what does "strain" mean?

[IndoSmoke]

I've been looking at the forums and some people were talking about strains?? What does strain mean?? Anyone know?? Sorry if this question sounds stupid.

[Luke Skywalker]

Not at all mate, as I've said before many times, there are no stupid questions if you do not know the answer.

 

"Strains" are the term used by growers and breeders to define the groups of plants which have certain characteristics. Even though all of them are C. sativa, there has been enough segregation and inbreeding/crossbreeding between variant plants around the world to create many individual "types" "cultivars" (meaning literally cultivated variety) or "strains"...

 

A strain is usually a true breeding plant, that means when you cross the plants with males of the same strain they will not vary significantly from the original motherplants. Of course, that's not always the case, and what many people refer to as "strains" are in fact hybrids, and not stable beyond that initial cross at all. But that's another discussion.

 

There are also things called "landraces" which are generally defined as being long growing, naturalised to the conditions of the area in which it lives. An example would be Kiwi Green, a New Zealand landrace type, which is very tall and heavily sativa influenced. A landrace can also be cultivated, but once again, the lines are blurry between all these distinctions, and there has never, afaik, been a serious effort made to sort the botanical mess that is the naming of cannabis "strains" out.

 

I suppose the simplest, and best way to describe "strains" would be to say it's the different varieties of cannabis, be it short, tall, potent, weak, heavy in narcotic effect, or light and activating in the mind, whatever, these different properties, if stable and readily identifiable, defines a strain.

 

Hope that helps. I'm sure someone else will describe it better than I, and likely with far less words too.

[Luke Skywalker]

Oh yeah, and I've moved this post to the Strains, hybrids and cloning forum, just to put the right questions in the right place.

[pipeman]

basically just means different types of plants mate. They grow differently and give different highs. Some give trippy highs, some narcotic, some are stretchy tall plants and some are short bushy plants etc etc.

 

have a read of www.cannagenetics.com to get a better idea.