Cotton Candy Kush is a name used to describe two apparently distinct strains -- one is an indica-heavy hybrid from breeders Delicious Seeds; the other is an older, more mysterious hybrid that has circulated in Canada for decades.
Delicious Seeds’ Cotton Candy Kush is a popular indica-leaning plant with memorable flavors and an enduring sedative high. It is a cross between the incredibly aromatic Lavender strain and Power Plant, which is derived from sativa landraces indigenous to South Africa. This strain’s THC content is purported to be 20%.
This Cotton Candy Kush’s bag appeal is immediately apparent: it boasts large buds that hold long, tapered shapes.
The buds have a textbook sativa structure, with loose, fluffy leaves that can torn easily from their central stems -- their texture is not unlike the wispy spun sugar of cotton candy itself. Leaves are forest green and are shot through with pollen-collecting pistils that begin as small white hairs that turn pink as plants mature. Shades of light and dark purple add even more color, and come about as the result of anthocyanin pigments in the plants’ genetics, activated by colder than average temperatures during the growing process. Crystalline trichomes give the flowers a very sticky texture, again underscoring the strain’s similarity to carnival-bought cotton candy.
When cured, these flowers smell sweet and fruity, almost bordering on saccharine. Floral and citrus notes hang out underneath. This Cotton Candy Kush burns smooth and tastes of fruity, cloying bubble gum on the exhale.
Delicious Seeds’’ Cotton Candy Kush takes hold quickly but gently, conferring a tingly relaxation behind the eyes and temples that spreads into a smile and moves down through the shoulders and core. Although this strain offers some lucid mental stimulation, these effects are soon accompanied by strong sedative effects, making this a good choice for a mellow night in. Medically speaking, this Cotton Candy Kush can be effective in treating aches and pains, depressed or anxious moods, or stubborn cases of insomnia. It’s appropriate for use anywhere between late afternoon and just before bedtime.
Delicious Seeds has released seeds of their Cotton Candy Kush variety for online sale. It can thrive indoors or out, although outdoor growing requires humid climates with consistent daytime temperatures in the 70 degree Fahrenheit range. This strain has a favorable bud to leaf ratio, meaning that growers may not need to be as vigilant when pruning broad, light-blocking fan leaves. It flowers within 9 to 10 weeks when grown indoors and offers a high yield of flowers.
The second Cotton Candy Kush in wide circulation is a hybrid cross of landrace indica Afghani and perennial sativa favorite Haze. It was originally produced by the Vancouver Island-based Federation Seed Company and although it’s no longer actively bred, clones of the plant continue to change hands in the region. This variety’s THC content ranges from 17% to 22%.
Federation’s Cotton Candy Kush is marked by medium-sized flowers that adhere in dense, indica-typical bud structures. They are extremely resinous, making them psychoactively potent and doubly valuable in the production of wax, shatter, and other THC concentrates. When properly cured, the flowers have the danky, hashy smell that you’d expect of an Afghani-derived crossbreed. When combusted, this Cotton Candy Kush can induce coughing and may cause sinuses to water with its harsh, acrid smoke. On the exhale, smoke tastes rich and aromatic.
This Cotton Candy Kush has more balanced effects than Delicious Seeds’ version. It comes on quickly, elevating mood and stimulating cerebral activity. This thoughtfulness is soon accompanied by a creeping feeling of body melt that can help users move more slowly and breathe more easily without totally immobilizing them. This stain can also help medical cannabis patients by easing aches and pains -- whether incidental, due to injury or soreness, or chronic, due to conditions like fibromyalgia or lupus. In large enough doses, this Cotton Candy Kush can relieve stubborn cases of insomnia. Negative side effects include a tendency to dry out sinuses and mucus membranes, leading to red eyes and dry mouth.
As noted, this is a clone only strain - prospective growers must gain access to Pacific Northwest growers from whom they can take clippings from mature plants of Cotton Candy Kush in order to grow genetically identical clones. These plants can be successfully grown indoors or out; the wide variety of sativa landraces in this strain’s Haze background make it hardy and resistant to harsh growing conditions. Indoors, the short, bushy crops can easily fit in limited grow spaces. This hybrid Cotton Candy Kush flowers within 8 weeks when grown indoors and offers growers a moderate yield for their efforts.