How To Make Organic Cannabis Salve At Home?

Imagine growing cannabis at home to make lotions, creams, and salves! It's a dream come true for many, but even if you don't grow cannabis at home, you can purchase buds to make one of the most potent salves at home. Stuff that really works. 

But, why would you want to make a cannabis salve at home? Firstly, you know the ingredients going in, so you can be sure that it works. And, secondly, very few things in life are as satisfying as making organic products at home.

If you're looking for a way to use some extra cannabis, or make something that has the potential to relieve pain and manage ailments, it's time you learned how to make organic cannabis salve at home.

But, first things first. Before you even begin making the salve, you need to decarboxylate the cannabis. Decarb...what? I can picture you wondering what in the world it means, but don't worry, I'll explain.

What Is Decarboxylation?

Decarboxylation is the process of applying heat to cannabis to activate its beneficial cannabinoids, including THC and CBD. Without decarboxylation, the buds, trim, or leaves you consume will not impart the effects you expect.

To understand this further, think about it in simpler terms. Have you ever consumed raw cannabis? Even if you ingest a big bud brimming with high amounts of THC, the lackluster effects may turn you off. Why? Because raw cannabis doesn't impart the same effects as decarboxylated cannabis.

The same theory applies to even dried and cured buds. They will not be of any help if you consume them directly without applying heat. For instance, a joint is effective only after you induce heat or light it up.

This doesn't mean that raw cannabis is useless. On the contrary, it contains many cannabinoids such as THCA, CBDA, and CBGA that have many benefits of their own. There's a reason why full-spectrum oils containing all cannabinoids are beneficial compared to just consuming CBD. However, if you’re looking for CBD or THC, you will not find it in raw cannabis. 

How To Decarboxylate Cannabis?

To decarboxylate the cannabis, simply break down bigger buds into smaller pieces, so it's easy to heat them. Next, spread them on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Ensure that you don't heat them over 250°F in the oven, as the cannabinoids are of no use if you burn them. Anything in the range of 225°F to 250°F for half an hour is good enough to activate the cannabinoids. 

You don't have to heat all the buds if you want to experience the effects of cannabinoids such as THCA, CBDA, and CBGA that are non-psychoactive. Therefore, set aside a few grams of raw cannabis, and the final result would be a full-spectrum cannabis salve instead of a CBD or THC salve!

Before you begin making the salve, pay attention to what you want at the end of the day. Creating an organic salve is a pretty straightforward process. You can keep it simple with just a few ingredients or make it a lot more effective by including elements that can do wonders. 

For instance, many people simply use coconut oil, but you're likely to get more benefits if you use cannabis-infused coconut oil. Also known as cannabis oil, it's super easy to make and preserve. In addition, you can add it to your lotions and salves and consume it frequently for added benefits.

If you're not interested in making cannabis oil, that's fine too. Instead, use regular coconut oil while making the salve.

How To Make Cannabis Oil?

Note that you will have to decarboxylate cannabis buds to make cannabis oil too. So it’s best to decarboxylate just before you make the oil.

Ingredients

1) Coconut oil — 350 ml or 12 oz 

2) Decarbed cannabis — 10 grams (you can use 5-10 grams depending on the potency you prefer).

3) Raw cannabis — 5 grams (optional) Do not heat or decarb raw cannabis.

The first step is to heat the coconut oil. You could do this on a pan. However, the temperatures could get high enough to destroy all the active cannabinoids once you add the buds. Therefore, use a double boiler to ensure that the oil heats slowly and evenly. Even a rice cooker will work. As long as you maintain temperatures ranging from 120 to 180°F, you can use any method to heat the oil.

Steps to prepare cannabis oil

1. Heat the oil until it melts. Check the temperature regularly because the oil can get deceivingly hot.
2. Wait until the oil heats up to 100°F and add the buds. Make sure you grind the buds into smaller pieces. Add the raw cannabis buds too, if you prefer.
3. Allow the temperature to go up to 180°F and switch off the flame.
4. Let the buds sit in the oil for at least 2 hours.
5. Use a cheesecloth to strain the oil. Although a strainer would work just fine, smaller particles tend to sift through the oil quickly. Since we don't want any plant material in our oil, cheesecloth is a better option.
6. Store the oil in a glass container. Do not use plastic. There's no need to refrigerate the oil unless you've used too much raw cannabis.

And, that's it. Finally, you have fresh cannabis oil that you can use to make anything from salves to lotions, creams, edibles, and much more. The oil tends to get stronger with time, so adjust the potency as you prefer.

How To Make Organic Cannabis Salve?

As mentioned, you can use plain coconut oil instead of cannabis oil if you don't have time. However, salves made with cannabis oil tend to be more potent. Here's a quick recipe to make the best organic cannabis salve.

Ingredients

1. Cannabis oil or coconut oil — 350 ml
2. Olive oil — 78 ml (Use cocoa butter if you want a harder salve)
3. Beeswax — 65 grams (any wax including carnauba or candelilla, or soy wax will work)
4. Decarbed cannabis — 10 grams
5. Raw cannabis — 5 grams (optional)
6. Vitamin E oil — 5 ml (optional)
7. Menthol crystals — 5 grams (optional)
8. Peppermint essential oil — 5 ml (optional)

Although it's not necessary to add the optional ingredients mentioned here, they add a lot of benefits. For example, menthol acts as a pain reliever, and vitamin E oil moisturizes your skin. In addition, when combined with the cannabinoids present in the buds, the effects are enhanced instead of using just CBD or THC.

Steps to create an organic cannabis salve:

1. Decarboxylate your cannabis buds if you haven't already done so.
2. Using a double boiler or crockpot, melt fresh coconut oil if you're using only coconut oil. Similarly, melt the cannabis oil if you're using cannabis oil.
3. Heat the oil as slowly as possible. Ensure not to exceed 180°F as you've already decarboxylated the cannabis, or you risk burning the precious cannabinoids and terpenes.
4. Add in the beeswax, olive oil, and menthol crystals. Wait for a few minutes for the beeswax to melt.
5. Add in the decarbed cannabis along with raw buds if you're using them. You can skip raw cannabis if you're not looking for a full-spectrum salve.
6. Wait for a few minutes to create a uniform mixture.
7. Add the vitamin E oil and peppermint oil at the very end just after you switch off the flame.
8. Stir everything well for at least 2 hours
9. Wait for the oil to cool down a bit and store in glass containers.

Grab a good cheesecloth, and strain the mixture while it's still hot. Use a glass bowl to collect the mixture. The salve will seem liquid at first, but it begins to solidify pretty quickly. The presence of beeswax helps to a great extent.

Finally, you can store the salve in the refrigerator if you decide to add any water-soluble ingredients. However, since we have only used oil-soluble ingredients, there's no need to use a preservative or keep it in the refrigerator. Depending on the quality of the beeswax and other components such as vitamin E and essential oils, the salve will last for at least a year.

So, that's how you make a cannabis salve at home.

How To Use The Cannabis Salve?

Use the salve just like a regular salve. Note that it's not a lotion, and a little goes a long way. For example, adding a bit of the salve to your sore knee may help reduce the pain. In addition, you can use it on your neck and shoulders to help with sore muscles.

Studies on cannabis suggest that it's a potential therapeutic agent to help with pain, inflammation, and many other ailments. In addition, cannabinoids like CBD can help to reduce pain in localized areas. 

Many companies add menthol to enhance the salve's pain-relieving properties. Coconut acts as a perfect moisturizer to heal dry cracks on your skin. Vitamin E oil is optional, but it has multiple benefits, which is why it's so common in cosmetic products. Last but not least, the beeswax holds the salve together.

In case you need to adjust the recipe a bit, feel free to do so. However, the consistency may change a bit. For example, adding more beeswax will create a very hard salve. Similarly, adding more oils will make it softer. 

To make the salve even more effective, you can replace the olive oil with avocado or sweet almond oil. In addition, such soft oils will also make the salve glide on your skin. Finally, feel free to add oil-soluble extracts to the oils at the last stage to increase the benefits.

Summary

Cannabis salves are pretty helpful to manage joint pain, sore muscles, and pain in local areas. To make the salve effective, you can play with the ingredients and add moisturizing components like vitamin E oil, shea butter, cocoa butter, and even menthol to enhance its pain-relieving properties. 

Making a cannabis salve at home is easy, and you can use plain coconut oil or cannabis oil to make it a lot more effective.