What is the purpose of THC to marijuana plants?

[HereInGoodHelth]

Quote:
Originally Posted by quest
It (THC),helps create a symbiotic relationship with cannabis and man. Man cultivates the plant for THC, insuring (in a sane world) the species (cannabis) survival.

By George, I think you've got it !

Quote:
The Tree of Life

In the center of the Garden temple Van planted the long-guarded tree of life, whose leaves were for the “healing of the nations,” and whose fruit had so long sustained him on earth.
Van well knew that Adam and Eve would also be dependent on this gift of Edentia for their life maintenance after they once appeared on Earth in material form.

Michael Pollan has some interesting things to say about these ideas in his book entitled The Botany of Desire.

Though...

His insight and research is much more qualitative than much of the interesting information that is being shared here.

Knowing well that the intoxicating effects of cannabis have been enveloping the collective consciousness of humankind for over 9000 years; Could it be that our attempts to understand and enhance our relationship with cannabis are leading us astray from "what was spoken" at the first encounter?

Perhaps examining the history behind this developing relationship between humankind and cannabis would help to answer the question: What is the purpose of THC to marijuana plants?

Could it be that our search for the answer to this question is just a futile attempt to take ownership of/impart the human spirit in/falsely enhance, the essence and purity of our relationship?

"Who" is THC for?

-Will

 

[messn'n'gommin']

These may answer a few questions.

http://www.hempfood.com/Iha/iha01201.html
The Chemical Ecology of Cannabis, D.W. Pate

http://www.pnas.org/content/102/50/18225.full
“A UV-B-Specific Signaling Component Orchestrates Plant UV Protection,”

http://www.hempreport.com/issues/17/malbody17.html
The THC Accumulation in Glands of Cannabis (Mahlberg and Kim)

http://www.amjbot.org/cgi/reprint/91/6/966
A Chemotaxonomic Analysis of Cannabinoid Variation in Cannabis (Hillig and Mahlberg)

http://www.internationalhempassociation.org/jiha/jiha5208.html
“Physical Evidence for the Antiquity of Cannabis sativa L.,” by Fleming and Clarke

http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/vol146/issue3/
A Focus Issue on Plant-Herbivore Interactions

Namaste, mess

 

[Owl Mirror]

These may answer a few questions.

http://www.hempfood.com/Iha/iha01201.html
The Chemical Ecology of Cannabis, D.W. Pate

http://www.pnas.org/content/102/50/18225.full
“A UV-B-Specific Signaling Component Orchestrates Plant UV Protection,”

http://www.hempreport.com/issues/17/malbody17.html
The THC Accumulation in Glands of Cannabis (Mahlberg and Kim)

http://www.amjbot.org/cgi/reprint/91/6/966
A Chemotaxonomic Analysis of Cannabinoid Variation in Cannabis (Hillig and Mahlberg)

http://www.internationalhempassociation.org/jiha/jiha5208.html
“Physical Evidence for the Antiquity of Cannabis sativa L.,” by Fleming and Clarke

http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/vol146/issue3/
A Focus Issue on Plant-Herbivore Interactions

Namaste, mess

Awesome list of resources, thanks !

 

[Owl Mirror]

http://www.hempreport.com/issues/17/malbody17.html
The THC Accumulation in Glands of Cannabis (Mahlberg and Kim)

Glands most active in secretion (mature) are translucent in appearance, aged glands are yellow in appearance and senescent glands are brown in color. Mature glands possessed the highest content of their major cannabinoid in both the fiber and drug strains.

What does this tell us regarding WHEN to harvest ?
According to the above, the THC content within the trichs begins to diminish upon changing colors from clear to yellow to brown.
Should we be harvesting at the FIRST SIGNS of amber/yellow and, not waiting until we have 30% amber ?

 

[FoCo(No.Co)]

Glands most active in secretion (mature) are translucent in appearance, aged glands are yellow in appearance and senescent glands are brown in color. Mature glands possessed the highest content of their major cannabinoid in both the fiber and drug strains.

What does this tell us regarding WHEN to harvest ?
According to the above, the THC content within the trichs begins to diminish upon changing colors from clear to yellow to brown.
Should we be harvesting at the FIRST SIGNS of amber/yellow and, not waiting until we have 30% amber ?

THC begins degrading at that point, but it doesn't just go away. It is converted to other chemicals. Certain non-psychoactive cannabinoids alter the effects of THC in a positive way.

For me, a bud with 100% amber trichs is ideal smoke. It's a really mellow, warm, happy experience with very little "burn-out" felling afterwards. Quality of high is more important than pure potency IMO, which is why most people harvest after the plants have developed at least a few amber trichs.

 

[HerbGlaze]

For me, a bud with 100% amber trichs is ideal smoke. It's a really mellow, warm, happy experience with very little "burn-out" felling afterwards. Quality of high is more important that pure potency IMO, which is why most people harvest after the plants have developed at least a few amber trichs.

I feel the opposite most strains with pure amber are over done, making the high really down,uncomfertable,and just overall not good smoke for me.
Everyones different!

 

[FoCo(No.Co)]

I feel the opposite most strains with pure amber are over done, making the high really down,uncomfertable,and just overall not good smoke for me.
Everyones different!

This is why I dont think we should measure potency strickly on the basis of THC percentages. The chemical profile of marijuana is far more complex than that and everyone's head reacts differently to different cannabinoid profiles.

 

[Owl Mirror]

THC begins degrading at that point, but it doesn't just go away. It is converted to other chemicals. Certain non-psychoactive cannabinoids alter the effects of THC in a positive way.

For me, a bud with 100% amber trichs is ideal smoke. It's a really mellow, warm, happy experience with very little "burn-out" felling afterwards. Quality of high is more important that pure potency IMO, which is why most people harvest after the plants have developed at least a few amber trichs.

Does this transformation continue after harvest?
If you cut at 30% amber, will the rest turn amber during the curing process ?

I need pain reduction quality as well as something which allows me to function during the daytime.
I normally only grow two plants which finish at the same time.
Should I harvest one plant at 20% amber and leave the other go 30% amber to achieve my requirement ?

 

[Telegraphist.]

Owl

I am like you and also primary use for pain/ nausia over getting high

What i can say is that is experiment and see what helps you best. I find that indica plants take roughly about 8 weeks help me best while those that i let go a bit longer help best at night for sleep

It is all about ratios of cannabinoids and also your own body chemistry.

How do small popcorn buds compare to upper buds harvested at the same time? Trial and error for your circumstances

Can i recommend getting the book 'marijuana chemistry' Michael Starks. Old book but a lot of info in it you would like Owl, would answer a lot of questions but leave you wanting to ask a lot more

 

[FoCo(No.Co)]

Does this transformation continue after harvest?
If you cut at 30% amber, will the rest turn amber during the curing process ?

Nope.

I need pain reduction quality as well as something which allows me to function during the daytime.
I normally only grow two plants which finish at the same time.
Should I harvest one plant at 20% amber and leave the other go 30% amber to achieve my requirement ?

It largely depends on how YOUR head works. But for me, best pain killing applications come from a 60/40 Indica dom with 75+% amber trichs. The effect is very similar to mild/moderate opiates like vicodin.

I function better during the day on this type of medicine as opposed to a hybrid strain with mostly cloudy trichs, which cause more interference of linear thought. A more mature bud just allows me to slow down and react more normally, wereas a less mature bud makes me jumpy and confused.

If you can afford to wait it out, I'd try harvesting at about 60% amber. I think it would work well for your application... but like we were discussing earlier it's a matter of personal neural-chemical response.

Peace.

 

[rrog]

I've looked into this quite a bit. I won't cite links to technical papers since I'm sure they have already been referenced.

Not a big believer in THC's role as pest repellent, although I think Cannabis itself is a bad tasting plant to predators. The THC arrives way too late in the plants life. If it were helpful to avoid predation, you would think you would see THC much earlier in a plant's life.

I don't see the Cannabis plant using the spheres to concentrate the rays below them, since the nearly all of the Cannabinoid reactions take place within the Trichome sphere itself. Many groovy electron microscope images of this out there.

Personally I believe THC, and more broadly Trichomes themselves, make poor UV sunscreens. Firstly they are not around at all until quite late in the plants life through the worst of the summer's UV intensity. Secondly these Trichome structures don't cover the surface significantly.

However I do believe the THC and its ratio to other Cannabinoids is altered by UV-B. THC and Cannabinoids in general do not require UV-A, B, or UV-C since we get plenty wasted off of herb that hasn't seen (significant) UV.

I also believe there is a possibility that the presence of at least UV-B earlier in a plants life can play a role in producing Cannabidoid precursors. So I started my UV-B reptile bulb shortly after I switched to 12/12 three weeks ago. I have it go in 15 minute bursts for a total of 1.5 hours. I will be increasing this to 3 hours tomorrow.

I don't see a downside. Not sure about energy usage but no real heat is produced. Just have to be careful to introduce the UV gently and for short duration for first week. Then you can build up.

The OP asked the great question. What exactly is the THC made for? Here's a wild-ass notion. Certain insects culture and grow certain fungi, bacteria and I believe simple plants. There are other examples I'm sure. They grow these things because the fungus provides some essential such as food.

What if Cannabis produces THC to keep us as protectors? It gives us what we want. Better THC production was selected into the future grows and subsequent generations were more potent.

You have to admit that this plant has been heavily maintained and grown for thousands of years. These genetic efforts of ours must have had an effect on the overall domestic and wild strains.

Just a thought. Probably total bullshit.

 

[corradogang*]

You only have to look at pic's of insects been stuck by the resin and/or animals been put of eating the plant etc. If it was so good against uv surely some drug manucfatcurer (crap spelling) would have used it

 

[nooob]

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[FoCo(No.Co)]

its very simple you lot are just thinking too deep into it, (stoners)

if man wasnt around weed woundnt be as strong with thc,
we have selected the strongest sticky over 8000 years, breed the strongest thc ,,its not the plant its us.
we wont the best , we keep playin with genetics for the best thc. its a small part of the plant that we have exploited for effect . if we didnt breed all these strains and left it alone it probably would have minute if any thc. we are inbreeding the speices to find the thc. its not the plant deffending its self its our addiction....

EDIT if you can find a way to increse the thc all the better, adding uv mite work or it mite give you skin cancer,

You are totally missing the point. We want to know the function of THC in a natural environment. Of course we have selected for potency, but the Cannabis Sativa plant was around and producing THC long before we were cultivating it.

 

[Telegraphist.]

I notice also that the trichromes primary appear around the seed bracts and seed area, so maybe some kind of protection/ dispencing for the seed?

 

[MedGrowerTom]

....thc..
its sticky right?
I wonder if pollen would stick to it, what crazy of plant it is to of survied this long, truley amazing. thats about all I know lol, for example if you leave it in pure dark for the last two days, it thinks its gona die off so it produced way more resin in hopes of catching some stray pollen so it does not die off and gets super sticky, same with the uvb light though right? a 'type' of 'plant sunblock'? thats great man, never thought about it that way but it makes sence to me, all of the above, like the topic

 

[big ballin 88]

I thought the main reason for the trichomes was to ensure pollination. Thats why more resin appears later when the plant still isn't fertilized and forces more out in hopes of increasing its chance of fertilization. When your chance of survival counts on the wind to carry pollen distances, you would defineilty want to increase you chances(surface area)to actually catch the pollen. Each week that goes by more resin appears, maybe as the plant knows its losing valuable time and tries to get something going.
I believe the trichomes have other factors, but this is the biggest. Males don't produce the same trichomes but they do still contain minute percentages of THC. Where as we breed females to put out extra resin from not being pollinated. Potency doesn't rely on just THC and i don't think all THC comes from the trichomes.

 

[qdavid]

I notice also that the trichromes primary appear around the seed bracts and seed area, so maybe some kind of protection/ dispencing for the seed?

I was thinking the same thing. Yet seeded flowers are somewhat less potent than sensimilla(sp?). But I haven't come up with any ideas about how to force the plant toward trying harder to attract pollen. But I think THAT is the key. That also helps explain why an extended dark period (~48hrs) right before havest has been recommended (and seems to work).

 

[rrog]

There's a great vid out there on youtube from the original Marijuana Man. The Grow Show. He has great images of the Trichomes, etc. I don't agree with his conclusion about the purpose of THC, but I like his line "In nature there is no form without function." The Trichomes seem to be nearly exclusively dedicated to resin (cannabinoid) production. I speculate that weed today has many more Trichomes than it did 4000 years ago, due to man's influence on increasing potency through selective breeding, etc.

THC would seem to have little to do with pollination. In my mind, the Trichomes are all about Cannabinoid production, not sticky resin. You can have sticky plant resins without THC, so something else is afoot here.

Interesting on the BBC special on weed. All vertebrates from the Sea Slug up to Humans have Cannabinoid receptors in the nervous system. This is not a uniquely human trait. Odd that Cannabis is the only known plant (as far as I know) that produces Cannabinoids.

A mystery

 

[StreamMagic]

Guys watch BBC EVIL WEED. Its a documentary on pot. Very good vid!