OG Kush Strain: History, Flavor, and How to Grind It

Updated October 2026

Short answer: OG Kush is a hybrid that traces back to a Florida cutting brought to Los Angeles around 1996 by Josh "Josh D" Del Rosso and Matt "Bubba" Berger. Its exact parents are disputed, with Chemdawg the most common guess. It smells like fuel, pine and lemon, and people describe it as relaxing and euphoric. The nugs are small, dense and sticky, so break them up and grind with a 300 or 400 micron screen.

If you've smoked anything with "OG" in the name in the last 25 years, you've met a grandkid of this strain. OG Kush became the backbone of West Coast cannabis, got name-dropped in more rap verses than anyone can count, and launched a whole family of OGs that still dominate menus.

Our 2023 post said OG Kush started in Southern California and called Bubba Kush one of its offspring without any context. The real story is messier and a lot more fun.

Where OG Kush came from

The best-documented account, laid out in Leafly's OG Kush family history, starts in Florida. Los Angeles grower Josh Del Rosso (Josh D) bet his friend Matt "Bubba" Berger that Florida weed couldn't hold up to California's. Berger came back with cuttings, and only one survived the trip west. That single cut became the OG.

Leafly's OG Kush strain profile says it was first cultivated in Florida in the early 1990s and reached Los Angeles in 1996. Josh D grew it under a couple of modest lights, and it quickly took over Southern California.

What about the genetics? Nobody knows for sure. Leafly lists a reported cross of a Northern California strain with Chemdawg, Lemon Thai and a Hindu Kush, and High Times' Danny Danko has suggested Chemdog as a parent. The fuel note OG shares with Chem makes that theory popular. But it's a theory, not a pedigree.

What does "OG" stand for?

Nobody can prove it. The three usual answers are "Original Gangster," "Ocean Grown" and "Organic." Pick your favorite. They're all folklore.

Aroma, flavor and terpenes

OG Kush smells like fuel and pine with lemon zest and an earthy, woody base. The smoke is earthy-piney with a little citrus and spice on the exhale. Some cuts lean more lemon, some more gas.

Leafly lists myrcene as the dominant terpene, then limonene and caryophyllene. That combo explains the herbal-earth base, the citrus lift and the peppery bite. More in our terpene guide.

Commonly reported effects

People mostly describe OG Kush as relaxing and euphoric, with a happy, heavy-ish body feel and a decent case of the munchies. Some phenotypes feel more heady, others more couch-bound, which is why you'll see it labeled both ways. Leafly lists average THC around 25%, so it's on the strong side.

Start low, go slow, and keep it 21+ and legal.

What OG Kush buds look and feel like

• Shape: small to medium, round, chunky nugs. OG rarely grows huge colas.
• Density: high. Tight, compact buds.
• Color: bright to forest green with dark orange pistils.
• Stickiness: high. Leafly describes the buds as dense and sticky, and good OG is greasy to the touch.

Small, dense and sticky is the trifecta that kills cheap grinders. The buds resist blunt pegs, the resin gums threads, and you end up grinding forever.

How to grind OG Kush

1. Split the nugs first. Pull them into small pieces and remove stems. Dense OG dropped in whole compresses instead of cutting.
2. Don't overload. Fill loosely around the teeth. OG is sticky and packs down fast.
3. Give it 6 to 8 short back-and-forth turns. Dense flower needs a few more passes, but short turns keep resin from smearing.
4. Tap it out. A few firm taps send cut flower through the drop-through holes and kief through the screen.
5. Freezer trick: if the teeth get gummy after a session, 10 to 15 minutes in the freezer makes the resin brittle and easy to tap out.
6. For a vape, flip the grinder upside down and add a few turns for a finer grind.

Screen: use the standard 300 micron screen for well-cured OG. If it's greasy-fresh or the weather is humid, switch to the 400 micron coarse screen so resin doesn't clog the mesh. The 180 fine screen is best saved for dry flower. Get all three in the Upgrade Kit.

Best method: a bowl or a joint. A medium grind packs evenly and keeps the burn slow so you taste the pine and fuel. Want zero screen maintenance? The PRO 2 Piece Medium ($39.99) has no screen to clog. More technique (and some trash talk) in you're using your grinder wrong.

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Pocket size for small, dense OG nugs, a bowl at a time, with sharp cutting teeth and a threadless lock that won't seize on sticky resin.
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Famous OG Kush descendants

• Headband: OG Kush crossed with Sour Diesel.
• Girl Scout Cookies (GSC): Leafly credits a San Francisco breeder who crossed an F1 Durban with a Florida OG cut.
• Bubba Kush: Leafly describes Pre-98 Bubba Kush as OG crossed with a Florida strain called Bubba. Other accounts treat Bubba as its own separate line, so this one's debated.
• The OG family: SFV OG, Tahoe OG, Larry OG, Fire OG, Ghost OG and Kosher Kush (DNA Genetics) all trace back to OG Kush cuts.

Its likely ancestor Chemdawg 91 has its own guide, and the whole crew shows up in our top 10 OG strains of all time.

Growing notes (legal home growers only)

OG Kush has a reputation as a finicky plant better suited to experienced growers. Leafly lists flowering around 56 days (roughly 7 to 9 weeks), notes it prefers a dry climate, and calls yields medium. Its dense buds can trap moisture, so airflow and humidity control matter. Check your current state and local rules before growing anything. Basics in our home grow guide.

FAQ

Is OG Kush indica or sativa?

It's a hybrid. Depending on the phenotype it can feel more indica or more heady, which is why labels disagree.

What does OG Kush taste like?

Pine, fuel and lemon over an earthy, woody base, with a little spice.

Is OG Kush good for beginners?

It's potent, with Leafly averaging around 25% THC. Beginners should start with a very small amount and wait before having more.

What's the difference between OG Kush and Bubba Kush?

OG Kush is fuel, pine and lemon. Bubba Kush leans sweet, hashy and coffee-like, and usually hits heavier. They're related by most accounts, but they're different strains.

OG built West Coast cannabis. It deserves a grinder built to last.

Keep reading

• Headband strain guide
• Bubba Kush strain guide
• Best weed strains of 2026–2027 and how to grind each