You may have bought weed recently and noticed tiny crushed up pieces of cannabis and trim at the bottom of the bag. This is referred to as shake in the cannabis community. Some people will consider this useless. But, newsflash! The “shake” is not useless at all. It can be used for a variety of different things which we will break down in this article.
What is Shake?
The short answer to “What is shake?” is that it’s small pieces of cannabis that are found at the bottom of a bag. Shake can sometimes include small pieces of cannabis buds, clippings, stems, and even sometimes pieces of the sugar leaves.
Where Does Shake Come From?
Shake are the bits and pieces that fall off a cannabis bud, or sometimes shake can even have clippings and small stems depending on where you get it. If you buy a large bag of cannabis, and move it around a lot, you are going to get some shake at the bottom of your bag. As the buds rub together in the bag, little pieces are going to break off.
Sometimes, you may see shake that is a mixture of cannabis trim, cannabis flower, and even some cannabis stems. This is an indicator that the cannabis you have is low grade as it is most likely the clippings from the grower. You can still smoke this, but we would recommend making weed edibles with it. This type of shake is sought after by cannabis edible connoisseurs because of the cost efficiency.
Is Shake Low Quality?
Many people seem to think that shake automatically means low-grade cannabis but this is not the case. Since Shake is just small pieces of cannabis buds that have broken off, the shake is going to be the same quality as the weed that it’s broken off from. Sometimes, the shake can even be more potent than the cannabis buds! If the shake is at the bottom of a large bag of cannabis, and the bag has been shaken around a lot, some of the kief is going to fall to the bottom as well. Other times, its potency is considered inconsistent.
Some shake is certainly going to be low quality though. It’s going to depend on a few things:
- The quality of the cannabis it’s from
- If it is from cannabis buds, or cannabis trim
- How old the shake is
- If it’s been stored properly
Different Types of Shake
There are two main types of shake:
- Growers shake
- Bottom bag shake
These are unofficial names that we have made up. But, the point we’re trying to make is that there is a big difference between the two.
Growers shake is not sought after by many people (aside from cannabis chefs) because this is the type of shake with clippings, stems, and even some sugar leaves. This isn’t great to use for joints either, as the stems can rip through the side and result in a ruined joint.
Bottom bag shake is the most common type of shake. If you store cannabis in a zip lock baggy, a little bit of bottom bag shake is going to be almost impossible to avoid. This shake can be used for everything that regular cannabis can be used for.
What to do With Shake
Shake can still be used for a variety of things. After all, bottom bag shake is really no different than the cannabis that it falls off of. Since there are two different types of shake, we’re going to split this section of the article into the uses of bottom bag shake & the uses of growers shake.
Uses of Bottom Bag Shake
Bottom bag shake has the same uses as regular cannabis. Here are a few things that you can do with it:
- Make cannabis edibles
Making cannabis edibles is much easier than it seems. We have comprehensive guides to making cannabis edibles from start to finish here on the website. We also have released our cannabis edible cookbook which breaks down everything there is to know about cooking with cannabis!
- Smoke it
There is nothing wrong with smoking shake! Since there is no real difference between bottom bag shake and the weed it came from, there is nothing wrong with smoking it. Since the shake is smaller pieces it tends to dry out quicker, so this might lead to it burning faster. You can smoke it in a bong, pipe, bubbler, or even out of an apple!
- Vaping
A great way to use shake is by vaping it. Since vapes use a lot of cannabis, it could even be more desirable to use shake rather than grinding cannabis buds.
- Making concentrates
Shake can be used to make all different kinds of concentrates. Whether it be hash, oil, resin, crumble, wax, and the list goes on. There are a ton of different concentrates that you can make with shake.
- Joints and blunts
Joints and blunts are the most common thing shake is used for. Almost all of the pre-rolled joints from dispensaries are made using shake. As long as there are no stems in the shake, this is a great use for it.
Uses of Growers Shake
Although growers shake can still be used for all of the same things as bottom bag shake, we recommend that you only use it for these two things:
Growers shake is great for making cannabis edibles because you can get great value for your dollar. Not many people are looking to buy growers shake. Consequently, if edibles are your thing, growers shake may be a great option for you!
- Make cannabis concentrates
Growers shake can also be a great way to make concentrates! Especially since the sugar leaves usually have loads of trichomes on them. The sugar leaves, and growers shake are great for making hash, rosin, and other cannabis concentrates.
Where to find Shake
Shake is usually found at the bottom of a bag of cannabis. Depending on the way the cannabis is handled, there could be more or less shake. Whenever a grower harvests his or her cannabis plants, they are usually going to have a lot of shake. Since growers usually store their cannabis in a big container, there is a large number of cannabis buds rubbing against each other. This is going to result in little pieces falling off.
Where to Buy
Some dispensaries will sell shake. Most of the time, when a dispensary is selling shake It is not sold in a big package unless it’s been held on to for a long time. But, this would leave the shake dry. Depending on how dry and old the shake is, it’s going to affect the quality.
The best place to buy shake is directly from a grower. Dispensary’s are usually looking for the cannabis buds rather than shake, so if you find the right grower, you may get a good deal on shake. The type of shake that you will get from a grower is growers shake, hence the name.
If you want to buy bottom bag shake, ask your supplier if they have any bottom bag. Usually suppliers or distributers will store a colossal amount of cannabis in a single container, which due to it’s nature, is going to result in shake.
The Best Way to Store Shake Weed
The best way to store shake for long periods of time is in a vacuum-sealed bag. If you don’t have a vacuum-sealed bag, the second-best option is to store the shake in an airtight container with a Boveda pack. Boveda packs are little packages you keep in your cannabis container that control the humidity which will prolong the shelf-life of cannabis.
Are Pre-rolled Joints Made With Shake
Most of the time when you buy pre-rolled joints from dispensaries, your joint is made with shake. The problem with this is that you will have no idea or way to tell how old this shake is without opening the joint. If you ask the budtender, they should be able to tell you the best type of pre-rolls; that is, the type without lots of seed and stem in them.
Pros and Cons of Shake Weed
Pros of shake
- Cheap
- Easy to handle
- You don’t need to grind it
Cons of shake
- Dries out fast
- Inconsistent potency
- Doesn’t burn evenly
- Can taste bad
| Pros of shake | Cons of shake |
| Cheap | Dries out fast |
| Easy to handle | Inconsistent potency |
| You don’t need to grind it | Doesn’t burn evenly |
| Can taste bad | |
| Can be messy (see photo below) |
Shake VS Bottom Bag
Although in this post we have two types of shake, most of the time bottom bag and shake mean the same thing. We use the two types for explanative purposes. Usually, when people see either type of shake, they will refer to it as either bottom bag or just shake.
Ryan is a content manager at thecannaschool.ca who has a background in economics. Ryan specializes in making cannabis edibles at home but loves to write about all things cannabis!