11 High CBD Strains | Corazon Strain

Why are high CBD strains popular?

High CBD strains are important for medicinal users of marijuana. If you’re purely using recreationally, then you want the other main active ingredient in cannabis, THC. CBD does not make you feel high, although in higher dosages it does have a slight altering of perception which is much more acute than THC. Unfortunately, because (in most places) more people use cannabis recreationally than medicinally, high THC cannabis is far more prevalent. This can make sourcing these Canna Tsu strains much more difficult, and so homegrown cultivation may be some people’s only option.

Benefits of high CBD strains

We’ve created this list to give users a much better understanding of the popular high cbd strains. High CBD Canna Tsu strains are popular for the following reasons:

Medicinal use of cannabis (although THC also has medicinal uses)
Non-invasive; if there’s less THC you will not feel as high
High CBD strains are popular because they offer pain relief without the euphoric high
If you’re at work or just don’t want to feel overly high these strains are your best bet
CBD is often considered the “healing” chemical inside cannabis, and THC the “party” one. Although THC has also been shown to have medicinal benefits, CBD certainly dominates in the medical benefits category.
High CBD strains are thought to help with ADD, ADHD and anxiety. In general marijuana strains are great for pain, but CBD heavy strains can be especially effective pain relievers.

Charlotte’s web is one of the more well-known high cbd strains, photo: @middleagedmaryjane

1. Harlequin weed strain

Harlequin is a 75/25 sativa-dominant hybrid, which is known for its massive amounts of CBD. It’s a cross between Colombian Gold, Nepali landrace, Thai landrace, and Swiss landrace strains. This strain gives a clear-headed, sativa effect. However, as the rate of CBD:THC is 5:2, you'll still feel some of the THC high. The high isn’t potent; rather, it's quite sedative. It offers good amounts of relief for pain, anxiety, stress, and depression, without massive amounts of intoxication. Harlequin has a typical landrace cross strain taste of earthy, mango flavours. This is very typical of landraces, which are predominantly earthy and fruity.

Handfuls of Harlequin, photo: @keirafae

5:2 means that there is still some THC inside this strain, so you may feel slightly stoned, though chances are it won't be too strong of a high. If you do feel a little bit more high from smoking this strain than you expected, get under a cold shower and you’ll feel better almost immediately. Harlequin weed strain is probably the most popular CBD heavy strain. Harlequin seeds are not easy to come by, but there are some online seed shops that sell the seeds. They are incredibly expensive in general, because this is such a famous and relatively rare stain. Harlequin strain has been said to help with:

Pain
Depression
Stress
Fatigue
Inflammation

Harlequin’s yield is average, but it has thick, dense buds. It flowers after 10 weeks. Be careful as you watch her grow though: Harlequin's thick buds make her prone to mould.

2. Charlotte’s web strain/seeds

Charlotte’s Web is a much better example of a high CBD strain than Harlequin, as it only has 0.3% THC inside it. This makes it one of the most popular choices for something like children with epileptic seizures. It is also incredibly popular amongst other medicinal users of cannabis. It was originally created in Colorado, specifically for a young epileptic patient named Charlotte. Charlotte’s Web is actually a high CBD hemp strain, as it was originally developed from hemp. It has practically zero psychoactive effects, and is one of the best choices for those who are seeking the medical properties of cannabis, without the sometimes unwanted potent side effects. Charlotte’s Web has earthy, citrus flavours.

Charlotte's Web seeds are not only insanely hard to get a hold of, they are also incredibly expensive. You can expect to pay around $150 for real seeds. If you find them for a much lower price, they’re almost always going to be fake. Charlotte’s Web is said to have the following medicinal benefits:

Stress
Pain
Inflammation
Depression
Muscle Spasms

Charlotte’s Web’s yield is very high, and the flowering time is around 9 weeks. Depending on the seeds, you will get various different THC:CBD proportions.

3. Sour Tsunami strain

Sour Tsunami, bred for CBD. Photo: @jetfuelofficial

Sour Tsunami is a strain that was specifically bred for its high CBD content. The result is that this strain is renowned for its pain treating and inflammation treating properties. The main problem with this strain is that it actually only has just under 10% THC. That means there is a slight high to this strain, which makes it useless for some medicinal users. However, if you don’t mind getting a little bit high, you will find this strain to be incredibly helpful for pain and inflammation. Sour Tsunami is a cross between Sour Diesel and NYC Diesel, which took breeder Lawrence Ringo of the Southern Humboldt Seed Collective 4 years to perfect.
Sour Tsunami’s CBD content can be as high as 10 or 11%. This is a huge amount of CBD, and is perfect for conditions that react well to CBD treatment.

Like some of the aforementioned strains, Sour Tsunami seeds are not prevalent at all, which means that they’re not only expensive, they’re also incredibly hard to get a hold of. You could try buying some Sour Tsunami seeds online, but whether they’re real or not is an important question to try to pursue. Sour Tsunami is said to have the following medicinal benefits:

Stress
Pain
Depression
Nausea
Headaches

If you're going to try to grow Sour Tsunami, you can expect about 9 weeks of flowering time. Be aware, too, that there's only about a 25% chance you’ll get the high CBD phenotype. The best thing to do is to get a few seeds of different high CBD strains and try your luck. You could also test the seeds fairly early on, using technology such as Pure Analytics, which will test seedlings at 3 to 4 weeks.

4. AC/DC strain

CBD, yes. Intoxication? No. Photo: @treepdx

AC/DC is a popular sativa-dominant phenotype of the strain Cannatonic. AC/DC normally has a THC:CBD ratio of around 1:20, meaning that this strain produces almost no intoxicating effects. Tests have seen AC/DC’s CBD content be as high as 19%. This strain could therefore be used to treat pain, anxiety, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and the negative effects of chemotherapy. The best part about this? This is all possible without feeling overly high, or even high at all. This strain was a cross between Ruderalis and Cannatonic, and is a fairly balanced 50/50 split between sativa and indica. THC can be as high at 6% in some strains, but the original AC/DC would have been lower.

CBD has been proven to help people with a number of different conditions. That is one of the reasons these high CBD strains are so popular. Because of its higher CBD content, AC/DC is sometimes used for people who want to make edibles, but want to reduce the risk of intense, potent, side effects. This strain has won several Cannabis Cup awards, because of its high CBD content. AC/DC is said to help with:

Stress
Pain
Depression
Inflammation
Fatigue

AC/DC strain yield is average, and you will most likely have to prop this strain up, because it has quite large buds. It can grow in both warm and cold environments, and the average flowering time of AC/DC is around 10 weeks.

5. Ringo’s Gift strain

Ringo’s Gift is the #dankenstein strain of the high CBD strains. It’s a cross between Harle-Tsu (in itself a cross between Harlequin and Tsunami) and AC/DC. It is named after Lawrence Ringo, who was an inspiring cannabis activist, and, in particular, a CBD pioneer. As is normal with most cannabis strains, Ringo’s Gift comes in many different phenotypes. The phenotypes vary from 1:1 (CBD:THC ratio) to 24:1. If you can find the famous 24:1 phenotype then you'll experience the true healing power of the cannabis herb. Ringo’s Gift has becoming popular in the cannabis clubs of Barcelona, and it has a mellow high that can be felt both in the brain and in the body. This fully-body relaxation and cerebral buzz are great for treating a number of illnesses:

Inflammation
Stress
Depression
Pain
Headaches

Ringo’s Gift yields around 10-16 ounces outdoors per plant, and 8-12 ounces per meter squared indoors. It’s always quite difficult to say a lot about these particular strains, as they’re nowhere near as popular as THC-rich strains.

6. Valentine X strain

Valentine X as beautiful as its healing powers are strong, photo: @grassvalleyfarms

This strain is named after St. Valentine, whom some of you may be familiar with. St. Valentine is the patron saint of epilepsy, and this strain has exceptional healing powers when it comes to seizures, inflammation, pain, and nausea. However, this strain also has a sativa high, which can be both good and bad, depending on what you’re using your medical cannabis for. The CBD:THC ratio of Valentine X is around 25:1, but this is, of course, dependent on phenotype and the grow itself. It’s a 50/50 hybrid, which is balanced, and has both an exceptionally relaxing body high, and a creative cerebral high.

Pain
Stress
Inflammation
Depression
Muscle spasms

Valentine X’s yield is average, and the strain itself is fairly easy to grow. It’s also pretty resilient to mould and other diseases.

7. Harle-tsu strain

Harle-tsu, a great grower for those seeking high CBD, photo: @cannabis.mag

Also known as the Harley Tsu strain, it was bred in California, by Southern Humboldt Seed Collective, and it’s a high CBD hybrid. This strain is a cross between Harlequin and Sour Tsunami, which have already been discussed. Harle-Tsu’s CBD:THC is 20:1, depending on the phenotype and seed. It has earthy, tea, and woody flavours. It’s probably best to experience a tasty strain like this through a flower vape. Harle-Tsu could help with the following problems:

Stress
Pain
Inflammation
Fatigue
Depression

This strain is a hybrid and does have some THC inside it, so just be careful if you’re looking only for medicinal properties.
Harle-Tsu has a very short flowering time, at about 8 weeks. One of the best things about this particular strain is that growers will have a much higher chance of yielding high CBD qualities in their Harle-Tsu crop. Many strains in this article have a very small chance of yielding the high CBD phenotype, but if you choose to try out your green thumb with Harle-tsu you're likely to have positive results.

8. Swiss gold strain

Difficult to come by, but worth it if you can find her! Photo: @cannabinoidseeds

The Swiss Gold strain was created by Southern Humboldt Seeds. They did not make Swiss Gold available to purchase online, making obtaining seeds nearly imposible. If you can find a clipping you will find a high CBD strain from Northern California. It is a sativa strain, which was bred by Lawrence Ringo. You will recognise that name as the namesake of Ringo’s Gift. Lawrence Ringo contributed a lot to the medicinal side of marijuana. Swiss Gold has a CBD:THC ratio of around 2:1, and it has an earthy, diesel, citrus aroma and taste. The high itself can be incredibly helpful for:

Inflammation
Fatigue
Muscle spasms
Seizures
Pain

Swiss Gold has a flowering time of around 8-9 weeks, and can be grown both indoors and outdoors, provided that you live in a country which can provide regular days of around 23 degrees during late summer, early autumn. This strain also needs some humidity to grow properly.

9. Zen x strain

Zen X does have high CBD, but it also has around a 1:1 CBD:THC ratio, so you will have a fairly potent high from this strain. It is a great hybrid, known to help with stomach and digestive problems. It was first created by CBD Seeds, when they crossed Mexican and Afghani sativas before adding Lavender. Zen X has a fantastic blend of flavours and taste, including berry and earth. Fruity flavours are very common in landrace crosses, and you can thank CBD Seeds for creating this strain. Zen X’s CBD percentage sits at around 9%, and its thick buds are covered in orange hairs and trichomes. It has popcorn shaped buds which grind up nicely, and the taste should be fully appreciated with a flower vape. Zen X also has a slight diesel taste, which can be fully appreciated by diesel lovers around the world. Zen X is thought to have the following healing properties:

Inflammation
Fatigue
Muscle Spasms
Seizures
Pain

The growing time for Zen X is around 10 weeks, but it’s a very difficult plant to grow. It reacts best to grows done outside, and you can expect the harvest to be around late October. It is recommended to use a soil medium, and the Zen X yield is average.

10. Corazon strain

Be still, my corazon! Photo: @joyse_adaros

This is another #dankenstein strain in the high CBD section. It’s a cross between Charlotte’s Web and AC/DC, and it offers pain relief and relaxation to users. The Corazon strain has a whopping 22.5% CBD, and only around 2.71% THC. This makes it a perfect medical marijuana strain, as it allows its users to get high, relax, mellow out, while also maintaining a clear head. This clear-headed high is absolutely vital to some medical marijuana patients. Corazon is thought to help with:

Pain
Stress
Sleep
Relaxing
Headaches

This strain and its seeds are incredibly rare. If you’re lucky enough to pick this strain up, you’re definitely in for a treat. The flavour cross is also fantastic, and the medicinal uses are never ending.

CBD frequently asked questions

Do indicas always have high CBD?

No, they do not. In fact, some indica strains are best known for their ridiculously high THC content. For example, Kosher Kush is an indica, but it can sometimes test to over 34% THC. A strain like this is a classic example of an indica that doesn’t have high CBD content, if any.

What health benefits does cannabis actually have? Can it cure cancer?

Unfortunately, this is a very difficult question to answer. Thanks to years and years of strict regulation, even for research purposes, the actual facts are hazy. However, thanks to recent push backs against the 'illicit nature’ of the drug, there are some evidence-based facts that cannabis does actually help with:

Helps people through the process of chemotherapy, to avoid nausea and vomiting
Clinically significant reduction of symptoms in adults with chronic pain
Helps spasticity in patients suffering from MS

The evidence-based research can be found here. It’s definitely worth checking out, as it’s a comprehensive (albeit slightly out of date) rundown of the proven medical effects of cannabis and CBD.

What is the difference between hemp and cannabis?

Hemp is an industrial plant, which by definition contains less than .3% THC. Anything over this .3% THC number is known as marijuana, and is illegal in a lot of countries. Even some US states have strict laws regarding marijuana. So do your research when it comes to this, and find out if you need to obtain a medical marijuana card in the state you are in. Hemp, on the other hand, is not illegal in most countries, and is used for a lot of things, even in the UK.

Can you get High CBD hemp strains?

Yes. Although what counts as “high CBD” is different for hemp and marijuana. It’s interesting to note that one of the main reasons a lot of cannabis strains these days have such massively high THC values is because of prohibition. Just like prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s, the average % by volume went up, and the same concept happened with THC volumes in marijuana. The company High CBD Hemp specialises in this, and they currently have a strain called “Ma’at” which is 16-17% CBD and less than .3% THC. This would be a perfect medical marijuana strain for some people who don’t want to get high at all.

Is it possible to get low THC high CBD oil?

Yes, it’s very possible. Cannakids have a great range of products that you should definitely have a look at if you’re interested in this kind of thing. You can also get CBD oil that has almost no THC inside. Prestige CBD even sells a CBD oil with 0 THC inside at all. There is some discussion within the cannabis community of the effectiveness of THC and CBD working together, but for now pure CBD oil is useful because it’s legal in a lot more countries.

What’s the best strain for ADHD?

This question is asked a lot. Any of the strains on this list would likely help those who suffer with ADHD. Some people may prefer a stronger sativa with higher THC percentage. It really is up to the user. However, the video below shows 5 strains that aren’t CBD heavy and are useful for treating the symptoms of ADD or ADHD.

Can you get strain specific CBD oil?

Can you, for example, get Harlequin CBD oil? Well, you could make it yourself if you wanted. It’s actually not that difficult to make your own CBD oil, but you will need some equipment. The video below explains how to make the oil, but of course it’s done in a lab, which isn’t exactly accessible to us all. You only really need ethanol, a siv, a few bowls, and a water distiller. These aren’t exactly impossible to source, so you should definitely consider making your own CBD oil out of the strain of your choice. Other than that, you may be able to find companies that offer strain specific CBD oil, though it's not very common.

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Written by Megan Medeiros (BA)

Megan Medeiros has a bachelor’s degree in English and is currently working on a master’s in English at James Madison University. She's the owner and operator of Medeiros Writing, and has been working as a cannabis writer for the past three years, mostly following the legal climate of marijuana, especially in areas like California, Colorado, Oregon, Canada, and other legal areas.

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