Begginer Questions: Strains of clone reliable ? Nutrients ?

Hey Everyone, I have just recently came back to smoking some bud. Things sure have changed since the 70s ! How recently you ask ? well lets say I can take two hits and I'm like WHEW ! Well that's when I quit coughing, Im tore up ! My friends tell me how lucky I am . lol. I came back because of health problems, I had not slept more than two to three hours at a time since I became sick. Many times now I sleep through the night ! sweet. not to mention I am at peace as I drift off too sleep like a Baby ! ha ! Im over 50 lets just say it had been awhile ! 25 years at least ! Well on to my questions.

1. I have a Med card and can go to a dispensary and get clones which I did. They told me that These strains, Aroma: (Ed Rosenthall x Jack Herer x Power Plant ) and Girl scout cookie were a good match for me. Can I have any confidence that they didn't give me me just any old type of clones for my donation ? It wasn't a meager donation required, lol . The dispensary came highly recommended from a few growers I know , but they seem to be caught up in strains . Do you for the most part think we can get an actual real strain ?

2. It seems as if everyone has gone to soil less mixtures such as Promix. If I understand things correctly it has no nutrients itself , they are added by the grower. The Nutrients used are basically the same as hydroponics ? Ive seen some that come in a set of two or three bottles to a system. are these Organic ?

I could ask some of the people I know who grow , but honestly They are learning too. I just don't like what I see from them enough to trust their knowledge. Ive grown twice but they were soil grows. alright, but not what I would call high yeilding, lol. 250 hp 2 plants maybe 1 0z . The guys that I do know that are doing great, well lets just say Im not in their inner circle , and would rather not invade their privacy. Thanks for reading my posts, kind of new at this forum thing too ! lol.

Soil vs Soil-less vs Hydro

Soil Advantages: Easy/Forgiving(can be forgotten for a few days without major issue), "Organic", some people claim better taste
Soil Disadvantages: Bugs eggs may be in the soil, less vigorous growth/less yield, limited control of available nutrients, may carry disease or harmful fungus/mold.

Soil-less Advantages: Easy/Forgiving(can be forgotten for a few days without major issue), can be organic or non, more vigorous growth, good yield.
Soil-less Disadvantages: Also bug eggs may be present in the coco coir. Better, but still limited control of available nutrients (the medium acts as a buffer that stores nutrients).

Hydro Advantages: Best yield possible, total control (if using a non-buffering medium, not coco coir) of available nutrients
Hydro Disadvantages: More nutrient costs, needs monitoring at least every other day unless automated, greater startup costs, more complex setup, not a good choice for organic.

Pick the type that fits you best. If you want simple, you can't compete with a good soil mix. If you want biggest/most you can't compete with hydro. If you want to take a step in between try soil-less. If you are a curious type, pick one, do a grow, then pick a second and do a side by side on grow #2 so you can compare results. (don't bother comparing unless both are clones off the same mother.)

nice rundown of growing types. I am drawn to the Hydro as I know some about water husbandry from previous marine aquarium . Ive read Big tokes write ups on Bio Buckets, and It almost mimics my sump and refugium. It almost seems it would be just as easy to test water daily through one control bucket than multiple soil or dwc's. Plus I do love to be hands on !