The Aurora indica strain is often the go-to choice for medical marijuana patients who suffer from insomnia or other sleep conditions. That’s because this indica weed plant strain is known for the deeply relaxing, full-body sedation it produces…
You’ll also find that it’s popular among sufferers of anxiety, stress and depression. This, in turn, is because paranoid thoughts are absolute anathema to this strain’s gently freeing mental effects.
In this article, we’ll take a look at some of Aurora’s better and lesser-known properties. By the end, you should know everything you need to know to work out whether it might be the next strain you smoke, vape or choose for your live resin carts.
What is the Aurora indica strain?
Aurora Indica is known to be a strain of cannabis which produces a powerfully deep physical and mental relaxation and full-body calming effect paired with a certain freeing of the creative juices.
Technically speaking, Aurora is a 90% indica cross between Northern Lights and Afghani Landrace. These are two of the most well-known and popular strains of cannabis in the world. Because of their near-universal popularity, they often feature when a particular breeder wants to create a new hybrid strain.
In Aurora’s case, the original breeder was the well-regarded Nirvana Seeds. These breeders are known for producing hybrids with particular pre-selected properties.
By crossing Northern Lights and Afghani – one of which is a pure indica strain (in the case of Afghani) and the other heavily indica-based (in the case of Northern Lights) – Nirvana Seeds has created a hybrid which creates a truly potent effect of relaxing sedation.
Why is it called Aurora?
Like most other marijuana strain names, Aurora was named by the people who created it to hint at its effects or origin.
Here, the name is a nod and a wink to one of the strains which went into creating the Aurora hybrid:
The Latin name for the “Northern Lights” is the Aurora Borealis.
Aurora indica – appearance
There are several different phenotypes of Aurora (a phenotype is the different observable characteristics of an organism). Some generalizations might include:
Visual appearance
Usually, a properly-trimmed Aurora plant will have medium or even large flowers with a cone-like shape and the high-density characteristic of indicas. These flowers tend to have a thick layer of crystallized resin coating them.
This white resin makes the already pale green leaves appear even paler. The only points of color on most Aurora phenotypes appear as ochre-brown fronds. These are actually part of the female reproductive portion of the plant.
Aroma
To the nose, Aurora first appears to own a simple pungent earthiness. But after a few sniffs, it’s possible to detect an underlying spiciness, or even a fruitiness below this broader scent.
When smoked, these intriguing notes are all the more noticeable. This often leads to a sudden increase in the user’s popularity in certain social circles! The smoke itself is smooth and easy on the inhale.
When grown, this aroma is no less strong. In fact, if you are a grower and you are trying to keep your crop non-invasive for your neighbors, a proper ventilation system will almost certainly be a requirement.
How strong is Aurora weed?
Make no mistake, Aurora is a potent strain whether you are smoking it or it’s in your live resin vape cartridge.
Regularly testing between 12 and 20% THC content depending on the stock it was grown from and environmental factors which affected this particular phenotype while it was growing, Aurora can produce a powerful sedative effect.
After taking it, most people find themselves ready to lie right down – if not go to sleep altogether.
Like many weed strains arising from indica stock though, those effects can take a few minutes to take hold. This makes it important that newcomers to sampling Aurora allow a little time for their joint, live resin vape or other method of inhalation to do its work before beginning to think that it isn’t working for them.
It’s a sensible strategy to start small and slowly increase the dosage in your joint, vape or live resin pen over time. This allows you to get the precise effects you are looking for.
What are Aurora’s effects?
After the few minutes which it can take to start to take effect, most users will experience a small heady flush. This is the initial indication that something is about to happen. Some people also report that their depth perception may be affected slightly and their sense of time distorted.
After these initial effects, the full-body relaxation slowly starts to spread down the body. Most people will want to get nice and comfortable and will start to find themselves naturally breathing deeper and easier.
Most people will eventually find that a certain deep, lead-limbed relaxation is the outcome when using this strain. This makes Aurora:
- Good: if you’re just about to go to bed or you really need to relax. Like many indica strains, imbibing it also fosters the creative process. This can be great for artistic or literary endeavors as well as for playing games or when you want an interesting, uninhibited conversation with plenty of ideas being thrown around.
- Less good: if you need to do chores, partake in physical activities of almost any kind or you need to make decisions or carefully analyze outcomes.
Aurora indica weed – what is it used to treat?
Indica weed of almost any kind – and Aurora in particular – is known for producing a very relaxed, sedated effect which encompasses your entire body as well as your mind. This makes it a popular choice with medical marijuana users who use cannabis to treat conditions such as:
- Sleeping problems and insomnia: as well as other conditions which might make getting to sleep difficult, many Aurora users swear by it as an insomnia treatment. The full-body sedation effects Aurora creates is a strong one – perfect for addressing even long-lasting conditions.
- Stress, depression or anxiety: The cerebral portion of the strain’s effects are relatively mild and relaxing. This makes it suitable for addressing or partially managing mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression or stress – particularly as Aurora does not promote paranoid thoughts or thinking.
- Joint and muscle pains: both long-term or chronic pain conditions like arthritis and lupus as well as the short-term results of accident or injury make excellent candidates for treatment by Aurora’s thorough numbing effect.
Sourcing Aurora
First grown by breeders Nirvana Seeds, these days there are numerous phenotypes of Aurora being produced across the United States and indeed around the world.
As with all cannabis products though, you’ll be rewarded with quality when purchasing yours from licensed dispensaries:
If you want Aurora live resin carts, for instance – live resin extraction preserves the unique taste and aromas of Aurora – you’ll also want to be sure that the product you’re buying has a known strength and that the plants it was extracted from are of good quality.
For example, Aurora K.I.N.D. live resin cartridges are always filled with live resin oil extracted from plants grown in American soil using organic methods. It’s also tested and neatly labeled with the strength and quantities of THC it contains.
In short, wherever you source your Aurora indica strain, be sure to read the label to make sure you’re really getting what you want.
