Ok I have been trying to ask this in other threads but always get mixed results. I know that everyone has their favorites and have tried several seperate strains. The question being How do you pick what Strain to use? Is there some way that you knew what strains were good from trying them out and the dealer told you what strain it was? Are there sites out there with reviews, do the seed bank sites give a certain scale of what's good? When I personally look at these sites I am so overwhelmed with all the mass variety of what is there. Where do you even begin? I see there are different seed brands like there are dozens of different White Widow plants. Then there are cross breeds that people have made. All of the plants look good to me they all look like they are going to be an awesome smoke. I know there are different strains for different conditions. But how do you find what you want for the grow that you are looking for? Where do you start? I see all these different what strain should I pick threads and I would like to get to the bottom of HOW to chose a strain
My first time I just got a good variety of single seeds, read reviews. Once I get them put name on pice of paper folded up in bag. Shake bag and draw one out. That's what I grow
The way I select seeds is just by buying whatever strains sound interesting to me. I narrow it down with questions like Do you like More of a sativa high or more of a indica high? What type of flavors do you like? What type of flowering time is suitable for you? How tall does the strain get?. The easiest way to find reviews is to google whatever Strain name Followed with "grow report" or "smoke report"
You know that's another term I hear a lot is about the flavors..It all just tastes like smoke to me lol. Some are smoother but I feel lost when people start talking about fruity flavors.. Are there just some strains that are like that? I feel so lost trying to get into the genetics and the strains
Then don't. The Attitude has a pick & mix selection, that will just send you randoms. Keep in mind the major things to think about though: Sativas tend to grow very tall, where indicas stay shorter. Sativa high is more energetic and uplifting, where an indica high is more sedative and pain relieving. After that, the only other decision you need to make is whether to get autofem or photo-period seeds.
Smells and flavors can vary greatly from plant to plant. I was the same way before I grew. I was like, it's just weed. But once I grew a quality crop and tried a few different strains I learned what I like and which strains will display what I am looking for. I currently am growing Grape God. The smell is so sweet fruity Nd grape like. I also have some blackwater. It is a little skunky sweet. I like sweet strains. I also love diesel for that sour like flavor and smell. Get a variety and experiment a little. You will like it all, but some you will love. Once you learn that you will be on your way.
Ok so I have heard both the pick a random strain and do research I am more the researching type which is why I made this post. What other questions do you propose when looking for a strain. So far I have the following questions for looking for a strain: Sativa or Indica? (Side question of how much space do I have since they have different grow profiles) What Flavors do you like? How long does it flower? How good have other people done with this Strain (check out google - *name of strain" grow report) What are some other good questions when looking for a strain to think about and that you can find out when researching? Also feel free to let me know what strains you prefer and why here. I do want to learn about the genetics and I want to understand not just pick one good strain I want to understand how to pick good strains in general. =) Thanks for all the feedback guys! I appreciate it!
Some good advice in this thread, and some bad advice. Don't go random, go with strain reputation. The primary characterstics you should look for when starting out are what type of plant (sativa dom or indica dom) this is determined by your grow conditions (indoor, outdoor ; height) and then ease of growth. If you want to goto the indica side of things (stoney, body, chill out) Northern Lights, afgan kush, skunk#1, or white widow should be somethings to look into. All are relatively easy to grow, vary on effects slightly, but stay short-ish(good for indoor) and give good bud. If you want to goto the sativa side of things(heady, giggly/smiles, semi-trip/psychedelic) look into Cinderella-99, A haze hybrid (like SSH, Jack Herer, Mango Haze) or some sort of sativa dominant that you think sounds interesting. Sativa's can be a little trickier to grow (sensitive to nutes, need strong lights) and can get quite tall (good for outdoors if your season allows it). That is with the exception of c99 as she is a great mix of indica growth characteristics and sativa leaning effects. So to summarize: Consider your grow restrictions, what you are looking for, and pick a reputable strain for your conditions (and/or reputable breeder). Good luck, have fun.
Great advice and thank you. A lot of people have been telling me to check out the White Widow strain so that will probally be one of my first ones. I just wanted to know how to pick strains cause I wanna try a few of them. My grow conditions are: I will be growing in a home made grow box 5' tall, 5' wide, and 3' deep. Aeroponics, T5 main light with 3 150watt CFLs between and under the plants, have a friend who helps with nutrients, Collecting rain water, Oscillating fan for intake and to strengthen stalks, and 440cfm out take through carbon scrubber.
Never random. I read grow journals, smoke reports, and grow reports. Take what I think I desire into consideration. I use to think I was an indica guy, them I tried more sativa dominant crosses and found out I lean more sativa. I prefer to grow a little of both. Try to keep variety in my garden. Always grow a strain more than once. Each strain grows different so getting familiar wit it will allow you to grow that one better. There is a lot to picking a strain. I would say read some grow journals and let that help guide you to what to look into next. As people finish their grows you will be able to tell how well the strain performed under certain conditions. Try to find journals with set ups similar to yours. And go for it. My first order I ordered 8 seeds and got a few freebes. I tried a hood variety of seeds to give me a better idea of what I like. I did research them of course. But a good variety taught me a lot a out strains. I ordered a skunk, Kush, diesel, and so on. Mostly crosses. But I learned from them. One seed I liked in particular was from samsara seeds. It was an easy grow with good results. It was Spicy White Devil. That could be a good starter seed because its an easy grow. But just am idea
[quote name='"Norcali"']Some good advice in this thread, and some bad advice. Don't go random, go with strain reputation. The primary characterstics you should look for when starting out are what type of plant (sativa dom or indica dom) this is determined by your grow conditions (indoor, outdoor ; height) and then ease of growth. If you want to goto the indica side of things (stoney, body, chill out) Northern Lights, afgan kush, skunk#1, or white widow should be somethings to look into. All are relatively easy to grow, vary on effects slightly, but stay short-ish(good for indoor) and give good bud. If you want to goto the sativa side of things(heady, giggly/smiles, semi-trip/psychedelic) look into Cinderella-99, A haze hybrid (like SSH, Jack Herer, Mango Haze) or some sort of sativa dominant that you think sounds interesting. Sativa's can be a little trickier to grow (sensitive to nutes, need strong lights) and can get quite tall (good for outdoors if your season allows it). That is with the exception of c99 as she is a great mix of indica growth characteristics and sativa leaning effects. So to summarize: Consider your grow restrictions, what you are looking for, and pick a reputable strain for your conditions (and/or reputable breeder). Good luck, have fun.[/quote] Wow. That was awesome. I was having same dilemmas and I think I finally narrowed it down to a few. And I think I might try and grow one more sativa Dom for myself and indica for my boyfriend. I'm so excited! Great info Cat
Just some strains I was looking at that I really want to try: Thoughts? White Widow X Big Bud Flying Dutchmen White Widow Fruity Chronic Juice Cotton Candy All on the Attitude Seed bank if you want to look them up since I can't link them. These strains I have seen and looked interesting but I don't know why they just caught my attention. Any feedback on these?
I say if that what catches your eye, and reports give it good ratings go for it. Anything Big bud should yield well, I had a blue widow that didn't taste fruity at all but really piney but it yielded like a beast. And the high was great. Very couch lock. But it's all about what catches your eye, just try to avoid strains that are picky at first, some are harder to grow than others. I grew the Red Dragon and that thing really challenged me to the fullest, my whole first crop was shit. Really sensitive to everything
First, decide if you want to get high (choose a sativa) or stoned (choose an indica) then have a look at strains that won the cannabis cup before 2007. These will all be classic tried and tested strains.
Ok that sounds like a good idea that I had not thought of, Looking for the Cannabis Cup winners. Should I really only look back to '07? or are some of the recent winners worth looking into? Or at least only a couple years prior?
Sadly the cannabis cup is not what it used to be. In a nutshell, if you have any even half decent genetics and a spare 30,000 euros you can win the cup now. 2007 was the first year that it began to get a bit shady, but in 2006 Big Buddha released the original cheese which IMHO was the last actually worthy cup winner, Mako Haze by Kiwi from that year is pretty decent to.
The first time I bought seeds I was hung up on potency and that was very flawed thinking. With more experience I have come to appreciate the incredible variety in smell and taste and effect that can be found in the cannabis plant. I'm much more of a sativa guy but when it is bed time I don't mind a strong indica to knock me on my ass and put me to sleep. Potency is a concern to a degree but I would say now that when I am shopping for seeds the promise of exotic smells and taste and effect are much more enticing. I particularly enjoy lemon and cheese strains but I am always looking for new tastes to experience - I'm on a bit of a strawberry and cocoa/chocolate hunt right now. Anyway, that's my two cents.
Very good point. I find myself doing the same. That's why I like to advise new growers to get a variety and experiment. Try a little of it all