Did you know that the number of strains of cannabis is estimated to be above 700 and growing, according to experts? This is because breeders and farmers are constantly experimenting and generating new strains of plants.
Marijuana is the dried seeds, leaves, stems, or flowers of the Cannabis plant. The manner you process the plant and the type of Cannabis plant defines the distinct types of marijuana strains.
Are you wondering what the different types of marijuana strains are? Learn more here.
Marijuana Strains
As mentioned above, there are many strains of marijuana. However, you classify Marijuana or Cannabis varieties into three main types:
1. Indica Marijuana
Indica plants are indigenous to cooler, drier regions such as Nepal and India, where summers are cooler and much shorter. Cannabis Indica adapted to these conditions by developing shorter flowering periods and thicker greenery and buds.
Indica plants are ideal for indoor growing due to their smaller size and short flowering period. They are easy to manipulate using training procedures and yield dense buds. In addition, Indica plants’ rapid flowering allows some producers to generate more harvests in less time.
2. Sativa Marijuana
Cannabis Sativa is a tropical plant native to Mexico, Thailand, Colombia, Vietnam, and even some parts of Africa.
To cope with the long, sweltering, and humid summers, Sativa plants ;
- Grow taller
- Have wider lateral root spacing
- Have feathery buds
- Grow smaller leaves
This naturally protects the plants from the excessive humidity in these places and hazards such as mildew or bugs.
Because Sativa crops grow taller, they are often especially suitable for outdoor cultivation. In addition, they thrive in warm, tropical areas with extended summers.
Hybrid Marijuana
As the market for cannabis rises, so does the development of a number of new strains. The vast majority of strains available on the commercial market now are hybrids.
Hybrid plants are created by crossing multiple cannabis strains to achieve particular effects or characteristics. This is a brief introduction to hybrids and some of the factors contributing to their popularity.
In general, there are four kinds of strains:
- In this cross-breeding technique, you cross two separate Sativa cultivars together
- Indica crossed with Indica refers to the cross-breeding of two different Indica types
- An Indica-dominant hybrid strain with Sativa features is a Sativa-dominant hybrid strain. It, on the other hand, possesses characteristics of both cannabis kinds. Consider the possibility of purple buds on a tall plant, for example
- Indica crossed with a Sativa. This hybrid will have traits of both types but will be Indica-dominant overall
In addition, auto-flowering crosses are cultivars with ruderalis DNA at some point in the past to produce flowers.
Breeding Hybrid Strains
Regardless of the plant you want to breed, the essential technique is the same. Cannabis is not an exception. You must fertilize a female plant with pollen from a male plant. This normally occurs in nature.
On the other hand, hybrid creation is the result of selective breeding carried out in a controlled setting by breeders. In other words, they select the female plants and male pollen that will produce a given trait or collection of attributes.
The seeds produced by this procedure will be first-born hybrids between the female and male parent plants. Those who exhibit the desirable characteristics will be bred again.
Breeders will “cube” the strain once these qualities have been produced. In other words, they will combine a young hybrid with a parent breed to strengthen the traits. Then, it is frequently repeated three or more times to stabilize the traits.
Cannabis can be sexually or asexually reproduced. In sexual reproduction, you combine two parents. Plant growth procedures include replication, cutting, and even root division. Asexual reproduction allows for continuous production of the same plant.
Why Are Hybrids Bred?
The question is, why are Hybrids bred? People breed strains mainly for their ability to:
Cannabinoid Content That Is Distinctive
As medical research progresses, an increasing number of breeds are being developed to maintain exact concentrations of specific cannabinoids in their tissues. For example, secret nature CBG.
Many cannabis strains have been shown to increase THC or CBD levels. Medical cannabis for youngsters, for instance, is bred from particular hybrid cultivars that will have low levels of THC but high levels of CBD. This type of cannabis is known as pediatric cannabis.
Size of Plant
Growing indoors or outdoors has its own set of limitations on the cultivator’s options. For example, Sativa are tall and tree-like in their growth. On the other hand, Indices are shrubby.
But, Hybrids are sometimes chosen for certain factors such as business, size, and other characteristics. In other words, you can confuse some Sativa hybrids for Indices in certain circumstances.
Plant Auto flowering
These strains have been crossed with a ruderalis parent at some time in their history. This means that your plant will blossom regardless of the number of times of light exposure it receives. You only need to pick high-quality auto-flowering seeds, and the rest of the process is very easy.
Plant Resins
Some plants have a higher resin content than others. Hybrids are crossed specifically for high resin content. As a general rule, Indicas have more resinous buds than Sativa, but Hybrids can also affect the dynamic in this area.
Flavonoids and Trepans
As people learn more about whole-plant therapy, the function of essential oils is now being re-examined to determine their effectiveness. In recent years, hybrids that blend essential oils have begun to come on the market, but they are still at an early stage of development.
Yield From a Plant
You can determine the amount a plant can produce by its genetic makeup. Therefore, you can develop plants to produce more yield.
Resistance to Diseases and Pests
Some plant varieties are more resilient to their environment and pests than others, much like humans. Therefore Hybrids can be bred to be more resilient.
Good, Better, and Best Marijuana!
As breeders and farmers strive relentlessly to introduce new marijuana strains, the types of marijuana strains are constantly expanding. With each new cannabis strain, production, diseases, and pests resistance, maturity time, strength, and other characteristics improve.
The development of new types of marijuana strains is essential for introducing traits that people want.
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