Kratom is a plant native to South East Asia that is gaining more and more popularity in recent years in the Western World. Many people have turned to kratom to get an extra boost of energy or to help them alleviate some ailments, including chronic pain, anxiety, and depression. Kratom is also favored among those who are seeking natural ways to ease the symptoms of opiate withdrawal. Others use kratom just to relax or to help them get better sleep.
Although you can find kratom in different formats in the market, including kratom powder, maybe you prefer buying crushed kratom leaves and make the powder yourself or even give it a try and cultivate your own kratom tree.
We already explained how to cultivate your own kratom tree in a previous article. One way to consume kratom is by boiling its leaves and preparing a tea, you can also take kratom in capsules, but some kratom users prefer to use kratom powder instead. So, once you have your own kratom tree, how can you make your own kratom powder? We’ll tell you all about it in this article.
How to Dry Kratom Leaves
When you have your own kratom tree, you’ll need to collect the leaves when they are mature enough. Mature leaves have a higher concentration on mitragynine and 7-hidroxymitragynine, main kratom’s alkaloids. Actually, these alkaloids are the ones that give kratom its properties, that’s why it is important to harvest only mature leaves. Typically, kratom’s leaves will be ready to harvest in late Fall.
After you collect the leaves, you need to dry them, but this process needs to be done properly. If the leaves are not properly dried, you may encounter problems when turning them into a powder as the residual humidity can make the powder to clump together. On the other hand, if you dry them for too long, they will start losing their properties. However, there is no general rule to dry kratom leaves (or any other type of leaves) as it will depend on many factors, such as the environmental conditions. Nevertheless, you will know that your leaves are ready when they crumble easily as you handle them.
Drying kratom leaves is no different than drying any other type of leaf. You can opt to dry kratom leaves hanging them in bundles, the same way you would do with any type of herb. Also, you can dry them by placing them under sunlight.
Finally, take into consideration that it is generally not a good idea to dry kratom’s leaves in the oven or the microwave. Although kratom’s alkaloids can resist heat well, you can damage the leaves by drying them this way, and you can even burn them.
How to Crush Kratom Leaves
Crushing kratom leaves is a very easy step, however, it must be performed properly so you don’t damage the leaves.
First of all, make sure that your leaves are properly dried. If they’re not, they won’t crumble easily, and it can also cause mold in your kratom. In that case, leave them to dry for a bit longer.
Secondly, you’ll need to remove the stem and veins from the leaves if you didn’t do it when you put them to dry. Some consider that it is easier to remove these parts before drying the leaves, other prefer doing it once they are dry. So, do it when it works better for you. Also, remember that kratom stem and vein contain alkaloids too, so you can either mix them with your kratom leaf powder or use them separately.
Use your hands to crush the leaves, they will crumble easily if they are properly dried. You can use crushed leaves to prepare your kratom tea, but if you don’t like to take kratom that way, keep reading to learn how to make kratom powder.
How to Make Kratom Powder
Once you have your crushed leaves, they can be easily turned into kratom powder. There are a few methods that you can use to make kratom powder:
- Using a food processor. You will need a powerful processor with a sharp blade. With this method, you will be able to process large amounts of kratom but take into consideration that the process can take a long time and you’ll probably need to grind the leaves more than once to get a fine powder.
- Using a pepper mill. This process needs to be made by hand, but it is very effective if you want to turn your leaves into a fine powder. If you don’t need to process large amounts of leaves, this is the best option.
- Using a coffee grinder. This is also a good method when you only have to process small amounts of kratom leaves. Consider that you’ll probably need to grind your crushed kratom leaves a few times to get a fine enough kratom powder.
How to Store Kratom Powder
Now that you have your fine kratom powder, you’ll need to store it properly, so it keeps its freshness and properties for a long period of time.
First of all, you’ll need to make sure that your kratom powder is completely dry and free of moisture. A bit of humidity in your kratom powder can spoil a whole batch completely. If you notice any moisture in your powder, you can try to put it to dry under the sun before storing it.
In order to choose a container for your kratom powder, you can use air-tight bags. Always, make sure that there’s no air remaining in the bag after you close it. You can achieve this by using a vacuum sealing device. Also, you can use a Ziploc bag and remove the air manually. To do this, place a straw on the corner of the bag, close the zipper completely (except for the corner where you have placed the straw) and suck the air out using the straw. Once you have sucked all the air out (or at least as much as you can), close the zip completely. You probably won’t remove all the air from the bag, but this is better than doing nothing.
Moreover, you should always keep your kratom powder away from light, as UV can deteriorate kratom powder (and leaves) fast.
Finally, store your kratom powder away from strong odors. Kratom can take up the smell of the surroundings or whatever that is placed next to it.
How to Take Kratom Powder
Kratom powder is one of the most popular kratom formats. You can take kratom powder using one of the following methods:
- Brewing the powder into a tea
- Packing it into capsules
- Using the toss and wash method
Finally, you can use your kratom to make your own kratom resin or kratom extract.
As you see, kratom powder is a very convenient kratom format. You can consume kratom powder any way you like it.
