Studying Strains

So i have been doing a lot of preparation for my first grow in the summer of 2012. The one thing i have noticed that keeps on coming up is getting to know the strain you are growing. While i am still uncertain about the strains i will be choosing I am curious as to how you go about learning the growing characteristics of a strain. Whether there is a book, a website, or videos on the subject. I have found sites that tell you about the genetic makeup of a strain as in how it tastes, whether its indica or sativa...things like that. Any help on the subject would be greatly appreciated.

The simplest thing is to go on the breeders website and see what they say. Usually they will tell you everything you need to know. You can also do a search on here for your particular strain and see what comes up.

The only way to really learn a strain is to grow it out there are lots of factors you will want to take notice of like:
1. At what age does it sexually mature, or will it show pre-flowers before switching to a 12/12.
2. How much will it stretch during 12/12 switch.
3. How tolerant is it to temp and humidity.
4. What are the buds like, frosty, hairy, big swollen calyxes or lots of leaf.
5. How much nuts can you give it before it burns.
6. It the plant sensitive to any deficiencies or excesses in nutes. For example I have one strain that produces great big buds but if you have too much N it claws and stops growing.
7. Does the plant respond well to UVB, Some strains don't.
8. How long till the buds ripen, I know most banks say but I find variation between phenotypes.
9. What kind of growth pattern does the plant have (need to know if you are planning SCROG).
10. Will the plant need support or does it grow ridged stalks.
11. Is it prone to herm. (some feminized seeds are particularly prone to herm)
The list goes on and on.

GL with the 2012 grow.

I always look for grow journals of the strain I want to grow next. Compare results from a few different growers to get a good idea of what to expect.
Also read as many grow / smoke reports as you can find. ROI has a lot of great info. To give you some more ideas, Google "drug library strain guide", they have some great reports, but mostly for the older dutch strains.

i agree with tpsmc's points and would just like to add that trial and error are the only way to learn your strain. there are huge variances between phenotypes. good luck

Reading is one thing, doing is another.
Experience from actually growing is worth a lot more than anything you can read in a book.
Once you've got 4-5 grows under your belt you can start to "know" how strains differ and in what ways.
Until then, you're just climbing the learning curve.