Guidelines To Help You Choose Cannabis Seeds

Are you new to the world of weed? Picking the right strain to grow can be daunting, especially with so much variety out there. In this article, we'll guide you through the sea of cannabis strains and help you pick out the ones that best suit your growing style and experience, as well as your smoking preferences. 

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Making Sense of Cannabis Strains

There are thousands of cannabis strains available. Some of them make you feel relaxed, whereas others stimulate you. Many strains offer sweet tastes of fruit and candy, but an equally large share are more earthy and floral. Then there are those highly productive strains that peak at 3m tall, and those that are small enough to grow in a cupboard.

To make shopping for cannabis strains a simple task, you need to consider your desires, circumstances, and tastes. Below, we’ve highlighted the major factors you should consider before browsing cannabis seeds. Once you’ve selected your favourite traits, head to the bottom of the page to discover the easiest way to narrow down your search.

How to Choose Cannabis Seeds Based on Growing Conditions

Cannabis strains come in all shapes and sizes. From tall, stretchy sativas to compact, bushy indicas, hybrids, and autoflowers, there’s no shortage of variety when it comes to weed plants. When it's time to pick a strain for your next grow, it's always a good idea to consider your growing conditions (whether you'll grow indoors or outdoors), the local law (and how that might affect the way you grow), and yield quantity.

Below, you'll find curated selections of strains categorised by their genetics, height, flowering time, yield capacity, cannabinoid concentration, and pest resistance. Browse through the categories to find the strains most suited to your growing style, conditions, and preferences.

Top Sativas

Sativa strains originate from warm, tropical regions. They are ideal for growing outdoors where they can soak up the sun, heat, and humidity to maximise their height and yield potential. However, the catch is that sativas tend to take their time to flower (anywhere from 10–14 weeks or longer, depending on genetics), but the wait is definitely worth it. At harvest time, a strong sativa will reward you with long, resinous flowers boasting delicious aromas and uplifting, euphoric effects.

Below are our top 5 sativas. For more variety, check out this overview of other great sativa strains.

Top Indicas

Indicas are typically short, bushy, and relatively fast flowering, and thus are perfectly adapted to the cooler, harsher climates of the mountainous regions they originate from. This makes them ideal for indoor growers working with smaller spaces, or outdoor growers living in regions with more temperate climates and shorter summers. Come harvest time, a good indica will be laden with tight, dense flowers coated with resin, and will typically deliver more relaxing effects.

Below are our top 5 indica strains. For more variety, check out this list of other great indica varieties.

Top Small Plants — Ideal for Closet Grows, Small Tents, or Stealthy Outdoor Growing

When it comes to cannabis, size definitely matters. Larger cannabis plants naturally produce bigger yields, but they can be hard to grow in small spaces, and can very easily attract the attention of prying eyes outdoors. That's where smaller strains are perfect—they’re a breeze to grow in confined tents or closets, and they’ll go unnoticed in your outdoor garden. And they just might impress you with their yields, too!

Below you'll find our top 5 small cannabis strains. For a larger collection of small strains, click here.

Top Tall Plants for Huge Yields

If you’re lucky enough to have a large indoor tent or room to grow in, or an outdoor garden where privacy isn’t an issue, why not experiment with an XXL cannabis strain that promises bountiful yields? Besides leaving you with a ton of bud, growing large cannabis plants can be super exciting, as their sheer size can be breathtaking. Just remember that larger plants may require special maintenance, such as trimming/pruning, defoliation, or training.

Below is a list of our favourite extra-large, high-yielding cannabis strains. Also, be sure to read up on how to grow and maintain large cannabis plants in order to achieve the best results.

Top Fast-Flowering Strains

Fast-flowering strains let you get to harvest in express time. They are ideal for outdoor growers living in regions with short summers, or those in warm regions who want to achieve multiple harvests over one growing season. Indoors, fast-flowering strains can reduce the costs of running your grow tent or room while providing you with a consistent flow of weed.

Below is our selection of the top 5 fast-flowering strains. For more variety, click here.

Top High-Yielding Strains

Let's be honest; every grower loves a heavy harvest. But if you're particularly focused on getting the maximum return from your crop, it’s necessary to choose a strain that's been specifically bred to produce a lot of bud. Large yields are especially appealing to indoor growers who may want to see some "green return" after making a large upfront investment in grow gear. Note that high-yielding strains needn’t necessarily be very large or tall—many medium-sized strains can produce exceptional harvests too.

Below are our top 5 high-yielding cannabis strains. For more variety, check out some other highly productive strains.

Top Low-Smell Strains

While smokers and growers love the smell of ripe buds, their neighbours might not. Luckily, cannabis breeders have taken the time to create strains that produce minimal odour during the flowering phase. If you're growing weed outdoors on a terrace, in an apartment building, or anywhere else where unsupportive noses might get a whiff of your plants, investing in a low-odour strain can help to avoid drawing unwanted attention to your grow-op.

What follows are our 5 favourite low-odour cannabis strains. For more options, check out these other low-smell varieties.

Top High-THC Strains

Cannabis has come a long way since our ancestors first cultivated it thousands of years ago. Over the last few decades, for example, cannabis has been specifically bred to produce extra-high levels of THC, resulting in more potent and longer-lasting effects. If you love a deeply relaxing stone or a pseudo-psychedelic high, make sure to look for high-THC strains.

Below are our favourite high-THC cannabis strains. Check out a more elaborate list for even more options.

Top Low-THC Strains

High doses of THC aren't for everyone. In fact, many cannabis users prefer the more subtle effects of milder weed strains, especially if they're new to cannabis, haven't smoked in a long time, or choose to use it during the day. Medical cannabis patients may also prefer the effects of more balanced strains, particularly if addressing chronic symptoms on a daily basis. Our low-THC strains have been bred to produce minimal amounts of the psychotropic cannabinoid, without sacrificing aroma or flavour.

Below are our 5 favourite low-THC cannabis strains. See the full list here.

Top High-CBD Strains

The discovery of CBD and its myriad of potential benefits forever changed the way people view and use cannabis. Today, high-CBD cannabis strains are treasured both by recreational users and medical patients who don't enjoy the intoxicating effects of THC. Plus, thanks to the hard work of breeders, modern CBD strains are capable of producing the same delicious aromas and flavours normally associated with THC-rich cannabis varieties.

If you want to grow great CBD weed at home, don't miss these 5 CBD strains.

Top Resistant Strains 

A strain's ability to ward off pests and pathogens can be directly related to its genetics. If you're an outdoor grower or unable to create the perfect growing environment in a tent or room, investing in a highly resistant cannabis variety can make the difference between a great yield and a mediocre one. Resistant strains will typically perform well even in subpar conditions, and are particularly good at repelling pests/pathogens as well as dealing with stress. They're a great choice for inexperienced growers, as well as anyone working in less-than-ideal conditions.

Browse our top 5 most resistant cannabis strains below.

Choosing Cannabis Seeds Based on Taste, Aroma, or Effects

How tall or fast a cannabis strain grows means nothing if you don't enjoy the flavour, aroma, or effects it produces. Hence, after considering your growing skill and style, we also recommend reviewing a strain's taste, smell, and effects to ensure you end up harvesting buds that you actually want to smoke. Luckily, thanks to the hard work of our breeders and our extensive catalogue of seeds, we guarantee you'll find an RQS strain that'll meet even your strictest criteria. 

As one of the most important traits of any strain, taste has a large impact on how much you’ll enjoy a particular batch of buds. Even if you love the effects of a particular strain, if you don’t value the taste, it's unlikely you'll enjoy the overall experience.

Cannabis flowers are full of phytochemical complexity, and a specific set of molecules, known as terpenes, underpin the taste of each toke. These aromatic hydrocarbons are found all throughout nature, and are responsible for the tastes of citrus peels and the unique flavours of different herbs and spices.

Pay close attention to the terpene profile of each strain when shopping for seeds. If you like a peppery and savoury taste, scout out high levels of caryophyllene. Perhaps you prefer fresh, earthy notes? If so, look out for pinene and myrcene. Many smokers prefer fruity and sweet cannabis strains, which are loaded with terpenes such as linalool and limonene.

Keeping these terpenes in mind will give you a broad understanding of how a strain will taste. But, you’ll want to get more specific once you’ve narrowed down your search. Although most strains feature high levels of a particular terpene, they all feature a unique blend of dozens of these flavour molecules. Here’s an idea of the specific tastes available in each strain:

Aroma forms the second crucial pillar of cannabis strain preference. Terpenes also underpin how a cultivar smells, but they smell and taste slightly different. In other words, the pungent smell of fresh or dried cannabis flowers doesn’t exactly determine how they taste.

Why? Well, terpenes are volatile molecules. Following exposure to a flame, they change in structure. Plus, they light up nerves in the tongue and nose differently.

It’s important to love the smell of the weed you grow. Not only because you and your friends will be blazing it for the next month, but because your grow tent and garden will quickly fill up with smelly terpenes during the flowering stage.

Thankfully, modern growers have technology on their side. Carbon scrubbers and extractor fans do a great job at removing terpenes from the air. However, some still get through.

As well as purchasing strains based on your aromatic preferences, you should also consider your circumstances. If you are growing in the middle of nowhere, or in a legal country or state, you can choose the stinkiest bud around. You can enjoy the full force of aromatic varies such as:

In contrast, those growing in busy metropolises or illegal regions should try and select less smelly varieties. Thankfully, some strains are much more subtle in their aromas, including:

As the third pillar of strain selection—and the most important for many smokers—every cannabis user should carefully consider the effects of a strain before buying and sowing seeds.

In the same way that each strain smells and tastes different, they also have distinct effects. Although most varieties produce high levels of THC, CBD, or both, they are still capable of producing wildly different sensations.

Cannabinoids create the foundation of every high, but terpenes contribute unique and powerful effects of their own. For example, the terpene myrcene brings a stoning sensation to the table, often associated with indica genetics. In contrast, limonene creates a cerebral and energising high often attributed to sativa genetics.

Different chemical profiles in cannabis are more suitable for different occasions. Some are ideal for kick-starting your day, some are perfect just before bed, and others bring you to life during social situations.

Check out the best strains for each scenario below.

Other Ways To Pick Cannabis Seeds

Hopefully, the tips presented above will help you narrow down your search and select a compatible variety. However, things might still seem complicated if you’re completely new to cannabis. If you’ve never smelled, tasted, or experienced the effects of a cannabis strain, use the options below to find the right cultivar for you.

• Use Our Seedfinder Tool

If you find yourself struggling to get started, the RQS Seedfinder tool will help you find the perfect strains. We developed this weed strain finder based on information collected by our professional growers. Simply follow the linear process to find strains made for you. The tool filters through our catalogue based on your preferences, including growing environment, plant height, photoperiod vs autoflowering, taste, and effects. At the end of the process, we’ll present you with a bundle of seeds that are perfectly compatible with your desires and situation.

• Search Our “Top Lists” for Inspiration

At Royal Queen Seeds, we want to make sure that every grower who chooses our seeds is thrilled come harvest time. That's exactly why we created this article; to help you find the top strains according to a wide variety of criteria. So, what are you waiting for? Get browsing, and happy growing!

• Purchase a Mixed Cannabis Seed Pack

If you still can’t choose, let us choose for you! At Royal Queen Seeds, we’ve been breeding cannabis and providing high-quality seeds to growers for years. It’s safe to say we know a thing or two about cannabis!

While designing our products, we keep the novice and indecisive grower in mind. We created our mixed cannabis seed packs precisely for these customers. It allows you to cultivate several varieties at the same time and experience each one's unique effects. From here, you can determine your favourites.

Our Feminized Mix provides 5 of our finest seeds, including:

If you prefer more of a mellow and clear-headed experience, grow our CBD Mix consisting of:

• Ask Other Growers for Their Suggestions

Finally, asking other cannabis growers serves as one of the best ways to find genetics that suit you. Ask your green-fingered friends about their favourite strains. As well as suggesting suitable varieties, they can also give you growing tips and let you know where they succeeded and failed.

We also recommend browsing the internet. Join growing forums on sites like Reddit, and check out forums and diaries for detailed breakdowns on how to grow almost every strain available. These in-depth accounts will help you select strains that suit your circumstances and preferences down to every last detail.

Which Cannabis Seed Is Right for You?

Ultimately, experience trumps browsing. To really get a grip on your favourite strains, you need to experience them first hand. Use the tips and guidance above to point you in the right direction. If you can’t choose between 3–4, grow them all and give them each a try!

The diversity of cannabis genetics continues to expand. Many high-CBD strains are now available, and other cannabinoids are starting to appear on the market. Chances are, even after finding some strains you love now, you’ll add many more to the list in the coming years!

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Part. 1: Choosing Outdoor Seeds To Grow In Your Climate. What kind of cannabis you choose to cultivate and where you sow the seeds will dictate your outdoor crop’s performance.

Part. 2: How To Choose A Strain When Growing Indoors. You need to select a variety that will fit in your grow space, provide a good yield, taste delicious, and be ready to harvest in the desired time frame.