Our growers’ expertise and passion for creating premium-quality therapeutics shines through in every batch of prime products we supply to Commonwealth dispensaries. But have you ever wanted to learn more about the innovative processes and product development happening in our grow rooms?
Our new “Behind the Strains” newsletter has got you covered. In each installment of this educational series, we will give you a prime insider’s look at the expert combination of passion and science that drives our in-house breeding program. We’ll also share downloadable JPGs that you can use to learn more about the featured strains’ profiles— outlining descriptive traits, terpenes, and lineage.
Today, we’ll walk you through the selective breeding process and distinctive lineage behind a duo of prime-exclusive hybrids that made their dispensary debut in February 2021. Let’s take a “behind the strains” look at the making of the Ghost Thai phenotypes.
Planting the Seed: Ghost Thai is a hybrid that was crossed from indica D Ghost Hindu #7 and our prized African Thai male plant. Its sister plant, the Grower Select sativa African Thai #15, is a patient-preferred strain in our genetic library. African Thai was originally bred in Colorado by our Senior Director of Production and Facilities, Brandon Miller. While the exact lineage and history of its South African Durban parent remains a mystery, the landrace Thai lineage of this now prime-exclusive strain shines through in its extraction performance that yields concentrates with impressive values for both THC and terpenes.
Our Ghost Thai hybrid allows patients to experience the iconic traits of the now discontinued parent strain, D Ghost Hindu, which made its final appearance on Commonwealth dispensary menus in November 2020. D Ghost Hindu was among the original indica strains that launched the prime line to market in the Pennsylvania medical marijuana program, and was characterized by dominant flavors of Chemdog D with cooling lemon undertones.
Miller notes that breeding Ghost Thai provided an opportunity to potentially “capture some of the desirable traits of the D Ghost Hindu while improving its structure and vigor.”
Taking Root: From the start of breeding this new cross, it was clear that Ghost Thai would shape up to be a prime addition to our line of premium whole flower and diverse concentrates. The buds of the developing Ghost Thai plants displayed a similar structure and color to the Chemdawg D parent in their ancestry, and they produced multi-layered aromas that ranged from leather to lemon cleaner. Among the host of propagated seeds, a few expressions rose above the rest in terms of quality and uniqueness. Patients may remember that the beta release of this strain from our grow rooms to dispensary shelves included four expressions: the #19 (shrimp ramen), #45 (pine brine), #28 (orange musk), and #57 (kush) phenotypes.
Budding Legacy: Our current strain library offers patients access to two prime Ghost Thai expressions, our Grower’s Select orange musk pheno and the premium kush pheno. Dubbed the prime kush pheno, the #57 plant stood out during our expert pheno hunting process for its multi-layered aromas ranging from leather to kush. The #28 plant earned its name due to this phenotype’s spicy flavor, which is similar to chocolate orange liqueur. The #28 inherited uniquely high essential oil content from the African Thai, with its primary flavor influences stemming from the Hindu Kush lineage. In contrast, the #57 pheno displays obvious traits from both the Ghost OG and from the Chemdawg D grandparents.
Next week, patients can look forward to seeing the orange musk pheno on store menus in the form of our prime live resin cartridges— a ready-to-inhale live extract form that is crafted from flower that has been frozen at the peak of harvest to preserve terpenes and flavors. This batch of Ghost Thai cartridges has tested for over 11% total terpenes, which are always 100% cannabis-derived— with no reconstituted terpenes or synthetic additives.
Therapeutic Medicine: Despite their unique flavor expressions, both the #28 and #57 phenos boast notable amounts of the terpenes – myrcene, limonene, caryophyllene, and pinene. A less common compound in most medical marijuana strains, the woodsy terpene pinene has been studied for its potential to alleviate inflammation. This strain’s myrcene content may hold therapeutic potential for patients of various qualifying conditions— including anxiety, PTSD, insomnia, and chronic pain – as myrcene has demonstrated both sedative and analgesic potential in studies.
Patients should check with their dispensary pharmacist on whether these prime cultivars might work for their unique medical needs.
