Understanding the correlation between THC% and actual potency

[Saxplayer]

I know to many this will sound strange, but I am struggling a little to understand something here.

Let me give you a scenario. If for example, I have a strain which is supposed to be at 15%THC. Lets say I grow it under optimal conditions, and I achieve a good plant, fresh frosty buds, all harvested at just the right time etc. Lets assume this is then tested and it tests at 15%THC.

If I have the same strain, same plant, and it is heavily thrashed by a deluge of rain, and when I check with a loup I can see so many damaged or missing trichomes, then does this mean that this plant will test a lower % of THC?

What I mean is, is the %THC measured against the volume/weight of bud, or is it just a measure of the strength of the THC itself?

I ask this because, if for example I weigh out 5mg of bud to smoke (just made up number), if the plant has not been knocked around I will get a fully loaded bud/tricome experience, but if the bud is missing say 50% of its trichomes due to being knocked around, then the high will only be 50% obviously.

So, is the THC% still the same for each plant, or would it have a different measurement result on the testing results of either a lab or a hand held unit (Tcheck or whatever).

I guess in a nutshell I’m asking, is it the strength of the trichomes that are tested irrespective of amount of actual “frost” on the buds, or does the amount of “frost” have an effect on the summary when quoting the %?

I’m guessing that the strength (%THC) is independent of amount of “frosting”, but if I am right, then how do you guess the amount (volume) of THC when wanting to make a tincture or edible (butter etc)?

Also, different parts of the same plant produce more or less frost, so how do we account for that when we want to know what we have re %/amount.?

 

[013]

I’ll take a stab at parts of your question. Trichomes are stuck like glue and not water soluble… it takes a lot more than rain to dislodge them. For example exposure to excess temperature like steam or freezing it with dry ice or a solvent to separate trichs from the plant biomass. This is why no tinctures are water based it just doesn’t have ability to strip

No the stuff like amount of indica versus sativa, THC percentage and terpene profile are different for every single plant. Let’s say you take 10 white widow seeds from the same bud or same pack of seeds. There are no twins or quintuplets… All 10 beans will grow unique plants yet all are white widow genetics each has its own ratio of indica/sativa, THC percentage and terpene profile.

To me THC percentage is just a number, this current plant may or may not be the bomb but hopefully the next one will be!

 

[SmokingWings]

Sounds like an eMail or phone call to a THC testing lab would be helpful.

 

[Saxplayer]

I’ll take a stab at parts of your question. Trichomes are stuck like glue and not water soluble… it takes a lot more than rain to dislodge them. For example exposure to excess temperature like steam or freezing it with dry ice or a solvent to separate trichs from the plant biomass. This is why no tinctures are water based it just doesn’t have ability to strip

No the stuff like amount of indica versus sativa, THC percentage and terpene profile are different for every single plant. Let’s say you take 10 white widow seeds from the same bud or same pack of seeds. There are no twins or quintuplets… All 10 beans will grow unique plants yet all are white widow genetics each has its own ratio of indica/sativa, THC percentage and terpene profile.

To me THC percentage is just a number, this current plant may or may not be the bomb but hopefully the next one will be!

What got me thinking about this is that i've just had the experience of seeing my outdoor crop get blasted by a heavy thunderstorm rain deluge, and yes there was quite a lot of trichome damage. The top colas especially lost a lot of frost which was smashed out with the rain. I pulled the plants the day after. When I went to our local grow shop a few days later, I spoke to the guy there and he said he has had horror stories from all around the local growers with the same story. He said its been a "shit" year all around, but with a nasty end to the outdoor season.

I guess I could have phrased my question better. I should have asked, is the quoted %THC based on the frost/bud ratio, or is it just a % of the actual strength of the THC itself, irrespective of amount of "frost" on the bud.

 

[InTheShed]

is the %THC measured against the volume/weight of bud, or is it just a measure of the strength of the THC itself?\

The reportable THC is measured against the dehydrated weight of the part of the flower they're testing, and my lab samples from two different places and gives the results in milligrams of THC/gram of flower as well as percent. You can see from the test results here (<<--- link) that they give the numbers in wet, dry, and percentage form (dry is what they use to report percentage).

So if all the trichomes were knocked off a flower because, let's say, it scraped against the door as it was being carried inside, that part of the flower would test lower in THC than part that had all of its trichomes intact.

 

[Saxplayer]

The reportable THC is measured against the dehydrated weight of the part of the flower they're testing, and my lab tests from two different places and gives the results in milligrams of THC/gram of flower as well as percent. You can see from the test results here (<<--- link) that they give the numbers in wet, dry, and percentage form (dry is what they use to report percentage).

So if all the trichomes were knocked off a flower because, let's say, it scraped against the door as it was being carried inside, that part of the flower would test lower in THC than part that had all of its trichomes intact.

Thats just what I wanted to know, thank you. So, when we look at purchasing seeds and the seller is quoting that the "strain" has a very high THC%, they are basically saying it has a high trichome volume to bud volume? In other words, its very frosty, and not that the THC itself is somehow more potent than an equivalent amount from another plant. ?

I am surprised at that, but we live and learn huh.

 

[InTheShed]

Thats just what I wanted to know, thank you. So, when we look at purchasing seeds and the seller is quoting that the "strain" has a very high THC%, they are basically saying it has a high trichome volume to bud volume? In other words, its very frosty, and not that the THC itself is somehow more potent than an equivalent amount from another plant. ?

I am surprised at that, but we live and learn huh.

A higher concentration of trichomes in a specific area on a plant will tend to give a higher THC result than somewhere on the plant with fewer trichomes, but different varieties can also have higher THC levels in the same number of trichs as ones with lower THC tests. It's not just density that matters.

That said, two different buds right next to each other on the same plant can test different because of damage to one.

 

[Saxplayer]

A higher concentration of trichomes in a specific area on a plant will tend to give a higher THC result than somewhere on the plant with fewer trichomes, but different varieties can also have higher THC levels in the same number of trichs as ones with lower THC tests. It's not just density that matters.

That said, two different buds right next to each other on the same plant can test different because of damage to one.

...so, the plot thickens!

 

[InTheShed]

...so, the plot thickens!

LOL! I'm just saying that trichome density is not the sole determining factor in the tested THC %. Nothing says that each individual trichome contains the same amount of THC as every other one.

 

[Saxplayer]

LOL! I'm just saying that trichome density is not the sole determining factor in the tested THC %. Nothing says that each individual trichome contains the same amount of THC as every other one.

Too late...... I'm already way down the rabbit hole!!!

 

[Melville Hobbes]

I think of it like LED lights.
Take two identical lights, both have 100 diodes, but one is run at 30% capacity and the other is run at 50%.
The light run at 50% will be brighter, despite having the same number of diodes.
Each trichome is like a diode. They have a potential maximum output, which is determined by that plant's genetics. Given identical genetics, how potent your plant is depends on how close those trichomes are to their maximum potential output.
That's ignoring things like the entourage effect though.

 

[Saxplayer]

I think of it like LED lights.
Take two identical lights, both have 100 diodes, but one is run at 30% capacity and the other is run at 50%.
The light run at 50% will be brighter, despite having the same number of diodes.
Each trichome is like a diode. They have a potential maximum output, which is determined by that plant's genetics. Given identical genetics, how potent your plant is depends on how close those trichomes are to their maximum potential output.
That's ignoring things like the entourage effect though.

Melville you were going great guns there, and I was with you all the way...... then you go and drop that last little sentence in.

ummmmm entourage effect huh!
........... digging deeper now......

 

[Melville Hobbes]

Melville you were going great guns there, and I was with you all the way...... then you go and drop that last little sentence in.

ummmmm entourage effect huh!
........... digging deeper now......

The interactions between cannabinoids and terpenes.
For example, terpinolene is a mild sedative, and is more strongly sedative when you pair it with CBD, but becomes a stimulant when you pair it with THC.

 

[Saxplayer]

I expect a PhD at the end of this you know!

 

[InTheShed]

Many people consider the combination of THC, other cannabinoids, and terpenes (the entourage effect) to be a better determining factor in how high you get from a specific variety, as there are some plants with lower THC get folks really high.