# Cola

> The dense, elongated cluster of flowers that forms at the end of a stem or branch; the main cola tops the leader.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/cola.html
- Also written: colas, main cola, top cola, terminal bud, apical bud cluster
- Glossary category: Plant biology
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

A cola is the terminal inflorescence of a cannabis branch: many tightly packed [pistillate flower](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/pistillate-flower.md) clusters stacked along the top of a stem, with small [sugar leaves](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/sugar-leaf.md) among them. The largest, on the main stem, is the main or top cola. The word is Spanish for "tail".

## In practice

Training decides how many colas a plant makes. An untrained plant with strong [apical dominance](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/apical-dominance.md) puts most of its weight into one main cola. Topping, [SCROG](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/scrog.md) and manifolding make many even colas, which share light better.

Big colas carry risk. A dense top cola can hold moisture inside, and *[Botrytis cinerea](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/botrytis.md)* (bud rot) usually starts inside such colas near the stem, out of sight. In late flower, check the biggest colas first by gently parting them and looking for brown, mushy flowers or grey fuzz. Keep [RH](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/relative-humidity.md) in late flower around 40-50% and air moving through the canopy.

[Foxtailing](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/foxtailing.md) (spires of new flowers growing out from a finished cola) is usually heat or [light stress](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/light-stress.md), sometimes genetic.

## Don't confuse with

- **Bud**: a general word for any flower cluster; a cola is a large terminal one.
- **Popcorn bud**: small, loose buds low on the plant.
- **Calyx**: an individual flower structure within the cola.

## Related terms

[Apical dominance](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/apical-dominance.md), [Bract](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/bract.md), [Calyx](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/calyx.md), [Node](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/node.md), [Sugar leaf](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/sugar-leaf.md)

## Read more

- [SCROG: screen of green](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/training/scrog.md)
- [Botrytis (bud rot / grey mould) in cannabis](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/diseases/botrytis-bud-rot.md)

## Sources

1. Spitzer-Rimon B, Duchin S, Bernstein N, Kamenetsky R. 2019. Architecture and florogenesis in female Cannabis sativa plants. Frontiers in Plant Science 10:350. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2019.00350