Bud structures to watch for in wide leaf variety.

[covert]

I have noticed time and again that the best buds almost always look like they're riddled with caterpillars from the shapes the calyx/bracts make. The sugar leaves look swallowed up with bundles of caterpillars. Poisonous ones with the white pistils to discourage birds at that point from eating and moths from laying their eggs on already captured territory.

The remaining single sugar leaves often curl out in a balloon like way and the area on these is smooth and shiny even making them look from afar like beetles and other creatures to the right set of eyes.

A good bud looks to the potential consumer to be already occupied with insects and predators that it's not worth the while of other insects to interfere.

Look at good bud pics, the premier ones and you'll see what I mean.

 

[Mohadib]

You suppose chunky buds with a good bud-to-leaf-ratio are the consequence of natural selection. I don't think that's the case at all, since most plants that develop flowers like this are the result of selective breeding, either by farmers that traditionally cultivate cannabis for hash production (as it's the case in Afghanistan, Pakistan or India for example) and/or - and probably foremost - by 'modern breeders': Better bud-to-leaf-ratio means more surface area with a dense trichome coverage.

In fact, when you take a look at older bud-pictures, you rarely see the degree of chunkyness you see today. Why? Because most breeders specifically 'design' they genetics to produce flowers that look like that. It's what 'the market' dictates!



If chunky and foxtailing buds were such an evolutionary advantage, you'd see A LOT more of them in nature. But you don't. It's actually quite rare

 

[Illuminate]

Big chunky dense nugs, poor mold resistance...plus the widespread use of paclobutrazol im sure has affected bag appeal, used to be like whoa man this eighth is big...to nah man those buds are wispy, i dont want to break windows with my buds.