Most people buy dried flower by looking at one number, and it is usually the least useful one on the package. Here is a better order to read it in.
1. The packaged-on date
Start here. Cannabis is an agricultural product and it does not improve in a bag. Flower packaged three months ago will generally smell and smoke better than the same strain packaged fourteen months ago, whatever the THC figure says. Fresher is the single most reliable indicator of a good jar.
2. Total terpenes
Terpenes are the aromatic compounds that give each cultivar its character. Not every producer prints a total, but the ones who do are usually the ones confident about it. Anything at 2 percent or above tends to be noticeably aromatic. There is more in terpenes explained.
3. THC, in context
THC percentage tells you potency, not quality. A 28 percent jar that has been sitting for a year will be less enjoyable than a well-grown 19 percent jar packaged last month. Use THC to pick a range that suits you and then stop treating it as a scoreboard.
CBD sits alongside it on the label. If you want to know what the pairing means, read CBD and THC on the package.
4. Grow method
Indoor, greenhouse, outdoor and living soil all produce different results, and none of them is automatically better. Indoor tends to be tighter and more consistent. Greenhouse can be excellent value. Outdoor and sun-grown often carry more character.
5. Format
- Whole flower keeps its structure and aroma best.
- Milled or pre-ground is convenient and cheaper, and gives up some freshness.
- Smalls are simply smaller buds from the same plants. Often the best value on the shelf.
What to ignore
Strain names are marketing more often than genetics. Indica and sativa labels are a rough guide at best. Photography on a package tells you nothing about what is inside it.
Once you get it home
Keep it cool, dark and sealed. Storage is doing more damage to most people cannabis than they realise, and we have written about how to fix that.
Have a look at the shelf. Browse flower and get it delivered free across our local Toronto area, or pick it up at the counter.