a hash washing machine. Trim that's not worth extracting can still become compost, topicals, cannabis drinks or BHO. That leftover material looks like scraps, but it has serious potential.

Instead of tossing it, you can squeeze a lot more out of your harvest. Below we break down what to do with your cannabis trim, from homemade products to composting, so nothing in your grow goes to waste.

Cold extraction: making hash from fresh frozen trim

Cold extractions use trim that's frozen right after harvest without drying it first, so the plant material is still fresh. It's the same "fresh frozen" idea behind live products like live resin and live rosin, which tend to have a more floral, fruity aroma than other extracts and a pretty different effect.

Tips for cold extraction

• Freeze it solid: It's crucial to freeze the plant material all the way through so it gets brittle and the trichomes snap off more easily when you agitate it. If the leaves and stems just get cold but don't fully freeze, the result will be pretty disappointing.
• Agitate properly: Make sure you agitate the frozen material effectively to knock off as many trichomes as possible.

Dry extraction: dry sift from your trim

If you like to dry your plants before trimming and you enjoy taking your time to get a perfect trim, dry extraction is the way to go. The idea is to put a screened collection tray under the plants to catch the trichomes that fall off while you work.

Tips for dry extraction

• Go gentle: Rub the plant material over the screen very gently so you don't damage the trichomes, and collect the resin carefully.
• What you'll need: Dried leaves and stems from your plants and a plastic card. Use a 220-micron screen for the first pass and work down in size to 73–90 microns for high-quality hash.

Why both methods are worth it

Cold and dry extractions let you get the most out of your cannabis trim. They cut down on waste and also give you high-quality products like hash and fresh frozen extracts, ready to use.

The bottom line on using your trim

Both cold and dry extraction are effective ways to make use of cannabis trim. Follow the right tips for each technique and you can get high-quality extracts with different flavor profiles and effects. Try both and see which one fits your needs and preferences.

Getting trichomes out of trim with a hash washing machine

Hash washing machines are essential tools for separating trichomes from plant material with cold water and agitation. You fill the tub with water and ice, then run the plant material through a wash cycle. When the cycle ends, you pour it all into a set of bubble bags (mesh filter bags) to strain out the trichomes.

Tips for using a hash washing machine

• Worth the investment: A hash washing machine will save you a ton of manual work. Use features like the timer to set the number of rotations based on how much plant material you have.
• Efficiency and precision: These machines give you a more efficient, precise extraction and a better-quality end product.

Whether you go cold or dry, it's crucial to separate the resin from the plant material properly using screens of different micron sizes (73–90).

General tips for filtering your trim

• Dry extraction: Start with a 90-micron screen and do a second pass with a 73-micron screen.
• Cold extraction: Filter twice to improve the resin's flavor, aroma and texture. Bubble bags are handy for a final filter with both cold and dry extractions.

Batch processing your trim

If you grow a lot of plants, you can stockpile your dried or frozen trim and do all your extractions in one go. It saves time and gives you more complex, higher-quality extracts.

Tips for batch processing

Store the trim from your indoor grows and outdoor grows all year long. Then do your extractions all at once to make top-quality hash that blends the terpenes of different strains.

What to do with the leaves left after trimming

After trimming your cannabis plants, you may end up with a good pile of leftover plant material. Instead of throwing it out, there are several ways to put it to good use.

Here are a few options to get the most out of your leftover weed and make your grow more sustainable and productive.

1. Compost
   Composting is a great way to recycle leftover cannabis material. Organic cannabis growing keeps getting more popular, and prepping your soil properly is crucial. Organic matter breaks down into compost that feeds your plants and helps them grow strong and healthy. Turning your trim into compost is an eco-friendly, genuinely useful move you'll thank yourself for next season.
2. Topicals
   Cannabis has properties that may benefit your skin. Research suggests cannabinoids like THC and CBD have anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, and some people use them for skin conditions like psoriasis. Use your trim to make homemade creams and salves, either for cosmetic use or to soothe skin irritation, inflammation and other issues. There are tons of recipes out there, from simple poultices to more elaborate creams.
3. Cannabis teas and drinks
   Another easy way to use leftover weed is to brew it into tea. A cannabis infusion can be relaxing or social, depending on the cannabinoids in the strain you use. Stick to the recommended doses to avoid a bad time. You can also make bhang lassi, a traditional Indian cannabis drink that's popular during religious festivals. It's easy to make and a different way to enjoy cannabis.
4. Extractions
   Gas extractions like BHO (butane hash oil) are an effective way to use your trim. The stems and smaller leaves carry trichomes that can be extracted into a cannabinoid-rich concentrate. You can generally expect about 10% of the starting material back as finished BHO, so 40 grams of trim can yield roughly 4 grams of BHO. Heads up: this process involves handling flammable gas, so follow every safety measure to the letter.
5. Hash
   Making hash is another great way to use your leftover weed. There are several techniques for separating the resin from the plant material. The best hash comes from flowers, but the trichomes on the stems and the small sugar leaves around the buds are valuable too. With this material, you can make your own hash and get the most out of every part of the plant.

The takeaway

Reusing your cannabis trim isn't just eco-friendly, it can really pay off. From compost to topicals, teas, extracts and hash, there are plenty of ways to put these leftovers to work.

Follow these tips and nothing goes to waste, while your grow gets more sustainable and productive.