Cannabis bag appeal is top of the list for most consumers and producers. First prize is big frost covered buds with touches of lime and purple. But science and opinions are fast busting this age old myth.

At the risk of sounding classically cliché, you really should not judge a book by its cover. Cannabis has traditionally been a take it or leave it kind of market. Dealers were treasured traders of happiness in a bag, but long gone are the days of overpaying for mids and pips. The sea of home growers and digital dealers have gained access to ever evolving genetics. This is in large part thanks to seed banks such as Green Smoke Room bringing the gas to growers.

Cannabis bag appeal goes to the next level

Turn back the clock just a handful of years and you would find a world brimming with pride at the likes of the trichome laden White Widow. A cultivar which won multiple cannabis cups due to its frostiness and mind bending THC levels.  Its largest impact was however on bag appeal as a new watermark had been set for how white your weed should be.


This is pretty much the way things stayed for decades. There was no doubting the correlation between the amount of ripe trichomes on a bud and the potency it would likely deliver. But this long standing rule of thumb has been under increasing scrutiny. The gradual liberation of cannabis use has enabled for access to resources that allow us to better understand the plant's highs and lows. One of the biggest breakthroughs has been understanding the complexities of potency.

Trichomes aren't the only indicator

It turns out that trichomes are only one dimension in a complex equation that includes several facets such as CBD, terpenes and plant structure. Recent studies are showing that a bud should not be judged by it's trichomes. Genetic testing has become somewhat common in the United States. It's is as simple as sending in a little piece of the seedling or clones to an applicable lab. Where within just a couple of days you will know the exact genetic potential of the plant. This is saving massive amounts of time and resources for both small and large growers alike. As you no longer need to spend months or even years of growing before really understanding which cultivars are and aren't for you.

What is cannabis morphology and why does it matter?

We have all been firm followers of some of cannabis' most basic defining characteristics, its morphology. The most popular if these being that Sativas are for doing stuff and Indicas are for chilling.  But how could you tell the difference between the two? Well that is simple, or so we thought. Tradition says that long thin leaves on tall plants are Sativas and stouter plants with broad thick leaves are Indicas. The latest from the learned folk in white lab coats is disrupting this philosophy and eluding to the far more significant part that terpenes play.

Analysis of over 100 Cannabis samples quantified for terpene and cannabinoid content and genotyped for over 100,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms indicated that Sativa- and Indica-labelled samples were genetically indistinct on a genome-wide scale. Instead, we found that Cannabis labelling was associated with variation in a small number of terpenes whose concentrations are controlled by genetic variation at tandem arrays of terpene synthase genes."
Cannabis genomics research has thus far largely focused on the characterization of genes underlying the production of the cannabinoids cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)5,6,7,8. However, Cannabis produces hundreds of aromatic terpenes that drive consumer preference and are frequently associated with Sativa and Indica labels4,9. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that a cultivar’s terpene profile affects its psychoactive properties10,11. To date, various terpene synthase genes have been identified in Cannabis; however, the genetic control of terpene variation across Cannabis cultivars remains largely unexplored"

A concurrent study completely busted the myth of cannabis bag appeal and genetics as we understand them.

Our results suggest naming conventions based on leaf morphology do not correspond to the chemical properties in plants with hybrid ancestry. Therefore, a new system for identifying variation within Cannabis is warranted that will provide reliable identifiers of the properties important for recreational and, especially, medical use.

In a nutshell stereotypes such as Sativa vs Indica and cannabis bag appeal are being chucked out the window. Science and access to relevant tools are shining a new light on the profiling of cannabis. We have experienced this firsthand at Green Smoke Room Seeds when testing hundreds of samples. Along with recently achieving the African record of 26.1% THC on our Gemmacert unit, we have noticed that the best looking buds aren't always the best performing. Outdoor weed of a lower bag appeal frequently outperforms the far danker looking competition.

Food for thought

This is something that many modern breeders have already cottoned on to. As we are now seeing trends in plants that don't conform to traditional morphology. Instead favoring a blend of potency, bag appeal and taste. Judging performance purely on THC has also given way to a better understanding of the roles of terpenes. This is in hindsight very similar to the psychology of food. Presentation, colour and aroma are undeniable contributors to the experience of eating. So why not for weed?

The next time you're picking up some herb or seeds. Spare some thought for the myth of cannabis bag appeal or the binary approach of measuring solely THC. There may be far more to that humble looking bud you're about to reject.