There’s something uniquely alluring about dark cannabis plants, and purple strains have risen to prominence over the last decade, thanks largely in part to Girl Scout Cookies and Grandaddy Purple, which tend to produce dark plants, even when hybridised with other strains.

In this article, we’ll briefly touch on what gives these plants their bold colours, how often it occurs, and recommend some strains that have a good chance of turning dark.

Click here to jump to the list of purple strains

What Makes Some Cannabis Plants Turn Purple

The purple colouration exhibited by some strains is due to a pigment called anthocyanin. These pigments are naturally occurring flavonoids, and they can produce various shades of blue, purple, and pink. Strains with higher levels of anthocyanins can show darker fan leaves, sugar leaves, or even flowers themselves.

Some strains have such high levels that they can turn purple even in the heat of summer, while for others, these anthocyanins are only brought out when the temperatures drop. There’s no easy way to predict how high the anthocyanin levels are going to be in each seed. Still, by growing seeds with high genetic predisposition to raised anthocyanins, you can achieve high rates of purple in your crop.

Not All Purple Is Good

Seeing purple leaves may be exciting, but every grower should train themselves to identify good and bad purples. You see, purple colouration can occur due to deficiencies, and it’s common for growers to proudly show off their brand new Potassium deficiency, thinking what they’re seeing is anthocyanins. Similarly, purple stems are more often a result of micro deficiencies than anthocyanins. It’s not that purple stems aren’t sometimes just a genetic trait, but if you’re seeing purple on your stems, first ensure your micro inputs (calcium and magnesium especially) are on point.

While not true in every case, if your leaf is showing small patches of purple alongside yellowing, the first thought should be a deficiency. If this occurs, pay close attention to the plant for a week and see how it progresses. If the purple takes over the leaf, it may just be anthocyanins. However, if the yellowing progresses, rather than turning purple, pay close attention to other hints the leaf may provide, such as necrosis.

The Different Ways In Which Dark Colours May Be Expressed

The distribution of anthocyanins in cannabis plants varies between strains and even seeds. Some strains have a tendency for dark fan leaves, but the flowers themselves may still be green. This is the most common expression of anthocyanins, but results in harvested flower that lacks the purples sought after by many growers.

Others can go dark across the entire plant, with even the flowers being uniformly dark. These are often highly sought after as they increase bag appeal and cause trichomes to become more noticeable due to the greater contrast between light and dark.

Similarly, not all strains have the same hues to them. As mentioned, anthocyanins can appear as different hues, ranging from pinks and purples to hints of blue and even black.

Not All Purple Strains Will Turn Purple (It’s all about genetics)

One thing to keep in mind when growing plants with more anthocyanins is that seeds from the same strain may vary in how dark they get. That’s because the colour of plants is similar to human eye colour, and just because you have green eyes, doesn’t mean your siblings will.

It all comes down to genetic variability. Some strains have more variability than others. Some have been bred to express darker colours reliably, while others may need you to hunt through a few seeds to find the one that gives the dark purple colours you’re looking for.

The strains we’ve listed below are some reliable choices for getting dark colouration, and although not every plant will go purple, most will! For even better chances of bringing out those dark hues, consider running your plants in winter, which allows lower temperatures to bring out more of those colours.

Our List of the Best Purple Strains This Season

Lovin In Her Eyes – Alligator Wine [Regular]

R2,315.00

BREEDER/BRAND Lovin In Her Eyes…

What Makes Some Cannabis Plants Turn Purple

Not All Purple Is Good

The Different Ways In Which Dark Colours May Be Expressed

Not All Purple Strains Will Turn Purple (It’s all about genetics)

Our List of the Best Purple Strains This Season

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