Indica is a short plant, usually under 6ft tall, rarely over 8ft  tall.  Its  marijuana leaves  have short, wide fingers and are deep green, often tinged with purple.At maturity, the marijuana leaves start to turn even darker purple. It has short branches laden with thick,  dense  marijuana buds, which mature early, usually about the beginning of September.

The marijuana buds vary in colour from dark green to purple, just like  their  marijuana leaves.  Under cooler conditions, the coloration becomesmore intense. The marijuana buds  have  little  trouble maturing under the cool conditions of our northern climate. Indica  marijuana buds  smell  stinky,  you know the type that smell like bad B.O often pungent and their smoke is thick even a small toke will often induce fits of coughing. The best Indicas have a  relaxing  social  high, which allows the person to sense and feel the environment, but does  not  lead  to  thinking or analysing the experience.

Other Indicas get you, well shit faced, heavy neck experience I like to call it, to total sleepouts,  one  spliff  and  its goodnight! Aside from recent colonisation, Indica is found in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and other surrounding  areas. All  of  these fall between the 25th and 35th parallels, and have extremely variable weather - rainy one year hot the next, and so on.  For that reason, each plant population's gene pool is heterogeneous. Plant characteristics vary regarding all phases  of  their growth including maturation time and climate preferences. In any season, no matter what the weather, some marijuana plants do well.

In the UK, the vast majority of marijuana plants grown come from a mainly Indica background due to the early  flowering  times  and our bad weather. THE THC/cbd ration also varies. Poor quality Indica marijuana and hashish contain high quantities  of CBD. This  is where the toker becomes lead-headed and sleepy.

Sativa marijuana plants vary from about 6ft to over 25ft in height.Most varieties grow in the 8ft to I2ft  range.  The  marijuana leaves  are  long  and  thin  fingered  and  are  light  green , especially equatorial varieties, which have less chlorophyll and more yellow pigments in order  to protect the plant from intense light. Temperate varieties are darker green.The marijuana leaves of some varieties yellow and fall off during maturity. The marijuana plants have  long branches. The bottom ones may spread 4ft or more from the central stalk, rather  like  a  conical Xmas tree shape.

The marijuana buds are long and thin, far less densely populated than the Indica, although longer in length, sometimes  stretching  3ft  in  or  more  along  the  branch. The stomas of the flowering   bud   may   be   tinged   slightly  purple  in  a  cool  climate  but  in a warmer environment will turn dark orange or even red. Maturation time varies considerably.

Low THC midwestern varieties mature in August and September, while Equatorial varieties mature from November through to January. The marijuana buds require intense light to thicken and swell. Under the low light conditions found in the UK the marijuana buds are very skimpy and thin but are often very potent. Sativa marijuana buds smell sweet, fruity (Apple Pie comes to mind) and perfumed, and  their smoke is usually smooth and easily  inhaled.  Sativas  are  found  all  over  the  world  and  include  most  of  the  commercial equatorial varieties such as Colombian,Mexican, Nigerian and South African where marijuana plants can be very potent.When smoking a sativa the high is very Cerebral, you have a rush of energy, a buzz in the body and a great way of getting the housework done without vegging out.

Native sativa marijuana plants above the 30th parallel are considered industrial hemp. Under artificial  light  an  Indica  plant  will  mature faster than a sativa, over 4 weeks of extra light is required to bring a sativa plant to maturity, even then  its  weight  is  often much lower. Hence, more indica strains are grown for sale, making  the  dealer / grower  richer. So,  with  all these different growth patterns, highs, THC content and maturation times, marijuana plants of today are almost tailored to the individual grower.

Twenty years ago it was difficult to get a prime crop of bud, as the seeds were from a country that produced more light and heat, therefore making growing in this country a little painful for the poor marijuana plants. However today it is possible  to  buy  strains that will flower in the autumn month that best suits you. Indoor growing is fast becoming  big  business  in  this  country  and growers are free to grow whatever strain they desire, no limit is put on light and heat, making  all  strains  possible  to  grow. Seed companies would not exist without a crossbreeding pattern and there would be no cannabis Cup!!

So when you go out to Holland and purchase a strain of weed, purchase three kinds, Pure indica, Pure  sativa  and  a  50/50 crossbreed, and see if you can see the difference in the high, you will be pleasantly surprised, if not a little trashed.