By Luke Sumpter


If you’ve ever grown cannabis before, you’ll know a thing or two about how the environment impacts the genetic expression of a plant. The seemingly basic decision of growing weed indoors or outdoors actually has a significant impact. Flowers that develop in the controlled environment of a grow tent display telltale differences to those raised under the open sky.

Before we begin, we should note that the differences aren’t as clear-cut as you might imagine. There are many different variables to take into account. For example, an indoor grower using 500W lamps and top-tier organic nutrition will experience different results to someone using a low-powered desk light and no feed at all. The same remains true outdoors; a grower in southern Spain with an automated irrigation system will likely produce superior flowers to one growing in the northwest of England in high humidity and under cloudy skies.

Genetics, growing skill, and equipment aside, a few obvious signs remain that enable you to tell an indoor flower from an outdoor one. The fundamental characteristics of these two contrasting environments mean these differences almost always express themselves.

How Do Indoor and Outdoor Weed Compare?

What comes to mind when you compare an indoor marijuana plant against an outdoor one? Most think about size. The lack of ceilings, floors, and walls means large, tree-like plants can grow outward in all directions outside. Logically, this leads to bigger buds! But the divergence between the two doesn’t stop there. Differences in sunlight exposure, microbial communities, and temperature result in different flavours, colours, and even effects.

Below, you’ll discover the key traits of indoor vs outdoor weed. Plus, you’ll be able to confidently stroll into a coffeeshop or dispensary and flex your keen eye.

What Are the Differences in Colour?

In general, cannabis flowers grown outdoors display darker shades of green compared to those cultivated indoors. On top of appearing darker, outdoor cannabis buds often have a worn and sun-baked look that makes them lose some of their colour. Enduring the beating sun, howling winds, and lashing rains over the growing season creates a weathered look.

How Do Indoor and Outdoor Weed Compare?

These aesthetic changes are dependent upon the environment, and change from one location to another. Flowers grown under the intense sun of Southern California appear more brown and baked than those further north. Indoor plants have it easy in comparison. They maintain their bright and vivid shades of green in the comfort of growing rooms, away from excess light exposure and tough weather conditions.

How Do Indoor and Outdoor Weed Compare?

Cannabis plants appear green because of the photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll. However, some cultivars possess high levels of pigments known as anthocyanins, giving them a purple or red appearance. Although genetics underpins anthocyanin expression to a large degree, cooler nighttime temperatures outdoors lend to a darker and more striking tone.

What Are the Differences in Size?

Size serves as one of the most obvious ways to tell indoor and outdoor buds apart. As a general rule, outdoor plants grow bigger than their indoor counterparts. Of course, there are exceptions, but in most cases, outdoor specimens have more room to spread their roots underground and expand their canopies above ground.

Extensive root systems ferry more nutrients into plants, and large and more abundant fan leaves drive photosynthesis through the roof. This perfect storm allows outdoor plants to capitalise on their situation and churn out larger, chunkier buds.

Depending on how manicured the buds are, you can also look to the branches for answers. Outdoor plants develop thicker, sturdier stems and branches than their indoor counterparts; partly because they grow larger in general, and partly as an adaptation to wind stress.

Indoor buds are typically smaller and denser due to the constraints of containers and growing tents. But size doesn’t always equal quality. Growers produce large hauls of dense, compact buds indoors year after year, which get them just as stoned as larger outdoor flowers.

What Are the Differences in Flavour?

Genetics, nutrition, and growing experience hold great influence over the flavour profile of a cannabis variety. But simply choosing to grow a cannabis plant indoors or outdoors can sway the taste of your buds more than anything else. Why? Sunlight and microorganisms play a large role.

  • Light

Artificial lights used by indoor growers are perfectly capable of growing fantastic cannabis flowers. While most don’t emit ultraviolet (UV) light, some models are equipped with UV bulbs that partially mimic the rays of the sun. Of course, outdoor plants are exposed to this form of light by default, and more of it. UV rays are divided into three categories based on their wavelengths:

UVA

Makes up 3% of photons in sunlight that penetrates the Earth’s atmosphere, and isn’t harmful to plants

UVB

Makes up around 0.15% of the sunlight that reaches Earth; damages plant DNA

UVC

Highly destructive to DNA; likely none makes it through the atmosphere

Although UV radiation is crucial to life on Earth, it does some damage. Different organisms have developed strategies to protect themselves from these wavelengths of light. Human skin develops a protective layer of melanin, whereas cannabis plants shield themselves from UV radiation with their own form of sunscreen; resin loaded with secondary metabolites such as aromatic terpenes. These molecules underpin the many flavours within cannabis, including those of fruit and earthiness.

Some indoor growers use lights that emit UVA radiation. The light within this wavelength helps to encourage terpene production without the harmful effects of UVB exposure. UVA radiation boosts secondary metabolite production in some plant species, meaning indoor growers can mimic the power of the sun, but only if they invest in UVA-emitting bulbs.

What Are the Differences in Flavour?

However, flowers grown outdoors often provide superior flavour because of UVB exposure. Although this increases the chance of DNA damage, this type of radiation may further increase secondary metabolite production, and therefore give rise to tastier buds.[2]

What Are the Differences in Flavour?
  • Microorganisms

But sunlight isn’t the only factor that endows outdoor flowers with more scrumptious flavours. A richer diversity of microbial life in well-established garden beds also helps to drive terpene levels through the roof. Beds that receive plenty of compost, mulch, and organic matter are havens for beneficial microbial fungi and bacteria, and contain a developed soil food web compared to indoor containers filled with young potting soil.

Among these species, arbuscular mycorrhizae form a synergistic relationship with cannabis roots. They act as an extension of the root system and ferry in nutrients from afar, in return for plant sugars created during photosynthesis. Once they form a relationship, they nudge plants into producing increased concentrations of terpenes to defend themselves against predators.[3]

From a human perspective, this means tastier and more aromatic cannabis flowers. Indoor growers can introduce beneficial fungi into their growing setup, but it will take some time to develop the microbial diversity and richness present in outdoor organic beds.

The concept of terroir also applies to outdoor weed. The French phrase “goût de terroir”, meaning “taste of the land”, suggests that many outdoor variables impart unique plant traits based on location. The climate, soil, elevation, and geomorphology of a particular place imprint themselves into the phytochemical profile of a plant, including the terpene content.

What Are the Differences in Potency and Effects?

Growing outdoors can influence the flavour of cannabis flowers, but can it really alter their effects? A host of cannabis phytochemicals underpin the effects of cannabis. While THC and CBD get most of the attention, many cannabis terpenes also bind to cannabinoid receptors and synergise with cannabinoids to alter the effects of a cultivar (by way of the entourage effect).[4]

We know that sunlight is a boon for terpene production and secondary metabolite synthesis in general. Cannabinoids also autumn into this chemical category. They don’t contribute toward the growth and reproduction of the cannabis plant, but they do help to defend it against environmental stress—including UV rays. Exposure to UVB helps to drive THC levels in cannabis. This means outdoor growers that are equipped with genetics expressing high quantities of THC can push their crop to the psychoactive limit.[5]

What Are the Differences in Quality?

Ultimately, you can grow top-tier cannabis in most environments, as long as you have good genetics, healthy soil, and a little knowledge. While outdoor settings offer natural sunlight and an abundance of microorganisms, indoor grow rooms allow for almost total control over environmental factors. Outdoor buds grow larger, but some of the best weed available stems from indoor growing operations. Instead of comparing indoor weed vs outdoor weed, learning to tell the difference between high and low-quality buds remains much more important!

External Resources:
  1. Frontiers | UVA Radiation Is Beneficial for Yield and Quality of Indoor Cultivated Lettuce | Plant Science https://www.frontiersin.org
  2. (PDF) UV-B Radiations and Secondary Metabolites https://www.researchgate.net
  3. Terpenoids in plant and arbuscular mycorrhiza-reinforced defence against herbivorous insects | Annals of Botany | Oxford Academic https://academic.oup.com
  4. Taming THC: potential cannabis synergy and phytocannabinoid-terpenoid entourage effects - PubMed https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  5. UV-B radiation effects on photosynthesis, growth and cannabinoid production of two Cannabis sativa chemotypes - PubMed https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Disclaimer:
This content is for educational purposes only. The information provided is derived from research gathered from external sources.

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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: