The history of Strawberry Cough

Timeline

1. 1960sLeafly says Haze, a commonly listed Strawberry Cough parent, took root in Santa Cruz during the 1960s.⁴
2. Before 2004 (reported)Sources describe an unnamed northeastern grower’s Strawberry Cough clone reaching Kyle Kushman; they differ on details and do not settle the original breeder.^1,2,3
3. 2004The Royal Queen Seeds product account says Kushman moved from New York to California with Strawberry Cough clones and distributed them along the route.³
4. 2013Weedmaps and Pacific Stone say Strawberry Cough won Best Flower at the High Times Cannabis Cup; the event result is attributed to these sources because a primary results page was not obtained.^1,2
5. 2015The earliest matched state-lab record in this guide’s aggregate dates to 2015; the aggregate is evidence about labelled flower, not the origin of the cultivar.⁵
6. Jan 2024Pacific Stone publishes its Strawberry Cough guide, recounting the clone account and listing Strawberry Fields with an unknown Haze parent.²
7. 2024The latest matched state-lab record in this aggregate dates to 2024.⁵
8. Sep 2026CRS updates its federal hemp-definition briefing, relevant to the seed-law context but not evidence about the strain’s original genetics.⁶

Why the clone story spread

Weedmaps frames Kushman’s practice of passing the clone to growers rather than holding it as proprietary material as central to Strawberry Cough’s visibility.¹ Pacific Stone likewise says he began selling it around New York and later took it to California.²

SeedFinder’s clone-only listing and its 108 listed direct descendants show how an old name can travel through clones, reproductions and crosses.⁷ The name alone does not guarantee the same cut or parentage.^5,7

What remains unresolved

• Breeder: Weedmaps says the original breeder is disputed; the Royal Queen Seeds account calls the creator an unnamed Connecticut grower, while other accounts foreground Kushman’s distribution role.^1,2,3
• Pedigree: Haze × Strawberry Fields is widely listed, but Leafly calls the origins mysterious and Weedmaps says the exact pedigree remains disputed.^1,7,8,9
• Strawberry companion planting: the Royal Queen Seeds product account recounts it as folklore and says it cannot confirm or deny it, so the guide does not treat it as plant science.³