Durban Poison

Durban Poison is a pure sativa landrace from South Africa, a region of the world where indigenous populations have cultivated cannabis (which they call 'dagga') since the 14th century. In the late 70s, an American breeder by the name of Ed Rosenthal travelled to South Africa to bring back seed samples from the landrace strains he found there, to regrow the plants on US soil. Once the seeds grew into plants locally, Ed handed over the best looking specimens to a fellow breeder named Mel Frank, who enhanced the plant's attributes further through inter-breeding, thereby maintaining the purity of the genepool. Through his work, Mel successfully increased Durban Poison's resin production and shortened its flowering time. The line was then given over to a Dutch breeder named Sam the Skunkman, who further reduced the flowering time and commercialized the now-perfected (and named) strain. Durban Poison quickly gained popularity in Amsterdam's cafes and shortly thereafter got exported all over the world.

The buds of Durban Poison are dense, medium to large in size, bright green in color and thoroughly blanketed by trichomes. Its flavor is unique; many users report hints of anise mixed with a sweet citrus flavor. The THC content is moderate to high, ranging from 16% to 22%. In addition to being a great mood enhancer, Durban Poison produces a clear headed, energetic and remarkably functional high that is known to enhance social experiences, inspire creative thinking, or just get things done. Due to these effects, medical patients rely on this strain to combat fatigue and depression, as well as for migraine relief, to regain appetite, or combat nausea. The entirely cerebral effects hit fast and typically last for 2-3 hours, with no couchlock or anxiety. However, Durban Poison does have some potential for creating mild paranoia, due its potential to make one's mind race a million miles a minute.

Durban Poison is known to contain one of the highest levels of the cannabinoid THCV from among all cannabis strains. An appetite suppressing cannabinoid with an array of medical benefits, it is uniquely abundant among landrace sativas from Africa. It can be a highly beneficial attribute in a sativa, especially for someone intent on weight loss. However, patients seeking to restore their appetite or combat anorexia should be careful to avoid Durban Poison. Unlocking the therapeutic benefits of THCV requires a temperature of 428 °Fahrenheit (220 °Celsius), so vaporizer enthusiasts must be aware that they'll need to adjust their heat settings to get the full effect.

Thanks to its genetic stability, Durban Poison is a good strain for novice growers to cultivate. It can grow up to 12 feet in height, preferring warm, mildly humid climates where temperatures range between 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit. This strain also produces an impressive yield in 8-9 weeks when grown indoors, which is relatively quick for a pure sativa.