Hemp Cures Cancer

Dr. Coldwell says that Hemp cures cancer.

You hear this Government pawns???

Hemp Bill in Kentucky Passes

An amended bill to legalize industrial hemp production by Kentucky farmers -- if the federal government allows it -- was passed by the Kentucky Legislature in the final minutes of this year's regular session.
The Kentucky Industrial Hemp Commission remains in the state Department of Agriculture, with only research functions of the bill assigned to the University of Kentucky, according to the terms of the compromise, reports Gregory A. Hall at the Louisville Courier-Journal. The last point of contention had been a try by House Majority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins (D-Sandy Hook) to put the Hemp Commission under the authority of the University.
That had proven to be a deal breaker for bill sponsor Sen. Paul Hornback (R-Shelbyville) and its chief backer, Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer.
In fact, Comer had left the Capitol under the impression the hemp bill was dead. He returned late Tuesday when he learned Adkins wanted to continue the talks.
"We're very satisfied with the bill," Comer said. The next step, according to Comer, will be working with Kentucky's federal lawmakers to get a DEA waiver for a pilot project to grow industrial hemp in the state.
Public pressure to pass the hemp bill helped achieve the last-minute deal, according to Comer.
The bill passed the House as amended, 88-4, with Comer, a former House member, watching from the chamber floor. The Senate approved the compromise 35-1.
The bill now goes to the desk of Gov. Steve Beshear, who has said he "shares the concerns" of the Kentucky State Police, who oppose it. Beshear hasn't said whether he would veto the hemp bill.
State Police and some House leaders, including Speaker Greg Stumbo (D-Prestonsburg) questioned whether hemp would be economically viable and whether it would impact marijuana enforcement, since the plants look the same.
Comer agreed in the compromise to be removed as chairman of the hemp commission. He will now be vice chairman, and the chairman will be selected by members.
Federal law considers hemp identical to marijuana, even though industrial hemp typically contains very low levels of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. Industrial hemp often measures below 0.3 percent THC, while marijuana typically measures between 5 and 22 percent.

Smoking vs Vaporizing

Some scientific knowledge

 

Marijuana Goes Corporate

 It’s hard to ignore the prevalence of medical marijuana dispensaries in California and elsewhere. They are on the corner and in the news. If you are a tax lawyer, it is even harder to ignore them, for there are big tax problems in this industry. See Voters Say Yes To Marijuana, IRS Says No. But when I said I thought the industry was going corporate—Is Medical Marijuana Going Corporate?—I didn’t realize how true it was.
Now I’m getting merger notices. Yes, marijuana M&A is here. In this case, it’s about the vapor machines that can obviate smoking and instead dispense the meds without even using a match (or a lighter for that matter).

Medbox, Inc. (OTC Markets: MDBX) announced the acquisition of 100% of Vaporfection International Inc., manufacturer of Vaporfection vaporizers. Medbox was featured on the cover of the Los Angeles Times Business Section: Wall Street sees opportunity in marijuana.
Vaporfection makes “herbal delivery systems.” The deal involved the issuance of 260,864 MDBX stock warrants. Medbox sells and services automated, biometrically controlled dispensing and storage systems for medicine and merchandise. And Vaporfection seems quite a catch.
Vaporfection claimed Best Vaporizer in Product of the Year at the Cannabis Cup Amsterdam 2011, and Best Vaporizer at the Kush Expo LA 2012. The company’s patented designs cause marijuana to release its medicinal ingredient into the vapor. The resulting vapor is pure, virtually odorless, and goes into the patient’s respiratory system.
Vaporfection was created by Amir Yomtov in 2006. In 2011, the company was purchased by entrepreneur Herb Postma. Mr. Postma continues to manage Vaporfection and notes that under Medbox, Vaporfection revenues are projected to exceed $4 million in 12 months. All this sound rosy, but not to the feds.
After all, legal dispensaries are still labeled as drug traffickers under federal law, and that creates big tax problems. Section 280E of the tax code denies tax deductions for any business trafficking in controlled substances. The IRS says it must enforce Section 280E. Yet the U.S. Tax Court has opened the door a crack by allowing dispensaries to deduct other expenses distinct from dispensing marijuana. See Californians Helping to Alleviate Medical Problems Inc. v. Commissioner. 
If a dispensary sells marijuana and operates the separate business of care-giving, the care-giving expenses are deductible. Some expenses might relate to both. If only 10% of the premises are used to dispense marijuana, 90% of the rent is deductible. But good record-keeping is essential. See Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Persist Despite Tax Obstacles. 
But even good records won’t make vaporizers or drug paraphernalia deductible. In Olive v. Commissioner, Martin Olive sold medical marijuana at the Vapor Room, where he used vaporizers so patients didn’t have to smoke. However, with only one business, Section 280E precluded Olive’s deductions.

The Great Marijuana Rehab Scam

[Reality Catcher]

Feds Say You’re Addicted To Pot, But They’re Addicted To Cash

​Why does the U.S. federal government keep pushing outdated lies about marijuana’s health consequences and potential for addiction?
Because it’s a lucrative business, according to Paul Armentano of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
Armentano, deputy director of NORML, points out that the feds are wasting their time — and your money — researching what must be the Loch Ness Monster of the drug policy world (as in nobody can prove it exists), “marijuana addiction.”
Yes, you read that right. “Marijuana addiction.”

According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), “Cannabis related disorders (CRDs), including cannabis abuse or dependence and cannabis induced disorders (e.g., intoxication, delirium, psychotic disorder, and anxiety disorder) are a major public health issue.”
OK, first things first. You gotta love that these acronym-loving policy wonks have come up with an actual abbreviation for the bad things pot’s supposed to do to you. Just making something up because you wish it so is one thing, but give it a catchy acronym like CRDs and suddenly it’s real, right? Right?
And how, exactly, did those luminaries at NIH come to that remarkable conclusion?
Because, first of all, um, “Nearly one million people are seeking treatment for marijuana dependencies every year” and besides, “sufficient research has been carried out to confirm that the use of cannabis can produce serious physical and psychological consequences.”
Which brings us to…

The Great Marijuana Rehab Scam

NORML’s Paul Armentano:
Keeping government bureaucrats honest about pot

​As Armentano points out, there aren’t “one million people seeking treatment for marijuana dependence”; it isn’t even close. The real number, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the actual number of persons seeking drug treatment for marijuana “as a primary substance for admission in 2007, was 287,933. That’s a lot less than “a million.”
But there’s more. If there really are 288,000 folks are year who need help quitting marijuana, then maybe there’s reason for concern, right? Wrong answer, Believer Of Bureaucrats. Almost all of these “people seeking treatment” are FORCED to do so by court orders, under threat of jail, after having been busted for possessing small amounts of pot.
Great use of public resources, eh? Just think about all those spaces in addiction recovery support groups that could have available for real addicts having problems with meth, crack, and heroin. Never mind those guys! We’ve got the potheads going to rehab!
According to the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), more than a third of the 288,000 people entering “drug treatment for marijuana” hadn’t even smoked any pot in the 30 days prior to the admission. Doesn’t sound much like they were addicted, does it?
Another 16 percent admitted they’d only used marijuana three times or less in the month prior to their admission. That just doesn’t sound much like the sort of out-of-control behavior we associate with drug addicts. Do these people meet the clinical standard of being in “the state of being psychologically and physiologically dependent on a drug”? Of course not.
These people don’t belong in drug rehab with real addicts. The only reason they are there is that they were given the choice between pretending to be drug addicts and attending the meetings, or going to jail. That’s a no-brainer, right? Having been both places, I’d certainly rather spend a few evenings with recovering addicts (even if they sometimes tend to be a little whiney) than a few months with pissed-off inmates just looking for an excuse to “touch you up.”
A report published by SAMHSA indicates nearly six of 10 individuals “enrolled in drug treatment for marijuana” were forced there by the criminal justice system (I’d suspect the actual number is even higher).
The criminal justice system is the largest single source of referrals to the substance abuse treatment system, according to SAMHSA. The majority of these referrals come from parole and probation offices, i.e., parolees and probationers who fail urinalysis tests because they smoked a little weed.

The Myth of Marijuana’s “Serious Consequences”

When she tries to quit, she might not be quite as hungry or sleepy. It’s just horrible. Quick, get that woman a transdermal THC patch!
[Reefer Madness]

Any serious and impartial study of the adverse effects of marijuana use almost immediately runs into one striking and unavoidable fact: It’s glaringly apparent that marijuana’s potential negative effects are minor when compared to those of legal drugs such as opiates (physically habit-forming and capable of causing overdose deaths), alcohol (same on both counts) and tobacco.

A clinical trial from the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence raises serious doubts about the physical and psychological consequences of quitting pot, as well, Armentano points out.
Researchers at four separate universities in Germany studied the self-reported “withdrawal symptoms” of 73 subjects judged to be “cannabis dependent”; all subjects resided in an inpatient facility. It was determined than less than half of the subjects reported any withdrawal symptoms of clinical significance. Remember, these are all people who’d been diagnosed as being “cannabis dependent” — whatever that’s supposed to mean.
Even among the minority who did report such symptoms, “The intensity of most self-reported symptoms peaked on day one and decreased subsequently.”
What were these scary-sounding symptoms of quitting pot, anyway?
Well, the most frequently mentioned physical symptoms on day one were sleeping problems (21 percent), sweating (28 percent), hot flashes (21 percent), and decreased appetite (15 percent). Psychological symptoms included restlessness (20 percent), nervousness (20 percent), and sadness (19 percent).
Now, I’m not trained in psychology (oh, wait! I am), but those symptoms sound pretty much like what I’d expect to feel if you locked me in a rehab facility (for pot!), tell me I’m not free to go, and that smoking weed is no longer cool. Restlessness? Damn right. Nervousness? Check; I get arrested if I leave. Sadness? Duh.
Bottom line, marijuana’s “withdrawal symptoms” are so mild and subtle as to be laughable compared to those associated with quitting alcohol or heroin addiction (which can be fatal) or quitting tobacco (which many addicts report is harder to kick than heroin).

Follow The Money

You see a bud, but the feds see a bundle.
[Coaster420]

​So why does NIDA soberly claim that “therapeutic interventions” are necessary and important, “given the extent of use of cannabis in the general population”? (Adolescent pot use has actually been falling steadily since 1979.) Why is it so crucial to manufacture this bugaboo and to pretend it’s scary?

Well, there are currently no accepted medications to aid in “quitting marijuana,” and to help in combatting those fearsome CRDs (remember them?) And some companies (and, well, government officials) see a huge profit potential in fighting the marijuana monster.
In 2009, Kentucky-based pharmaceutical corporation All Tranz Inc. announced it was the proud recipient of a $4 million NIDA grant to promote a “transdermal tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) patch” for the supposed “treatment of marijuana dependence and withdrawal.”

Dr. Nora Valkow of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) claims thousands of pot addicts are desperately seeking treatment
[The Clean Slate]

“NIDA is interested in exploring the role of transdermal THC delivery as an innovative way to treat marijuana withdrawal symptoms and dependence,” said the agency’s director, Nora Volkow.

And here’s where it gets exquisitely surreal.
“This is especially relevant to our efforts to fill a critical gap in available treatments for the many Americans struggling with marijuana-related disorders and their detrimental medical and social consequences,” Volkow helpfully tells us.
So, Nora. You’re telling us there’s a huge crowd of desperate marijuana addicts trying to kick the weed, who need these enormously expensive THC patches so that they can still feel hungry?
Wow, yeah, man. Sounds like an emergency, all right.
Never mind that the symptoms of “marijuana dependence and withdrawal” are rare, and mild even when they do occur. Never mind that THC permeates the skin, at best, slowly and inefficiently (because of its fat solubility).
Forget all that, because there’s a research center to staff, tax dollars to spend and Reefer Madness myths to keep alive. Facts be damned; there’s some money to be made here.

Resources and article:
http://tokesignals.com/the-great-marijuana-rehab-scam/

Medbox creates Medical Marijuana Info site

Site provides free information for patients, dispensary operators, consumers, law enforcement, and Legislators

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., March 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Medbox, Inc. (OTC Markets: MDBX) (www.medboxinc.com), a leader in providing industry-specific consulting services and patented systems to medical and retail businesses worldwide, announced that they are launching a new website to help educate all interested parties about the many facets of the legal medical and retail marijuana industry.
The site, which will be launched in May, can be found at www.canna411.org and will provide a depth of information that is comprehensive and unduplicated in any one source. "We have noticed that there is a lack of correct information readily available about medical marijuana," commented Dr. Bruce Bedrick, CEO of Medbox, Inc. "Our intention is to give facts that can be useful to the many parties interested in this subject, from state legislators and city council, to law enforcement, dispensary operators and the patients they serve."
According to the Los Angeles Times, the lack of information on the product even affected a Los Angeles City Councilman when he attempted to obtain medical marijuana to ease his cancer treatment. "There are no sanctioned drug trials funded by Big Pharma or diagnostic manuals to tell you which of the dozens of strains with crazy names works best with your condition. Or the best delivery method. It's all trial and error," the Times reported.
Bill Rosendahl, Los Angeles City Councilman, found out that he had a rare form of cancer and was desperately ill. Even the heaviest prescription painkillers, like OxyContin, brought only momentary relief, he said, according to the Times.
However, finding the right strain and proper dose to relieve his pain proved more of a challenge. Eventually he found the exact method of intake (Rosendahl cooks his cannabis leaves in butter, creating an edible paste), and identified the best strains and dosage for his condition.
There are marijuana strains that are good for dozens of conditions, including ADD, pain relief, nausea and anxiety, or to build or even suppress an appetite.
"Medical marijuana has the support of most of the public, law enforcement and legislators, as it has been proven to provide relief for certain diseases and chronic conditions," Dr. Bedrick commented. "Now it is time to bring this proven and safe treatment out of the dark and shine a light on all aspects of this important medicine. Our intention with this new website is to have sections dedicated to the many stakeholders in this issue," Bedrick added. "For the patient about proper use, dosing and strains; to law enforcement regarding regulations; to legislators about transparency, compliance, and taxation issues; to dispensary operators about how to maintain compliance and work within the current laws; and to the general public to simply provide correct and factual information."
The new website is scheduled to be launched by May 15, 2013, and will be announced in a future press release.
To view the article in the Los Angeles Times, visit: http://articles.latimes.com/2013/mar/08/local/la-me-holland-pot-councilman-20130308
For more information on Medbox, please call (800) 762-1452 or go online to www.medboxinc.com.
About Medbox, Inc: 
Medbox is a leader in the development, sales and service of automated, biometrically controlled dispensing and storage systems for medicine and merchandise. Medbox has offices throughout the world, including New York, Arizona, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Tokyo, London and Toronto, and has their corporate headquarters in Los Angeles.
Medbox provides their patented systems, software and consulting services to pharmacies, dispensaries, urgent care centers, drug rehab clinics, hospitals, prison systems, hospice facilities, and medical groups worldwide.
Medbox, Inc. is a publicly traded company, and is listed on the OTC Markets, ticker symbol MDBX.
For more information on Medbox, please contact the Medbox Investor Relations Department at (800) 762-1452 or go online to www.medboxinc.com.
SOURCE Medbox, Inc.

Medical Marijuana comes to Maryland - 10 years late

 

It's the nice governor is dropping his opposition to the medical marijuana law now being considered by the legislature. It would have been an important first step if this were 2003 ("O'Malley administration backs medical marijuana bill," March 8).

 

However, it's 2013, and Maryland is once again behind the curve. The front lines in the battle between big government and individual rights are being waged in Colorado and Washington state, where state governments have the courage to listen to a majority of the electorate rather than to the big pharmaceutical companies and their million-dollar bribes. But perhaps I'm being too cynical.

 

At least Maryland is finally going to join the 18 states and the District of Columbia that have at least enacted some sort of reform. And anyone doubting the efficacy of medical marijuana can go look up the double blind, placebo-controlled study just published in this month's The Journal of Pain, conducted at the prestigious University of California at Davis.

 

The researchers studied vaporized marijuana of varying THC content — the active ingredient in cannabis — and found reductions in pain comparable to the opiates for all varieties of marijuana tested.

So when you start getting the letters of condemnation from Drug Enforcement Administration agents, members of the police/prison industrial complex and, of course, the random "experts" from the government (who are really just paid hacks for Big Pharma), remember this latest study that proves their objections to be just as dishonest as the "campaign contributions" they've been using to keep politicians doing their bidding all these years.

Minnesota medical marijuana push to wait till 2014

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota won't have a showdown over medical marijuana this year.

Heather Azzi of Minnesotans for Compassionate Care, a pro-marijuana policy group, said Wednesday that bills to permit marijuana for medical reasons will be introduced in the next week or two. But Azzi, the group's political director, said the legislation won't move through Legislature this year.

"We just had a lot of background work to do before we got started," she said.

Supporters hope to latch onto efforts to relax marijuana laws in other states. Voters in Washington state and Colorado approved ballot measures last fall making it legal to possess small amounts of marijuana. It was a step beyond laws in 18 states that give people with certain conditions clearance to use marijuana after getting a physician's approval.

Medical marijuana proposals are circulating in at least a dozen states. Last week, Maryland's health secretary expressed support for legislation there, arguing the federal government has not brought charges against any state employees in other states who may have been involved with distributing medical marijuana.

Minnesota lawmakers approved a medical marijuana bill in 2009, but it ran into a veto by then-Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty. Current Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton told The Associated Press in December that he wasn't interested in decriminalizing marijuana for medical or recreational use. "I don't think we need another drug operating in our society," he said then.

There are no indications Minnesota's law enforcement community is willing to budge from its opposition. Dennis Flaherty, executive director of the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, said supporters have yet to seek his group's input on the new proposal but he said any plan similar to the 2009 bill would be a nonstarter.

"It would be a regulatory and enforcement nightmare," Flaherty said.

Azzi said the new bill will include added precautions, including a provision for safety centers to check for marijuana impurities.

"There has to be a way for us to mitigate their concerns," she said. "We will be meeting with them between now and January to do just that."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Minn-medical-marijuana-push-to-wait-until-2014-4351239.php#ixzz2NTRbW11N

Free X Nutrients Clone Gel Sample

Free X Nutrients Clone Gel Sample

'Weed pass; needed to get high in amsterdam???

A Dutch judge on Friday upheld the government's plan to introduce a "weed pass" to prevent foreigners from buying marijuana in coffee shops in the Netherlands.

Amsterdam, whose scores of coffee shops are a major tourism drawcard, opposes the plan, and mayor Eberhard van der Laan says he wants to hammer out a compromise.

A lawyer for coffee shop owners said he would file an urgent appeal against the ruling by a judge at The Hague District court that clears the way for the introduction of the pass in southern provinces on May 1.

The pass will roll out in the rest of the country - including Amsterdam - next year. It will turn coffee shops into private clubs with membership open only to Dutch residents and limited to 2,000 per shop.

The changes are the most significant rollback in years to the traditional Dutch tolerance of marijuana use.

In a written ruling, the court agreed with government lawyer Eric Daalder that the fight against criminality linked to the drug trade justified the measure.

"This is a totally political judgment," said Maurice Veldman, one of the team of lawyers who represented coffee shop owners in the case. "The judge completely fails to answer the principal question: Can you discriminate against foreigners when there is no public order issue at stake?"

Veldman said he would appeal, but added it was unlikely he could do so before the new policy comes into force May 1.

The government argues that the move is justified as a way of cracking down on so-called "drug tourists," effectively couriers who drive over the border from neighboring Belgium and Germany to buy large amounts of marijuana and take it home to resell.

The tourists cause traffic and public order problems in towns and cities along the Dutch border.

However, such problems are virtually nonexistent in Amsterdam where the small, smoke-filled coffee shops are visited by thousands of tourists each year - mostly youngsters who consider smoking a joint to be part of the essential Amsterdam experience alongside visiting cultural highlights like the Van Gogh museum and the canals.

The conservative Dutch government introduced the new measures saying it wants to return shops back to what they were originally intended to be: small local stores selling to local people.

The government had no immediate reaction to Friday's ruling.

Coffee shop owners in the southern city of Maastricht have said they plan to disregard the new measures, forcing the government to prosecute one of them in a test case.

Though the weed pass policy was designed to resolve traffic problems facing southern cities, later studies have predicted that the result of the system would be a return to street dealing and an increase in petty crime - which was the reason for the introduction of the tolerance policy in the 1970s in the first place.

The cities of Tilburg, Breda and Maastricht have now said they oppose the pass system, though Eindhoven plans to move ahead with it and the eastern city of Dordrecht wants to adopt it in anticipation of an influx of foreign buyers - even though it is not yet required to do so.

Drying and curing your marijuana

Drying and curing cannabis properly will yield the most THC-potent smoke. When dried and cured improperly, potency can diminish substantially. The level of THC in a plant is determined by its genetics. Proper drying and curing will keep the THC level as high as genetically possible. It does not increase potency. A little background on what happens inside and outside the harvested drying plant will help you understand why proper drying and curing are so important to good quality dope.
Drying evaporates most of the 70- 75 percent water content in fresh marijuana. Drying also converts THC from its non-psychoactive crude acidic form to its psychoactive pH-neutral form. Once dry, THC-potent marijuana can be smoked and you will get high. Every THC molecule must shed their moisture content before they are fully psychoactive. In other words fresh green marijuana will not be very potent.
When you cut a plant or plant part and hang it to dry, the transport of fluids within the plant continues, but at a slower rate. Stomata, small openings on leaf undersides, close soon after harvest and drying is slowed since little water vapor escapes. The natural plant processes slowly come to an end as
the plant dries. The outer cells are the first to dry, but fluid still moves from internal cells to supply moisture to the dry outer cells. When this process occurs properly, the plant dries evenly throughout. Removing leaves and large stems upon harvest speeds drying, however, moisture content within the “dried” buds, leaves and stems is most often uneven. Quick drying also traps chlorophylls and other pigments, starch and nitrates within plant tissue, making it taste “green” burn unevenly and taste bad.

Taste and aroma improve when these pigments break down. Slow even drying – where the humidity is similar inside and outside the foliage – allows enough time for the pigments to degrade. Hanging entire plants to dry allows this process to occur over time, about 3-4 weeks at 50-60 percent relative humidity and a temperature range of 60-70 degrees F. (15-21 degrees C.) The large outer leaves also form a protective sheath around buds. This protective foliage shields resin glands on buds from rupture and bruising.
Removing large leaves and stems upon harvest saves time. This is what most growers do, because fresh supple leaves are easier to work with than dry leaves. When you are looking a manicuring 5 kilos, you make it as easy as possible! However, this process often causes uneven drying and keeps moisture inside the foliage. This is why it is important to “cure” the “dry” marijuana.
Curing lets the plants continue to dry slowly. The first week of curing affects potency in that it removes moisture within the bud evenly, so that virtually all the THC is psychoactive. Curing also allows buds to dry enough so that mold does not grow when it is stored. A well-cured bud will also burn with an even glow.
Note:
Rough handling and friction from fondling hands will bruise and knock off resin glands. Even with proper drying and curing, brutal handling of harvested marijuana will diminish THC content.

Drying

Here is one of the best ways to dry plants to retain the maximum amount of psychoactive THC. Cut the entire ripe plant at the base and hang it upside down on a line to dry. Try to keep plants from touching each other to avoid uneven drying and mold. Keep the humidity between 50-60 percent. Keep the temperature at about 60-70 degrees F. (15-21 degrees C.). The room should be relatively dark as light, especially direct sunlight, degrades THC.
A circulation and ventilation fan may be necessary to control heat and humidity. You can also use a dehumidifier to control humidity or an air conditioner to lower ambient relative humidity and control room temperature. Do not train fans directly on drying plants it causes them to dry unevenly.
Depending upon atmospheric conditions and the size and density of plants and buds, plants should be dry enough to smoke in about a week. Plants with outer “fan” leaves intact take longer to dry than if leaves have been removed.
Check for dryness by bending a stem. It should snap. The bud should be dry to touch, but not brittle. The bud should burn well enough to smoke now.
Once dry, carefully manicure buds by cutting large leaves where they attach to the stem. Leaving the petiole (leaf stem) can cause mold to grow. Snip off smaller leaves that show little resin so that buds a beautiful bud remains.
Freeze Drying
Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide. CO” changes from its frozen solid to a gas without turning into a liquid, a dry (ice) process that is called sublimation. The atmosphere contains little CO2. Dry ice sublimes (converts) completely into a gas leaving virtually no liquid. It is dry.
When moist marijuana is enclosed with dry ice at virtually zero relative humidity, water molecules migrate from the cannabis to the dry ice. The relative humidity of the CO2 increases and the moisture content of the marijuana decreases. This process occurs below 0 degrees C (32 degrees F), preserving the cannabis.
Place equal amounts of dry ice and bud into a container. Dry ice on the bottom and bud on top. Seal with a lid. Make a few small holes in the lid of the container for excess gas to exit. Place in the freezer. Check the dry ice every 24 hours. When the ice is gone, the buds will be completely dry. If not dry, add more dry ice until cannabis is dry. Conserve dry ice by partially drying buds for a few days before enclosing with dry ice.
This method retains potency, freshness and causes very little degradation of resin glands by the bad guys – heat, light, air and fondling hands. The marijuana tastes ‘minty’ because the chlorophyll does not break down.

Curing

Even though the plants appear to be dry, they still contain moisture inside. This moisture affects taste and potency. To remove this excess moisture, curing
is necessary. Curing makes the bud uniformly dry and converts virtually all THC into its psychoactive form. Cut stems into manageable lengths – less than 12 inches (30 centimeters) – and place them in an airtight container. Glass containers with a rubber or similar seal on top are the best. Avoid Ziploc plastic bags, which are not airtight. Many growers also avoid plastic containers such as Tupperware, sighting the plastic imparts an undesirable flavor in the buds.
Enclose buds in a container. This creates a microclimate that allows moisture to “even out” within the buds. Internal moisture will migrate to the dry portions of the bud. Gently pack as many buds
in the glass container as possible without damaging them. Leave the jar(s) in a cool dry dark place. Check the jar in 2-4 hours to see if buds “sweated” moisture. Check buds by gently squeezing to feel if they are moister than they were a few hours before. Be careful when squeezing buds, they bruise easily. Most often they will be completely dry. If not, leave them in the sealed jar overnight and check the next day.
The buds will be a bit moist. Remove them from the jar and gently lay in the bottom of a paper bag. They can be stacked in the paper bag as high as 10 centimeters (3 inches). Close the top of the bag by folding once. Check the buds 2-3 times during the day to see if they are dry. Carefully turn them in the bag so that different sides are exposed. Remove when they are dry and place back into the sealed glass jar. Check them the next day to see if they are evenly dry and not moist again. If moist, remove and place back in the paper bag until dry. When dry place back in the glass container. Repeat process until buds are evenly dry.
If buds appear to have fairly low moisture content, you may be able to leave them in the jar and let excess moisture escape out the top. Simply open the jar for a few minutes every few hours to let the excess moisture escape before closing the lid again.
Check the container daily, leaving the top open for 5-10 minutes so moisture evacuates. After a week or two, it should be totally dry and ready to seal airtight. Vacuum seal the jar and place it in the refrigerator for storage. Leave it in the refrigerator or a cool dark dry place for a month or longer. The taste and potency will be tops! Refrigeration slows decomposition but remember, refrigerators have a high humidity level, so the container must be sealed airtight. I just checked the relative humidity in temperature in my refrigerator – 65 percent relative humidity and 5 degrees C. (40 degrees F). Do not place it in the freezer. Freezing draws moisture to the surface of buds, which can harm resin glands on the surface.

FAST DRYING

I do not recommend fast drying however here is a brief rundown on several methods for those of you who can’t wait.
Method One: Manicure fresh buds. Spread them out evenly and wrap in paper or enclose in an envelope. Place the paper or envelope on top of a warm object – refrigerator, radiator, television, etc. Depending upon heat level, buds will be dry in a few hours to overnight. Buds should be a bit crispy when dry. Place buds in an airtight container until they sweat. Follow curing instructions above.
Method Two: Cut up fresh buds and foliage. Place on a 6-inch (15 centimeter) square of tinfoil. Hold or place it over a 60-80-watt light bulb. Stir every 30 seconds. The weed takes 1-3 minutes to dry.
Method Three: Place cut up buds and foliage on a cookie sheet in an oven at 65 degrees C. (150 degrees F.) for 10-15 minutes. Check regularly until dry. Follow curing instructions above.
Method Four: Place cut up buds and foliage in a microwave oven. Power the oven to 40-50 percent and give short 5-10 second bursts. Check regularly until dry.
Method Five: Cut fresh buds and foliage into small pieces and place them in a glass jar with an airtight lid. Place several silica gel desiccant packs (the kind that come with electronic devices and cameras) into the glass jar and seal the jar. Moisture will migrate to the silica gel in a few hours. Remove the packets and dry in the sun. Replace silica packs until marijuana is dry enough to smoke. Find silica gel packs at auto parts or electronic stores.
Method Six: Peel stems so they plants dry faster. First remove large leaves. Peel off the outer layer of the stem with a knife. This exposes the inside of the stem and cuts drying time by about 20 percent.
Patient growers smoke no bud before its time!

Medical marijuana grow update videos

Just uploaded 3/31/2012
Sour Diesel, Blue Dream and Pineapple Diesel

10 major health benefits of marijuana

As you all know by know medical marijuana is here to stay. There have been major break through studies done with the use of medical marijuana, here are some of the main ones.

1. Cancer

There is a lot of unfounded rhetoric that states smoking pot can cause lung cancer because your inhaling smoke, like cigarettes. This simply isn’t true. Cigarette smoke causes cancer because the tobacco is radiated whereas marijuana isn’t. In fact, the American Association for Cancer Research has found the marijuana actually works to slow down tumor growth in the lungs, breasts, and brain considerably.


2. Seizures

Marijuana is a muscle relaxant and has “antispasmodic” qualities which have proven to be a very effective treatment of seizures. There are actually countless cases of people suffering from seizures that have only been able to function better through the use of marijuana.


3. Migraines

Since medicinal marijuana was legalized in California, doctors have reported that they have been able to treat more than 300,000 cases of migraines that conventional medicine couldn’t through marijuana. And that’s NOT just because it’s easy to fake having migraines, right? RIGHT?!


4. Glaucoma

Marijuana’s treatment of glaucoma has been one of the best documented. There isn’t a single valid study that exists that disproves marijuana’s very powerful and popular effects on glaucoma patients. Beat that, DEA!


5. Multiple Sclerosis

Marijuana’s effects on multiple sclerosis patients became better documented when former talk-show host, Montel Williams began to use pot to treat his MS. Marijuana works to stop the neurological effects and muscle spasms that come from the fatal disease.


6. Tourette's and OCD

Just like marijuana can treat seizures and multiple sclerosis, marijuana’s effects slow down the tics in those suffering from Tourette’s, and the obsessive neurological symptoms in people with OCD.

7. ADD and ADHD

A well documented USC study done about a year ago showed that marijuana is not only a perfect alternative for Ritalin but treats the disorder without any of the negative side effects of the pharmaceutical.

8. IBS and Crohn's disease

Marijuana has shown that it can help with symptoms of the chronic diseases as it stops nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.

9. Alzheimer's

Despite what you may have heard about marijuana’s effects on the brain, the Scripps Institute, in 2006, proved that the THC found in marijuana works to prevent Alzheimer’s by blocking the deposits in the brain that cause the disease.

10. Premenstrual Syndrome

Next time your girlfriend is complaining that you smoke too much weed, hand her a joint. Just like marijuana is used to treat IBS, it can be used to treat the cramps and discomfort that causes your girlfriend to lash out at you. Using marijuana for PMS actually goes all the way back to Queen Victoria. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.