The cannabis Buds
The buds, also called flowers, heads, flowering tops, resinous tops, or even parthenocarpic fruits. There are many ways to call this desirable organ of the marijuana plant, but what is clear is that a marijuana bud is just the female reproductive organ of the Cannabis Sativa plant. Although, marijuana buds are traditionally known for their cannabinoid flooded resin.
What are cannabis buds?
Essentially, as mentioned above, marijuana buds are the female reproductive organ of marijuana, this is where the seeds are produced, always that a male plant pollinate the female plant.
As you probably know, the female plant needs to be pollinated by a male plant. If there is no male to pollinate the female plant, there will be no seeds, the plant will simply continue to produce resin full of cannabionoids.
This peculiarity of the marijuana plant is the most appreciated by both medicinal and recreational users, who tend to grow cannabis for resin-laden flowers rather than flowers with seeds. These are what are known as Sinsemilla plants.
This resin, apart from being useful for humans, also fulfils other functions, those designated by nature and the evolution of this plant. On the one hand it serves to attract insects, which, with luck, have landed on the pollen of a male beforehand and will leave it stuck to the resin, thus producing pollination. On the other hand, it also serves as protection against pests, as well as protection against too much sun.
So, among us, marijuana buds are usually best known for their properties, not for being part of the reproductive organ of the cannabis Sativa.
Parts of a bud
The main part of cannabis bud development is known as the cola, this is where a cluster of buds forms. While the smaller colas are produced on the lower branches, the main cola, sometimes called the apical, is formed at the top of the plant.
Moving on to the bracts, a bract is what encapsulates the reproductive parts of the female. They appear as green teardrop-shaped “leaves” and are covered with resin glands that produce the highest concentration of cannabinoids of any part of the plant.
Within these bracts and almost imperceptible to the naked eye, the calyx refers to a translucent layer over the ovule at the base of the bud.
The pistil contains the reproductive parts of a bud, and the vibrating, hair-like strands of the pistil are called stigmas. The stigmas serve to collect pollen from the males.
Finally the resin or trichomes, which are secreted as translucent mushroom-shaped glands on the leaves, stems and calyxes. Click here to learn all about trichomes.
What are the properties of cannabis buds?
The properties of cannabis buds are very varied, as the resin they contain can be made up of up to hundreds of different compounds, each of which can have a different use.
There are usually two main compounds present in cannabis buds. On the one hand we have THC, also known as tetrahydrocannabinol, and CBD, also called Cannabidiol. Although, as we have said, there can be many more compounds, other different cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, etc.
Tetrahydrocannabinol is a psychoactive cannabinoid, it is responsible for the alteration in the physical state and consciousness produced by the Cannabis Sativa plant. You can find out all about this cannabinoid in the monograph we dedicated to it in this blog: THC.
The cannabinoid Cannabidiol, on the other hand, does not produce any psychoactive effect nor does it alter people’s state, but it is a fantastic ally for medicine, as it offers a multitude of medicinal applications already approved in many countries. You can visit our monograph on CBD.
But there are not only buds on the marijuana plant, do you want to know everything about Cannabis Sativa, visit other articles such as THCP the novel cannabinoid of Cannabis or Beyond Cannabis: Other plants that produce cannabinoids.
Founder of Experiencia Natural, creative and entrepreneur, designer, master in grower and marketing. For a normalization of all plants and substances, giving priority to patients and users.
