By Luke Sumpter Reviewed by: Gloria Payá


When you start your cannabis-growing adventure, there are some things you should keep in mind. Do you have a proper growing environment set up? Are you able to consistently check in on it? Do you know what you want to do with the plant when it's ready? All these things are important, but perhaps just as important is the question of cannabinoid content.

How much THC and CBD is your plant going to have? Once you figure that out, you might wonder what predictions you can make from there. Even before then, you might be curious about what influences these values in the first place. We'll be working to answer all those questions today.

How Genetics Influence THC And CBD Ratios

During a cannabis plant's genetic development, it synthesises both CBDA and THCA (which become CBD and THC when heated) from the same cannabinoid: CBGA. Whether one, the other, or both appear depends on an enzyme that can take one of two forms, which we'll call A isoform and B isoform, that are encoded by the same gene. Since each plant gets two gene copies, there are only three available options. It'll either get two A isoforms, one A isoform and one B isoform, or two B isoforms. This distribution determines how much CBDA and THCA will be in the plant.

Those with two A isoforms will end up being CBD-dominant with minimal THC levels, such as strains like Solomatic CBD. Strains with one of each will end up with a 1:1 ratio, like Painkiller XL and Dance World. Lastly, plants that get two B isoforms become THC-dominant strains. These include many strains we hear about today, such as Royal Gorilla.

Why Strains Have THC And CBD Limits

Today's plants are packed with more THC than ever before. However, they can only contain so much before they hit an insurmountable peak. This happens because both THC and CBD are derived from the same gene, meaning there are strict limits on the possible ratios of either.

For THC, that limit is around 35% THC by dry weight, with most high-potency strains coming in at 25–30%. The upper limit for CBD, by comparison, is around 20–25%, which you can see in strains like Solomatic CBD, which contains 21% CBD. With strains containing significant amounts of both cannabinoids, the limits are even more nuanced. So, for example, a strain that's 30% THC and 10% CBD is improbable, as is the reverse.

Predicting Strain Effects From THC And CBD Levels

Once you have an idea of how much THC and CBD will be in your plant, you can start making some guesses as to what the effects will be. Most of us know the effects of THC-dominant strains: increased appetite, decreased energy, heightened senses, laughter, etc. If it's CBD-dominant, there won't be any psychoactive effects, and you'll instead enjoy more sub-perceptual effects. Strains containing both THC and CBD will range in psychoactivity, and are desirable to many users as their effects tend to be more balanced than those containing predominantly THC.

CALCULATING CANNABINOID PERCENTAGE

Calculating Cannabinoid Percentage

Thanks to recent advancements in the cannabis industry, we now have several methods of verifying THC and CBD percentages. Each of these methods has its strengths, but perhaps the most popular is high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Utilised by over half the industry, this method does not require heating and yields consistently accurate results in comparison to other methods. However, other testing methods have vital applications as well, such as gas chromatography, which can detect volatile hazardous compounds. As such, it’s regularly used in residual solvent screenings.

That being said, the most accessible method, and one that still provides satisfactory results, is thin-layer chromatography (TLC). It usually begins as a glass or plastic sheet containing a thin layer of silica gel, cellulose, or aluminum oxide. A solution containing the cannabis sample is then placed on this "plate", where a solvent is drawn up via capillary action to separate the components of the solution. From there, samples are ready to be analised using specialised TLC test kits. It sounds confusing, but it's actually fairly simple in practice. These kits can be ordered from a variety of sources online.

Another method, supercritical fluid chromatography, utilises CO₂ in its supercritical state, where it demonstrates the efficacy of a liquid and the convenience of a gas. Once all is said and done, the CO₂ is recycled, and potentially hazardous solvents are left out of the picture.

Lastly, if you happen to be in one of our Amsterdam Royal Queen Seeds locations, you can have the potency of your buds tested in our GemmaCert machine for an affordable 8€! It’s non-destructive too, so you don’t even have to worry about losing weed during the test!

How to Calculate the THC and CBD Content in Each Gram of Weed

Most dispensaries, coffeeshops, and seed banks will provide data on their products, letting buyers know how much THC to expect in their flowers based on laboratory figures.

Once you’ve received data from one of the aforementioned outlets, you can use these numbers to throw together a quick equation and figure out how much THC or CBD you’ll be inhaling with each gram.

Let’s say you picked up a gram of your favourite strain while roaming the coffeeshops of Amsterdam. While discussing your options with the budtender, they inform you that this particular strain contains approximately 20% THC.

To get an accurate idea of how much THC you’re about to breathe in, simply fire these simple figures through your head:

  • 1 gram = 1000mg
  • 1 gram of the strain contains 20% THC
  • 20% of 1000mg = 200mg

You can apply the same calculation to CBD figures. The high-CBD strain Solomatic CBD contains 21% CBD and ~1% THC. Therefore, each gram offers ~10mg of THC and 210mg of CBD.

Of course, several variables come into play that dictate the exact amount of THC/CBD you'll be consuming. For example, are you leaving your joint burning in the ashtray as you talk philosophy and botany with your smoking buddy? Regardless, the above equation will give you a general indication of how much THC or CBD you're taking in.

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Privacy Policy - Royal Queen Seeds

To ensure a safe online environment and guarantee adequate data protection, we strictly comply with all legal requirements. In this privacy statement, we provide information about how and for what purpose data is collected, safety measures, storage periods and contact details.


COMPANY NAME: SNORKEL SPAIN, SL (hereinafter ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS)

C/ Vilar d'Abdelà, 5 (nave 1) CP: 08170 de Montornès del Vallès

+34 937 379 846

support@royalqueenseeds.com


The present Privacy Policy sets out the terms on which we will treat personal data at ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS; this includes any personal data collected through our website https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/ as well as any other data we process in the course of our business activities.

ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS collects the following personal data for the purposes listed below:

SECTION 1 – PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

1.1 Account purchases

Account purchases can only be made if you are in possession of a personal account. When you create an account or purchase something from our shop, as part of the buying and selling process we collect the following personal information that you provide to us:

This information is required for delivery. In addition, when you browse our shop, we automatically receive the Internet Protocol (IP) address of your computer. Based on this information, we can optimise your online experience and at the same time protect our online environment.

Purpose of data collection

We collect and store account-related data for the following purposes:

(a) to carry out obligations arising from any contracts between you and us, and to provide you with information, products and services that you may request from us;

(b) to set up, manage and communicate with you about your account and your orders;

(c) to conduct market research and analysis;

(d) to confirm your age and identity, and to detect and prevent fraud.

1.2 Newsletters

With your explicit permission, we may send you newsletters about our shop, new products and other updates. We send newsletters based on your explicit consent. In the event that you purchase a product, and in accordance with current regulations, we may send you commercial communications in accordance with the legitimate interest of our company, always about products or services similar to those you have purchased or contracted. In any case, you may exercise your right of opposition through the channels announced in this Privacy Policy. The following information is collected in relation to the newsletter:

We do not need to know the sex of the person in order to send the newsletter (data minimisation: by law we must ask for data that is strictly necessary to provide the service, and in this case knowing the sex is not necessary to send the newsletter).

Purpose of data collection

The data collected is used to:

(a) personalise our emails, including your name and gender;

(b) provide gender-specific content.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by using the link provided in the newsletter or the contact information provided in section 2.

1.3 Customer service and contact form

In order to provide appropriate support, our customer service employees have access to information related to the account. Consequently, their support will be highly effective and friendly. The data provided in our contact form is used by our CRM provider, SuperOffice. We will only use your details to respond to your message.

SECTION 2 – LEGITIMATE INTEREST

If you have purchased any of our products, please note that we may process your personal data for promotional purposes, based on Royal Queen Seeds' legitimate interest only to offer you products or services from our company and about products or services similar to those you have purchased. You may exercise your right to opt out of future messages by the means set out in this Privacy Policy or through any notification you receive.

2.1 How do you withdraw consent?

If you change your mind, you can withdraw your consent for us to contact you for the purpose of collecting, using, or disclosing your data at any time by reaching out to us at: support@royalqueenseeds.com.

SECTION 3 – DISCLOSURE

We may disclose your personal information if we are required to do so by law or if you breach our Terms of Service.

SECTION 4 – HOW LONG DO WE KEEP YOUR DATA?

At Royal Queen Seeds, we will not retain your data for longer than is necessary for the purposes described in this Policy. Different retention periods apply for different types of data; however, the longest period we will normally hold any personal data is 10 years.

4.1 Account information

Data relating to the account remains relevant for as long as the consumer is in possession of an account. Therefore, the data remains documented for as long as the account exists. When our customers delete an account, the associated data will be deleted within a reasonable period of time. Requests regarding the inspection or correction of stored personal data or the deletion of an account can be sent to support@royalqueenseeds.com.

4.2 Newsletters

In the event that you give us your consent to inform you about our products or services, we will keep your data until you express your wish not to receive any further communications from us. However, we regularly (every month) carry out a relevance check. Registered customers (and their personal information) will be deleted whenever customers do not reply to our request. In addition, our newsletter mailing has an opt-out feature. Consumers can withdraw their consent by using this opt-out feature.

SECTION 5 – COOKIES

Cookies are small information files that notify your computer of previous interactions with our website. These cookies are stored on your hard drive, not on our website. Essentially, when you use our website, your computer displays its cookies to us, informing our site that you have visited before. This allows our website to function more quickly and remember aspects related to your previous visits (such as your username), making your experience more convenient. At Royal Queen Seeds, we use two types of cookies: functional and analytical.

5.1 Functional Cookies

Functional cookies are used to enhance your online experience. Among other things, these cookies track what is added to your shopping cart. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

5.2 Analytical Cookies

Analytical cookies are used for research and market analysis. The data collected with these analytical cookies is anonymous, making it unusable for third parties. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

SECTION 5 – THIRD-PARTY SERVICES

Third-party services are required to conduct transactions and provide our services. In general, the third-party providers we use will only collect, use and disclose your information to the extent necessary to enable them to perform the services they provide to us.

However, certain third-party service providers, such as payment gateways and other payment transaction processors, have their own privacy policies regarding the information we must provide to them for your transactions.

We encourage you to read the privacy policies of these providers so that you can understand how these providers will handle your personal information.

In particular, certain suppliers may be located or have facilities located in a different jurisdiction than yours or ours. Therefore, if you choose to proceed with a transaction involving the services of a third party, your information may be subject to the laws of the jurisdiction in which that service provider or its facilities are located.

Once you leave our website or are redirected to a third-party website or application, you are no longer governed by this Privacy Policy or the Terms of Service of our website.

Web analytics service (anonymous data)

On this website we have integrated an element of a web analytics service (with anonymisation functionality). Web analytics can be defined as the gathering, processing and analysis of data about the behaviour of visitors to websites. An analytics service collects, among other things, data about which website a person came from (the so-called referrer), which sub-pages they visited or how often and for how long they visited a sub-page. Web analytics is mainly used for website optimisation and for a cost–benefit analysis of internet advertising.

Courier service

To complete deliveries we use a courier service. This courier service carries out the delivery between our company and the consumer's home. To complete these logistics, the company requires access to the consumer's name and address information.

Mailing service

Royal Queen Seeds uses a third-party mail service provider to send its newsletter. This provider has access to limited account information related to opt-in consent (e.g. email address).

Marketing services

Royal Queen Seeds has the support of a company that specialises in marketing and communication activities. Their access to personal information is very limited and mostly anonymous.

Payment services

At Royal Queen Seeds we use external payment services to handle our transactions (e.g. credit card payments).

SECTION 6 – SECURITY

To protect your personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry standard best practices to ensure that it is not inappropriately lost, misused, accessed, disclosed, altered or destroyed.

If you provide us with your credit card information, the information is encrypted using secure socket layer technology (SSL) and stored using AES-256 encryption. Although no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, we follow all PCI-DSS requirements and implement additional industry standards that are commonly accepted. Information related to the account is protected with a hashing method. This method transforms the information into a generated hash. As a result, confidential information is protected and invisible, even to us. In addition, our databases are exceptionally protected against unauthorised access. For example, access to the database is only possible and permitted via approved IP addresses (e.g. from Royal Queen Seeds headquarters). Other attempts and addresses are rejected at all times.

Furthermore, data is anonymised as much as possible, so it cannot be directly linked to a specific consumer. With this data, however, we may be able to carry out market research and analysis. In addition, the third parties concerned (e.g. mailing service) are examined prior to our collaboration, comply with the GDPR from the EU and receive a processing agreement. Within Royal Queen Seeds, employees are assigned different access permissions. Specific permission provides access only to information that is strictly required to perform a task. Digital security measures are subject to change and must meet high requirements to ensure the safety of online customers. That is why, at Royal Queen Seeds, we appoint a security officer. Regular verification and improvement of security measures (where necessary) are part of the role.

SECTION 7 – CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time, so please check back regularly. Changes and clarifications will be effective immediately upon being published on the Website. If we make substantial changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated so you will know what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances, if any, we use and/or disclose it.

SECTION 8 – YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO: