IF THERE’S ANYONE THAT UNDERSTANDS CHASING YOUR FAVORITE HIGH, IT’S US. DAY IN AND DAY OUT, WE SEE NEW STRAINS COME AND GO QUICKLY BUT FOR THOSE OF US THAT REMEMBER SMOKING THOSE OLD SCHOOL STRAINS…IT CAN FEEL A BIT ALIEN-ATING! WHY IS IT THAT WE NO LONGER SEE STRAINS LIKE NORTHERN LIGHTS, SOUR DIESEL, OG KUSH, GRANDADDY PURPLE, AFGHANI, OR BUBBA KUSH? KEEP READING TO FIND OUT!

Well if you’ve ever smoked weed with your parents, I bet they’ve mentioned or poked fun at your Black Berry Panty Dropper strain name or the artwork on your Blue Note weed pack. “Why the heck do you keep bringing home all these weird strains and whats with the bag…what ever happened to Alaskan Thunder Fuck being sold to me in a zip lock baggie back in the day.” 

Although Alaskan Thunder Fuck doesn’t have a more curious name than Black Berry Panty Dropper, you can see the real frustration in their faces of how much time has changed. How much weed has changed over the decades. That is until they take their first hit and are shocked at how potent it is. let’s break down these moments together.

Cannabis is one of the worlds first cultivated crop species. Scientists have broken it down into 4 different categories.

1. Basal  — This group of cannabis is “sister to all other cannabis” categories, including all human-grown or “cultivated” hemp and psychoactive cannabis in the world. It includes wild plants and traditional cannabis hybrids, known as “landraces,” found in modern China.

2. Hemp — This group includes all hemp varieties found around the world. Hemp is a variety of Cannabis sativa that is distinguished from other cannabis strains by its lower levels of (THC) — the psychoactive ingredient that makes cannabis such a psychoactive experience. Hemp is not typically considered a "drug" and was traditionally used to make fiber for clothing and other materials. More science is being debuted through these past few years about the potential of building with the construction of hemp products due to their long lasting, positive effects on the environment, and strength. 

3. First group of “recreational” cannabis — This group includes "exotic strains" of cannabis with medicinal and psychoactive effects with higher THC percentages-like properties similar to marijuana from China, India, and Pakistan, as well as one cultivated cannabis variety from India.

4. second group “medicinal" cannabis — This group includes varieties of cannabis with medicinal-like properties that have been cultivated around the world.

This date coincides with the first appearance of fiber artifacts in East Asia, which spread west to Europe, according to archaeological evidence from the Bronze Age. There is historical evidence of fiber  being made from hemp as a popular source of clothing, food, and oil and is certainly making a comeback in recent years.

The researchers state that psychoactive cannabis spread from East Asia to India around 3000 years ago. In the last thousand years, the drug reached Latin America and Africa, though it didn’t get to North America until much more recently — around the beginning of the twentieth century. European colonists introduced hemp varieties to North America in the 1600s, which were replaced by Chinese varieties by the 1850s.

Ultimately, the researchers find strong genetic differences between hemp and recreational cannabis in their study. However, they also conclude cannabis was likely used as a “multipurpose” crop — not just for medicinal or recreational use— in East Asia for thousands of years before humans used selective breeding to turn it into the potent, THC-laden green we know today.

Let’s take a look at the journey of 1 specific plant so we can better understand how all of these new strains came to be! 

If you were to step back in time long ago, one marijuana plant would be there. The Afghan Kush strain is one of the most ancient landrace strains that has stood the test of time. Through wars and tribal conflicts, this herb is still around and is grown today all over the world.

The origins of the Afghan Kush are from an area by the Amu Darya River Valley where it has been growing wild for centuries. It’s on the border of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, in the Hindu Kush mountain range near northern Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Afghan Kush is one of the few indica plants around that is almost pure one hundred percent indica.

The strain is kept alive by White Label Seed Company who distribute seeds around the world to Seedhouse, so others can grow and consume this kush strain. Afghani Kush is one strain that is at the top of its lineage and it has no known parents.

There have been many different cross breeds in the Afghan Kush lineage, such as MG Kush, Grape Afghan Kush, Ata Tundra. When growing this strain it has a high resistance to mold.Although it does not grow as tall as other indica plants, it brings a decent yield. There are many significant medical benefits to this plant. It’s excellent at relieving stress, chronic pain and muscle spasms and is recommended for evening use. 

SO YOU CAN IMAGINE THAT A STRAIN LIKE THIS WOULD BE VERY WELL MISSED OVER CENTURIES OF TIME. IF YOU WERE EVER LUCKY TO SMOKE IT WITHOUT IT BEING BREAD OR CROSSED, WE ARE SURE YOU’RE STILL CHASING THAT HIGH! LET’S FOLLOW THIS STRAIN MORE TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED TO IT.

Now imagine this scenario…somewhere in history Afghan Kush is growing next to another cannabis crop that is male. Cannabis plants can be either male or female. Cannabis consumers are mainly concerned with female plants, because only females produce the sticky buds that we all know and love. But male cannabis plants are important for the breeding process, as they are needed to pollinate the bud-producing females.

Take the strain afghani kush as an example. It can be considered an ancient parent strain to strains known today—At some point, the breeder or nature herself decided that they liked some attributes of two different strains and pollenated two parent strains.

To do this, you need a male of one strain to pollinate a female of the other. Once pollinated, the female will then produce seeds that express the genes of both the male and female plant. Those seeds will be harvested and grown separately, and voilà: You have created a hybrid or as we know it…a new strain.

Just as you and your sibling might have different physical attributes from your parents, each seed created from a round of cross-pollination will have different attributes from its parent strains. Maybe you have your father’s eyes and your mother’s hair, but your sister has your mother’s eyes and hair. Each cannabis seed is unique and will express different traits, and different combinations of traits, from one or both of the parent strains. These seeds with various expressions are called phenotypes. Just like crossing Afgahni Kush with very popular White Widow...the smoking effects of this cross breed would have attributes of both Afgahni & the White Widow. These strains might be called something like White Kush for example.

Now imagine White Kush remains its genetic self for 1 decade before another breeder decides to cros White Kush with their Grandaddy purple strain…another great og. Following the above natural protocal, a new strain is born. White kush x grandaddy purp = White kurple. As you can see, if we continued the journey of cross breeding, the original parent strain is continuously passing down it’s genes through cross breeding. Although not as potent and strong as it’s once upon a time originality, you can see why in today’s world we have so many new strain names and why most of the strains are considered hybrid instead of their full “Indica/sativa” profiles. The original strain has been crossed so many times, they no longer resemble their parents in any way shape or form. 

This is another reason why potency during the beginning stages of the cannabis plant is no match for the potency growers are able to create today. Using science, we are able to figure out ways to consistently enhance the thc, cbd, or cbg percentages. Using strict formulas and focusing on timing of light/dark versus the power watering with added nutrients, this industry has become unstoppable. Check out next weeks article on "How To Grow Weed At Home" to learn more about ways we can control the THC percents.

SO THE NEXT TIME YOU’RE SMOKING WITH YOUR PARENTS, BE EXCITED TO EXPLAIN TO THEM THE EVOLUTION OF WEED AND WHY IT’S CHANGED SO MUCH!