Although the game doesn’t arrive until late September, 2K Sports has unveiled the official soundtrack to NBA 2k16. Curated by DJ Premier, DJ Mustard and Khaled, the playlist is said to be the “most expansive musical collection” in the franchise’s history.
At 50 tracks – spread out through six in-game playlists – the list boasts songs from JAY Z, J. Cole, RJD2, Gang Starr, and plenty more.
Each DJ also provided an original beat and an exclusive track as well. Premo linked up with Papoose; Khaled included a cut with Ace Hood and Vado; and Mustard called on young RJ for his submission.
Check out a break down of each playlist below, and continue scrolling to stream via Spotify – which, unfortunately, doesn’t feature the exclusive songs.
Papoose – “Hold the City Down” (prod. DJ Premier) [Exclusive]
Gang Starr – “Same Team, No Games” f. NYGz, H. Stax
Nas – “Made You Look”
Living Colour – “Cult of Personality”
Jeru The Damaja – “You Can’t Stop The Prophet”
DJ Premier – “Bum Bum Bum (Instrumental)” [Exclusive]
Ramones – “Blitzrieg Bop”
NYGz – “Policy”
DJ Premier & Bumpy Knuckles – “More Levels”
PRhyme – “U Looz”
DJ Khaled – “365” f. Ace Hood, Vado, Kent Jones [Exclusive]
DJ Khaled – “We Takin’ Over” f. Akon, T.I., Rick Ross, Fat Joe, Baby, Lil Wayne
Ace Hood – “Hustle Hard”
Rick Ross – “The Boss” f. T-Pain
Jay Z – “Where I’m From”
DJ Khaled – “Black Rims (Instrumental)” [Exclusive]
Wiz Khalifa – “We Dem Boyz”
Ace Hood – “Bugatti” f. Future & Rick Ross
Nas – “Represent”
DJ Khaled – “All I Do Is Win” f. T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross
DJ Mustard – “You Don’t Want It” f. RJ[Exclusive]
J Cole – “Rise and Shine”
Fergie – “L.A. Love (la la)”
Imagine Dragons – “I’m So Sorry”
M.I.A. – “Y.A.L.A.”
DJ Mustard – “Ball at Night” [Exclusive]
MGK – “Till I Die” (Cavs Version)
Drake – “0 To 100”
Iamsu! – “I Love My Squad”
Santigold – “Disparate Youth”
Gnarls Barkley – “Going On”
Friendly Fires – “Skeleton Boy”
LCD Soundsystem – “Time to Get Away”
Santigold – “Shove It”
OneRepublic – “Everyone Loves Me”
RJD2 – “Clean Living”
ZION I – “Ride”
The Flaming Lips – “The W.A.N.D.”
Hogni – “Bow Down (To No Man)”
The Chicharones – “Little By Little”
Rael – “Vejo Depois”
Calvin Harris – “Blame” f. John Newman
Zedd – “I Want You To Know” f. Selena Gomez
Emicida & FeFe – “Bonjour”
Ana Tijoux – “Vengo”
Major Lazer – “Lean On” f. MO & DJ Snake
Club Dogo – “Fragili” f. Arisa
AM444 – “Lies” (Jay. Soul Truth Remix)
Bag Raiders – “Shooting Stars”
Dynamic Duo & DJ Premier – “Aeao”
Growing marijuana indoors is fast becoming an American Pastime. The reasons are varied. With the increased interest and experimentation in houseplant cultivation, it was inevitable that people would apply their knowledge of plant care to growing marijuana. Many of those who occasionally like to light up a joint may find it difficult to locate a source or are hesitant to deal with a perhaps unsavory element of society in procuring their grass. There is, of course, the criminal aspect of buying or selling grass; Growing marijuana is just as illegal as buying, selling, or smoking it, but growing is something you can do in the privacy of your own home without having to deal with someone you don’t know or trust. The best reason for growing your own is the enjoyment you will get out of watching those tiny little seeds you picked out of you stash sprout and become some of the most lovely and lush of all house plants.
Even if you haven’t had any prior experience with growing plants in you home, you can have a successful crop of marijuana by following the simple directions in this pamphlet. If you have had problems in the past with marijuana cultivation, you may find the solutions in the following chapters. Growing a marijuana plant involves four basic steps:
Your prime concern, after choosing high quality seeds, is the soil. Use the best soil you can get. Scrimping on the soil doesn’t pay off in the long run. If you use non-sterilized soil you will almost certainly find parasites in it, probably after it is too late to transplant your marijuana. You can find excellent soil for sale at your local plant shop or nursery, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, and even some grocery stores. The soil you use should have these properties for the best possible results:
If you want to make your own soil mixture, you can use this recipe: Mix two parts moss with one part sand and one part pearlite or sponge rock to each four gallons of soil. Test your soil for pH with litmus paper or with a soil testing kit available at most plant stores. To raise the pH of the soil, add ½ lb. lime to 1 cubic foot of soil to raise the pH one point. If you absolutely insist on using dirt you dug up from your driveway, you must sterilize it by baking it in your oven for about an hour at 250 degrees. Be sure to moisten it thoroughly first and also prepare yourself for a rapid evacuation of your kitchen because that hot soil is going to stink. Now add to the mixture about one tablespoon of fertilizer (like Rapid-Gro) per gallon of soil and blend it in thoroughly. Better yet, just skip the whole process and spend a couple bucks on some soil.
After you have prepared your soil, you will have to come up with some kind of container to plant in. The container should be sterilized as well, especially if they have been used previously for growing other plants. The size of the container has a great deal to do with the rate of growth and overall size of the plant. You should plan on transplanting your plant not more than one time, since the process of transplanting can be a shock to the plant and it will have to undergo a recovery period in which growth is slowed or even stopped for a short while. The first container you use should be no larger than six inches in diameter and can be made of clay or plastic. To transplant, simply prepare the larger pot by filling it with soil and scooping out a little hole about the size of the smaller pot that the plant is in. Turn the plant upside down, pot and all, and tap the rim of the pot sharply on a counter or the edge of the sink. The soil and root ball should come out of the pot cleanly with the soil retaining the shape of the pot and with no disturbances to the root ball. Another method that can bypass the transplanting problem is using a Jiffy-Pot. Jiffy pots are made of compressed peat moss and can be planted right into moist soil where they decompose and allow the passage of the root system through their walls. The second container should have a volume of at least three gallons. Marijuana doesn’t like to have its roots bound or cramped for space, so always be sure that the container you use will be deep enough for your plant’s root system. It is very difficult to transplant a five-foot marijuana tree, so plan ahead. It is going to get bigger. The small plants should be ready to transplant into their permanent homes in about two weeks. Keep a close watch on them after the first week or so and avoid root binding at all costs since the plants never seem to do as well once they have been stunted by the cramping of their root.
Marijuana likes lots of food, but you can do damage to the plants if you are too zealous. Some fertilizers can burn a plant and damage its roots if used in to high a concentration. Most commercial soil will have enough nutrients in it to sustain the plant for about three weeks of growth so you don’t need to worry about feeding your plant until the end of the third week. The most important thing to remember is to introduce the fertilizer concentration to the plant gradually. Start with a fairly diluted fertilizer solution and gradually increase the dosage. There are several good marijuana fertilizers on the commercial market, two of which are Rapid-Gro and Eco-Grow. Rapid-Gro has had widespread use in marijuana cultivation and is available in most parts of the United States. Eco-Grow is also especially good for marijuana since it contains an ingredient that keeps the soil from becoming acid. Most fertilizers cause a pH change in the soil. Adding fertilizer to the soil almost always results in a more acidic pH. As time goes on, the amount of salts produced by the breakdown of fertilizers in the soil causes the soil to become increasingly acidic and eventually the concentration of these salts in the soil will stunt the plant and cause browning out of the foliage. Also, as the plant gets older its roots become less effective in bringing food to the leaves. To avoid the accumulation of these salts in your soil and to ensure that your plant is getting all of the food it needs you can begin leaf feeding your plant at the age of about 1.5 months. Dissolve the fertilizer in worm water and spray the mixture directly onto the foliage. The leaves absorb the fertilizer into their veins. If you want to continue to put
fertilizer into the soil as well as leaf feeding, be sure not to overdose your plants. Remember to increase the amount of food your plant receives gradually. Marijuana seems to be able to take as much fertilizer as you want to give it as long as it is introduced over a period of time. During the first three months or so, fertilize your plants every few days. As the rate of foliage growth slows down in the plant’s preparation for blooming and seed production, the fertilizer intake of the plant should be slowed down as well. Never fertilize the plant just before you are going to harvest it since the fertilizer will encourage foliage production and slow down resin production. A word here about the most organic of fertilizers: worm castings. As you may know, worms are
raised commercially for sale to gardeners. The breeders put the worms in organic compost mixtures and while the worms are reproducing they eat the organic matter and expel some of the best marijuana food around. After the worms have eaten all the organic matter in the compost, they are removed and sold and the remains are then sold as worm castings. These castings are so rich that you can grow marijuana in straight worm castings. This isn’t really necessary however, and it is somewhat impractical since the castings are very expensive. If you can afford them you can, however, blend them in with your soil and they will make a very good organic fertilizer.
Without light, the plants cannot grow. In the countries in which marijuana grows best, the sun is the source of light. The amount of light and the length of the growing season in these countries result in huge tree-like plants. In most parts of North America, however, the sun is not generally intense enough for long enough periods of time to produce the same size and quality of plants that grow with ease in Latin America and other tropical countries. The answer to the problem of lack of sun, especially in the winter months, shortness of the growing season and other problems is to grow indoors under simulated conditions. The rule of thumb seems to be the more light, the better. In one experiment we know of, eight eight-foot VHO Gro-Lux fixtures were used over eight plants. The plants grew at an astonishing rate. The lights had to be raised every day. There are many types of artificial light and all of them do different things to your plants. The common incandescent light bulb emits some of the frequencies of light the plant can use, but it also emits a high percentage of far-red and infrared light, which cause the plant to concentrate its
growth on the stem. This results in the plant stretching toward the light bulb until it becomes so tall and spindly that it just weakly topples over. There are several brands of bulb type. One is the incandescent plant spotlight, which emits higher amounts of red and blue light than the common light bulb. It is an improvement, but has it drawbacks. it is hot, for example, and cannot be placed close to the plants. Consequently, the plant has to stretch upwards again and is in danger of becoming elongated and falling over. The red bands of light seem to encourage stem growth,
which is not desirable in growing marijuana. The idea is to encourage foliage growth for obvious reasons. Gro-Lux lights are probably the most common fluorescent plant lights. In our experience with them, they have proven themselves to be extremely effective. They range in size from one to eight feet in length so you can set up a growing room in a closet or a warehouse. There are two types of Gro-Lux lights: The standard and the wide spectrum. They can be used in conjunction with on another, but the wide spectrum lights are not sufficient on their own. The wide spectrum lights were designed as a supplementary light source and are cheaper than the standard lights. Wide spectrum lights emit the same bands of light as the standard but the standard emits higher concentrations of red and blue bands that the plants need to grow. The wide spectrum lights also emit infrared, the effect of which on stem growth we have already discussed. If you are planning to grow on a large scale, you might be interested to know that the regular fluorescent lamps and fixtures, the type that are used in commercial lighting, work well when used along with standard Gro-Lux lights. These commercial lights are called cool whites, and are the cheapest of the fluorescent lights we have mentioned. They emit as much blue light as the Gro-Lux standards and the blue light is what the plants use in foliage growth.
Now we come to the question of intensity. Both the standard and wide spectrum lamps come in three intensities: regular output, high output, and very high output. You can grow a nice crop of plants under the regular output lamps and probably be quite satisfied with our results. The difference in using the HO or VHO lamps is the time it takes to grow a crop. Under a VHO lamp, the plants grow at a rate that is about three times the rate at which they grow under the standard lamps. People have been known to get a plant that is four feet tall in two months under one of these lights. Under the VHO lights, one may have to raise the lights every day, which means a growth rate of at least two inches a day. The only drawback is the expense of the VHO lamps and fixtures. The VHO lamps and fixtures are almost twice the price of the standard. If you are interested in our opinion, they are well worth it. Now that you have
your lights up, you might be curious about the amount of light to give you plants per day. The maturation date of your plants is dependent on how much light they receive per day. The longer the dark period per day, the sooner the plant will bloom. Generally speaking, the less dark per day the better during the first six months of the plant’s life. The older the plant is before it blooms and goes to seed, the better the grass will be. After the plant is allowed to bloom, its metabolic rate is slowed so that the plant’s quality does not increase with the age at the same rate it did
before it bloomed. The idea, then, is to let the plant get as old as possible before allowing it to mature so that the potency will be a high as possible at the time of harvest. One relatively sure way to keep your plants from blooming until you are ready for them is to leave the lights on all the time. Occasionally a plant will go ahead and bloom anyway, but it is the exception rather than the rule. If your plants receive 12 hours of light per day they will probably mature in 2 to 2.5 months. If they get 16 hours of light per day they will probably be blooming in 3.5 to 4 months. With 18 hours of light per day, they will flower in 4.5 to 5 months. It’s a good idea to put your lights on a timer to ensure that the amount of light received each day remains constant. A “vacation” timer, normally used to make it look like you are home while you are away, works nicely and can be found at most hardware or discount stores.
The ideal temperature for the light hours is 68 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit and for the dark hours there should be about a 15-degree drop in temperature. The growing room should be relatively dry if possible. What you want is a resinous coating on the leaves and to get the plant to do this, you must convince it that it needs the resinous coating on its leaves to protect itself from drying out. In an extremely humid room, the plants develop wide leaves and do not produce as much resin. You must take care not to let the temperature in a dry room become too hot, however, since the plant cannot assimilate water fast enough through its roots and its foliage will begin to brown out.
Proper ventilation in your growing room is fairly important. The more plants you have in one room, the more important good ventilation becomes. Plants breathe through their leaves. The also rid themselves of poisons through their leaves. If proper ventilation is not maintained, the pores of the leaves will become clogged and the leaves will die. If there is a free movement of air, the poisons can evaporate off the leaves and the plant can breathe and remain healthy.
In a small closet where there are only a few plants you can probably create enough air circulation just by opening the door to look at them. Although it is possible to grow healthy looking plants in poorly ventilated rooms, they would be larger and healthier if they had a fresh supply of air coming in. If you spend a lot of time in your growing room, your plants will grow better because they will be using the carbon dioxide that you are exhaling around them. It is sometimes quite difficult to get a fresh supply of air in to your growing room because your room is usually hidden away in a secret corner of your house, possibly in the attic or basement. In this case, a fan will create some
movement of air. It will also stimulate your plants into growing a healthier and sturdier stalk. Often times in an indoor environment, the stems of plants fail to become rigid because they don’t have to cope with elements of wind and rain. To a degree, though, this is an advantage because the plant puts most of its energy into producing leaves and resin instead of stems.
Cannabis that grows in a hot, dry climate will have narrower leaves than cannabis grown in a humid atmosphere. The reason is that in a dry atmosphere the plants can respire easier because the moisture on the leaves evaporates faster. In a humid atmosphere, the moisture cannot evaporate as fast. Consequently, the leaves have to be broader with more surface area in order to expel the wastes that the plant put out. Since the broad leaves produce less resin per leaf than the narrow there will be more resin in an ounce of narrow leaves than in one ounce of broad leaves. There may be more leaf mass in the broader leafed plants, but most people are growing their own for quality rather than quantity. Since the resin in the marijuana plant serves the purpose of keeping the leaves from drying out, there is more apt to be a lot of resin produced in a dry room than in a humid one. In the Sears catalog, dehumidifiers cost around $100.00 and are therefore a bit impractical for the “hobby grower.”
If you live near a clear mountain stream, you can skip this bit on the quality of water. Most of us are supplied water by the city and some cities add more chemicals to the water than others
. They all add chlorine, however, in varying quantities. Humans over the years have learned to either get rid of it somehow or to live with it, but your marijuana plants won’t have time to acquire a taste for it so you had better see that they don’t have to. Chlorine will evaporate if you let the water stand for 24 hours in an open container. Letting the water stand for a day or two will serve a dual purpose: The water will come to room temperature during that period of time and you can avoid the nasty shock your plants suffer when you drench them with cold water. Always water with room temperature to lukewarm water. If your water has an excessive amount of chlorine in it, you may want to get some anti- chlorine drops at the local fish or pet store. The most important thing about watering is to do it thoroughly. You can water a plant in a three-gallon container with as much as three quarts of water. The idea is to get the soil evenly moist all the way to the
bottom of the pot. If you use a little water, even if you do it often, it seeps just a short way down into the soil and any roots below the moist soil will start to turn upwards toward the water. The second most important thing about watering is to see to it that the pot has good drainage. There should be some holes in the bottom so that any excess water will run out. If the pot won’t drain, the excess water will accumulate in a pocket and rot the roots of the plant or simply make the soil sour or mildew. The soil, as we said earlier, must allow the water to drain evenly through it and must not become hard or packed. If you have made sure that the soil contains sand and pearlite, you shouldn’t have drainage problems. To discover when to water, feel the soil with your finger. If you feel moisture in the soil, you can wait a day or two to water. The soil near the top of the pot is always drier than the soil further down. You can drown your plant just as easily as you can let it get too dry and it is more likely to survive a dry spell than it is to survive a torrential flood. Water the plants well when you water and don’t water them at all when they don’t need it.
If you can avoid getting bugs in the first place you will be much better off. Once your plants become infested you will probably be fighting bugs for the rest of your plants’ lives. To avoid bugs, be sure to use sterilized soil and containers and don’t bring other plants from outside into your growing room. If you have bets, ensure that they stay out of your growing room, since they can bring in pests on their fur. Examine your plants regularly for signs of insects, spots, holes in the leaves, browning of the tips of the leaves, and droopy branches. If you find that somehow
in spite of all your precautions you have a plant room full of bugs, you’ll have to spray your plants with some kind of insecticide. You’ll want to use something that will kill the bugs and not you. Spider mites are probably the bug that will do the most damage to the marijuana plants. One of the reasons is that they are almost microscopic and very hard to spot. They are called spider mites because they leave a web-like substance clinging to the leaves. They also cause tiny little spots to appear on the leaves. Probably the first thing you’ll notice, however, is that your plants
look sick and depressed. The mites suck enzymes from the leaves and as a result the leaves lose some of their green color and glossiness. Sometimes the leaves look like they have some kid of fungus on them. The eggs are very tiny black dots. You might be wise to get a magnifying glass so that you can really scrutinize your plants closely. Be sure to examine the underside of the leaves too. The mites will often be found clinging to the underside as well as the top of the leaves. The sooner you start fighting the bugs, the easier it will be to get rid of them. For killing spider mites on marijuana, one of the best insecticides if “Fruit and Berry” spray made by Llers. Ortho also produces several insecticides that will kill mites. The ingredients to look for are Kelthane and Malatheon. Both of these poisons are lethal to humans and pets as well as bugs, but they both detoxify in about ten days so you can safely smoke the grass ten days after spraying. Fruit and Berry will only kill the adult mite, however, and you’ll have to spray every four days for about two weeks to be sure that you have killed all the adults before they have had a chance to lay eggs.
Keep a close watch on your plants because it only takes one egg laying adult to re- infest your plants and chances are that one or two will escape your barrage of insecticides. If you see little bugs flying around your plants, they are probably white flies. The adults are immune to almost all the commercial insecticides except Fruit and Berry, which will not kill the eggs or larva. It is the larval stage of this insect that does the most damage. They suck out enzymes too, and kill your plants if they go unchecked. You will have to get on a spraying program just as was explained in
the spider mite section. An organic method of bug control is using soapsuds. Put Ivory flakes in some lukewarm water and work up the suds into lather. Then put the suds over the plant. The obvious disadvantage is it you don’t rinse the soap off the plant you’ll taste the soap when you smoke the leaves.
We have found that pruning is not always necessary. The reason one does it in the first place is to encourage secondary growth and to allow light to reach the immature leaves. Some strands of grass just naturally grow thick and bushy and if they are not clipped the sap moves in an uninterrupted flow right to the top of the plant where it produces flowers that are thick with resin. On the other hand, if your plants appear tall and spindly for their age at three weeks, they probably require a little trimming to ensure a nice full leafy plant. At three weeks of age your plant
should have at least two sets of branches or four leaf clusters and a top. To prune the plant, simply slice the top off just about the place where two branches oppose each other. Use a razor blade in a straight cut. If you want to, you can root the top in some water and when the roots appear, plant the top in moist soil and it should grow into another plant. If you are going to root the top you should cut the end again, this time with a diagonal cut so as to expose more surface to the water or rooting solution. The advantage to taking cuttings from your plant is that it produces more tops. The tops have the resin, and that’s the name of the game. Every time you cut off a top, the plant seeds out two more top branches at the base of the existing branches. Pruning also encourages the branches underneath to grow faster than they normally would without the top having been cut.
Well, now that you’ve grown your marijuana, you will want to cur it properly so that it smokes clean and won’t bite. You can avoid that “homegrown” taste of chlorophyll that sometimes makes one’s fillings taste like they might be dissolving. We know of several methods of curing the marijuana so that it will have a mild flavor and a mellow rather than harsh smoke. First, pull the plant up roots and all and hang it upside down for 24 hours. Then put each plant in a paper grocery bag with the top open for three or four days or until the leaves feels dry to the touch. Now strip the leaves off the stem and put them in a glass jar with a lid. Don’t pack the leaves in tightly, you want air to reach all the leaves. The main danger in the curing process is mold. If the leaves are too damp when you put them into the jar, they will mold and since the mold will destroy the resins, mold will ruin your marijuana. You should check the jars every day by smelling them and if you smell an acrid aroma take the weed out of the jar and spread it out on newspaper so that it can dry quickly. Another method is to uproot the plants and hang them upside down. You get some burlap bags damp and slip them up over the plants. Keep the bags damp and leave them in the sun for at least a week. Now put the plants in a paper bag for a few days until the weed is dry enough to smoke. Like many fine things in life, marijuana mellows out with age. The aging process tends to remove the chlorophyll taste.
This pamphlet was written about 8 years ago. While the facts, figures, and methods described here are still valid, an important note must be added concerning the purchasing of equipment and supplies. The information age is upon us and an increasing amount of data is being kept about all of us whether we realize it or not. With the war on drugs in full effect, the D.E.A. is using this information at every possible opportunity. When you make a purchase with a credit card, every last bit of information regarding that purchase is filed away into a database, both at the store and
with your credit card company. Not only the price, but the exact date, location, and items purchased are recorded and stored away. Many stores and credit card companies routinely sell their databases of customers and transactions to anybody who can afford it. The D.E.A can certainly afford it. After all, they’re using your tax dollars. The D.E.A. as well as other government agencies DO purchase these databases for their own uses. They feed them into their computers and the computers spit out a list of anybody with “suspicious” purchases. Any purchases that could be associated with drug production, use, or selling could be flagged for further investigation. These “suspicious” purchases include unusual chemicals, medical supplies such as syringes, lights and timers, and even potting soil and fertilizer. The point is , if you are planning on purchasing supplies to grow marijuana don’t take any chances. While the computers would probably never flag the average home grower, who is simply growing enough for his own use, you never know. If you are purchasing equipment or supplies, PAY CASH! In addition, many supermarkets and discount stores now have some sort of “Preferred Customer” cards. When you buy something, regardless of how you pay, you give them your card to scan and all your purchases are recorded. They then send you some sort of coupon depending on what and how much you purchased each month. It sounds like a good deal, but you wind up having all of your purchases recorded and sold just like with the credit cards. DON’T use one of these cards when you are purchasing anything that might be deemed suspicious. For that matter, don’t use them at all. They just result in a ton of junk mail and a lot of people knowing exactly what you buy and when you buy it.
DJ Short Seeds
Indica
Origins: Highland Thai x Afghan Indica
Flowering: 45-55 days
Harvest: late September
The name Blue Moonshine originated in a dream. The variety that inherited this dream-inspired moniker reveals mostly indica characteristics in structure and potency. Blue Moonshine is a short, stout, bushy plant. Outdoors, it rarely exceeds 3 feet, and is rarely over 2.5 feet indoors. One advantage of this variety is that it may be cropped quite low indoors or out.
The leaves are dark and wide. This plant produces dense, sticky buds, coated with tall-standing, glandular stalked trichomes – a true “hash plant”. The aroma and flavor of both the growing bud and the finished product is strong and astrigent with a distinct fruity or fermented fruity taste.
In its effect, Blue Moonshine is akin to the homebrew that its name brings to mind. It is a potent smoke with a strong sensation of expansion in the lungs that is likely to induce coughing. The high is long lasting and physical, commonly beginning with hilarity, followed by extreme appetite stimulation then sedation.
Wally Duck
Sativa
Origins: Cinderella 99 x Panama Red
Flowering: 70 days
Harvest: mid October
The name of this variety leads you right to the parentage. The mother, Panama Red, is a pure sativa strain from South America. The father, Cinderella 99, is a fast maturing, resiny sativa strain originating with the Brothers Grimm in Holland. Cindy 99 is a cross froma Jack Herer bag seed that was “cubed” to create Cinderella 99.
For this cross, Wally Duck has bred Cinderella 99 specifically for the taste. He discovered among several grows that some Cindy 99s had an increased pineapple flavor. In the fifth cross of these pineapple types, he added the Panama Red to produce this very resiny, pineapple-smelling plant. In addition to flavor, the Cindy father was selected for fast maturation and high resin content, while the Panama Red mother was chosen for the trippy, euphoric effects. Together, these two sativa strains yield a pure sativa whose high and taste really shines when grown in an acclimated indoor climate.
Wally Duck prefers to grow cannabis outside in his tropics location, which is the favored home for pure sativas. C99 x PR was happy to finish on sub-equatorial days (no longer than 13 hours) without signs of revegging. Outdoors, sativas need a climate that won’t frost too early in the season. This variety is right at home in the heat – in an outdoors test patch, C99 x PR was dealt a very steamy season and showed no signs of trouble, also tolerating some gaps in watering. Bacause of its hardiness and willingness to put up with some neglect and abuse, this plant is suitable for a beginning outdoor gardener who is in the 40 degree latitude region.
Indoors, this variety is more suitable for a grower who has a little experience. Optimum indoor ripeness takes 70 days from forcing at a 12/12 cycle. C99 x PR does well in a screen of green (SCROG), where branches can be trained for maximum yield. A soil medium adds depth to this strain’s flavor, but she has also done well in hydro methods.
Given a chance, this plant can get quite large, with several long main colas. With a minimum vegetative time, outdoor plants reach 5 feet and yield between 4 and 8 ounces per plant. Indoors with minimum vegetative times, the plants yield around 1 ounce each, which increases if they are vegged longer and allowed ample room for the subsequent increase in size.
Whe allowed to progress without much manipulation or pruning, this plant becomes more round and bushlike than the classic marijuana profile. C99 x PR buds are compact and stacked, but not super chunky. Outdoors they look like foxtails, thick and long, surrounded by some typically slender sativa foliage. This strain tastes like pineapple, with a pleasant spiciness and a hint of pepper in the exhale. The high is filled with the sweet effects of sativa. The high comes on fast – a talkative, awake, idea-liberating buzz with a trippy edge. Once your thoughts are tingling and fully stimulated, C99 x PR is good for lengthy chats with your favorite conversation partners. It may be good for bouncing around some interesting ideas, but focused work or planning is best saved for later.
DJ Short
Indica 50 / Sativa 50
Origins: Blueberry sativa x Original Blueberry
Flowering: 55-65 days
Harvest: October
Cocoa Kush is a 2009 release from the stables of the Delta-9 collection. It was developed on the US West Coast and tested in Oregon and California. DJ Short’s breeding work is most strongly associated with his development of the original Blueberry. A meticulous breeder, DJ has mostly worked to expand the Blue family, creating boutique strains for the medical or hobby grower that are stable, uniquely flavorful first-class headstash.
Cocoa Kush is no exception. Sister to the Vanilluna, Cocoa Kush is a selection of two Blueberry parents. Even though they are both Blueberries, they embody different variations: the mother is a more sativa type, and the father is a “stretch” indica type, making Cocoa Kush more similar to an F1 hybrid than an inbred line. The F1 seeds are uniform, but offer genetic diversity in additional crosses. Cococa Kush’s Blueberry sativa mother forms asymmetric growth and often has no dominant main stem. Less than a quarter of the leaves show variegation (the “krinkle” leaf characteristic). By finish, this plant ranges into the deep blue and lavender hues so often associated with the Blueberry strain, and her flavors are tangy, with a subtle chocolate palate.
The Blue family originated with crosses of four pure P1 landrace varieties – The Highland Thai, Chocolate Thai, Highland Oaxaca Gold, and Afghan indica. The Cocoa Kush is aesthetically and experientially reminiscent of its grandmamma Chocolate Thai. Structurally, Cocoa Kush blends kush characteristics and Thai influences. With some help from the indica-leaning Blueberry papa, Cocoa Kush grows as a uniform and symmetric plant with fat dark leaves and compact nodes, but it is not as thickset as an indica, incorporating an open or stretchy aspect in its structure from the sativa lines. Extending vegetative time coupled with early topping is recommended to increase yield, or run these plants un-topped in a sea of green system. After 8-9 weeks of flowering time, these plants reach a medium height with sturdy stems and ample resin that emanates high-end aromatics. Cocoa colas are tight and elongated lavender foxtails. The swollen purpled calyxes are like bunches of grapes along a vine.
Cocoa Kush excels in its complex yet subtle flavors. DJ is a taste master, and with Cocoa Kush, the mixture of flavors includes a zesty fruit edge with a blend of chocolate, tobacco, licorice, and nuts. Remember riding a rollercoaster? That moment right after the pause at the top of the first peak, when the wheels start to roll forward into the swift and exhilirating ride ahead? The initial hit of Cocoa Kush has that breathless quality to it. Its intense beginning may make occasional or light users anxious or momentarily overwhelmed. However, not to worry, the sensation tapers into a more mellow, sleepy, and dreamy state of mind.
Don’t Panic Organix
Indica 60 / Sativa 40
Origins: Granddaddy Purple x triple backcrossed OG Kush
Flowering: 56-63 days
Harvest: mid October
The Funxta’z Purple Cali Kush is an indica-dominant dybrid that blends a lanky OG Kush father with a mother Granddaddy Purple indica from the wine regions in northwestern California. The OG Kush is a triple inbred crox (IBX) of an inbred line (IBL) of Kush. It is a more sativa-dominant strain with an enviable kush high. The purple mama is a hardy and stout plant that infuses the kush flavors with the purple tones of grapes and tartness of berries.
This West Coast Cali plant was bred in the inland desert regions of California, and it is very stabl in dry or desert conditions. The FPCK does well in hydro or soil and delivers the best yield when topped and allowed to form several limbs. As they mature, about half of the plants form lengthy branches like its OG Kush father, while the other half stay fairly stout and compact. Both types have very even growth, with more symmetry than most Christmas trees.
Funxta’z Purple Cali Kush is adapted to thrive in its home environment, making it very tolerant to overly warm temperatures and highly resistant to molfds, mildews, andmites. After the fifth week of flowering, the buds dense up considerably, and the majority go fully chromatic, with vibrant green. All FPCK plants twinkle with a glow of heavy resin. The colas are wide and compact, often taking on a crown shape.
The FPCK high is a relaxed, yet energetic, happy high that creeps up progressively for the fifteen minutes after inhale and tends to linger for hours. Lightweight users should take care not to indulge too heavily at first, allowing the full effects to be revealed before proceeding. The initial high of Funxta’z Purple Cali Kush is great for concentration and motivation. It feels like the cleaning lady just tidied up inside your head, dusting out any cobwebs and leaving things with a sparkling clarity and orderliness that inspires productivity or excitement. This initial feeling fades to a mellow enjoyment, making it good for social activities or concerts where the beginning of the night is full of lively energy that naturally fades to a more casual mood. Medical users who treat depression or seek an energy boosting effect will enjoy this variety.
Serious Seeds
mostly Sativa
Origins: 2 sativa dominant hybrids
Flowering: 70-90 days
Harvest: early November
Kali Mist was developed in the early 1990s, when many primo sativas from mysterious origins were gathered and selectively bred. Kali has had a series of fathers, creating slight differences based on time period. Seeds first sold under this name strongly resembled the typical Southeast Asian sativa, but an interim father in the 1990s gave the offspring a more Afghani look. With the new millennium, Kali’s third father has returned it to a strongly sativa appearance.
Kali plants grow to a medium height with long internodes and medium-long fan leaves. The plant’s structure is “open”, meaning it’s possible to see all the way through the sapce between the plants. This structure promotes good quality buds along the entire length of the stem because light can penetrate through the entire plant. Big individual flowers cluster closely together to form buds that are mostly leafless in 75 percent of the plants. The other quarter form a more traditional bud with many leaflets. On both types, glandular trichomes abound.
Seedlings are ready to flower after 30-40 days of vegetative growth, when they should be clipped to avoid undainly heights. Clones are ready for flowering as soon as they are rooted, about 3-4 days. Indoor growing is recommended, by any method, including sea of green. Kali can be attempted outside where long growing seasons prevail.
With a sweet scent and flavor that spans both the sweet and spicy, this variety offers a cerebral high that leaves the mind clear and focused. Kali Mist’s effects have proven beneficial for medical users with multiple sclerosis, fatigue, and chronic pain. A popular choice among women, Kali Mist is a great all-day pot that can enhance energetic outdoor activities or more meditative, thoughtful pastimes.
1st place, High Times Cannabis Cup hydro division 1995
1st place, High Times Cannabis Cup sativa category 2000
Stoney Girl Gardens
Indica 80 / Sativa 20
Origins: Sugar Plum x pure indica
Flowering: 30-40 days
The indica-dominant Pit Bull strain begins with a trade: som P-91 seed from the university professor who created the P-91 strain. Stoney Girl was told that this strain was the government’s latest G-13. P-91 came from a program at a university in Southern California that supposedly did not exist. This grandfather of the Pit Bull’s paternal side was crossed with Stoney Girl’s own Berkeley Blues to become a strain called Sugar Plum. Sugar Plum, an award winner that placed first in the 2003 Oregon medical cannabis awards, is Pit Bull’s father. The Pit Bull mother, simply referred to as P-91, is a cross from Southern California, consisting of a G-13 mother crossed with Bull Rider.
As the name suggests, Pit Bull is a rugged, tenacious strain. The plants are vibrant, vigorous, and mite resistant. Don’t mistake this stubborn determination for rigidity. Pit Bull is very pliable and obedient. She performs well in any environment and has great yields in any arrangement from a hydro closet to an outdoor farm. The Pit Bull plant is branchy with close nodes. When allowed to grow free, she forms a giant spherical bush that blooms with buds on every branch. A quick plant, she finishes flowering in an average of 6 weeks or mid-September outdoors when planted in June, even in the temperate climates of the Pacific Northwest. It is a bush indoors, and a giant tower out.
During flowering, Pit Bull jumps right into action, forming open blooms covered in crystals during the first 2 weeks. The buds are large thick spheres covered in pom-pom hairs and oozing crystals. Buds have a medium density that is neither airy nor popcorn textured, but also not rock hard. The Pit Bull sugar leaves have so much crystal on them that they tend to curl. The fan leaves are large and wide and look like maple leaves. Pit Bull stays bright green unless it gets chilly in the garden – then she turns purple. The bases of the leaves are a passion purple. The branches are bright green with violet stripes highlighting the ribs.
The Pit Bull’s hardiness and instinct for survival make it an ideal strain for the beginner, but the qualities will satisfy more elite tastes and impress on special occasions. The buzz is a heavy hitter that won’t be a top choice for the occasional recreational user, but is well suited for medicinal use or for experienced tokers. There is a body blissfulness and a heady intense mental component that can feel a bit like a gong has been rung inside the brain. Pit Bull is thoughtful and trippy, if a bit distracted at its height. The taste and smell profiles are complex and maintain flavors throughout, including a fresh grapefruit citrus with honey, hash, and a pungent sweet tropical bass.
Federation Seed Company
Indica
Origins: Cali strain x White Rhino
Flowering: 56-60 days
Harvest: mid October
Federation purchased Romulan as a complete strain in 1996in an attempt to rescue it from extinction. In the 1970s, this variety was brought from Califronia to British Columbia by a Vietnam veteran, where it was grown on Vancouver Island. This variety was nicknamed Romulan after people joked that the high “could dent your head,” producing ridges like those of Star Trek’s warrior-like race with the same name.
Federation acquired Romulan in the form of clones, so she was entirely female. After crossing it with a Cannabis Cup prize winner, a White Rhino male, breeders ar Federation backcrossed 11 times to stabilize the variety at a 97 percent pure Romulan hybrid. Selections at each backcross favored the biggest, most robust plants over the fastest, although the finishing time remains around a very acceptable 8 weeks. Romulan seeds are now homogenous and have an improved robustness and yield as a result.
This purple-stemmed plant branches extensively and is less appropriate for a sea of green garden than a set-up which takes advantage of the multiple branching and budding sites. A completely indica plant, Romulan is short and bushy with dark green leaves and thick buds. While still a moderate producer, Romulan has not lost its head-denting capabilities, and claims the title of Federation’s most potent strain. Outdoors, this plant will yield about a half-pound of tight nuggets per fully grown plant. Drier climates are more favorable since the buds, being both thick and dense, have some susceptibility to mold.
Romulan is alien pot with potent effects. Couch lock is likely an concentration may be difficult to maintain. Medically, this weed has shown excellent results for chronic pain.In addition to its ongoing popularity in BC, Romulan has developed a devoted fan base in Texas.
Soma Seeds
Indica
Origins: Super Skunk x Big Skunk Korean x Afghani x Afghani Hawaiian
Flowering: 56 days
Harvest: early October
Soma A+ may become the pet of the class. Short to medium in height, this mostly indica strain displays the bushy structure and colas so compact that it has been nicknamed “Rock Bud”. She is a good sea of green plant since height and branching are easy to manage. With an extended vegetation period, Soma A+ can be coaxed into a larger plant, and will perform inconspicuous in an outdoor garden.
A fast bloomer, Soma A+ finishes in about 8 weeks and wards off spider mites so well, she is often the last holdout in the garden, keeping the pests at bay. The yield makes this bud more appealing to a connoisseur rather than a commercial grower, but the easy of growth and the quality of the final product will make this a coveted weed to share with your inner circle.
At maturity, Soma A+ develops sugary red leaves reminiscent of autumn’s best maples. As the mostly indica genetics would lead you to expect, the buzz is relaxing to the body and mind, and good for contemplation or napping on rainy day afternoons. Better as a day ender than a day starter, Soma A+ provides medicinal quality cannabis with healing properties for what ails you, whether physical, psychological, or spiritual in nature.
DNA Genetics
Indica
Origins: California indica x Afghan indica
Flowering: 46-56 days
Harvest: early October
LA Confidential is a commercial seed strain that captures the genetics of OG Kush. An Afghan strain grown from clones, OG Kush first became popular in the Los Angeles market in the 1990s, and then became world famous as California rappers like Snoop Dogg and Cypress Hill namechecked it in their songs. OG Kush offered a has-like experience from reefer: a resinous smoke, deep and spicy-sweet like nutmeg, that drew the smoker into a lush, slightly trippy dreamland. While “Authentic OG Kush” may be hard to find if you’re not a rap star, DNA’s LA Confidential brings the secrets of this celebrity smoke to the market.
LA Confidential is an indoor-adapted plant that can also be grown outdoors or in a greenhouse. This strain is resistant to mildew, and on the whole is easy for even a novice to grow. She likes any medium – hydro, coco beds, soil, or NFT systems. If forced into flowering at 3-4 feet of growth, LA Confidential stays petite, gaining only a foot in the rest of her cycle, making her a good strain for gardeners with limited space. DNA themselves prefer bigger plants, vegetated for 3-4 weeks, for a lower overall plant count. Like many eco-conscious growers, DNA recommends organic nutrients.
As she moves through flowering, LA Confidential forms popcorn-like buds that are very dense, and so dark green that they almost appear black by harvest time. The flowering time is speedy, finishing in 7-8 weeks indoors, or by late September to early October when grown outside. These are the sweet “rocks” of resinous bud associated with her OG Kush ancestors. LA Confidential is not the biggest yielding strain, with average yields between 300-500 grams per square meter from “petite” plants in close quarters; yields from larger or outdoor plants may be correspondingly greater.
LA Confidential delivers a heavy “Kush” high: tasty, languorous, and a little psychedelic. Experienced smokers will find it relaxing but not sleepy, although probably too relaxing if there are complex tasks to be done. This is a chill-out smoke. What this strain lacks in monstrous yields it makes up for in high, taste, and smell. Many weed experts agree – LA Confidential has won second (2005) and third (2004) place for indica at the High Times Cannabis Cup, and first place for indica in the international Cannagraphics Cup (2005).
JD’s High-Bred Seeds
Indica 50 / Sativa 50
Origins: equatorial sativa x Middle Eastern indica
Flowering: 60-65 days
Harvest: mid October
Dreadlock is an even combination of the sativa and indica spectrum that can be recommended for beginning growers. This strains exhibits two phenotype. One is a slightly fluffy plant with popcorn buds while the other exhibits less branching, denser buds, and fewer small nodules that protrude from the buds. Both types are not as bushy as most sativa-influenced hybrids, and each sprouts a large main cola that looks like a giant nappy dread.
This variety does not need high levels of fertilizer to produce large, heavy buds. It is very hardy and resistant to molds and pests. Joint doctor prefers to grow this primarily indoor plant in organic soil, but Dreadlock will do well in hydro too. Yields will be slightly better if each plant is given at least one square foot of space, but the formation of one large main cola makes it suitable for sea of green. The best method for this variety is “screen of green”.
Dreadlock’s dark nine-pronged fan leaves are accessorized with small, distinctively horn-shaped leaflets tucked in at their bases. The fan leaves turn yellow and drop before harvest, which means little manicuring is required. Dreadlock clones sprout roots and bushy foliage very quickly, making it a great strain for breeding mothers.
Smart growers give Dreadlock a full 9 weeks before harvest, since her buds gain a lot of weight and THC in the final weeks. Once harvested, these super sticky buds produce a very energetic high that creeps up, strengthening over the first half hour to a psychedelic, slightly speedy feeling. This mildly musky variety is great for socializing and known for its “giggle stick” qualities. Dreadlock is also a good variety for the hash lover.
TGA Seeds
Sativa 70 / Indica 30
Origins: Apollo 13 x Jack the Ripper
Flowering: 52-70 days
Harvest: mid September
In this sativa-dominant variety, breeder Subcool brings together three elite strains from the TGA library. The super potent Apollo 13 mother, a Subcool personal favorite, is combined with a pick of the litter male Jack the Ripper, itself a combination of the primo Jacks Cleaner and Space Queen strains. Considering the strength of these three strains, TGA feels that this hybrid is a new dimension in three-way crosses.
The Third Dimension is a fast finisher indoors, reaching ripeness in just under 8 weeks. This strain is grown best in an organic super soil mix. This variety has nice lateral branching and thrives when topped and allowed multiple heads. Expect classic results from this strain – an evergreen profile with stems as strong as the parent branches. She is a light eater, taking moderate feedings and growing well without supports.
The Third Dimension plants express two phenotypes, one that is more indica and one that is more sativa. The short indica phenotype is well suited for SCROG (screen of green), because her side branching makes a nice lower bud shelf. She shows minimal stretching and finishes very fast, in just over 7 weeks. This plant is worth cloning and has show good success in rooting. The less common sativa-dominant phenotype takes an additional 2 weeks to finish, and springs up over 5 feet tall, but her soaring high is worth the extra wait. The phenotypical variation in this strain makes her desirable to growers who love both indicas and sativas.
As Third Dimension matures, her resin spreads even to fan leaves, causing the small “sugar” leaves to curl together. Bubble hash made from these leaves melts completely at the touch of a flame. The plants’ green hues change into autumnal shades as harvest approaches. The buds are chunky and hard, with a sharp pointy shape. Cured buds are light green with brilliant orange hairs and a sticky coat of resin.
The Third Dimension fills the grow room with the dank smell of sour, overripe fruit. As the buds dry, the aromas and flavors mellow to a tropical fruit tartness. The inhale has an infusion of fruitiness that includes hints of mango, pineapple, coconut and a bit of lemon. The exhale is very soft and mellow. When smaller leaves are converted to bubble hash, it completely melts when heat is applied.
Third Dimension’s buzz is a sparkle added to the mundane day, making everything softer and funnier. In moderation, this stone is clearheaded enough for daytime enjoyment; however, this is the weed equivalent of a tropical cocktail – the light fruity flavors can make you forget the potency, so it sometimes too easy to overindulge. The Third Dimension may enhance snakcing, but is likely to rev up the imagination a bit too much to encourage sleep.
T.H.Seeds
Indica
Origins: Los Angeles Kush x G-13
Flowering: 53-55 days
Harvest: late September
Named for the notorious LSD brainwashing experiments conducted by the CIA and the Canadian police in the 1950s, MK-Ultra is secret American project pot, fathered by the Angels, the OG Kush. Appropriately, MK-Ultra is an unusual indica: its buzz is “bright”, body-stimulating and speedy, like the body wake-up of strong tobacco or coffee.
MK-Ultra grows straight and narrow and likes to be topped. This strain stays green throughout her life. Her leaves start out fat, then get thin as they mature; her buds start off loose but get dense and hard with resin after about 40 day of flowering. MK-Ultra produces scores of small, round, popcorn-type buds. Both hydro and soil cultivation produce good yields. T.H. Seeds favors a sea of green method with 18-20 plants per square meter for this variety.
MK-Ultra has a thick, lingering aroma and a fresh pine-tree flavor that surprises with a lingering tongue-fizz, like a carbonated soda or a fizzing candy. The immediate, jolting rush is hypnotic; the extreme flavor and smell make this strain bad for sneak-a-toke, but perfect for a party icebreaker. MK-Ultra’s stimulant stone can overcome body fatigue from a long night of dancing, but is a little too intense for focused work. MK-Ultra won 1st place in the 2003 High Times Cannabis Cup (Indica category).
Mr. Nice Seed Bank
Indica
Origins: Afghan x Afghan / Skunk
Flowering: 56-70 days
Harvest: late October
Breeder Shantibaba likes to play with the names he gives various breeds by rehabilitating words with negative connotations and applying them to something good. As he says, “Face it, devils are not so bad at certain times!”
This Devil’s Afghani pedigree has given it a reddish aura that deepens as it matures. The leaves turn purple to red, like the color of autumn, and are typically thick and fan-like in shape. The bud is a cluster of flowers and goes from dark green to purple to red as it finishes. Unlike many Afghanis, this hybrid is only a moderate resin producer.
The buzz will take you on a magical mind journey that can be wonderfully therapeutic and uplifting. This Devil is a good companion for exciting and adventurous undertakings. The bouquet is sweet like an apple orchard, while the taste also includes the parental skunk influence.
An easy-to-grow plant, Devil is recommended for the novice and is a great selection for outdoor or greenhouse growers. Although it shows growth initially, watch out once it has established its root ball. This plant finishes by October in the Northern hemisphere, June / July in the Southern hemisphere. If you try this one indoors, it must be placed in vegetative growth for at least 2 weeks if yield is the prime directive.
Head Seeds
Sativa 80 / Indica 20
Origins: Trainwreck x Thai x East Coast Sour Diesel
Flowering: 56-63 days
Harvest: mid October
Casey Jones combines an excellent sativa mother, a Trainwreck x Thai, with an outstanding male from Rezdog’s Sour Diesel v3 line. The mother originated from Billy Goat Seed’s Oriental Express cross. She has a very sweet flavor, and a heady transcendent high.
Adding Diesel to Trainwreck suggested the name Casey Jones, engineer of the most famous train wreck of all time. The sativa-dominant Casey Jones strain has an amazing high. The plant varies slightly in structure, from Thai foxtails to Diesel plumes. It retains the short ripening time of the Oriental Express mother, finishing in about 8 weeks. Casey Jones is not overly picky, suiting the novice grower as well as the sweet-toothed connoisseur.
This variety multi-branches well, especially when trained. She prefers moderate feeding and grows to a final height of 30-40 inches when forced at 12-16 inches. When plants are grown short with a single cola (SOG style), they yield an average of 1/3 to 1/2 ounce. Grown large and trained, plants could yield up to 3.5 ounces each.
The buds form like towers of calyxes, tight but clustered, creating a looser cola, with colorful pistils that vary from orange to pink. The leaves have thin blades and stems may purple late in the flowering phase.
The Casey Jones flavor is a combination of the confection-like sweet Oriental Express and the citric sour of the Diesel. The high can be felt almost immediately and lasts about an hour and a half. This strain has an “up” effect with a vividly trippy, thought provoking quality that can lead to mental wandering. Under its effects, one may feel a stronger sense of connectedness to self and others. it is good for creative activities that can benefit from an introspective mood and don’t require intense right brain focus. It is less than ideal if you need to make plans, balance your checkbook or do other very linear activities. Go fly a kite, watch a movie, hike around in the outdoors, or engage in a little painting or other interpretive activity when indulging in Casey Jones. Do not drive a train!
Nirvana Seeds
Sativa 50 / Indica 50
Origins: Skunk & White family strain
Flowering: 63-70 days
Harvest: late October
Two types of grass gained popularity among Dutch growers in the mid-1990s. The red skunk strains gave high yields of middling quality weed, while the resinous white strains satisfied any ganja gourmet with flavor and quality of buzz, but gave only modest yields. After an intense selection process, Nirvana hybridized for the best qualities of these two established strains with Ice.
A new generation power plant, Ice weds kind bud with kind yields. Ice has few branches, minimal foliage, and many floral clusters: a plus when manicuring. Virtually all of the branches Ice extends will be heavily budded. A rapid grower, this plant can be put directly into flower after roots are established. She will double in height and start forming flowers in the first 2 weeks of the 12-hour regimen. No ice maiden, this strain is happiest with lots of fresh, warm, humid air circulating around her. Hydroponic methods will give the most effective results with the best resin production. A sea of green set-up is appropriate.
Ice practically fumes with nearly fuel-like scent of raw THC. Flavored like Nepali black hash, toking Ice is likely to induce coughing. Plan on putting your brain on ice because this variety’s heavy stone may leave you in lazy daze for hours.
Winner, High Times Cannabis Cup 1998.
Jordan of the Islands
Indica
Origins: God Bud x Blueberry
Flowering: 55-60 days
Harvest: early October
Blue God, the clever name given to the offspring of God Bud and Blueberry, evokes the Hindu deity Krishna – eighth avatar of Vishnu, Bhagavad Gita teacher, master of internal yogas and upholder for the cosmic order.Scholars and priests debate the connotations of Krishna’s blue-black skin. It can suggest the profound and peaceful expanse of the sky and sea, and a power distinct from the other gods and heroes. For Jordan’s Blue God strain, blue pigment mainly shows its enviable Blueberry parentage.
Blue God does well indoors or can grow outside in areas with a long season. It is best to grown the short, dense and bushy Blue God as a multi-branch plant. Jordan prefers gardening this strain in soil over the hydro method. Indoors, Blue God reaches 3-4 feet in height and gets just as wide at the base. Outside, this solid indica can reach 8-12 feet, crowded with massive buds and thick leaves that turn dark purple as it matures.
Even though Blue God will show incredible resin at 6-7 weeks, wise growers let it go 8 weeks for maximum yields. Blue God gives a very strong indica nightcap high. Sleep and relief from chronic pain can come on fast; the strain doesn’t suit activities that require alertness and energy. The smoke tastes somewhat the way the plant looks, deep with a hint of berry. Blue God won 4th place in the Cannabis Culture Toker’s Bowl 2002.
It’s nice to dream. It’s also nice when that dream finally becomes a reality. All of the hard work put in over time is finally going to pay off.
That’s the story for LS1Tech forum member, ls1blazer, who is just finishing up his dream build. Some forum members voiced their skepticism, but that didn’t stop him from building the truck of his dreams. When we saw the thread a few months ago, we took it with a grain of salt because of the paltry information and infrequent updates. The thread was started in April of 2011 and as of August 2014, the thread was finally updated with a photo of a beautiful LS9 sitting in the engine bay and also an earlier photo of the engine and trans on the frame.
On January 4th, ls1blazer updated the thread and stated that all he had left to do was install minor interior trim pieces, get a front end alignment, put a catch can on it, and road test it. This is one sweet truck, though. ZR1 Corvette seats grace the cabin, the tonneau cover has a ZR1-style spoiler molded into it, the wheels are from a ZR1 Corvette, and last but not least, the Jet Stream Blue Metallic paint completes the look.
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Although the photos aren’t the best quality, this truck is a winner and was so greatly executed. It’s probably one of the faster swapped Colorados out there with an output of 547 horsepower and 615 pound-feet of torque at the wheels. We’ll have to keep an eye on the thread for more photos and hopefully some video of this monster. Props to you, ls1blazer!
Photos & Words: Evan ‘Evo’ Yates
Exterior: The new Chevy SS is probably the most unassuming performance car ever with its cousin, the fourth-generation GTO coming in a close second. If you don’t know the history of the SS or Chevy in general, you’ll more than likely pass it off as a Malibu, Impala or even a Cobalt. To some, the mundane appearance could be a turn-off and doesn’t justify the price tag but the Chevy SS isn’t for the person yearning for the fanfare. However, Chevy did a respectable job in adding performance-inspired appointments with a menacing front fascia, chrome fender vents and rear deck lid spoiler. Staggered 19-inch forged aluminum wheels wrapped in high-performance Bridgestone tires are also a nice touch although I would love to see the wheels in a more aggressive shade such as gunmetal or black.
Interior: Inside the Chevy SS is a perfect mix of sport and class with racing-style seats similar to those in the new Z28 Camaro and leather and suede covering the dash and doors. The SS could easily seat four full-size adults comfortably and everything is properly laid out in the cabin. The only gripe I had with my six-speed manual model was that with drinks in the cupholders it was a little difficult to shift gears properly.
A/V: Chevy’s MyLink infotainment system with the eight-inch touch screen is a breeze to operate and the bluetooth streaming audio makes for easy connectivity with your smart phone. The heads-up display (an option I usually could care less about) was actually very helpful in a car such as this as I opted for the screen that displayed MPH and RPM which certainly aided in regulating my driving style with such a powerful vehicle.
Performance: Driving the 2015 Chevy SS is a visceral experience that will leave you grinning ear-to-ear after every romp of the gearbox. You truly feel that you’re driving a modern muscle car and forget that you’re behind the wheel of a sedan akin to a Chevy Malibu. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of driving a Camaro SS or Corvette, the feeling is virtually identical to the Chevy SS. With the 6.2L LS3 under the hood pumping out 415 horsepower and 415 ft lb of torque mated to the TREMEC TR6060 six-speed manual transmission, the SS is just plain bad ass and will plant you in your seat. The LS3 also barks out a sultry exahust note that you simply never get tired of hearing. On top of it being loads of fun, the SS is also quite streetable when you want it to be which is the brilliance of a car such as this. Yes, you can actually have the best of both worlds. And the SS isn’t just great for romping down a quarter-mile, it also handles the curves effortlessly thanks to the Magnetic Ride Control and MacPherson suspension. And to make sure you get this beast to a screeching halt, massive Brembo brakes on all four corners come standard.
Floss Factor: Unless you come across a die-hard Chevy and/or Holden fan, you won’t earn any extra props on the streets with the SS. However, knowing you have a sedan that could whip the pants off most vehicles on the road while still being able to seat multiple passengers and haul luggage should be satisfaction enough to any hardcore car guy (or gal).
Damage: $47,640.00
Power: 415 hp/ 415 ft lb torque
0-60: 4.7 sec
Gas Cash: 17 MPG (combined)
By Nico Escondido
A long time ago, when only landrace genetics existed in the genus Cannabis, the terms Cannabis sativa L. and Cannabis indica Lam. were created to identify these two species of the Cannabaceae family. Today, those taxonomical terms have been shortened to sativa and indica, but they can still be confusing—and sometimes quite misleading—for the casual toker, the new medical marijuana patient and even the everyday stoner.
The differences between these two species are far-ranging: everything from how the plant looks, to how it grows, to how its effects are experienced when consumed. But why do these differences exist? Why does an indica plant grow shorter than a sativa? Why does a sativa deliver such a distinct psychoactive experience as compared to an indica? To arrive at these answers, we must use genealogy and scientific data to trace today’s strains back to their original landrace. Having loads of lab results, such as cannabinoid levels and terpene profiles, also helps this endeavor quite a bit. So we invited a knowledgeable friend from HIGH TIMES’ partner lab, Steep Hill Halent, to weigh in … and what we found may surprise you.
Origins of Indica and Sativa
While there is no way to determine how long cannabis has been growing on the planet, the earliest evidence of human use dates back thousands of years to the Far East. The origins of the indigenous cannabis landraces have been traced to South and Central Asia, with wild cannabis stretching from the fringes of the Middle East all the way to China and Mongolia further north. But how did different species of cannabis develop separately around the same latitudes of Earth?
Like all living organisms, the cannabis plant has evolved and adapted to its environment (and continues to do so to this day). With the native regions of cannabis located in relatively close proximity to one another, the answer to why the species evolved differently lies in examining their climates of origin. These climates can vary greatly due to the difference in geographic locales, ranging from the foothills of the Himalayas, to the lowlands of the Hindu Kush valleys, to the peaks of the Rif Mountains in Morocco.
The Rif Mountains of Morocco, home to a variety of landrace strains.
According to Kymron deCesare, chief research director at Steep Hill Halent Lab in Oakland, CA, the major difference in evolution between sativas and indicas is that sativas developed to take advantage of a humid environment. This includes the development of thin, lanky stems and long, narrow leaves to promote greater respiration. Indicas, on the other hand, developed to survive in drier, more arid climates, evolving into short, stocky plants with thick, stubby leaves designed to minimize the loss of water through respiration. It thus stands to reason that thousands of years ago, true landrace indicas such as the short, squat Afghanica could be found at higher elevations, where the air was thin and brisk and the water scarce. Meanwhile, in the valleys below were the sativas, growing lean and tall in the lush, wet forest areas.
Fast-forward a couple thousand years to 1753, when a young scientist named Carl Linnaeus first classified the Cannabis genus using what would become the modern taxonomic nomenclature. At the time, Linnaeus thought the Cannabis genus was monotypic—meaning having only a single species—and he named that species Cannabis sativa L. (the “L.” stands for “Linnaeus,” to indicate the authority who first named it). Three decades later, in 1785, another noted scientist and evolutionary biologist, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, identified a second species of cannabis that he named Cannabis indica Lam. (for “Lamarck”) after examining the plant specimens he had collected in India. Finally, in the early part of the twentieth century, a group of Russian botanists and plant explorers identified a third species known as ruderalis. C. ruderalis is unlike C. sativa and C. indica in that it is a hardier, fibrous plant much like hemp and possesses little to no THC, making it non-psychoactive.
Hindu Kush, a pure indica landrace from the mountains of northern Afghanistan.
Examples of Pure Landrace Strains
Sativas
Thai
Burmese
Pakistani
Mexican
Indicas
Afghanica (Afghani)
Hindu Kush
Moroccan/Ketama
Cultivation and Physical Aspects
These evolutionary trends aided the earliest cannabis plants in terms of respiration, thereby increasing their rate of photosynthesis, which in turn increased flower and seed production—thus ensuring that their genetic lines would survive and thrive.
Today, in much the same way, marijuana growers utilize the evolutionary characteristics of indicas and sativas to boost their yields, depending on the grow environment provided in their gardens. Indoor growers may desire shorter plants due to space constraints and therefore choose indica varieties to grow. Outdoor growers may have to contend with a hot and humid climate much of the time and therefore choose the better-respiring sativas. Or an outdoor grower may find that the hardier, stockier indicas are more resistant to pests in the garden, while an indoor grower may find that thin, wispy sativas are more resistant to molds or powdery mildew in their growroom.
Everything depends on the environmental conditions of the grow space and the individual characteristics of the strains chosen by the grower. And even then, the result isn’t as predictable as it may sound, since every genotype has the possibility of exhibiting new traits (or phenotypes) that can vary immensely from the norm when the plants are grown in conditions to which they’re unaccustomed. In other words, what you see with indicas and sativas isn’t always what you get.
This Blue Dream is a sativa-dominant hybrid with a suspicious indica effect.
Indica- and Sativa-Dominant Hybrids
The term “hybrid” is potentially a confusing one, since anything that isn’t a 100 percent pure landrace—a rare commodity these days—is technically a hybrid strain. For HIGH TIMES’ purposes at our Cannabis Cups, as well as for this list, we use a 70/30 ratio to determine whether a cannabis species is dominant in any given strain. Anything lower than 70/30—for example, a 60/40 or 50/50 ratio—is considered a non-dominant or well-balanced hybrid.
Examples of Sativa-Dominant Hybrids
Haze
Blue Dream
Strawberry Cough
Examples of Indica-Dominant Hybrids
Hash Plant
Blueberry
Girl Scout Cookies
Cannabinoids, Terpenes and Psychoactive Effects
But what about the different effects that you get from smoking indicas versus sativas? And how intrinsic are those effects if the environmental conditions can vary so much from garden to garden? Well, that’s where things get really interesting.
Many cannabis users experience the sativa “high” as uplifting and cerebral, while the indica “stone” is more of a body buzz that may couchlock the user for hours in front of the TV. But can these effects be directly attributed to the differences between these two species—and, if so, why?
“The terms sativa and indica are only really valid for describing the physical characteristics of the cannabis strain in a given environment,” deCesare said. “They are not nearly as reliable as terms for making assumptions about energy versus couchlock.”
That’s because by its very nature, THC’s effects are energetic—meaning that both sativas and indicas possess a level of THC that will create an uplifting, euphoric feeling when smoked. So why do some indicas leave you in a vegetative state instead?
According to deCesare, sativas and indicas generally share the same cannabinoids as well as the same terpenes—the chemical compounds found in cannabis that contribute to the flavor and aroma of the flowers. These terpenes, or terpenoids, are also found in many other plants; indeed, they create the essential oils and extracts that we use for fragrances and perfumes. Not only do terpenes exist in sativas and indicas, but they exist in similar ratios as well.
However, deCesare points to one major exception that helps explain the differences in psychoactive effect between sativas and indicas: namely, “the consistently elevated levels of the terpenoid myrcene in C. indica, as compared to C. sativa.” In fact, according to the numerous studies he’s conducted along with cannabis researchers like Dr. Donald Land and Dr. Ethan Russo, “myrcene is the major ingredient responsible for ‘flipping’ the normal energetic effect of THC into a couchlock effect.”
This means that what many of us thought about indicas versus sativas isn’t necessarily true: The THC that is typically associated with the psychoactive properties of cannabis is not the only factor at work in making us high. In fact, the theory of the “entourage effect” proposed by Dr. Russo, which holds that different combinations of cannabinoids and terpenes work together to create the distinctive effects from one strain to another, is a much better explanation for the psychoactive differences between sativas and indicas. Indeed, as far as deCesare is concerned, the terpenoid myrcene is the single most important variable in determining these effects.
Asked about the evidence used to support this conclusion, deCesare replied: “This can only be reliably determined through the lab testing of cannabis. When we started doing analytics on cannabis, there were maybe 1,000 different strains. That number now exceeds approximately 3,000 strains. This conclusion is based on the analysis of over 100,000 different samples tested over the last seven years.”
The high trichome count on this Russian Kabul is not what is responsible for its couchlock effects.
Glorious … Myrcene?
As far as terpenes go, myrcene is pretty common—it exists in many other fruits and plants grown the world over. Mangoes and hops are perhaps two of the best-known when it comes to elevated levels of myrcene.
“Notice the warm, relaxed feeling you get from a couple of hoppy beers?” deCesare asked. “That effect is, to a good extent, due to the myrcene present from the hops.”
So what myrcene levels are necessary to get you feeling really relaxed—or stoned, as most of us would say? The research done at Steep Hill Halent suggests that a myrcene level at or below 0.4% in flowers doesn’t have much impact on the “energetic effects” that THC contributes. But when the myrcene content starts to head past 0.5%, “the strain becomes increasingly more sedative and stony,” deCesare noted. “OG Kush is considered by most to be a strong couchlock flower at about 1.25% myrcene. A few strains have a myrcene content in excess of 3%. Other chemicals may well play minor roles in the couchlock effect, including CBD, CBN and linalool, when they are present in couchlock strains—but they aren’t always present or as influential.”
What’s Next?
In conclusion, I asked the good Dr. deCesare what possibilities and opportunities the future might hold for legal cannabis.
“Moving forward to a time when the USDA [US Department of Agriculture] and FDA [Food and Drug Administration] oversee cannabis-distribution regulations,” he replied, “they will insist on accurate labeling to assure that if a customer purchases an energetic strain—or a couchlock strain—then what they get is what they paid for. And the only reliable way to make this determination is by lab-testing for myrcene content.”
Interestingly, a recent study released by the National Institutes of Health and published by the National Library of Medicine, Discriminating the Effects of Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica, noted that in a survey of medical cannabis users, “a preference for C. indica was [shown to be] statistically significant for pain management, helping with sedation and sleep. C. sativa was preferred for euphoria and enhancing energy. The conditions reaching statistical significance for C. indica preference were: non-migraine headaches, glaucoma, neuropathy, spasticity, seizures, insomnia, and joint pain. For C. sativa, no conditions reached significance.”
Burmese Kush (L), an indica-dominant hybrid, makes you feel stoned. Brainstorm Haze (R), a sativa-dominant hybrid, makes you feel high.
Unfortunately, due to the legal ramifications for the private labs and universities that can actually do this type of work—to say nothing of the lack of federal funding available for cannabis-related research—this particular study was conducted via an anonymous Internet survey, which means that it lacked the basic conditions of a proper clinical trial. The researchers who conducted the survey admitted as much, concluding in their abstract that the study “had limitations, with the two species having different effect associations on symptoms and conditions, possibly because of ingredient differences. Future surveys and subsequent prospective definitive trials are needed to confirm the findings” (emphasis added).
“Possibly because of ingredient differences”—such as, say, varying combinations of cannabinoids and terpenes? As for the need for “future surveys” and “subsequent … definitive trials,” well, guess what, NIH and our friends in the federal government: We’re already way ahead of you. Isn’t it time that you caught up?
The Cannabis Lounge 