How to tell if your buying indica or sativa

[Dankyland]

I strongly prefer indica over sativa. sativa can occasionally give me paranoia and aside from that I just enjoy indica more. moving on...

Alot of ppl aren't fortunate enough to be able to grow with there current situations (me), and don't live in a state where there is medicinal MJ (also I).
So how can I tell just by looking and other clues if something is indica or sativa? The dealers don't know whether it is and most of the time don't even know what strain it really is, so how can I screen for sativa or indica?
If I have things my way I would only buy indica, but sativas seem to be more common around my way.

 

[wd420]

firstly, I'm heinously sorry to hear of your situation.
Secondly, there's no way to know for sure, since most weed out there is a hybrid, with varying degrees of indica and sativa background. Thirdly, there are general signs that point you in the right direction, but keep in mind, they're not always true.
Indica buds are usually more dense, Sativa less dense.
Indica nugs are generally larger, Sativa smaller
Indica has lots of resin, Sativa not *as* much
The best way to tell, is to smoke it. If you can't move, it's indica, haha.

 

[Firestone]

What he said. Try it before you buy it. There's no mistaking the buzz.

If your dealer won't let you try the smoke,find another dealer. Don't let 'em give you weed to try from another bag other than the one you're buying and make sure to get a little nug from deep in the center of the bag. That "wow" bud in the corner can be there to get you to purposely try it. Street dealers are a sneaky bunch.

 

[dc534]

That is what is great about having a consitent dealer, a guy you can actually trust. Not once has my dealer sold me something not advertised. And I never buy until I actually see the stuff. If it is a new dealer I am buying from, I usually buy a small amount like a gram or less. That way it gives me a chance to test the product. Also never buy weed if the dealer has an entrouge or is essentially 2 or more dealers. The reason people gang up like that to sell weed is to distract you while they pick and chose what buds to give you. I know from experience. Not that I was new, I was just trusting a friend who said he had a hook-up and I was new to the town. I was buying an eigth from his so called reputable contact, who he say gives him deals all the time. Well his contacts/s, it ended up being 3 shorties, came by, and while 1 was weighing out the weed, the others were distracting me by smoking me up. Well, make a long story short, the dealer was shady, I got mostly shake and I am pretty sure he weighed the bag with the bud. Basically total rip-off and if you dont wanna get ripped off. Dont buy large amounts from dealers you dont know. If your dealer is dry, and you truely need bud, buy a small amount from your new contact, and just wait for your more reputable contact.

On the note of indica and sativia. What also really matters is when the bud is harvested, a lot of the time the bud is harvested early and leads to more THC and less Carbonoids. The difference being is early in maturation when the bud is high in THC it tends to give you a more heady/cerberal high with the euphoric effects but it is a more up high, whereas if the bud is harvested late into maturation, it will have more Cabonoids built up and tends to give you a more body high associated with the more mellow stoned feeling. Basically once it has been harvested it is hard to tell if you have indica or sativia simply buy looking at it, if you can look at it closely however, you might be able to tell how late in maturation it was picked and whether it is indica or sativa you will be able to tell at what point it was harvested and thus maybe find some sativa's with the desired effects you are looking for. Most pot now is a crossbread between Sativa and Indica so for you looking for desired Indica effects, try to look for bud that was allowed to mature longer.

Below is a very good read from the forum I urge you to read on Trichromes and it will explain the difference in harvesting times completly. Note also that most commercial grade stuff is dried pretty quickly, and picked early because the harvesters are simply turning over their crop as quickly as possible to maximize profits. Thus most arent going to wait an extra 1-2 weeks during the final phase before harvesting to get the indica related effects that you are looking for. Drying quickly also leads to harsher smoke that doesnt taste as good.

What are Trichomes? Trichome 101