i do not bother with the leaf trim unless its at the final harvest and then i may save it and make gumby hash. during the grow any trim gets disposed of in a safe manner. for the first 4 or 5 weeks of the flower stage, i trim off the lower bud sites that wont amount to much in the end. i will use these lower bud sites to get a sample of the final product but needs to dry and cure as normal. if your just looking for a quick smoke then sure the dehydrator will work fine on the lowest setting. the key is, is to get it just dry enough to burn properly and not so crisp it turns to dust when you touch it.