Your Guide to Getting Started with CBD Flower

Are you interested in working with CBD flowers but don’t know where to start? In this guide, I will teach you everything you need to know about using this wonderful, non-intoxicating raw material. From smoking to topicals to learning how to decarb, make edibles, infuse oil, and more – I will help you find the best way to use it in your wellness routine.

Article Features

• An overview of all the things you can do with CBD flower
• Guides for making oils, tinctures, edibles, and topicals
• Want to make it easy? Start with my favorite CBD flowers and have them delivered directly to your doorstep. Now shipping across the US! 

Why You Will Love This Guide

Often, members of my Well With Cannabis Community tell me that they or a loved one are looking to enjoy the benefits of cannabis – without the high. 

Thankfully, I confidently tell them that working with CBD flowers is one of the easiest and most popular ways to do just that. 

Depending on how much THC is in each particular strain, CBD-dominant flower shouldn’t get you high, but it does contain many potential health benefits!

In this guide, we will discuss the beauty of this raw material, and I will show you all the easy ways to make CBD edibles, topicals, and more from the comfort of your own home.

🚀 Test Your Knowledge

What is CBD Flower?

CBD, short for cannabidiol, is the second most abundant cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant.

CBD flower is the raw or dried flower buds from a cannabis plant that contain high concentrations of the CBDA, the precursor to CBD.

If the plant contains less than 0.3% THC, it is considered to be hemp; if it contains more, it is considered to be marijuana.

CBD flower sold in stores typically contains less than 0.3% THC, but it can contain more, depending on the strain.

Unlike THC, the popular cannabinoid we are most familiar with, CBD does not produce an intoxicating ‘high’ feeling.

However, it interacts with our endocannabinoid system to provide a range of effects, affecting nearly every bodily system from our brain to our digestion.

💡 Visually, you cannot tell the difference between CBD and THC flowers. Imagine two flower buds sitting side by side on a table – they look and smell pretty much the same. That’s because there are no significant differences in how these flowers look or smell. The difference lies in the chemicals inside them called cannabinoids.

What to Do with CBD Flower

There are so many awesome ways to use CBD flowers in your everyday life, from making edibles and topicals to making your very own CBD oil.

Here we will explore:

• How to leave it as CBDA
• How to decarb CBD for edibles
• How to use flowers in recipes
• How to make CBD oil at home
• How to make CBD topicals, like salve

Let’s get started! 👇

Leave it as CBDA

If you do not decarb your CBD flower and leave it raw, dried, and unaltered, you will reap the benefits of CBDA.

This is a cannabinoid acid found in the trichomes of raw or dried cannabis plants.

There is an exciting amount of preliminary evidence to support the idea that CBDA has potential anti-nausea, anti-inflammatory, and pain-relieving properties. 

You can make cannabis juice, a CBDA tincture, or follow any of the other processes outlined below; just remember to skip the decarb process.

Decarb For Edibles

Just like you do with traditional THC flower, you can make any edible with CBD flower or even CBD trim or shake.

Keep in mind that these edibles will not produce intoxicating effects. Still, they can be just as delicious and enjoyable, with many people reporting an absence of stress, worry, or anxiety.

If you want to make your own CBD edibles with CBD flower, remember that converting the CBDA to CBD flower is required through the process of decarboxylation.

This is done by breaking the plant material into small pieces and baking the buds on a baking sheet in the oven or an Instant Pot.

Use Just Flower in Recipes

This is the easiest way to consume raw flowers and reap the benefits of the full-spectrum entourage effect.

Whether you sprinkle a bit into the batter for CBD brownies or make homemade ranch dressing, there’s a delicious option for everyone.

Remember that with this method, you only need to add a small amount to your favorite dishes.

Make Homemade CBD Oil

Making your own CBD oil at home is a great way to use your CBD flowers.

To make CBD oil at home, you need the same process of decarboxylation as outlined above.

Then, if you are already familiar with making cannabis infusions, this CBD oil recipe follows the same process using either a slow cooker or an Instant Pot.

Popular carriers for homemade CBD oil include:

• CBD olive oil
• CBD coconut oil or cannabis coconut oil
• hemp seed oil
• or make your own CBD butter in a crockpot or Instant pot

Once made, you can put your prepared oil or cannabis butter into any other delicious recipe you want to infuse.

Make a CBD Tincture

Just like making CBD oil, making a CBD tincture at home requires starting with CBD flower.

Once you have acquired the CBD flower needed to make this recipe, the next step is to decarb it.

After that process, follow the instructions to make either a traditional Green Dragon tincture or a QWET freezer tincture.

This extract can then be added to hot water to make tea, used in CBD mocktails, or used sublingually under the tongue.

Make Concentrates

After making a tincture, you can evaporate the alcohol and be left with what is known as full-extract cannabis oil, or FECO or RSO.

This concentrated oil is believed to contain many health benefits and can be a great addition to any recipe.

Remember that it will produce a more potent effect due to the concentration of cannabinoids.

Once made, you can add CBD FECO to:

• regular butter
• weed brownies
• peanut butter
• firecrackers
• and more!

Make CBD Topicals

One of the best ways to use CBD flower is to make homemade topicals such as massage oil, CBD salve, and even lip balm.

Cannabinoids are very effective when applied to the skin, making CBD flowers perfect for crafting effective topicals.

How to Dose CBD

Be sure you’re mindful about how much CBD you need for your personal preference and efficacious dosing.

To calculate the mg of CBD in your cannabis edibles, you can use my edibles dosage calculator.

This will allow you to calculate the dose of CBD in your recipes per teaspoon and serving.

You can even use this calculator first to work backward and calculate your perfect dose before getting into the kitchen.

⭐ A good starting dose is 5-10mg of CBD per serving. You can then increase and adjust as needed. Learn more about how to dose in my 5-day CBD, THC & Me Workshop.

Where to Buy CBD Flower

One of the most common mistakes I see is the thought that THC flowers can be decarbed differently to create CBD.

Unfortunately, it just doesn’t work like that, and the CBDA must already be genetically present in the plant.

The first step is to find a CBD-dominant flower, like the CBD flowers I sell in my shop.

You can purchase them and have them shipped right to your door, allowing you to experience all of the different ways you can use CBD!

Notes and Expert Tips

• Try to avoid higher temperatures from direct heat when cooking, such as stir-frying, sauteing, grilling, or microwaving. You do not need to be as concerned when baking, as these temperatures and this heating process are unlikely to affect the final product.
• If stored properly, CBD flowers can last for a long time. Be sure to keep it in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.
• Do not feel like you have to keep your CBD separate from your THC. While just CBD is an alternative way to use cannabis, combining CBD and THC is a great way to find balance.