Would like to start a discussion, posted below are 2 recent lab results from Calidior farms. What are you guys chasing in your flowers? Flavor or THC? Would like to get a read on the audience in this forum. Growers and smokers welcome to join in on the convo!
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Both balanced 
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In my farm we try to study the whole chemo types as much as possible and we are limited in knowledge only by the limits of the labs..
The first years the most easy method to testing flowers in my area was with a machine called Gemmacert and with that machine we can test only THC CBD CBG
Also we learn to do chromatography with reagents but again, at home can check only THC CBD CBG CBN (after decarb them in the small oven)
More Later arrived Neo Spectra machine and we was able to check also about Terps
We had also other machines like the Orange Photonics Machine for Chromatography that is more accurate and shows more things
And of course we have sent to the labs of Universities where they even have the molecular microscope , but they are a little lost if you don’t tell before exactly what to look
So when you have access to any of this testing methods you start to be little bit proud when you get “high THC” or some unusual extraordinary results about some compound
I think to make this test is very educational and everybody who can should do many of them for a while to learn about ganja
But after there is the human factor. When you go to test the flowers with your own personal experience you quickly learn that more high percentages of compounds do not necessarily more strong effects. So you begin to doubt about the lab test
I don’t think the lab tests are wrong, I just think that ganja is not like a drug where more THC (for example) is equal to more effect
When it comes to the human experience some flowers of 17% THC they can feel stronger than other with 23% (I have seen higher that 23% with my own eyes only with the PurpL machine but I think she exaggerate)
So why chasing high THC or high Terps if later a local ganja low in THC and low on Terps deliver stronger and better effects?
I’m open to discuss why.
My personal opinion is that there are so many compounds and substances or molecules that they combine together on the so called entourage effect and also there is what I call.. the magic.
What I call the magic for me is the life experience of the plant and can explain why outdoors organic even with lower compounds profile most of time they deliver more effective experiences many time even close to psychedelic.
During her life the plant have experiences. The bugs and other animals, the wind, the rain, the mushrooms underground.. the plant built in her DNA “stories” and those stories she tell later to the consumer
Indoors they have less experiences and they have less to tell. Do you agree? Let me know your point.
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In a perfect world id want balanced buds, Sesquiterpene over mono,high terpenes 3-6+%, 15-20% thc is all i need super high thc does not mean high quality in my eyes
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for me the effect is nr1 and that is made up from so many variables
It’s exiting to see results that high 
I don’t need a lab test to tell me it’s good shit tho
I’ve never had really good shit that doesn’t stink strong so if i only can choose from two i’d have to say terps but not the percentage of terps but measured by my 
If she stinky and funky i wanty​
Some of the super high thc cultivars makes me feel uncomfortable like bad energy while others are super medical meditative 
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Terpenes are crucial for achieving the desired effect. THC alone does not produce a satisfactory result; rather, the interplay between terpenes and THC is the decisive factor. Terpenes possess a spectrum of functions even on their own and the specific arrangement of these terpenes is equally critical!
Just as in perfumery, there is a “top note,” a “heart note,” and a “base note.” Here, too, the sequence is paramount! Consider a strain containing:
β-Caryophyllene
β-Myrcene
Limonene
With this specific arrangement, the strain produces a characteristic effect. However, if one were to rearrange these same terpenes differently as follows:
Limonene
β-Caryophyllene
β-Myrcene
One would experience a different effect, despite the terpenes being identical, simply because the arrangement of the top, heart, and base notes has changed. This implies that the individual concentrations of the terpenes and their respective percentages differ, which in turn has a profound impact on the overall effect.
β-Caryophyllene
β-Myrcene
Limonene
When combined with 19% THC, this blend produces effects comparable to those of other strains containing 25–27% THC. It offers a deeply calming and soothing effect. I recommend this combination for daytime use; it can be classified as a potent “Sativa”.
For the evening, I recommend:
β-Caryophyllene
Limonene
Farnesene or Germacrene
This specific arrangement can produce very potent effects even with low THC levels; at 25–33% THC, it induces significant drowsiness and deep sedation qualities typically associated with an “Indica”. It is perfect for treating pain and loss of appetite.
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Well said Bravo! Plant spirit tells. Landrace don’t care about science. Western over breeding does.
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I agree with this hippy sort of mentality to a certain extent. I am from Northern California where this sort of thinking reigns supreme. I am also a Sustainable Agriculture Major and am a big believer in organic cultivation methods and closing the loop as much as I can. Even indoors. I would say the plant expresses differently for different growers. We are dealing with a living thing and I think a lot of people forget that part of it and leave that connection between human and plant out of the equation. For me I couldnt care less about THC and will take high terpene expression all day. I smoke for flavour. Field testing equipment like the Neo Spectra is cool to me, but again results are variable. I don’t trust labs at all. It is the same story in the States as everywhere else. Blown out and inconsistent results. The facts are genetics these days are so crossbred onto each other and unstable that I think it has created some data that is not very accurate or tailored to an experienced smoker or grower. Actual knowledgeable breeders that are taking the correct time to make all these “exotic candy gases” are few and far between these days. I think that is what we are seeing with a lot of this lab tested flower grown at large scale. Lots of the same cultivars bred mediocre. I think that is also why you are seeing some of the results you are with your work with the landraces. Thoughts?
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Once I learned about the entourage effect, and how the terpenes, secondary & tertiary cannabinoids influence the experiential effects I’ve started using the analogy comparing cultivars to cocktails. Think of THC as your liquor, your secondary cannabinoids & terpenes as the mixers/garnish, and even the pipe you smoke has some parallel to what type of glass you drink from.
For instance I would compare the initial example with ~30% THC, >.1% CBD, and 3-6% terpenes as doing a tequila shot with a lick of salt and a bite of lime. Strong AF, but not necessarily enjoyable, and if you do too much, you’re gonna have a bad time.
Compare that to a landrace with 16% THC, ~3%CBD, and a similar amount of terpenes. I look at that like a martini. A little vermouth to tone down the gin and an olive to round it out. Not as potent, but a much more enjoyable experience overall.
This is all just my opinion, and probably not "technically"accurate, but it’s a simple way to explain why high THC isn’t the end-all/be-all of Ganja quality to people that don’t know better.
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Not sure this video ties into some of what you said Canna_blessed. Kahlifa Genetics video about landrace and modern hybrids. You’ll get an adult content warning, just proceed . . .
Backcrossing (Bx)
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Talking about my personal experience I’m not sure that are Terps who make the difference when we consider THC potency
I know that for the entourage effect theorist this can be an unpopular statement but I just tell about my own perception
I personally prefer flowers that are low on Terps , 2% is for me already a bit disturbing I prefer lower percentages
Some of my favorite smokes are very low in smell and THC too, but I cannot connect this to a lower potency of effects
I have to confess that I don’t know the reasons, but some low THC low Terps ganja hits stronger than the higher ones
To me there is something else to be accounted
Anyway to me is obvious that THC percentage is not the same of Alcohol percentage where more high level is equal to stronger effects at least when we talk about dried flowers, extracts they deserve a whole separate discussion for this matter
For the seek of science I also like to say that I usually experience headache if there is CBD present but I definitely love CBG (uplifting) and I’m ok with CBN (sleepy)
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That’s fair. Logically it makes the most sense that the cannabinoids be the primary cause of the experiential effects. I feel like there had to be an entourage effect somewhere in the pharmacology, otherwise every strain would smoke the same, but I can also agree that the terpenes may not play a part in it. I guess, in reference to my previous analogy, I think of terps like the garnish. It’s the olive in the martini, the salt on the margaritas, etc. They make it more appealing, but aren’t strictly speaking necessary.
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CBG “mother of all cannabinoids.,” CBG originates from cannabigerolic acid (CBGA), the first cannabinoid produced by the cannabis plant. Without CBG, the plant would not produce the other cannabinoids that are widely recognized for their effects. I looked at this because Prempavee lists CBG in her strain descriptions.
Terpenes “. . . aromatic compounds in cannabis that contribute to its unique flavors and scents, and they play a crucial role in the plant’s therapeutic effects and overall experience.” They excite the brains receptors, (CB1 and CB2), altering neural signaling, memory, learning, and emotional regulation.
I always become alert to the taste from certain memorable strains. For taste alone I want to toke doob after doob. Lime Green/Piney SoCal Homegrown my favorite. When it hits the back of your throat you know.
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Eventually Terps have some influence on the effects (I will use some words improperly here but with the intention of giving the idea) : like in aroma therapy, some Terps they can be considered responsables to activate some synapsis.. I believe so.
What leave me doubtful is that we need big quantities of them. I believe that even if they are present in minimal amounts , let say homeopathic levels, my personal feeling, they do the job anyway..
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Yes CBGa is the mother of all cannabinoids. Why? Because the ganja plant when ripen her trichomes it does ripening them with CBGa. After some time this transforms in THCa , CBDa and other cannabinoids that after some time they all transform in CBNa
I have reasons to believe that long flowering varieties, in particular those with a “snake” structure of the flowers when tested they result to contain quite high amounts of CBGa because they always have a part of the flower that is “new” even after several weeks of flowering
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If home testing kits were normally available, then everyone can test. Now $$$$ to send to lab and test. No good for most growers.
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In some countries , like Spain for example to test is very cheap and can be done with universities quite easy
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