As the cannabis concentrates market continues to place increasing value on solventless extracts like bubble hash and rosin, it’s not uncommon for growers to commit entire harvests to bubble hash production. All the flowers from the plant are used as starting material for Ice Water Extraction. 

Full melt bubble hash, the highest grade of hash that’s rated as 6-star, is a fantastic product to dab and normally doesn’t stray too far away from the circles of extractors who produce it. 3-4 star bubble hash, still high quality but not the absolute premium, is the perfect product to use for pressing hash rosin. Full cannabis flowers are often used to produce these high grades of bubble hash. 

But can you use trim leaves, the excess material that’s often cut away from the harvested flowers, as starting material for bubble hash?

Mila Johnson, The Hash Queen, is considered to be the matriarch of the Ice Water Extraction method for making Bubble Hash. She tells of her early days of washing hash, when she would collect trim leaves from growers who had little regard for this material. While growers at the time didn’t see the value in trim, Mila knew that she could use it to sieve trichomes in ice water, which she did with excellent results. 

Far from being an inferior source of starting material, trim leaves can be an outstanding starting material for washing bubble hash. But, it all depends on the overall quality of the plants from which they’re trimmed. The genetics of the plant, the environment in which it was grown, and the care used in processing it all factor into the overall quality of the harvest. It’s all about the trichomes. If the trim leaves aren’t covered with high quality trichomes, then the resulting bubble hash won’t be good quality either. 

Extractors use the same techniques for washing bubble hash with trim leaves as they do for washing whole flowers. This includes pre soaking the material, running it multiple times, and properly drying the freshly-made bubble hash. 

Do you use trim leaves for washing bubble hash? Let us know in the comments!

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is cannabis trim leaf?
Trim leaves are the small leaves that are cut away from the flowers after harvest. 

Is trim good for washing bubble hash?
If it comes from high quality cannabis and is covered in trichomes, trim leaves can be a great starting material for washing bubble hash. 

What makes good trim leaf for washing bubble hash?
Trim leaves from high quality cannabis that's covered in trichomes makes for good starting material for washing bubble hash. 

Do you wash trim leaves the same way as flowers for making bubble hash?
Yes, the same techniques are used with trim leaves as with flowers for washing bubble hash. 

Can trim leaves make full melt bubble hash?
If it's high quality material, then yes, trim leaves can make full melt bubble hash.