“What’s in a strain? That which we call a bud by any other name would smell as sweet.” Ok, so I may have jacked and hacked that quote from the man, Shakespeare himself, adding my own little spin of course. But really, what’s in a strain? Why are there so many options? The biggest question I hear on a daily basis at the shop is, “What are the different kinds of weed?” This question, although seemingly direct, is actually very vague. “Kinds” can relate to the species of the cannabis plant itself or it can relate to the strains specifically grown from these species. There are two subspecies of the cannabis plant that everyone can relate to most. Indica plants, which tend to give the patient more of a sleepy, couch-lock feel; a stone is what it’s referred to. Indica plants tend to grow short and fat and originate from countries such as Turkey, Afghanistan, Morocco, etc. Sativa plants, however, tend to give patients the euphoric, buzzy, alertness; a high if you will. Sativa plants tend to grow tall and thin and originate from countries found close to the equator. Below is a picture of four labels found on our shelves. One is an Indica and one a Sativa. You will notice the differences in the strong characteristic found in these subspecies. It’s then broken up even further to Hybrids of both Indica an Sativa. Hybrids are plants that show characteristics of both subspecies, but tend to be more dominate in one more than the other. Below, there is one full Indica, one Indica dominate, one full Sativa, and one Sativa dominant. You can notice why the Inidica/Indica dominate strains relate, and the same with the Sativa/Sativa dominant.
