Here are some shots showing how the terms ‘Indica’ and ‘Sativa’ can still be used in a meaningful way when the cannabis plants we’re talking about are authentic landraces.
In the context of the kind of cannabis you find in most growrooms and dispensaries, clearly ‘Indica’ and ‘Sativa’ are meaningless.
But the plants in these photos are real cannabis landraces.
One is an accession of ‘Idukki Gold’ collected by Angus in Kerala, South India from an old-timer ganja farmer. The other is the ‘Mazar-i-Sharif’ landrace, a batch of seeds of which Angus acquired back in 2007 from an Afghan charas smuggler.
Classic Sativa landrace from the tropics of Kerala, South India – often known as ‘Idukki Gold’
In terms of morphology, the two accessions are representative of classic Sativas and Indicas.
And once their phytochemistry is analyzed, you can be sure they’ll also prove to have very distinct characteristics: the Kerala will be consistently higher in THC, with few other cannabinoids in anything but trivial quantities. The Mazar-i-Sharif will show less THC and often exhibit individuals with higher CBD than THC. There will definitely be other consistent differences in terms of terpenoids and related phytochemicals, which in turn relate to aroma profiles and types of effect.
Ganja from Kerala is famous for its strongly speedy buzz, for example, a quality it’s passed on to many real Haze lines and something that’s certainly caused by its chemistry.
Update: I’ve just realized that the image is in fact the accession named Mazar-i-Sharif #2
For more clarity on these terms ‘Indica’ and ‘Sativa’ check out this podcast episode with Angus of The Real Seed Company and Conor of CANNAMANtv:
