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PL THE PLANT
A cannabis plant’s genotype is the DNA it inherits and its phenotype is what that DNA becomes in a given environment, which is why plants from one seed pack can differ. The gap between the two is why “strains” are slippery and why cloning exists.
Genotype: the inherited code
The genotype is the full set of genes a plant carries, half from each parent. It sets the range of what a plant can be: its potential height, its possible cannabinoid and terpene profile, its resistance to stress.
Phenotype: what the plant becomes
The phenotype is the plant you actually grow, the expression of the genotype under real light, temperature, nutrients and stress. The same genotype grown two ways can differ in size, colour, yield and aroma.
This is why a single seed line throws several distinct “phenos”, and why growers hunt through a pack for the one phenotype they like best.
Why clones exist
A clone is a cutting of a specific plant, so it shares that plant’s exact genotype. Cloning is how a grower locks in one winning phenotype and reproduces it identically, instead of gambling on seed variation.
Chemotype: the profile that matters
Beyond appearance, plants have a chemotype, their characteristic cannabinoid and terpene ratio. Chemotype is largely genetic and is the honest basis for grouping cannabis, far more useful than “indica” or “sativa”.
Why “strain” is a loose word
Because a strain name refers to a genotype that then varies by phenotype and grow, the same name can deliver different plants from different sellers. The encyclopedia leans on chemotype and verified data rather than names alone.
Continue exploring
THCAS and CBDAS Synthase Loci, Chromosome 6 Architecture, and GxE Plasticity
Classical Mendelian crosses first modeled THCA and CBDA production in Cannabis sativa as codominant alleles at a single locus, B, where homozygous BT/BT yields Type I (THC-dominant), heterozygous BT/BD yields Type II (mixed THC:CBD), and homozygous BD/BD yields Type III (CBD-dominant) plants (de Meijer et al., 2003, PubMed PMID 12586720). Long-read chromosome-scale genome assemblies later demonstrated that functional THCAS and CBDAS genes actually reside in separate, tightly linked retrotransposon-rich arrays on chromosome 6 that rarely recombine, explaining why they segregate like a single locus while allowing occasional copy-number variation (Grassa et al., 2021, PubMed PMID 33720413). While qualitative cannabinoid ratio (Type I, II, or III) is locked by genotype, absolute cannabinoid concentration and monoterpene-to-sesquiterpene balance exhibit strong genotype-by-environment (GxE) plasticity across light intensity, temperature, and root-zone nutrition (Small, 2015, DOI 10.1007/s12229-015-9157-3).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can growing conditions turn a CBD-dominant plant into a high-THC plant?
No. Whether a plant is Type I (THC-dominant), Type II (mixed), or Type III (CBD-dominant) is fixed by its THCAS and CBDAS genes on chromosome 6. Environmental stress can change total cannabinoid yield by a few percent, but it cannot swap one synthase enzyme for another.
Why do two seeds from the same cross smell and grow differently?
Most commercial cannabis cultivars are heterozygous hybrids rather than fully inbred lines. Each seed inherits a unique recombination of parental alleles governing terpene synthases, internode spacing, and flowering time.
Why do clones from the same mother plant sometimes test with different terpene levels?
Genetically identical clones still exhibit phenotype plasticity (GxE): differences in light spectrum, root-zone temperature, and mineral nutrition alter the expression of terpene synthase genes without changing the underlying DNA.
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