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Can I be totally honest with you? I love CBD flower as much as the next person. But, I’ve got to say — CBG flower is pretty stellar too.
They each have their set of strengths, which is why some people mix their favorite CBG and CBD strains together for a boost in therapeutic effects.
If you haven’t tried CBG flower yet, we’ll tell you all about it in this article.
Ready to get started? Let’s get going.
CBD Flower vs CBG Flower
With such similar acronyms, it can be hard to tell CBD and CBG apart. Plus, they share a lot in common, making the task slightly more difficult.
For instance, both these cannabinoids are commonly found in hemp and they’re both non-intoxicating. Also, they have a good safety profile, few adverse side effects, and they’re well-tolerated by most people.
Yet, there are some notable differences between CBD and CBG. For starters, CBGA, the acid precursor of CBG, is the first cannabinoid produced by the cannabis (hemp) plant. That’s why it has the nickname, “mother of all cannabinoids”.
During the plant’s life cycle CBGA ‘gives birth’ or synthesizes the plant’s other acid precursors: CBDA, THCA, and CBCA. When you expose cannabis to high heat by smoking, vaping, or making cannabutter with CBG flower, the acid precursors convert into CBG, CBD, THC, and CBC. These are acronyms more of us are familiar with.
So, CBG sits above CBD in the hierarchical chemical structure of the cannabis plant. Which means CBG is much more potent during the first 5 to 6 weeks of the hemp plant’s growth cycle. Whereas, CBD is more abundant in the last few weeks of the life cycle. This makes it harder, and therefore more expensive to produce CBG flower compared to CBD flower.
Yet, expert cannabis growers, like Dr. Ganja, know when to harvest the plant to yield high levels of CBG. Also, another strategy they use is to develop genetic strains rich in CBG potency.
Finally, CBD flower and CBG flower differ in terms of their effects. We’re going to cover the effects of CBG flower now, but check out our other blog to learn about different types of CBD flower strains and their effects.
CBG Effects
When you smoke CBG flower, you can feel the effects instantaneously. Vaping or smoking hemp flower reaches the bloodstream quickly, which is why the effects of your CBG strains are instant.
Conversely, if you make cannabutter with your CBG flower and then infuse it in homemade edibles, the CBG effects will have a slower onset compared to smoking. Why is this?
Ingesting a CBG infused cookie, for example, has to bypass your digestive system before you can feel its effects. So, given the time it takes for our bodies to digest food, it can be an hour or two before you feel CBGs effects.
How Does CBG Flower Provide Its Benefits?
CBG benefits the body and mind through its interaction with our endocannabinoid system (ECS). If you’ve read articles about CBD flower or other CBD products then you’ve likely come across this term.
However, CBG has a different impact on the ECS than CBD does. And this is where it gets interesting. The ECS is a biological system responsible for homeostasis, a term that describes internal balance.
Within the ECS there’s a complex network of enzymes, endocannabinoids, and cannabinoid receptors, identified as CB1 and CB2. Wait, there’s that word again — cannabinoid. It’s the scientific name that describes molecules like CBG, CBD, THC, CBN, etc.
When we introduce (phyto)cannabinoids to our body, like CBG flower, the CBG molecule binds with the cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2. Binding is another way to say ‘activates’.
So what does this all mean?
Well, this binding action activates the two cannabinoid receptors and is the reason why we feel beneficial and therapeutic effects from CBG products.
Even more, these CB1 and CB2 receptors are primarily located in our central nervous system (brain and spine) and our immune system. Two extremely important systems no doubt. Beyond that, the activation of these receptors improves the health and vitality of our ECS, making its job of keeping us alive much easier!
Where Is CBG Legal?
Like CBD flower, you can also find CBG flower for sale in the United States. It became legal in December 2018 with the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. To clarify, CBG flower is federally legal as long as it derives from hemp, not from marijuana.
Also, CBG flower must contain less than 0.3% THC to maintain its legal status.
How to Find Amazing CBG Strains
Let me guess. You want to try CBG flower, but you don’t know where to look. Your priority is on quality, finding a brand you can trust, and a CBG strain without impurities or contaminants.
So far, you have a great list going. Although this is a fabulous start, you may want to consider some additional criteria.
Here are some physical indicators to evaluate in CBG strains:
- Size and shape of the CBG buds/nugs
- Color and overall appearance
- Profile of cannabinoids and terpenes in the CBG strain
- Amount of trichomes, the frosty crystals that decorate the buds
All these factors matter and when you’re detailed and thorough in your selection process, it increases your chances of finding a knock-out strain.
When you’re shopping online for CBG flower, the pictures can help you evaluate some of the criteria listed above. But, also read the customer reviews, watch some CBG strain reviews on YouTube, and read the lab reports.
The lab reports, called the Certificate of Analysis (COA) will tell you what other cannabinoids and terpenes are in the strain. And if the company pays for a full panel of lab tests, the COA will provide an in-depth analysis on pesticide, heavy metal, mycotoxin, and microbial content.
Dr.Ganja’s CBG flower checks all these boxes. Head over to the page and add some to your cart. Use code “yoga” at checkout to save 5% of your total!
Final Thoughts
We think CBG flower has some wonderful qualities. Its relationship with the ECS is more direct than CBDs relationship, which could be the reason some people prefer CBG flower vs CBD flower.
At Dr. Ganja, we love both these types of hemp flower. So much so, that we cultivate our own CBD and CBG flower strains in-house. All our strains are accompanied by a full panel of lab tests so that our customers only get the best.
Browse our selection of CBD and CBG hemp flower. If you already tried CBG flower, leave a comment below and tell us what you love about it.