Dear Stoner: Are There Seasonal Strains of Pot?

Dear Stoner: What’s the best way to renew your medical card and avoid a disruption in service? What if you don’t have the cash flow to stock up before the wait?
Mario

Dear Mario: The answer is simple: Take care of it early. You don’t want to be the kid who can’t go on the field trip because you never got your permission slip signed, do you? That’s why you take it home and get that sucker filled out ASAP — so while dumbass Robbie is crying because he’ll be stuck at school all day, you’ll be checking out dino skeletons and caveman exhibits at the museum. Don’t be a Robbie when it comes to your medical card, either.

The Colorado Medical Marijuana Registry recommends that you send in your renewal application form thirty to sixty days before your card expires to avoid any lapse in treatment, because your application will not get you inside medical dispensaries. Set up an appointment with your physician more than two months before your card is set to expire, and you should be fine. Your re-evaluation might be different this time around, however, as the Colorado Medical Board recently implemented new guidelines for medical marijuana recommendations that call for physicians to include more details and scrutiny when they assess you for cannabis treatment.

Dear Stoner: I enjoy wheat beers in the summer and stouts in the winter, just like I want fruit salad in the sunshine and soup when it snows. Does that apply to pot? Are there “winter strains” out there?
Smelf

Dear Smelf: I’ve never noticed a seasonal pattern for strains that are available in the winter as opposed to the summer, but unlike beer and food, weed hasn’t been readily available for centuries. With all that time to decide what tastes best at certain times of year, booze drinkers have a head start on us potheads, but we’re doing our best to catch up. When it comes to food and drink, consumers traditionally prefer lighter, fresher options during the summer, when they are most active. During the winter, when it’s cold and they want to sit by the fire, consumers usually want something heavier, with more of a kick. I believe cannabis is the same: Unless I’m on the slopes, give me a heavy indica like Afghani or Bubba Kush to get my body warm and relaxed during the winter. In the summer, I’ll take a citrus sativa like Tangerine Haze to keep me moving.

If you want a strain branded for the holidays, one of our readers suggests Christmas Cookies at Walking Raven. It’s more of a hybrid than an indica, but it’ll make you jolly enough.