weed affiliates
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10 Best Marijuana Affiliate Programs

Affiliate marketing is one of the most popular ways to make money online. And with the growing success of the legalization movement, now is the time to become an affiliate marketer for the booming cannabis industry!

What Is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a kind of online advertising. Basically, bloggers and webmasters post banner ads and other links to online retailers. In exchange, they receive a commission on all sales referred by their site. The commission rate can be anywhere from 5% to 20%, and sometimes even higher!
This is ideal for the cannabis industry in particular. Why? Because Google AdSense will not post ads on any site that encourages marijuana use. Which means that the main source of online revenue isn’t available to canna-businesses. Affiliate marketing provides the perfect way for marijuana sites to support each other, so the cannabis industry can continue to thrive.

10 Best Marijuana Affiliate Programs

1. My Weed Seeds

My Weed Seeds will pay you 20% of all sales that you refer directly. Not only that, but you can also make a percentage of the sales from other affiliates that you referred to the program, and the ones they refer, and the ones they refer, and so on… It’s a 10-tiered system that has huge potential for the motivated marketer!

2. High Supplies

This online seed retailer based in the Netherlands pays you a commission of 15% on all sales that you refer as an affiliate.

3. Cannabis Training University

The affiliate program from Cannabis Training University is another one that rewards the dedicated marketer. Here’s how it works: you make 30% from your first 3 sales, 40% on sales 4 – 7, and 50% on all sales after that!

4. Crop King Seeds

Crop King Seeds has one of the sharpest websites around, with an online store that sells much more than seeds — like T-shirts, collectibles, grinders and other accessories. And as an affiliate you earn a flat 20% rate on all sales you refer. The only downside: the $200 minimum payout is twice as high as most.

5. VaporNation

Earn 15% of referred sales on a huge selection of vaporizers, glassware, scales, storage and cleaning supplies, and more. Plus, VaporNation gives you a $10 bonus just for signing up!

6. Seedsman

The two-tiered affiliate program at Seedsman.com lets you earn 15% of all sales made through your site, as well as 5% of sales through your sub-affiliates.

7. I Love Growing Marijuana

By posting a link to the FREE ebook, “The Marijuana Grow Bible,” you earn 20% of all seed and product sales from customers you refer.

8. Dealzer

Dealzer.com offers a variety of grow supplies, like hydroponic boxes, grow tents, ventilation equipment and LED lights. As an affiliate, you can earn 15% of all sales referred by your site.

9. Dr. Seeds

Dr. Seeds is another online seed retailer with an excellent affiliate program. You can earn 15% commission on all sales you refer.

10. Growing Elite Marijuana

Ryan Riley has put together a comprehensive grow guide, featuring both digital downloads and a hardcover book. By signing up as an affiliate, you can earn a whopping 57% of every sale you refer! You can look forever and not find a better commission rate than that.
image: shutterstock

Can Cannabis Help Create A More Compassionate World
CategoriesAnalysis/Opinion, Culture by

Can Cannabis Help Create a More Compassionate World?

Donald Trump has been president for about 2 weeks, and already the country is in crisis.
His policies are deeply divisive, and have sparked massive protests across the nation. As well as alienating other countries, including our closest allies. He is one of the most controversial and unpopular incoming presidents in history, and he is surrounding himself with one of the most corrupt and inept cabinets in history. And most of us, here in the U.S. and around the world, are still in shock, wondering, “How the hell did this happen?”
Good question.
Trump rose to power because he managed to unite conservative America. He did this by pitting them against a common enemy — or, more accurately, enemies. Which include immigrants (especially Muslims and Mexicans), foreigners, the media, and even liberals and progressives here at home. Really, anyone who looks or thinks differently from rural, white, conservative Christians.
He is a classic example of a “demagogue,” someone who achieves political power by appealing to people’s fears and prejudices, rather than advocating rational policies.
And he definitely isn’t the only one.
 

Has The Whole World Gone Crazy?

Perhaps you’ve heard of Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines. He made headlines because of his scathing comments about Barack Obama (he told him to “go to hell,” and on another occasion called him a “son of a bitch”). What you might not know is that he has taken the idea of a “War on Drugs” to whole new levels of insanity.
Duterte has also united the masses against a common enemy: the drug addict. He’s instituted a take-no-prisoners policy, giving police officers permission to kill suspected dealers and users without due process. He has whipped the nation into a frenzy with hateful speeches, encouraging armed vigilantes to “kill them all.” Since he took office, more than 7,000 people have been killed — that’s about 1,000 murders per month.
Examples abound: Vladimir Putin, Narendra Modi, Marine Le Pen; Erdogan and the ongoing state of emergency (dictatorship?) in Turkey. A similar distrust of foreigners seems to underlie the Brexit vote. Decades of globalist, free market policies have decimated working class people around the globe — and they’re pissed off about it. They’re hurting, confused and afraid, and they want someone to blame.
Whether it’s terrorists or drug addicts, people from another country, culture or religion, doesn’t matter. They are looking for an enemy, someone different, someone “other” — someone they can punish.

What the World Needs Now

But this kind of righteous, blame-and-punish mentality only breeds more of the same. It only creates new victims, who are angry and hurt, and for good reason. And they, in time, will get their revenge. And on and on…
How do we break this cycle?
We have to stop reacting out of hate, and fear, and anger. We have to pause, and take the time to process our feelings. We have to take a look around and realize that everyone else is feeling the same. We’ve all got our grievances. We are all in the same boat. There is no enemy. There is no “them.” There is only us, and we are all in this together.
At the risk of sounding cliche, what the world needs now is compassion. A little love and understanding. Before we point the finger — or the gun — at someone else, we need to stop and ask, “What’s it like to be you? How do you feel? Why do you do the things you do?”
And cannabis is the perfect catalyst for this kind of contemplation.

The Cannabis State of Mind

Marijuana induces exactly the sort of relaxed and open state of mind that makes us stop and reflect. It loosens us up, shakes us out of our mental ruts, and fills us with curiosity and wonder. The same qualities of the cannabis high that help us to better appreciate music, comedy, art, etc. can also help us to appreciate other points of view, different cultures and ideas.
I’m not so naive as to think that the solution to all the world’s problems is for everyone to sit down and get high together. (Although it certainly couldn’t hurt.) But we do need to realize that all of the external problems — poverty, inequality, crime, war, racism, and so on — have their roots within us.
It all starts in our minds, our belief systems, our state of consciousness.
As long as we are living in a state of fear, we will continue to seek security, power and control — even at the expense of individual liberty, human rights, and human lives. And we will continue to be manipulated by demagogues, who know how to play upon our fears, and arouse our anger for their own ends.
But we can choose a better way. We can shift our state of mind from one of fear, to one of compassion, love and understanding. We can stop blaming “them,” and start addressing the real issues. And we can, and should, make use of every tool, technique and technology to help us along the way — including cannabis.
So sit back, relax, and smoke ’em if you got ’em. Read, study, meditate, talk to strangers, travel. Do whatever you can to open your mind, and open your heart, and bring a little more compassion into the world.
We need all that we can get.

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CategoriesAnalysis/Opinion, Guides, Science by

What Science says about Cannabis Trichomes

Trichomes are responsible for producing cannabinoids and terpenes in cannabis.

In fact, almost all of the medical benefit of cannabis comes from trichomes. Compounds like THC and CBD are prescribed by doctors to treat maladies from cancer to headaches.
Trichomes (trichs) are at the heart of the cannabis consumers quest. They are the workhorses that produce the medical miracles that cannabis is known for.
That is because all of the chemicals doctors have discovered in cannabis that treat disease and pain are produced in tiny structures called trichomes. Without trichomes, cannabis wouldn’t be able to help people.
Need to cure some cancer? Cannabis can help because of trichomes. Looking to take the edge off with a quick toke? Better have THC rich trichomes loaded in that bowl or the effort is wasted.
 
Trichomes

So what are trichomes exactly?

 
Trichomes are basically tiny chemical factories that cannabis plants create during the flowering process. These factories produce a potent mix of chemicals known as cannabinoids and terpenes.
 
Most of the 85 cannabinoids found in cannabis are non-psychoactive, meaning they don’t get you high. Yet they do have significant scientific and medical applications that go way beyond getting stoned.
 
Cannabinoids interact with the endocannabinoid system to produce a variety of positive effects. Research shows that THC and CBD act as neuroprotectants, increase neurogenesis, and can even relieve depression.
 
Terpenes on the other hand are the chemicals responsible for smells. Limonene is the terpene responsible for the smell of lemons while myrcene is what gives mangos their smell. Yet both terpenes along with a slew of others can be produced by trichomes.
 
So what does a trichome look like? It is a small hair-like structure produced in the flowers, leaves and stem of cannabis plants. Their main purpose is to protect the plant from dangers like insects or fungus.
 
Not to be confused with the pistils, trichs are small. Ranging from only 15-500 microns in size, individual trichomes are almost impossible to see with the naked eye. After all, a human hair is only 100 microns across.
 
Being small doesn’t stop them from creating the potent smell associated with cannabis though. Terpenes produced by trichs can be incredibly powerful, filling the air for miles around with the sweet smell of ganja.
 

 There are many interesting nuances about the science of trichomes. 

 
The chemicals that trichs produce have some amazing properties as well. Cannabinoids like THC and CBD act as neuroprotectants, increase neurogenesis, and relieve depression. Contrary to the fear-mongering of the last few decades, consuming cannabis can protect the body.
 
And don’t assume that people need to be blazed out of their minds in order to receive a benefit. Most of the 85 cannabinoids found in cannabis are non-psychoactive, meaning they don’t get you high.
In fact, even some forms of THC like THC-A and THC-V don’t get people high. The compounds simply can’t fit into the brains receptors responsible for the feeling of getting high.
Even though a person may not consciously feel the effects, cannabinoids and terpenes produced in trichs have a synergistic quality. The compounds work with each other to magnify the potency of the others.
Take Myrcene as an example. This terpene is found in and  responsible for the smell associated with mangos. Myrcene is also one of the most prevalent terpenes in cannabis.
Besides smelling nice, myrcene also helps THC bypass the blood-brain barrier. Basically letting people get high faster and with less cannabis. The effects of cannabis comes down to the ratio of terpenes and cannabinoids that the trichomes have in them at the time.
The specific ratio of cannabinoids and terpenes inside of trichs changes as the terpene develops. This makes timing the harvest a critical step of the process.

Trichome care — what to know about aging and handling of the plant.

 
So how do people know when a trichome is ready? They look for some of the signs of mature trichomes. These signs include a strong odor and a milky color.
 
As the cannabis plant enters the flowering process, it starts producing vast quantities of trichs.  Strong odors will develop as the initially clear trichomes begin their chemical foundries.
 
Immature trichomes often have high levels of CBD instead of THC. As a trichome matures, it will begin to cloud up and become milky. Once they have matured, THC becomes the most common cannabinoid.
 
Life for a trichomes doesn’t stop once it hits maturity though. They continue to develop as long as the plant sticks around. Trichomes that have lived past their prime also continue to change color.
 
As a trichome moves into old age, the color shifts from milky white to dark amber. The color reflects the chemical decomposition of THC. As the trichomes age, they break down THC into CBN.
 

How do people get the most value from trichomes?

 
Trichomes are produced during the flowering process of the cannabis plant. Once produced, trichomes develop over several months before being ready to harvest.
 
Harvesting before trichomes are fully developed will limit the potency of the final product. That makes the best time to harvest the plant at the final stages of the flowering stage.
 
Even though all plants are able to produce trichs, they don’t all do it evenly. The female plants produce the significantly more than the males, especially when unpollinated.
 
Pollinated cannabis plants divert a great deal of energy to producing seeds instead of trichs. This is why many growers remove male plants from their crop before moving into the flowering process.
 
Things like ensuring adequate nutrients, preventing pollination, high enough levels of light and preventing pests all contribute to heavy trichome yields. Genetics also play a major role in trichome development.
 
Sometimes strains can produce more trichomes than others. Strains like Durban Poison and Haze take a long time to grow and are known to produce less than strains like Critical Cure and Green Crack.

Other times, a plant needs a little extra push.

Adding  extra CO2 to a grow room can also increase the growth rate of cannabis which leads to additional trich production.
 
Many growers implement a CO2 burner in their rooms to ensure a constant abundance of gas for the plants to use in making more trichomes. This technique can add a significant amount of trichomes compared to other methods.
 
Growers can also extract the trichs from harvested plants in order to produce a stronger product. The extraction process can be simple or complex but the goal is the same: separate the trichomes from the rest of the plant.
 
Methods like ice baths, dry sifting and using chemical solvents have all been developed to try and isolate the trichomes. The isolated trichomes are essential for products like BHO, CO2 and PHO.
 
Truly, the trichome is the key player in the cannabis game. Without trichs and the chemicals they produce, cannabis would not be cultivated around the world.
 
Hopefully, legalization will continue to progress and more people will get to learn about how important the trichome really is. Thanks for reading.
 

grinder
CategoriesGuides by

How To Pick The Right Weed Grinder

Why You Need To Grind Your Weed

Did you know you could be wasting pot by not grinding it up? One time at a party, a guy handed me a bong. Then, he stuffed a decent sized nug into the bowl piece and said “hit it.” I offered to grind it and he said there’s no need. Me and a friend thought he was joking but he was dead serious. I attempted to light it and barely blackened a corner of the nug while using up all my lung capacity for a small, unsatisfying hit. I knew then that this was clearly ineffective. You need to grind your weed up to get it to evenly burn, otherwise some of your weed won’t burn.
If you don’t believe me, try stuffing a whole nug into a bowl and smoking it. Then, you can try a ground up nug in a bowl and see which you prefer. You can break weed down by hand as well. However, breaking up by hand is messier and less effective than an even grind.

Picking The Right Grinder For Smoking Weed

So there isn’t one grinder to satisfy every kind of smoker. If you’re just a typical bowl or joint smoker a medium sized 4-piece grinder will do the trick. However, depending on your exact smoking method, there are grinders that will make your life even easier.
Alpaca Grinder
One of the most convenient grinders for bowl, bong, and paper users alike is the Alpaca Herb Grinder & Dispenser. The grinder is funnel shaped and makes packing a bowl or filling papers quicker and less messy. The company guarantees your herbs will be ground and dispensed within 10 seconds. Good luck pulling that procedure off with a traditional 4-piece grinder.
Using your hands to pinch and transfer weed usually leads to some spillage and loss. Well, the Alpaca grinder will ensure every precious trichome makes its way into your bowl. Simply fill the top chamber then twist. Ground herbs will instantly dispense from the bottom of the funnel.
Pen Simple
If twisting your grinder is too much work for you or if you have a debilitating condition that makes it hard, the Pen Simple was made for you. The Pen Simple is a pen-shaped electronic weed dispenser. Similar to the Alpaca grinder it does not need to be opened to dispense so there’s less waste. The Pen Simple can be carried in your pocket without worry of it opening and spilling out your precious herbs.
Best of all, weed is dispensed at the press of a button. The grind is perfect for joints, blunts, hand pipes, and water pipes. It can even fill pre-rolled cones. The Pen Simple just made smoking a whole lot easier.

Grinders For Vapes

Vaporizers benefit from a fine grind. Larger pieces of pot can be tough for certain vaporizers to handle. So, when shopping for a Vape Grinder you want to get something that really pulverizes your weed.
Kannastor Vape GR8TR Grinder
Kannastor has actually made a grinder specifically designed for vapes. The grinder comes with way more pieces than your typical grinder. The top portion of the grinder is a storage for pre-ground herbs. Finally, the blades have no trouble tearing a full nug into green sand.
Magic Flight Launch Box Finishing Grinder
The Magic Flight Finishing Grinder was designed specifically for their vaporizer. It’s a much simpler design than the Kannastor but it requires a bit more elbow grease. The 2-piece wooden grinder with a metal cheese grater-like plate. Finally, it’s extremely easy to clean and gives a fine grind that is perfect for ANY vaporizer.
image: greenito.com

rappers
CategoriesList by

Weed Advocate Rappers

Weed isn’t a topic rappers shy from. In fact, a lot of the positive attention given to marijuana started in hip-hop. Some rappers take weed a bit more seriously than just smoking it. Some believe smoking weed should be a human right and some are using their voice to do something about it. Whether it is through lyrics or activism here are some rappers doing more than just rapping about weed.

Ab-Soul

Ab Soul is known for his politically-charged lyrics. He started smoking weed after high school but he’s been an advocate ever since. Weed laws aren’t the only thing Soul wants to shed light on though. In fact, on the video of a single “Huey Knows” from his latest album, he honors political activist Huey P. Newton. Huey P. Newton was the co-founder of the Black Panther Party by repeating his image throughout the video.
As the video plays, images of recent controversies such as Colin Kaepernick, police brutality, and Donald Trump pop-up as well.
This isn’t a new trait for Ab-Soul, he was just as politically aware on his 2012 album “Control System.” On the album, he had a song called “SOPA,” bringing light to the Stop Online Piracy Act which would have violated the constitutional rights of all Americans. Additionally, in his song “Terrorist Threats” he addresses imprisonment through debt.

Chance The Rapper

Chance The Rapper has never been shy about his pot-use. It’s spoken about in his lyrics, interviews, twitter, etc. He was suspended from High School for smoking weed so it is apparent he has never cared for marijuana laws. He believes weed should be legal but he’s been busy fighting bigger battles. Chance The Rapper did an hour-long lecture on the Art of Activism for the University of Chicago.
From providing the homeless with clothes to launching multiple anti-violence initiatives in Chicago, Chance has wasted no time using his newly gained influence to bring about positive change. The young activist, has never been shy about the violence he sees in his city. It’s painted in his lyrics, tweets, and actions. He has encouraged other residents of Chicago to get out and protest to regain safety in their streets.

Killer Mike

We couldn’t leave Killer Mike off of our list of rap advocates. He’s been asked his political opinion on mainstream media and he had the pleasure of interviewing Bernie Sanders during the presidential election. He also introduced Bernie Sanders at his rally in Mike’s hometown Atlanta.
However, Killer Mike’s activism began well before his endorsement of Sanders.
He’s been on Real Time with Bill Maher, Fox, and CNN. He has been vocal about his views on racial discrimination, drug policy reform, and justice system reform.  He’s been an advocate of legal marijuana for a long time. Him and his partner in the Run The Jewels duo El-P are vocal weed advocates.

Snoop Dogg

One of the loudest advocates of legalized marijuana in the rap game is Snoop Dogg. Anytime Snoop spies foul play he’s the first to call people out. He’s chewed out the NFL for not allowing players to smoke weed. Weed isn’t the only thing that Snoop has been active about. Snoop lead a rally in LA with another rap activist “The Game” to reduce tensions between gangs and the police.