Soft Secrets GB 2205

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JuicyFields Big Fraud

Now it is official. As has been widely suspect ed, investments in the JuicyFields "Cannabis Crowdgrowing Platform" were actually far too good to be true. In the meantime, the dream of high returns through digital "e-growing" has finally been blown off. The internationally operating impostors took French leave in mid-July, after having previ ously stolen more than seven million euros and thus largely emptied all accounts. Since then, private investors have no longer been able to log into their accounts and have thus lost all their capital invested in JuicyFields.

A first sign that not everything was going as it is publicly presented at JuicyFields was a circular email from the support team on 12 July, in which investors were informed of a strike by the employees. About the reasons, it said: "We also had to take this decision due to ongoing disputes between the team and the management."

Four days later, investors received another circular email from the former JuicyFields team that had been left out in the cold: "The support team, the marketing team and the office managers have received no instruc tions from the owners, no communication and no guidance. Damage was caused to part of the technical team whose accounts were in shared/remote access. How these accounts are now managed and accessed is unknown. Neither do we know who manages them. ... There are no words to describe the state of all of us who believed in the project and are now mentally and physi cally devastated. Without going into details, some of us have not received a pay cheque since June." The large-scale international fraud was exposed after JuicyFields repre

sentatives drove up at this year's Spannabis in three Lamborghinis, which prompted a Spanish newspaper to investigate the matter a little more closely. What is particularly annoying is that the automatic email delivery function is still active. Therefore, the cheated investors still occasionally receive an automatically generated email worded as follows: "We are happy to inform you that your JuicyFields harvest is ready for sale to licensed medical cannabis dealers! Hooray!" However, you don't feel like shouting "Hooray!" at all when you realise this is just another reminder of your own loss.

One of the presumably last circulars from JuicyFields was sent on 19 July - and this time in English and not (as always before) in German, which suggests that this email was no longer written and sent by the employ ees but by the criminal management or the owners themselves. Once again, they used the ill-placed hope of defrauded investors to continue deceiving them. For this purpose, various new email addresses were given, to which the defrauded small investors could air their grievances and apply for minimum compensation (one single plant per dam aged person). However, the email specifies that compensation can only be claimed via: "a video message from the growers in which they tell how much money they have lost on the platform. On this video, growers shall present their ID or passport in front of the camera and also send their bank account

details by email as an attachment to the video." All we can do is advise all damaged users to refrain from doing so, as in this way (after the total loss of the invested money) the identity of the financially damaged par ties can also be stolen and misused. Real identity of the people who are now behind JuicyFields is clear especially in the last paragraph of this last official circular email: " Undercover salespersons and other street vendors can email us at mafia@juicyholdings.com with suggestions on what quantities of hash or flower they can sell each month. Ultimately, it's a great thing to be part of the big Italian-RussianColombian family."

So if you want to sign on with the ItalianRussian-Colombian "mafia", here is your chance. Everyone else has been cruelly fooled by JuicyFields and should not delude themselves. They will not get back even a fraction of their invested money. No doubt strange circulars will continue to go out, relying on boundless trust or perhaps blind stupidity, and announce that the "crowdgrowing platform" will be rebuilt. As if anyone would still be prepared to invest their hard-earned money there...

How to Hit the VITAL “Shift”

and see an immediate spike in potency, yields and reputation.

By Fabrizio Dentini

CBD Special : a trendy molecule and not just flowers

It is well known that on the European continent there is no population as experienced, passionate and fervent about marijuana cultivation and the use of its innumerable virtues as the community of Soft Secrets readers. In every corner of Europe, from Sicily to Germany, from Andalusia to Poland and from Bohemia to Brittany, our community is the botanical and cultural vanguard of the society of the future, one in which the cannabis plant will be duly celebrated in public and in the light of day.

With that in mind, this issue features the first CBD Special in the history of our newspaper. This Special issue celebrates this cannabinoid, which in its pure state was defined by the World Health Organisation as safe and risk-free. In short, although its nature as psychoactive substance cannot go unnoticed, it has no psychotropic effects and can be used as a therapeutic aid with interesting analgesic, anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties.

This Special, however, does not only celebrate the CBD molecule as such, but describes a Europe on the move, whose economic fabric is made up of courageous businesspeople who, while trying to meet the expectations of today’s market, are preparing to meet the needs of tomorrow’s consumers. Indeed, if we turn our gaze to the other side of the ocean, we will see an unstoppable wave consisting of an increasing number of countries that have chosen to fully legalise the production, sale and consumption of cannabis.

Therefore, if a close look is taken at the dynamics of a market that is now fully regulated, it can be concluded with amazement and, indeed, pleasure that the logics governing mainstream distribution are not the same as those underlying underground distribution; the legal market, in other words, does not mirror the illegal one. This is a fundamental fact, or a fundamental variable, to be taken into account in the near future, i.e., the CBD market has the most disruptive potential in the Old Continent. Finally, this is also the main reason why we have chosen to celebrate the CBD supply chain over and above cannabis flowers.

Consuming cannabis via combustion, indeed, limits its use to an established and conventional group of consumers, the one to which we all belong. But when it comes to legalising CBD, as is clearly now happening in Europe, we are witnessing a similar process taking place on the other side of the world with cannabis as a whole. In short, we are witnessing the opening up of the market to new consumption models and methods.

So, pick up this CBD Special and open it. Its pages have the taste of freedom, for this is the taste of legality. Pass the Special to your mother and father, leaf through it with your grandparents and family members and explain to them that cannabis also means products for vaping, oil extractions, high-end cosmetics, products for animals, but also food and beverages; otherwise said, new products, new horizons, new opportunities and new goals.

Cannabis is referred to by many as a molecular workshop, or an industry of chemical compounds that together work in synergy to improve the lives of those who consume it with pleasure, well-being and health. CBD is one such molecule and has been on everyone’s lips in recent years. It is a chemical compound that helps us sleep, relax and reduce the amount of stress that our society continuously imposes on us. Today, the availability of this molecule raises the curiosity of many people who were previously cautious, hesitant and concerned by the label of illegality that was affixed on the Cannabis Sativa L plant for over fifty years, but now want to know more about the beneficial properties of this plant.

This is why I suggest to our beloved readers to always respect this plant and consume it wisely. We cannot but encourage a holistic approach to an increasingly complex society full of contradictions, a return to a dimension in which the Earth is the measure of everything, and a new mantra to incorporate into our daily lives simply because “All Cannabinoids Are Beautiful!

Enjoy your reading!

SI DOS 33

THE BEAUTIFUL SWEET MIMOSA XL AUTO®

GERMANY WITH MR. JOSÉ

TO IRRIGATE CANNABIS

FORMULA WITH SUPER POWERS

'ADVANCED' BALCONY GROWING: FLOWERING FLOWERING COMES TO AN END

CHEERFUL DELIGHT FROM SWEET SEEDS®

THE OTHER PLANT OF THE MONTH

By Hortizan

THE HOP PLANT

AD that its cultivation developed in Europe. Its domestication allowed the development of cultivars (plant varieties obtained by selection) almost a thousand years later.

In the 19th century, by isolating certain specific genetic traits, growers created new varieties, both pure and hybrid. This research led to the evolution of the hop genome and the development of specific properties: aroma, yield, quantity of lupulin (the hop resin), bitterness, disease resistance, etc.

Some of the varieties developed at that time are still used today (Calais Goldwing, Coigneau, etc.).

DESCRIPTION

From 12 genera of hop in total, two of them are the most common:

European hops (Humulus Lupulus, also known as golden hops), a variety used for brewing beer and including nearly 80 cultivars, each one bringing its own flavour to this sweet beverage, and Japanese hops (Humulus Japonicus), a variety mainly used for ornamental purposes, but also having a place in the Asian pharmacopoeia.

Considered a herbaceous liana, the hop is voluble: its stems roll up on

themselves. Firm and hairy, they allow it to climb on any support. Moreover, it is rhizomatous and develops a perennial root system that allows it to produce aerial stems every year.

Its female flowers, with bracts, develop into axillary or terminal inflorescences, i.e., at the end and along the stem.

These cones, which resemble pine cones made up of thin green leaves, contain the glands that secrete the much soughtafter hop substance, lupulin. Discovered by Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine nun in the 12th century, this golden resin with preservative and sanitising properties gives the beer its unique bitterness and aroma.

CULTIVATION

The hop is an annual plant that germinates in spring, flowers in summer and loses its aerial stems in autumn. During the winter, it stores its energy in its rhizomes. In the high season, it can grow very fast, up to 50 cm per week. The amount of light per day has an important impact on the harvest.

Most hop production takes place in the northern hemisphere between latitudes 35° and 55°, but hop plants are also found in Australia and New Zealand.

The hop plant, whose Latin name is Humulus Lupulus, produces flowers (also called seed cones or strobiles) full of myrcene, beta pinene, alpha humulene, etc. These terpenes, which are responsible for flavour, are found in large quantities in both the hop plant and cannabis. The reason is simple, they both belong to the same family: the cannabaceae.

HISTORY

The hop plant (Humulus Lupulus) has been used down the centuries for its beneficial properties. As early as the first century AD, Pliny the Elder reports what is probably the first description of hops, by the name of Lupus Salictarius. Even

then, this plant was widely used as food as well as for medicinal purposes. It was served as an ‘aperitif or in salads’ and is still eaten in this way in several countries from Central Europe to Asia.

Originally, humans gleaned hops from nature. It was not until the 9th century

Hop cones for beer, photo and cultivation by Elevate.

The Legitimo hop - cannabis hybrid, photo and cultivation by FygTree.

The hop crop is grown on V-shaped ropes up to 6m high (see Photo 2).

Female plants require 3 years of growth to produce their first cones.

arvesting takes place from August to October, depending on the variety and location; the hop cones are then separated from the branches and leaves, before being dried for several days.

USES:

Used mainly as an essential ingredient in beer brewing, it nevertheless has many other medicinal virtues, i.e., sedative, depurative, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, phyto-oestrogenic, anticarcinogenic, antiviral, antiinflammatory, etc.

Hops are also used in all their forms in the food industry, particularly in bakery leavens. Its versatility also makes it useful in textiles or paper through its cellulose, and even in cosmetics.

THE HOP-CANNABIS CROSS:

These distant cousins have crossed both naturally and artificially.

The Humulus Yunnanensis variety, for example, is a hop endemic to the region between China and India and does not naturally contain cannabinoids. However, this hop ended up crossing naturally with a local cannabis variety. Some of its individuals now show traces of CBD and other cannabinoids, as well as higher-than-normal levels of terpenes. This variety is now used in the production of a CBD oil that is legal in many countries, as it is not derived from cannabis but from hops.

By contrast, the Legitimo variety (see photo 2) is the result of human crossbreeding. This hybrid, originating from Germany, is also said to have appreciable CBD levels.

It is reportedly obtained by grafting a Purple Star cannabis plant onto a Humulus Japonicus.

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By Stoney Tark

CONTROLLING THE STRETCH - FLOWERING CANNABIS

One of the most exciting things about growing Cannabis indoors is preparing to switch your timers from 18/6 to 12/12. The long vegetative period is over, and now you can look forward to seeing what your plants can really do in terms of bud production, resin, terpenes and yield. In this article, we explain about the stretching phase, what causes it, how different plants react, training methods to help control, and our 5 top tips to make life as easy as possible.

What is the stretch?

Basically, this refers to the point from when your Cannabis plants go from a vegetative state, and starts flowering. As the daylight hours are shortened from 18 to 12, the plants respond by producing hormones and auxin that cause plants to grow as tall as possible. The stretch will occur during the first 1-3 weeks of 12/12 and by week 4 will have ceased.

Hormonal changes

As Cannabis is an apical dominance spe cies, this means they will grow with pri mary crown top.

Unless plants are trained, then it is pos sible for some sativa dominant strains to grow as tall as 8-15 feet tall outdoors. Using training methods such as topping can easily disrupt the level of growth hor mone auxin produced and allow plants to take on a bushy and stocky appearance.

Indica Cannabis plants:

• Once they enter the first few weeks of 12/12, they will double in size.

• Indica are better suited for growers with limited growing space.

• Normally, the final height of an indica will grow between 90-120 cm tall.

Sativa Cannabis plants:

• Sativa plants once flowered can stretch quickly and sometimes treble.

• Without training, some sativas can become very tall indoors.

• The final height of a sativa can be between 180-270 cm tall.

Hybrid Cannabis plants:

• Depending on the genetic makeup, plants will usually double in size. Hybrids are a balance of indica and sativa genetics.

• The final height of a hybrid can finish between 120-150 cm tall.

Training methods

1. Topping - This is the easiest way to disrupt the production of the growth hormone auxin, which is responsible for vertical growth. Topping, or pinching out, simply means to completely remove the crown shoot and leave the small axillary shoots either side. Plants that have been topped during the vegetative stage will have a bushy, Christmas tree characteris tic, and depending on how frequently top ping was applied, can dictate the number of growth sites.

2. Tying down - Also referred to as low stress technique (LST), tying down is a stress-free way to manipulate the canopy. Using string or plant friendly wire, you can take the tallest point of the plant and tie down. By doing so, the plant is tricked into thinking the crown shoot is no longer present and therefore sends growth hor mone to the rest of the plant to take the place of the primary crown shoot. Within a few days, the original tied down part has grown upwards as normal.

3. SCROG - Sometimes using a net is required to be able to keep a large sized plant uniform. Screen of Green growing can take time and patience and often requires many training techniques uti lized together for the best results. SCROG is an excellent way to increase yields, sup port the plants and maximize your indoor grow space, however is best suited for experienced growers.

5 Top tips on controlling the stretch

Top Tip #1: Always make sure that you leave yourself plenty of room to allow the plants to grow into. Regardless of if you are working with indica or sativa crosses, avoid letting your plants grow too tall and close to the lights.

Top Tip #2: Once your plants are stretch ing, avoid doing any plant training such

as topping, fimming or super cropping (snapping stems). Doing this will only cause the plant's stress and may even induce hermaphrodites in some cases.

Top Tip #3: If you are into week 3 of 12/12 and find your plants are growing too tall, then the best thing to do is simply tie the plants down as best as you can. Any reduction in height is a bonus, and tying plants down early can also save a lot of heat stress later on.

Top Tip #4: When growing multiple strains at once, you will find that some plants will grow taller than others. It is best to try and achieve an even spread of light, so make sure that the shorter indica dominant strains are not neglected for light.

Top Tip #5: Heat stress can be one of the main reasons why plants can grow very

tall. Cold temperatures at nighttime can also be a cause of tall and lanky plants. Keep your grow room temperatures between 18-24 degrees Celsius. So, this means when the lights are off the tem perature drops between 18-20 degrees Celsius and with the lights on, the temper ature is a consistent 24 degrees Celsius.

Conclusion

Sometimes the stretching phase can overwhelm a beginner grower, and cause plants to become uncomfortably tall and risk heat stress from the lights being too close. If you are not sure how tall your plants may stretch once flower ing is induced, then be prepared to apply training techniques during 18/6. This will give you the upper hand once the timers are changed over, and also allow you to learn more about how different Cannabis plants respond to flowering.

The hybrid Cannabis plants have stretched and are now producing buds.

By Rich Hamilton/ Photos courtesy of Sweet Seeds®

Turning up the THC

US-based biotech company Growing Together Research Inc (GTR) announced this week that it has developed a new tech nique to genetically increase or decrease levels of THC in strains grown for recrea tional or medicinal use.

In August 2020, GTR partnered with another research company to design and optimise protocols for the genetic modification of industrial hemp for retail purposes. The results included proven gene edits that could eliminate the production of THC almost entirely from the strain whilst simul taneously boosting the levels of CBD.

Earlier this year, the team revealed it had achieved its first stable transformation of several THC-free hemp cultivars. These modified strains are expected to be on the market by the last few months of 2022. The idea behind them is to assist U.S. hemp farmers in keeping their hemp crops' THC percentage below the 0.3% threshold that federal laws dictate.

Industrial hemp crops that exceed this level often face being destroyed completely. Even worse, there is a risk of prosecution for cul tivating cannabis. This is a real problem for farmers as, according to research by New Frontier Data, more than 10% of planted hemp between 2018 and 2020 exceeded the 0.3% federal limit on THC.

Research also shows that many strains con tain significantly higher levels of THC than permitted and varying levels of CBD to those listed on the analysis certificates presented to growers.

GTR plans to launch an effort in collabora tion with partners in Canada to create can nabis strains with increased levels of THC. After exhibiting the potential to turn the genes coding for THC expression "down" or "off", GTR is now experimenting with turn ing the THC "up." The first set of high-THC strains is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2023.

The ability to turn THC levels up and down, otherwise known as the "Delta9 Dial,") sym bolises considerable progress in stable gene editing of the cannabis plant—something GTR says is notoriously challenging to do. The new technique also further enhances the powers of GTR's genomics platform, where growers can choose from a selection of traits to customise their plants' genetics, optimising their value.

"The same technique can also be used to modulate CBD and CBG levels. Whilst the focus is currently on THC, the approach may be able to be fine tunes to whatever can nabinoid content is required.

The technology is also proving to be effec tive on almost all weed strains. This poten

tially allows cultivators to ramp up THC potency to 30% or more in strains of weed that are already firm favourites.

The question is, however, are smokers going to accept GMO weed? So far, the legal marketplace leans toward buying weed mainly based on its THC potency. Whether consumers push their love of the highest high and part with their hard-earned cash to purchase GMO weed remains to be seen.

GTR understands the stigma of GMOs but reassures us that there is nothing to worry about. The standard reservations about GMO foods do not apply to the technology used to increase or reduce THC levels.

"In general, we think significant concern around GMOs stems from a fear of unnatu rally shuffling genes between different organisms/species to create a "Frankenorganism". This is not our approach.

Instead, GTR is introducing a short DNA sequence that blocks the production of a single enzyme involved in a single branch of the cannabinoid biosynthetic pathway. No

foreign genes are added from other organ isms."- said a GTR spokesman.

GTR adds that biotechnology is currently being used to improve diets by boosting nutritional content in foods while broaden ing and enhancing the selection of vegeta bles and fruits available.

They claim that biotechnology can help the environment. It can lessen our use of harm ful chemical pesticides and herbicides and reduce deforestation by increasing agricul tural productivity and carbon sequestration capacity.

These benefits are often obscured or ignored in favour of the negatives when it comes to biotechnology and agriculture. However, we must keep them in mind to have a balanced opinion of biotechnologydriven approaches, including how some may benefit the food chain, our health, our plants, and our planet.

Technology is advancing where it is possible to see a future point when all minor and significant cannabinoids are unlocked and susceptible to manipulation—allowing us to alter cannabinoid levels at will, creating new combinations and strengths. I suspect when this happens and when CBD or CBG content, for example, can match or surpass the levels of THC that we currently see. This will be the point where the medicinal benefits of cannabis will begin to be fully realised and find a better fit within main stream medicine.

Words & Pics: Green Born Identity – G.B.I.

Dos Si Dos 33

6-in-1 formula with super powers

indica/sativa variety is its breath-taking insane frostiness plus strikingly lime green leaves. In addition, it has a boosted terpene profile, bursting with Cookies sweetness freshened by dashes of lime and mint. The most powerful buzz of this plant splits into two phases: At first Dos Si Dos 33 sparks an energising sativa fire potentially accompanied by a wave of euphoria, then it segues into stage of deep sedative indica calmness which leaves the user with a blissful state of mind and a wonderfully relaxed body.

Vigorous branchy growth in the veg stage

The Doc was very much looking forward to his grow date with six US ladies at one sweep as 6-in-1 was the strain motto. The usual two feminised test seeds went into the ground and sprouted perfectly, after less than three days the seedlings’ heads stood straight above the ground. A great deal of vigour was exhibited by the two plants during the four weeks veg stage, with many lateral branches coming off the main stem. They stretched much more whilst vegetative growth than The

Doc had expected in view of their slightly dominant indica share, already standing 44 and 49 cm tall when he triggered them into flowering, displaying an open growth pattern with quite generous internodal spacing.

The blooming stage: „One glistening silver pole“!

In the blooming stage, the two Dos Si Dos 33 ladies then showed a likewise strong instinct to stretch by more than doubling their height during the first four weeks. “This sort of more airy plant structure pro vides the advantage of better ventilation through the plants, with the buds getting optimally aerated which, as we all know, is a good basic protection against mould infestation”, The Doc commented. Very early the two plants started to do what is a trademark feature of the Dos Si Dos genetics: producing overly rich amounts of resin glands.

They formed fairly big calyxes that were increasingly stacking upon one another, eventually uniting into thick chubby buds that were distinctly leaning towards the

Er hat sie fast schon alle gehabt. Und sie He has had almost all of them. And dearly beloved them. One could almost speak of polygamy: OG Kush, Girl Scout Cookies, Gelato, Sunset Sherbert… Quite a few cannabis ladies counting among the crème de la crème of US genetics have gone through the loving grow hands of The Doc, each time greatly enthralling him. No wonder he was keen on another heavily trendy cultivar from the land of opportunities: Dos Si Dos.

More precisely, Dos Si Dos 33 from the Cali Collection of Barney’s Farm. Barney’s had recently provided him with some seri ously stunning genetic bombshells that set his grow room on fire. Fascinatingly, in this Dos Si Dos version of the Dutchmen with excellent US connections, numer ous illustrious names of the recent US strain history are coming together for a spectacular fusion, it’s a very complex multiple cross: Adding to three of the four varieties mentioned at the beginning, OG Kush Breath, Face Off OG and Thin Mint

GSC are joining the party here, yielding the genetic lineage ([OG Kush Breath x Face Off OG] x [OG Kush x GSC]) x [Sunset Sherbet x Thin Mint GSC]. What reads like the beginning of a complicated math ematic formula, can be broken down and simplified to Dos Si Dos (consisting of the first four strains) x Gelato #33 (consisting of the last two).

This most glorious parade of several mightily strong flagship strains, this 6-in1 super formula lends Dos Si Dos 33 extremely high potency – she has some amazing 22-28% THC under the hood. Also yield-wise, her performance can be extraordinary: according to Barney’s, up to 700 grams dry per sqm. are achievable under lights, with plant heights of about 90 cm. Outside, Dos Si Dos 33 flaunts a potentially record-breaking yield of up to two kilos per plant, finishing fairly early under natural light, between the first and second week of October. Indoors, she needs 60-65 blooming days to mature. Outwardly characteristic of this 60:40

indica side. More and more, they puffed themselves up and pumped out opulent trichome layers until after nine weeks of flowering they looked so white as if they were stuck in a blizzard. Or, to put it in the words of The Doc, looked like “one glisten ing silver pole”. Even multi-fingered flow er leaves were entirely coated in crystals.

The smell: An enormously sweet, multi-faceted pot pourri

The two Dos Si Dos 33 plants also pre sented themselves with the dial turned up to the max on smell, by giving off an enormous sweetness undercut with both a spicy note of blond hashish and a fruity, slightly sourly touch of citrus – “an abso lutely tantalising multi-faceted potpourri that evokes a most pleasant anticipation of the forthcoming taste experience”, swooned The Doc.

is two plants were ready for harvest after timely 65 days of flowering. That strong extension growth in both the veg and flowering stage had made the plants shoot up to 104 and 110 cm in the end, so they proved to be pretty uniform, too. When harvesting, The Doc had close to no work to do as the buds displayed only a small amount of little leaves and were so resinous in their entirety that he actually could have left them as they were. Here

a snip, there a snap - manicuring was as simple as that.

awake - there it was, a really peppy sativa kick! Two hits more and his heart began to throb violently, so he he couldn’t sit still any longer and restlessly jumped off his couch. A walk in the beautiful spring sun seemed to be a great thing to do now… the burgeoning vegetation’s green now seemed even more lush and vibrant to him, the birds’ twittering crescendoed into a boisterous polyphonic chorus and The Doc’s sense of vision felt as sharp as though he was hawk-eyed and could spot every single rabbit, mouse and earth woarm in the environment.

When he was back home after about 45 minutes and made himself comfortable, a restful deep indica relaxation came over his body and mind and caused a lovely long-lasting warm feeling of harmony and balance. A grandiose match to this state

Cultivation data:

of mind was watching the Netflix nature doc series “Night on earth” with its fantas tic animal and nature shots.

When he declared his concluding verdict, The Doc sang a hymn of praise: „Dos Si Dos 33 is an absolutely bodacious strain that in many respects has totally blown me away: This kind of weed is tremen dously frosty, tremendously sweet and tremendously potent! And then it has that great two-phase effect which makes you get going at first and then super chilled.

Hooray!

Barney’s Farm’s triumphal procession through my grow room has impressively continued.”

Green Born Identity – G.B.I.

In its dried form, the sweet ‘n spicy fra grance of the heavily silver-crusted Dos Si Dos nuggets reminded The Doc of freshly mixed cookie dough into which a pinch of lime peel and nutmeg had been grated –“that’s oh-so-delicious, sending my nose into rapture!”, he enthused. The yield of both plants was a veritable combined 167 grams.

To test smoke Dos Si Dos 33, in excited anticipation The Doc prepared a fat doobie with half a gram of weed that he eagerly put to his lips, sucking a huge first draft out of it. Which provided him with such an insanely sweet, only slightly zesty flavour that Dos Si Dos 33 seemed to him like some delectable sweet titbits. Whether it was due to the fact that he had eaten little that day or that this marijuana simply was so damn strong, or both: right after the first hit, The Doc felt as “if a horse had kicked him”- this new Barney’s Farm strain announced itself like a mighty bell reverberating through his head. To stick to that horse metaphor though - that imaginery horse didn’t kick his head, but his butt rather, which jumpstarted him

The Doc smokes Dos Si Dos 33: „As if a horse kicked me!“

By Stoney Tark

A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO CANNABIS GENETICS

The Cannabis industry is certainly booming and there has never been so many strains available! Keeping up with the latest trends can be difficult, and understanding the genetic makeup of many cultivars can be confusing. In this article, we break down the different types of Cannabis plants and explain the characteristics of each.

excellent way to start the day and ideal for busy and creative individuals.

The characteristics

Long flowering time of 11-14 weeks.

• Can double or treble.

• Better suited for experienced growers.

• Large yielding plants.

• Need tropical weather out doors.

• More sensitive to stress and pathogens.

Hybrid Cannabis Plants

Autoflowering Cannabis Plants

Autos are different types of Cannabis plants due to the fact that after 4 weeks of growing, they will begin to flower regardless of the light cycle.

When grown outdoors in a hot climate, autoflowering plants produce incred ible results and are known for their low maintenance and easy to grow qualities. Flowering time from seed until harvest can vary from as little as 60 days to 90 days.

When planting autos indoors, it is best advised to provide 16-20 hours of HID lighting for the best results.

Indica Cannabis Plants

Indica represent one side of the genetic spectrum, and are naturally found in parts of the world that experience short Summers. The flowering time is typically between 7.5 - 8.5 weeks and the growth structure will be short and stocky, with tight internodal spacing between branches. The foliage will be thick fingered and when flowering may double in height and will produce golf ball sized buds from top to bottom.

The Effects Associated

When smoking indica Cannabis, the effects are heavy bodied, sleepy and very relaxing. Best suited for evening times to avoid feeling lazy throughout the day, indicas are often the best rem edy for medical patients seeking thera peutic relief, and anyone who is in need of a deep sleep.

The characteristics

• Short flowering times. Will stretch a small amount. Short and tight internodes. Thick and fat-fingered fan leaves.

• Ideal for Sea of Green setups.

• Heavy and narcotic effect.

• Highly resistant plants.

Sativa Cannabis Plants

Sativa plants represent the other end of the spectrum, and are found natu rally growing in tropical climates with long seasons. Flowering time will vary between 11-14 weeks depending on the sativa, and will grow into a tall, bushy and fast-growing plant.

Sativas are easier to train than fullblooded indicas, thanks to the large internodal spacing and long thin side branching, however once flowering have a tendency to stretch in height by 200%-300% The buds when growing will produce tall and elongated flowers and will yield much higher than an indica.

The Effects Associated

If you enjoy the calming and relaxing feeling when smoking an indica, then you find sativas to be the opposite in every sense. When smoking sativa flow ers, the effects are upbeat, energetic, clear, deeply creative, motivated with feelings of euphoria. Sativas are an

Hybrids represent the best of both worlds, and allow a grower to enjoy the most desirable indica and most desirable sativa traits and combine them. Hybrids will take between 8-10 weeks to flower, and will usually dou ble in height once flowered. When it comes to plant training and using a screen, then hybrids are the easiest plants to work with.

The Effects Associated

For those who don’t want to be in a zombie state all day, or be too high they cannot get to sleep at night, then hybrids are for you. Hybrids will offer a well-balanced effect that is not too overwhelming and can be enjoyed throughout the day with feelings of laziness and a lack of motivation.

The characteristics

• Flowering time between 8-10 weeks.

• More genetic diversity with phenotypes.

• A well-balanced effect ideal for daytime.

Represents the best traits from both parents. Better suited for SCROG and plant training.

The Effects Associated

As autoflowering genetics can be crossed with indica, sativa or hybrid photoperiod plants, the effects will vary depending on the cultivar.

If you are growing an indica dominant auto, then expect the effects to be nar cotic, sleepy and similar to an indica. The same applies for an auto version of a sativa or hybrid.

The characteristics

• Autos do not depend on 12/12.

• Perfect for planting outside over Summer.

• Low maintenance and easy to grow.

• Super high-quality buds produced.

• Can be grown indoors easily.

The Conclusion

Thanks to such diverse breeding projects, we are able to enjoy more Cannabis strains than ever before.

With an ever-changing marketplace that demands the highest cannabinoids, potency and terpene levels, finding out which strain is best suited for you and

Everything starts with a seed.

your skill level can take time figuring out. We always recommend starting with an easy to grow indica, that will not stretch much in height and requires very little maintenance.

Once you have a few harvest under your belt, then you can advance to hybrids and eventually challenge yourself with a long flowering, sativa strain.

You can always have a go at growing many different strains in the same room together, and learn first hand how plants vary in structure, shape, profile, morphology and flowering time, but start with indica and hybrids.

Good luck growing out as many varieties as possible and learning about this wonderful plant!

By Rich Hamilton

PINK GASOLINE

Once again, Rich Hamilton shares an extract from his "bud diaries" with us. This month we have Pink Gasoline, a vigorous, medium-sized, Indica dominant cannabis strain that gives you both Gelato and Diesel vibes.

STRAIN

Pink Gasoline is an indica/sativa (90%/10%) variety from Perfect Tree. With an average of 19%-26% THC, low levels of CBD and 1% CBG, this strain is a heavy hitter that offers generous harvests and excellent resin and terpene production.

Perfect Tree seed bank is a group of passionate breeders who produce small, handcrafted batches of cannabis seeds. They experiment with plants to find the best genetics.

They have selected some of the best strains from different seed banks and breeders worldwide.

Pink Gasoline is an excellent choice for making concentrates that are both powerful and dank, thanks to the amount and high quality of the resin Pink Gasoline produces.

GENETICS

Pink Gasoline is a cross between 33 Splitter and Peach Ozz. 33 Splitter is a favourite Gelato #33 hybrid. It is a strain that delivers significant, succulent flowers with a fruity fragrance enhanced with notes of classic diesel.

The other parent, Peach Ozz, is not a strain to underestimate either. However, being a very resinous specimen with delectable exotic fruits and creamy, zingy notes.

GROW INFO

Pink Gasoline is a versatile strain that can be cultivated indoors or outdoors. The plant grows to a respectable size and creates some nice fat buds. Indoors your plants will need a flowering time of 7-8 weeks.

Four weeks of veg is enough in most setups, and your girls should be fully ready in 8 weeks.

Pink Gasoline is an indica dominant hybrid available only in feminised seed form. It is a vigorous plant and works

effectively as a night-time strain for most people.

FLOWER

This plant produces some large colas and significant amounts of resin. In Flower, Pink Gasoline bursts out into big, luxuriant, juicy flowers that reward you with beautiful pink and purple colours. These colours complement the thick layer of resin covering neighbouring flowers and leaves.

When dried, you are treated to super dense oval-shaped nugs of forest green with deep pink undertones, thin orange pistils and a lick of milky pink-tinged white crystal trichomes.

ODOUR

The terpene profile is gassy and gelato

dominant, with some pleasant diesel undertones coming from the Atom Splitter. Pink Gasoline is probably one of the biggest yielders in the Peach Ozz feminised line.

When you smell the plant's bud, it reeks of fuel. Pull apart each sticky little clump, and you will receive a kick of intense gas and pungent, spicy diesel.

The smell keeps on deepening as the nugs are broken and ground.

CONSUMED

smoked this pure, in king size RAW’s with hand rolled roaches, whilst reading graphic novels from the AWESOME artist Ben Templesmith. A great smoke to take yourself into another dimension and apricate how good a great story is when it’s accompanied with great art.

TASTE

Despite the gas-heavy scent, surprisingly, this strain has a deliciously sweet and fruity flavour.

Pink Gasoline delivers fruity terpene profile notes enhanced with creamy and earthy hints with a fuel undertone. All of which make for a tasty, smooth smoke.

STONE

Pink Gasoline provides an Indica-like effect. It is calm and relaxing in nature but not completely overwhelming. It is the perfect choice for relaxing at the end of the day. The high hits you nearly as soon as you finish exhaling.

Your journey starts with nice chill cerebral effects before moving entirely into your body. You'll feel lifted and have a sense of happiness, calm, and an ability to forget any negative or racing thoughts almost as soon as they try and infiltrate your mind.

This wave of peace will quickly spread, relaxing you entirely and leaving you utterly couch-locked and ready to fade into a deep sleep.

With its high 19-26% average THC level, Pink Gasoline is perfect for those looking to treat chronic pain, stress, depression, anxiety, insomnia, and ADHD.

By Stoney Tark

FAQ ABOUT PLANT TRAINING

Plant training is one of the easiest ways to increase yields, and control the final shape and structure of your Cannabis plants. There are many ways to train plants from topping, pruning, fimming, snapping stems and tying down. In this article, we answer your most frequently asked questions about plant training.

ping basically refers to the technique that involves physically snapping the inner part of the stem. The way this is performed is to take a mature plant that has a durable main stem or side branches. Then, using pressure and your finger and thumb, you simply twist and snap until you hear and feel the break. The inner part of the cell wall will now repair, as a result the plants grow much stronger.

What should be used to add support when the plants are flowering? The easi est way to help hold up heavy side branches, is to use bamboo canes and to insert them around the edge of the pots. Avoid stabbing your roots with bamboo canes, and gently tie the weighted branches to the canes, so they stand vertically.

What is the best way to control the stretch once timers are changed to

12/12? Different cultivars will stretch dif ferently once timers have been switched to flowering mode. Indicas will double in height in most cases and are easy to work with. Sativa or sativa dominant hybrids, on the other hand, will have a tendency to double or even treble. The very best way to combat an aggressive stretch is to tie the crown shoots down and to adjust the height according to your preference.

Can I apply plant training techniques once the plants are producing buds?

There are many growers who enjoy strip ping away all the lower growth once the plants have stretched and are into week 3 of 12/12. Personally, I always apply any train ing techniques during 18/6, and make sure all pruning is performed way before the tim ers are switched to flowering. If you can help it, try and do all the training during 18/6.

When is the best time to train plants? The best time to train Cannabis plants is when they are in the vegetative stage. This is the point where timers have been set to 18/6, to mimic the long and warm Summer months. It is during the vegetative stage where plants can be manipulated and are easier to work with. Plant training can be applied from the earliest stages until the final point before flowering.

What are the benefits of pruning plants? Pruning is the art of removing all the foliage past a certain point. The end goal is to allow the plants to use all of their energy in producing only top buds. Pruning plants also ensures that there are no smaller, undeveloped and undesirable buds grow ing. Additionally, air flow around the plants is increased.

What exactly is fimming, and how is it performed? Fimming is a technique that removes 70% of a crown shoot during the vegetative period, leaving behind enough growth that the top part can grow back as normal. During this time, the remaining side shoots and growth will grow and become more bushy. After 3-5 days, the original cut crown shoot will grow back as if nothing has happened, resulting in a more stocky plant.

When should I stop topping and is there a limit? How many times you decide to top your plants should be based on your grow space and resources. If you are growing only one or two plants and need to fill your room from wall to wall, then topping can be one way to do so. On the other hand, pinching out plants causing two shoots to grow, can

also help reduce the final plant height once flowered, and is an excellent way to keep fast-growing sativas to a medium height.

Which techniques are best for short vegetative times? Considering it can take 3-7 days for plants to recover from training techniques, applying plant training when operating with such a short vegetative win dow can be pointless. The most effective technique to apply if you are working with 1-2 week vegetative times is to simply prune the plants 5 days before flowering starts.

Are indica or sativa best for plant training? Indica Cannabis plants have a tendency to grow short and stocky with one main central cola. Training indica plants can be very beneficial, however some plants may become very low in height. Sativas are much taller and also react to training techniques well. It also depends on the reason why you are training the plants in the first place. As a beginner, it is better to work with indica dominant hybrids to get the best of both worlds.

How many days should the plants be left for after training? For certain tech niques such as snapping stems, topping and fimming, plants should be left alone for 3-7 days depending on the maturity of the plants. If you are only tying plants down, then they will grow back within 1-2 days. It is the high stress techniques that require the most time to heal to avoid infection and causing too much stress and trauma.

Which is the best time to perform super cropping, and what is it? Super crop

This grower has chosen to grow in a SOG with plants closely together.

By Stoney Tark

10 TOP TIPS ON PREPARING FOR WINTER

As Summer draws to an end, we embrace the cold and dark Winter months as an indoor grower. It can be challenging to keep up with the harsh Winter weather, so in this article, I provide 10 top tips to help adapt to cold and wet climates when growing indoors this season.

TOP TIP #1ADDING A HEATER

You may find that with your grow lights on, that the temperatures are not as high as they should be, meaning when the lights are off the temperature drops too low. Ideally, as an indoor grower, you should aim for a consistent lights on temperature of 24 degrees Celsius and a lights off temperature as close to 18-20 degrees as possible.

Our top tip here is to add a heater in during the lights off period to maintain an optimal temperature shift.

TOP TIP #2KEEP POTS OFF THE FLOOR

You may not realize how cold the walls and floors of your grow room can become when Winter kicks in. The warm Summer air once provided the perfect temperatures and warmth for plants, however the cold air out side can cause the floors to become cold.

Our top tip here is simply raising your pots off the floor using bricks or pieces of wood. The warm air that circulates the pots will keep the roots warm and happy, as well as ensuring plenty of run off when watering.

TOP TIP #3 -

WATER TEMPERATURE

When watering Cannabis plants, the goal is to allow the water to pass through the grow ing medium, and flush the medium with oxygen when the water is displaced. Over watering your plants or using cold water can be problematic, and cause root rot and pathogens to form.

Our top tip here is to keep the temperature of your nutrients warm and remember less is more sometimes.

TOP TIP #4 -

USE FABRIC POTS

Fabric pots are an excellent way to keep air around the roots and growing medium. There are many benefits to air pruning plants using fabric pots, however they also act as an insulator, allowing air particles to be trapped between the felt. Fabric pots are far better at aerating a root zone, and make life much easier at keeping the ambient temperature consistent.

and extraction present. Our top tip here is to make sure the air flow and circulation in your grow room is fresh and constantly moving around the plants. When flowering, it is extremely important to avoid any stag nant air pockets.

TOP TIP #6DEHUMIDIFIERS TO THE RESCUE

If you are about to transition from 18/6 to 12/12 and have high humidity levels due

TOP TIP #7 -

WATCH OUT FOR MOLD!

Botrytis is a plant disease that will attack the buds and cause them to become soft, mushy and useless. Oftentimes, it can be hard to spot signs of moldy buds, with some plants molding from the inside out. Our top tip here is to be extra vigilant and remove any infected flowers and keep the air flow optimal and humidity levels below 40%.

TOP TIP #8 -

SOIL TEMPERATURE

One of the main issues many growers expe rience during Winter can be cold floors, cold air, cold pots and as a result cold soil. Once the root zone becomes too cold and there is a low amount of oxygen present, then the roots will start to turn brown and thin. Our top tip here is to use the back of your hand and see how cold and wet your growing medium has become. If the medium is wet and soggy, then wait a few days for the pots to become light and airy.

TOP TIP #9 -

STORING NUTRIENT BOTTLES

In the same way that keeping pots off cold floors has benefits, the same applied to how you store your nutrient bottles. Nutrients should also be kept off the floor and ide ally organized on a shelf or dark cupboard somewhere. Make sure your nutrient bot tles are kept clean, and especially avoid using cold nutrients and cold water.

TOP TIP #10 -

POWDERY MILDEW

TOP TIP #5AIR CIRCULATION

Naturally, the humidity levels in your grow room will increase, as the fresh air you are pulling in from outside becomes cooler and holds more moisture. High humidity can lead to a world of problems, especially if you do not have the correct amount of air flow

to the cold and wet air from outside, then you will need to reduce the relative humid ity from 70-80% down to below 40%. The easiest way to do this, without constantly battling the outside elements, is to use a dehumidifier and remove the moisture present in the air. Our top tip here is to keep a dehumidifier in the grow room at all times, and to remove the built-up water each day.

There is nothing worse than an aggressive powdery mildew infection, and in some cases if it is not diagnosed and dealt with, it can have many negative effects on plant health. Powdery mildew is an airborne pathogen that travels into grow rooms and attaches itself to the tissue of the plant’s foliage. One of the main causes of powdery mildew is poor air circulation and high humidity levels

Our tip here is to make sure your tempera tures and air flow are on point and to inspect your plants on a regular basis.

GROW WITH ROBERT B.

By Robert B.

HOW TO STORE AND PREPARE MARIJUANA CORRECTLY Do not forget decarboxylation!

hashish or extract in the open air, but at least put them in a bag closed by a clamp. To shrink-wrap, vacuum or store them in a tightly sealed tin would be even better. The idea is not to keep opening and closing the tin, but to have one tin for storage and one for ongoing consumption.

consumption. Decarboxylation is a techni cal term for the conversion of e.g., THCA into delta 9 THC by heat. With too much and too long heat, however, delta 9 THC breaks down again.

When it comes to marijuana, many think it is all about the psychoactive tetrahydrocan nabinol (THC), which causes the high. Many other cannabinoids and terpenes, instead, are crucial for the quality of the high. If you manage to get your hands on some dron abinol, you will have a finished drug that contains only THC as active ingredient. The highly selected coffeeshop strains often have an extremely high THC content, with other cannabinoids, such as cannabidiol (CBD), present in lower concentration. Those who take high doses will no longer like the high, may become temporarily para noid and develop a ‘pothead psychosis’ until the next day.

Various cannabinoids and terpenes have a significant influence on the high or the medicinal effect of marijuana or its extracts and preparations. In particular, the abovementioned CBD makes high THC doses more pleasant. Many users, therefore, are not into marijuana with an extremely high THC content. They prefer one that is more balanced and easier to enjoy.

We are becoming more aware of these basic concepts in these times of ‘thaw politics’. We can research and exchange information more easily, which sometimes makes things more complex. But, please, do not expect too much in-depth information in this short article.

THCA, Delta 9 THC and 11 Hydroxy THC

THC has different molecular versions. These molecules are partly assembled in the cannabis plant. THCA, which is non-psycho tropic, is formed before the psychoactive and medicinally effective delta 9 THC. At this preliminary (precursor) stage, the molecule

is converted into delta 9 THC in the plant or by heating. If you smoke this delta 9 THC or spray it under your tongue, you will ingest delta 9 THC. But to eat it, you also have to dissolve it into fatty acids. To do so, first of all, hemp butter can be prepared for use in baking. It will be absorbed by the intestine via fatty acids or a carrier making the can nabinoid water-soluble. Then it is metabo lised by the liver into 11 hydroxy THC. In the process, a part of the active ingredient is broken down, but 11 hydroxy THC is more potent and the process balances out to some extent.

For certain conditions like cancer, delta 9 THC should not be inhaled but eaten, as this 11 hydroxy THC is thought to counteract cancer better; research in this respect is still being done. With a joint, a patient could eat better and endure his tumour pain. With hash butter cookies, he can also fight his cancer. At the same time, other therapies should not be interrupted, of course, because a few hash cookies will hardly suffice.

Other cannabinoids are also present in marijuana flowers at a precursor stage and also at an active stage. Delta 9 THC, how ever, has a special feature in that it oxidises when exposed to oxygen and is therefore no longer effective. This is why, for instance, brick hash turns black towards the edges and not inside. So, while delta 9 THC oxidis es in the air, THCA does not oxidise. When exposed to heat during smoking or baking, it transforms into the effective delta 9 THC. This means that even marijuana flowers stored in the air will still have an effect.

If you are after a psychotropic effect, you should not store your marijuana flowers,

Marijuana, hashish or extracts should always be stored in the dark or in brownglass jars or bottles. Furthermore, the marijuana to be stored should not be damp. Hashish and extracts should also not be exposed to moisture. And that is not all. Marijuana, hash or extracts contain terpe nes. On their own, they probably have no effect, but influence the effect of cannabi noids. Apparently, several terpenes com plement each other. However, these are very volatile. Some of the terpenes already volatilise at warmer room temperatures. Marijuana loses its taste and its effect is no longer harmonious. For this reason, you

The precursors of other cannabinoids can be converted by heat into effective com pounds and then eventually broken down again. Different cannabinoids require other times and temperatures to that end, but flowers can be treated in only one of these sets of parameters. As a result, the choice between a more volatile or more intensive decarboxylation depends on the strain and on the specific process applied; but no empirical formula can be defined. 20 to 120 minutes at 80 to 140° Celsius would be the benchmark. More time should be used at lower temperatures and less at higher tem peratures. At higher temperatures, how ever, not much of the terpenes will be left. If you wish to smoke a joint or a bong, heat

should not store your marijuana flowers under the roof in summer, but in a dry cellar. Many consumers even freeze their flowers. During thawing, it is important to check that no moisture has formed in some spots in the bag, otherwise the flowers need to be dried again.

The right preparation

After discussing these basics and the strat egy for suitable storage, we now move on to the correct method of preparation. In marijuana flowers, cannabinoids are pre sent in non-active precursor stage and in active molecular compounds. When heated, precursors are transformed, for example, into delta 9 THC, which oxidises in the air. Those who are interested in the effect of delta 9 THC or 11 hydroxy THC should wait for decarboxylation until shortly before

your marijuana flowers in a vaporiser, or use hemp butter for baking; heat will already produce an effect and automatically trigger decarboxylation. Many consumers say that heating before consumption or before processing leads to a greater effect at a later stage. In that case, however, mari juana should be heated either for less time or less intensively.

On the other hand, those who process their marijuana into ointments, put it in alcohol or process it into drops or extracts that are eaten without heating will waste all its THCA. Then it would make sense to put the marijuana flowers in a suitably heated oven before processing them. Especially in these situations, decarboxylation is very impor tant, as a good third of the cannabinoids in the marijuana flowers may be present as an ineffective precursor.

‘Edibles’ will hit the market after legalisation.

The new trend – extracts sold by Dabben, with over 90% active ingredient content.

Bosterix

'ADVANCED' BALCONY GROWING: FLOWERING (PART 2) Flowering comes to an end

Finally, the most awaited moment has arrived. We enter the last stages of the flowering cycle, where we will see how the buds gain weight and become denser. In the previous stage, they reached their final size, but now is when they reach their ripeness.

The previous article described how plants developed up to the third stage of their flowering cycle, which is when buds ‘fatten’, so to say, and almost reach their final size.

Almost all the work is done. If I may use a metaphor, you have already crossed the ocean, and all that remains is to enter port and disembark. These final stages of plants’ growth, which require utmost care, are important, as they will make a difference in quantity and above all in quality.

FINAL CARE

In these stages of flowering, with suck ing insects such as spider mites, aphids or whiteflies there is no compromise. Either you keep them under control and the plant is free to thrive or they over whelm the plant and you will have to try to rescue it as much as we can. We are confident that you have fol lowed our tips and are in the first situ ation. This is important, because, if we do not take good care of your plants

Not ripe yet.

with fertilisers of this kind, you will throw away your investment and time devoted to your crop.

If everything has gone well, you will also have to cope with two implacable enemies of your marijuana plants, humidity and caterpillars. There is little you can do about humidity and rainfall outdoors.

You can only choose fast-flowering plants to harvest before the autumn rains, or look for resistant strains that do not have excessively tight buds, so as to try to minimise damage. Some growers have room at home to store their plants in case of rain.

If this is the case for you, you should keep an eye on the weather forecast for your growing region so that you do not get caught in the rain. Keep in mind that this may be a bit burdensome, but you will save your harvest.

As for caterpillars, they tend to attack the plant in the final stages of its flowering. The only option you have is to apply Bacillus Thuringiensis and perform daily inspections, trying to remove as many of them as possible.

Some growers set up structures such as greenhouses, or cover their balconies with insect-proof netting to avoid cat erpillars.

OUR RECOMMENDED BASIC FERTILISER FOR THE END OF THE FLOWERING CYCLE

During the fourth stage, stop using Big Bud basic fertiliser, as the plant has already taken in the extra dose of phosphorus and potassium it needs between the third and fourth week of flowering or, more precisely, in the third stage of flowering.

Use Iguana Juice Organic Bloom, instead, as a base fertiliser. It a com plete organic fertiliser, including the three basic elements NPK 4-3-6.

Currently, it is also the flowering fertilis er that contains the highest percentage of organic mass on the market; in par ticular it is based on fresh fish caught in the North Pacific Ocean, plus ground Ascophyllum Nodosum, krill and yeast extracts, alfalfa, yucca, hormones, enzymes, amino acids and vitamins.

OTHER FERTILISERS THAT YOU SHOULD CONTINUE USING INCLUDE:

Bud Candy Organic, which adds extra carbohydrates giving energy to plants at this stage, for them to increase flow ering and stimulate the micro life of the substrate in your pots;

Ancient Earth Organic, which acts as a buffer and maintains a balanced pH level of the substrate; indeed, achieving an adequate level of acidity in the sub strate is very important for the absorp tion of the macro and micro nutrients fed to the plant through the basic fer tiliser, with each nutrient assimilated within a suitable pH range (for example,

for flowering of crops in a soil substrate pH should be 6.8); Mother Earth Super Tea Organic, a compost tea containing NPK 3-2-5 that you should continue using as a supplement until the last weeks, when pure-water irrigation is only required; Mother Earth Super Tea Organic is ideal for invigorating the plant and combating stress and dam age from insect attacks; A few days lost due to stress on the plant will be paid for with a lower yield at harvest time. Make sure your plants do not suffer from lack of water, exces sive heat, insect attacks, etc.

Sensizym Organic, to be used when growing plants in pots on a balcony or in an attic. Close to the harvest date, the substrate is heavily affected as the roots have taken all the available soil space and have curled up on them selves causing many small rootlets to die.

The heat also affects the roots, espe cially at the bottom of the pot, which is affected by the temperature of the bal cony floor. If you add to this the accu mulation of salts during cultivation... your substrate will definitively be in trouble when you most need it in good condition. To make sure that flowering ends in the best possible way for the time and effort your devoted to your plants, regular applications of Sensizym Organic in the same proportion as in

Elongated bud.

Removing nutrients from the leaves.

the previous stages will help minimise these problems.

Irrigation with pure water is recom mended for the last two weeks or ten days, so that the plant consumes all the fertiliser left in the soil, and then move on to consume the fertiliser stored in leaves. This is essential to get a health ier marijuana to consume, but also to extract the best natural aromas and flavours of the marijuana strain you are growing.

At the end of flowering, the leaves of your marijuana plant should be yellow, showing that the plant's nitrogen has been consumed. The nitrogen in the leaves and buds has a negative influ ence on the taste and makes combus tion more harmful to health.

Outdoors, the last few days before harvest can coincide with a few days of rain. Often you will have to harvest your plants in advance to prevent the buds from getting damp. In this case, it is also very useful to apply Flawless Finish in the last weeks.

Flawless Finish helps remove nutrient residues stored in the leaves, roots, etc.

The manufacturer claims that, when applied during the last week of the crop, Flawless Finish removes at least 80% of the stored nutrients, which will give the marijuana the best flavours and aromas that can be achieved. The way it works is simple. Unlike ferti lisers that contain chelated nutrients, which can be easily absorbed by the plant, Flawless Finish contains empty chelates that fill up with the nutrients contained in the plant we wish to remove. In this way, all fertiliser resi dues are washed away with the water that drains from the pot.

In ideal conditions, with an organic crop as we have done, it will suffice to stop fertilising for the last two weeks to achieve the best aroma and flavour in our marijuana plants. But since it is usu ally difficult to achieve ideal conditions on the balcony, you will have to harvest a few days or even a week before, due to the threat of rain, attacks by caterpil lars, etc...

The result that can be achieved by irri gating with pure water alone in 14 days can be achieved with Flawless Finish

in little more than a week. It is a good idea to keep this in mind in case you need to harvest earlier. Otherwise, with pH-corrected water, you will be able to eliminate excess nutrients.

DRYING AND CURING

One factor to take into account when correctly evaluating whether the fer tilisers have worked well is drying and curing. If you have made an invest ment in quality fertilisers and you have reached harvest time without pests, diseases and stress in the plants, you cannot do without an accurate drying and curing process for your plants.

ficult when it comes to fertilising, since, in addition to dealing with many pots, you will have to combine fertilisers in many different ways. It is best to plant the same strain or look for strains that have a similar flowering time to avoid such troubles.

If you are going to plant autoflowering strains, keep in mind that these plants have a very short growth period, from 3 to 5 weeks, and between 5 and 8 weeks of flowering, depending on the cross. It is therefore necessary to keep an eye on any change of fertiliser.

It is more difficult to find out the flower ing cycle in an auto plant, because flow ering starts more quickly and is shorter than in photodependent plants.

It is also important to know the weeks that a seed bank recommends or to have a prior experience of growing a strain so that it is easier to fertilise. Keep in mind that even a lightly ferti lised soil will cover almost half of the plant's growth. And that you should fertilise based on the size of the plant and not the number of weeks to avoid any overfeeding. It is always better to go from less to more.

THE INVESTMENT

Advanced Nutrients have a high qual ity, extensive and very specific line of fertilisers. It is important to only use the required quantity, rather than add more and more fertilisers and stimu lators and expect that some magical results will be achieved.

It is also crucial to assess the amount of fertiliser to be used and buy a rightsized pot. Basic fertilisers such as Iguana Juice Organic Grow and Iguana Juice Organic Bloom, and the additive Ancient Earth Tea Organic are available in one-litre and four-litre containers. Additives and stimulants – such as Big Bud Organic, Bud Candy, etc. – are available in 250 ml, 500 ml, 1l and 4l containers.

Checking buds daily.

Ruining the flavour with quick drying is a sure-fire way to – dumbly – spoil a suc cessful crop. Do not be impatient, use a dark, ventilated room at 25 degrees and constant 50% humidity for best results.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

Grow strains with similar flowering times to make it easier to fertilise the whole crop correctly. When growing 7-, 10- and 14-week flowering photode pendent plants, you will always find specimens that have not started true flowering, or which are still in their stretching or even growing stage, while others are already forming buds. This will make your life much more dif

However, an exact calculation is not possible, as it depends on the size of the plants and the number of weeks of growth and flowering. A plant with 7 weeks of flowering is not the same as a plant with 12 weeks of flowering, or a plant planted in March as at the end of May or June. Assuming a crop of about 8-9 weeks of growth and 7-8 weeks of flowering irrigated with a 10 or 12 litre watering can 4 times a week, the follow ing products can be used:

• 1 litre of Iguana Juice Organic Grow

• 1 litre of Ancient Organic

• 1 litre of Sensizym

1 litre of Iguana Juice Organic Bloom

500 ml of Mother Earth Tea Organic

250 ml of Big Bud 500 ml of Bud Candy

It makes sense to invest in this type of fertilisers, if you are going to protect the plant from pests and stress, so as to appreciate their final flavours and aromas. If excess temperature, pests or poor care ultimately limit development, your investment will be lost. These fertilisers are ideal for experienced

growers, or at least those who are committed to caring for their plants, in order to make the best out of the qual ity of nutrients used to feed them.

In this case, it is clear that, to ensure a return on the investment made, you should use the utmost case care in each stage of the plants’ growth and flower ing cycles.

If you are fully dedicated to the plants, you will find in Advanced Nutrients products a great ally in your outdoor marijuana crops. Cheer up and do not neglect the plants in this final part of their lifecycle!

Yellow leaves.

A plant recovering from pests.

The beautiful Sweet Mimosa XL Auto ®

A CHEERFUL DELIGHT FROM SWEET SEEDS®

Whenever I take a break from growing, I am anxious to restart all over again even long before the buds from the previous harvest are over. But this time the stock was starting to run low and, for me, autoflowering strains have always been the first choice when I need to harvest as quickly as possible. Coincidentally I received some seeds of the new Sweet Mimosa XL Auto® (SWS94), a 4th generation autoflowering strain recently released by Sweet Seeds ® Want to know more about this strain and how it performed in my indoor growing area? Then read on and join me on this sweet adventure!

If you have ever tried or heard of this strain, you may already know that Mimosa is a hybrid obtained from crossing Clementine (Tangie x Lemon Skunk) with Purple Punch (Larry OG x Grand Daddy Purple), one of the latest and most popular strains on the US cannabis scene. Sweet Seeds® introduced autoflowering traits by using the exquisite Cream Mandarine Auto® (SWS29). The resulting hybrid is Sweet Mimosa XL Auto®, a plant that still has the same characteristic aromas and flavours of the original Mimosa.

The adventure begins For my growing area of 1 square metre, I decided to use 9 plants in 11 litre pots.

I used 10 seeds, just in case one did not germinate, but they all sprouted. The first 6 sprouted in 36 hours and the other 4 did in the next two days. I used the kitchen paper method to germinate the seeds, but first I soaked them in water for a few hours to soften their shells.

They were first placed in 500 ml pots and, about 20 days after germination, they were transplanted into the final 11-litre pots. All plants developed with extraordinary vigour from their first days of life.

For the flowering stage, I used a substrate mix composed of soil from a famous brand specialised in cannabis

nutrients, to which I added 10% perlite, 5% earthworm compost and 50 grams of powdered bat guano per plant.

After transplanting them into the final pots, they were placed under 600w HPS lights. I still like to use HPS lighting when growing in the middle of winter, because the high-pressure sodium bulbs produce enough heat to compensate for the cold nights and also help create a dry environment, which can be very useful if the last weeks of flowering coincide with a period of high humidity.

The plants loved the new substrate, with more space to spread their roots, as well as the powerful light with all the lumens they needed for their thriving growth and a perfect spectrum for explosive flowering.

The beautiful colours and sweet aromas of the flowering stage

Around day 34 after the appearance of the cotyledons, the first pistils started to clump together to form the first flowers. Sweet Mimosa XL Auto® stretched a lot in the first weeks of flowering, the plants grew in height from 20 cm to about 60 cm in just two weeks.

This well-balanced Indica-Sativa strain normally develops a long main cola and many strong side branches, where numerous good-sized flowers start to form at around day 40 after seed germination.

At this time, I noticed a very high density of flowers inside my grow tent. It looked like a real jungle, so the RVK extractor fan was crucial for a proper air renewal. Around day 45, it was time to give the plants a flowering fertiliser, as they had already used most of the nutrients in the soil mix.

A week later, I administered another dose of fertiliser as well as CalMag just to be sure they had everything they needed at this critical stage of flowering. On day 55 from germination, this great autoflowering strain was already showing all its splendour.

We really have to give credit to the breeders at Sweet Seeds® for their great work with this strain. The plants showed marked homogeneity, not only in their structure, but also in terms of resin production and aromas. At this point, 4 plants started to develop purple tones in the leaves and flowers.

This can be an extra reward for any grower, as the contrast between the green and reddish colours on the cannabis plant is pure enjoyment for the eyes. The flowers were completely covered with sweet and aromatic resin. From day 52 onwards, they only

received water, to make sure that any traces of fertiliser were completely removed from the roots on the day of harvest.

Harvest of Sweet Mimosa XL Auto®

With the XL Auto range of the Sweet Seeds® genetic collection, a grower can be sure to harvest high yields. I was able to confirm this once again with this lovely strain. Specimens behaved like photodependent plants in their 30-day growth cycle before flowering.

Their height was about 90-105 cm and all were full of side branches with heavy buds. I was also able to harvest all plants on the same day, as there was very little difference in maturity between the 9 grown specimens.

They were harvested exactly 65 days after the appearance of the cotyledons, with large, compact flowers, fully covered with trichomes, even on the surrounding leaves. During harvest, the whole house was filled with incredible aromas with earthy undertones and citrus tones of orange and tangerine.

They were very easy to trim, as the calyxes were exceptionally swollen and the calyx-to-leaf ratio was one of the highest I have ever seen in an autoflowering strain. In just 3 hours all the flowers on the 9 plants were trimmed and placed on a drying rack.

The flowers were then dried for 12 days and placed in glass jars. Sweet Mimosa XL Auto® is very productive. I got between 35 and 45 grams per plant, a total of 375 g of fragrant resinous buds from the 9 plants. About a week after they were placed in the glass jars, I tried it for the first time, both smoked and vaped.

An amazing final taste

It is really pleasant to smoke and vape this delicious plant. Flowers are so compact that, when they come out of the grinder, they seem to have expanded somehow.

As regards terpenes, the original Mimosa, from which this strain derives, has a high content of myrcene, as well as some pinene and caryophyllene. I tried a couple of puffs ‘dry’ (i.e., before lighting the joint) and the aromas were out of this world.

The delicious Sweet Mimosa XL Auto® reveals notes of fruit and orange flavours that cause an explosion of sweet freshness in the mouth and nose. After lighting the joint, an earthy background takes the lead.

Citrus aromas linger in the mouth for a few minutes after the last puff, producing an incredibly fresh, hard-toforget sensation that often leaves you wanting more.

The THC levels of this strain range from 19% to 23%, so you can expect a potent high that comes just moments after the first puff. Many medicinal cannabis users can benefit from the effects of this strain, especially those who are looking to alleviate symptoms associated with anxiety and depression.

In addition, this jewel of the Sweet Seeds® genetic collection has a lively and happy effect that stimulates the imagination and creativity. In short, it is an autoflowering strain that every cannabis grower should try at least once. We wish you a sweet smoking or vaping experience!

1. What is the Vegetative stage?

A. The growth stage

B. The harvest stage

C. The blooming phase

D. The resting stage

2. How do you know when your plants are ready for Veg?

A. When they have been in the propagator for 2 weeks

B. Once you see leaves start to emerge C. When they are touching the top of the propagator D. At 1-2 inches high or have 3 stages of nodes

3. How long does the Veg stage last typically?

A. 6 weeks B. 7-14 days C. 2-4 weeks D. 72 hours

4. What is the most used light cycle used during Veg?

A. 18hrs on, 6 off B. 12hrs on, 12hrs off C. 24hrs constantly D. 6hrs on, 18 off

5. What is the perfect temperature during Veg?

A. 25c B. 15-20c C. 20-25c D. Over 30c

6. What is the perfect humidity during Veg?

A. 50% B. 40-60% C. 75%+ D. 20-40%

7. Wrong temp and humidity can cause what?

A. Excessive growth

B. Early flowering

C. Mould and pest infestation

D. Dulling of colours

VEGETATIVE (VEG) STAGE QUIZ

14. What are the first signs of a Nitrogen deficiency?

A. Older leaves turn yellow/green from inside out

B. Lightening of colour in new growth

C. No new growth

D. Curling of leave

8. Why are oscillating fans and in line exhaust fans/filters important?

A. To supply fresh air and reduce odour

B. To increase heat

C. To fake different weather seasons

D. To encourage plant growth

9. Why is Veg the best time to take cuttings?

A. Cuttings will Flower quicker

B. Cuttings will grow bigger

C. Cuttings are more likely too root

D. Cuttings will produce higher yields

10. In Veg generally what NPK level should your feed be?

A. High (N) High (P) High (K)

B. Low (N) Medium (P) High (K) C. High (N), medium (P), medium/low (K) D. Medium (N) Low (P) Medium (K)

11. What is the ideal range for pH and EC during Veg?

A. pH 7-8.5, EC 1 B. pH 5.5-6.5, EC 1-2 C. pH 6+, EC 3-5

D. pH 2.5-4.5, EC 2-4

12. If EC/pH is too high what should you do?

A. Stop feeding completely

B. Foliar feed only

C. Decrease feed ratios, maintain feed frequency.

D. Increase feed ratios, maintain feed frequency

13. If EC/pH is too low what should you do?

A. Feed more often at same ratio

B. Increase feed ratio until levels are in range

C. Use a booster

D. Add a foliar feed to your routine

15. What are the first signs of nutrient burn?

A. Brown spotted leaves

B. Pale yellowing leaves

C. Drying out and wilting leaves

D. Deep green leaves with lightening and curling at tips

16. How do Indica and Sativa plants grow?

A. Indica, small and bushy, Sativa tall and thin

B. Sativa, small and bushy, Indica tall and thin

C. They look the same till Flower

D. Indica, dark green, Sativa light green

17. What is topping?

A.Removing any excess foliage from plant as a whole

B. Cutting away small branches to focus energy on larger branches.

C. Cutting the top part of a plant, to reduce upward growth

D. Foliar feeding top part of the plant only

18. When is the best time to use Foliar Feed?

A. When lights go “on"

B. When lights are half way through their “on” cycle

C. When lights go “off”

D. Just before lights go “on

19. In theory, how long can you keep a plant in the Vegetative stage?

A. No more than 4 weeks

B. As long as you want

C. No more than 6 weeks

D. 12 month

20. What are the signs of a male plant in Veg?

A. Flowers appearing

B. Small grape like formations around the internodes

C. Plant will change colour

D. Change in leaf formation

For answers

By Rich Hamilton

Les Moor, The Interview

Les Moor is a first-class surreal glass artist, originally from New York and now working out of Portland. He is known for his trademark, elephants, vultures and (my personal favourite) his Moorior's. He creates unique, eye-catching, iconic glassware and dab rigs. Les Moor uses a range of dif ferent technics and textures when creating his pieces. His urban graffiti influences are clear immediately. I managed to pin him down for half an hour for a quick interview, and here is what he had to say.

SSUK: Hi Les, I just wanted to say that I'm a massive fan before we start. One of the pieces featured in this article is one I have commissioned for myself, and I just wanted to thank you for creating such a beautiful piece. Where do you start when you make a piece like this?

LM – First off, Thank you so much! It's a passion, and I get to support my family with it, so I am truly blessed and grateful to have the support I do. When I'm doing customs of my designs, I like to know what the collector likes most about my art and wants to incorporate.

Then I like to refine my design a little with each piece by improving where I can, attacking it from a fresh perspective, and trying to grow with each challenge.

I notice that you have a colour palette on a lot of your work,

which is just incredible. Where do those colour choices come from?

Thank you, I always try to make the piece pop and stand out. Colour is a significant ingredient, and coming from a graffiti and design background, I've learned to use complementary and contrasting colours to create what I hope to be a more attractive overall design.

The patterning you put on to your pieces is so cool. How do you achieve that?

I don't do as much patterning as some of my peers. Still, I do incorporate some sandblasting for my signature and other graphics. That is done off of the torch where I create the graphic on a computer and use masking to mark off the areas I'd like to sandblast, like my paisley designs, for example.

Do you smoke yourself? What's your preferred method? Flower? Dabbing?

I smoke a lot less than I used to, but I still enjoy it. I smoked bud for many years before dabbing became a thing, then

dabbing became the only thing for me for many years. Now I enjoy flower, in a nice glass piece or a joint.

What would you say are the benefits of dabbing?

I'd say there's a real creative surge that comes with dabbing or smoking. You can step outside of your everyday thoughts and go on a creative journey, so to speak. You can begin to imagine things in a way you might not be while in your normal state of consciousness. Of Course, there are medical benefits too. It can really help with mood and appetite, and I'm sure others, but I find altering your state of mind to get into a more positive space can be everything at times. Stress and anxiety are just awful things, and I find that dabbing or smoking can also help.

What's your current view of the cannabis industry, and where do you think it's going?

It's nice to see it more accepted in many places, and nobody should get in trouble for some herb or concentrate. I feel it will only get more commercialized and regulated, and that's not always

a bad thing. We can refine the things we like about it, we can make it more accessible, which is wonderful, and we can normalize it and reduce the stigma that has surrounded pot smokers for decades. Oh, let's not forget hemp; we can do some major things with that! Shout out to Jack Herer and his amazing book; The Emperor Wears No Clothes.

What can we expect from you next? Do you have any exciting projects coming up? What is in the future for Les Moor?

I'm constantly growing and exploring. With that said, I let my ideas bounce around, and what doesn't go away becomes my inspiration for the design. I plan on more collaborations and themed shows to showcase more in-depth pieces. I think more sculptures are something you can count on, haha.

For the readers of soft secrets that don't dab, but want to start, what's the best advice you could give them? What do they need to look for when starting, and what are the common pitfalls of beginners?

I believe you should have a decent trust for the source, like anything you put in your body or mind. Make sure it's quality and coming from someone you trust and respect. You may want to ensure you're in a chill environment and allow yourself some space to enjoy the experience. For some, large crowds can be overwhelming. Other than that, some pitfalls may be that you get too high and need a nap or maybe eat a bunch of stuff you probably shouldn't have...ha, ha. When dabbing started, we did everything wrong, from how it was made to how we vaped it, but it never seemed to cause too much of a problem.

That's great. Thank you for taking the time to speak to us here at soft secrets. If our readers would like to learn more about you and your work, where would be the best place to do that?

You can find me on Instagram at @ les_moor. I answer all my messages and appreciate all the comments and likes always! Nothing but love and gratitude, Thank you again.

Mr. José / info@mrjose.eu

CANNAFAIR 2022

Last weekend in August, cannabis users, patients and decision makers flocked to German city of Düsseldorf, where the second edition of the Cannafair expo took place. The event has been postponed twice due to the coronavirus epidemic, so visitors were thrilled it is finally happening again. And it was worth the wait. This year's edition was bigger and full of interesting and intriguing cannabis gadgets.

to sell their seeds in Germany instead of just giving away discount coupons and promotional items.

CANNABIS FLOWERS

In recent years, cannabis flowers with low THC content and widely varying quality have become one of the main items on sale at cannabis expos. The so-called CBD cannabis can be compared to nonalcoholic beer. Some people use it because they like the taste but can't afford to get “high” on it. At the Weedpassion booth, I was intrigued by the cannabis offerings divided into different quality levels. From small buds to large ones. There were also “low cost” flowers on display. Yes, the quality of CBD flowers varies a lot, and a certain amount of this cannabis on the market is treated different way in order to lower the content of THC. The additional application of terpenes to the flower has also become a sort of standard. I'm not saying that enhancing the flavour and aroma with natural terpenes is downright bad, but I believe consumers of such “adjusted” cannabis should be informed about any modifications. In my opinion, this is one of the important indicators that the legalisation of cannabis is a necessary step. Together with the right regulation, it should offer users better options than buying cannabis with unknown amounts of unknown substances.

HHC

SEEDS

The recent German government's announcement that it is actually planning to legalise cannabis for recreational use has been for some time fuelling hopes of significant business opportunities for companies from around the world. For example, seedbank representatives were present at Cannafair, even though the sale of cannabis seeds has been prohibited in

Germany for quite some time. One such example was Jouke Piepenbrink from Seedstockers seedbank, who told me that their presence is considered mainly as an investment in the future. He believes that the German government will see its goal of legalising cannabis for recreational use through and German customers will finally be able to buy his seeds legally. When I asked about the new additions to the Seedstockers catalogue, Jouke

recommended trying the Triton Biscotto Lime strain, which has recently won an award in Colombia. German growers can either buy seeds in neighbouring countries or order them online. However, this does not change the fact that the seeds are illegal once they enter Germany.

I have also met a representative from another seed bank – Paradise seeds. They also hope that next year they will be able

Another recent phenomenon is called hexahydrocannabinol (HHC). This legal cannabinoid has similar effects to THC. HHC is naturally occurring in cannabis plants, but the amount is negligible. However, there is a way to chemically modify other cannabinoids by hydrogenation and create HHC. This means that HHC can also be extracted from hemp rich in CBD. Thanks to this,

José, Jos and Jouke at Seedstockers booth.

Sanlight EVO series.

HHC was widely available in different variants at Cannafair. Mainly in the form of e-liquids for vape pens, in the form of various cookies or lollipops, but also as HHC flowers. Obviously, HHC is applied directly on the flower afterwards and is not formed naturally in relevant amounts. Not much is known about the side effects of HHC, as it is a little studied substance overall. Nonetheless, one can assume that the negative effects will be similar to those of THC. Again, I have only one thing to say: If we end cannabis prohibition, cannabis users would be able to use the plant in its natural form without having to look for synthetic or semi-synthetic substitutes.

INTERESTING GADGETS AND INNOVATIONS

At every expo my goal is to find something that is unique or new in some way. Sometimes it is not easy, but there is always something – and Cannafair was no exception. For example, I was quite intrigued by the Klip grinder. Well, according to its Danish manufacturer, it's actually not a grinder, but a slicer. While an ordinary grinder shreds the plant material between different shaped mandrels, the

Klip features two blades and a grid. The system reminds me of meat grinder, but the blades oscillate much faster in this

case. As a result, your cannabis flower should be gently prepared for inhalation with less resin left in the grinder. What I really liked was the design. On the downside, the grinder is quite heavy and not really cheap. But if you want to make an impression on your friends at a house party, you can’t go wrong with Klip. What also caught my eye was an airtight barrel for drying and curing cannabis. First, you put your herb in a mesh bag, then insert the bag in the barrel, and, in the end, add a gel dehumidifier (included in the package). Inside, there is one fan near the humidifier that takes care of reducing the humidity in the container, while the other fan, located in the lid, takes care of air circulation inside. There is a hygrometer on the lid, allowing you to know precisely what the inside humidity is. You can open the barrel from time to time to check how your cannabis is drying. It's

and grow plants two or more levels above each other.

The Austrian LED lighting manufacturer SanLight also exhibited new products. The new generation of lights, labelled EVO, is said to have an improved light spectrum, suitable even for high-intensity growing. This is one of the things that is relatively new in the growing industry. Many growers are increasingly asking for even higher light intensity in order to be able to obtain the maximum yield from their growing space. Then we have this unexpected situation where they are using LED lighting systems of the same or higher wattage as with conventional, high-intensity discharge lamps. However, growers would not be doing this if they were not achieving higher efficiency with LEDs, i.e., a higher yield relative to the energy consumed. Yet, with some LED modules, higher intensity causes the

definitely a smart solution for home drying when there is not enough space. The barrel is airtight, meaning your buds won't smell all over the place.

Another special exposition was that of Sunflower Trimmer – a company producing cannabis trimmers in the Czech Republic. At Cannafair they were presenting a whole automatic line including a buckler, two tumblers and an output belt for quality control and possible trimming. This solution is not designed for an average home grower, but if you are harvesting larger quantities of plant material, tumblers are a widespread standard. Industrial growers were largely attracted by the stand of a company called Grow Glide –manufactures and suppliers of vertical growing systems. These systems should be able to help growers save space

upper buds to fade. The solution is just to change the light spectrum, as Maxe, who is in charge of designing light systems for grow-ops at Sanlight, told me. Last but not least, I would like to mention one interesting tool, although not entirely new: the growing fridge, or rather the equipment for maintaining the desired climate in small growing spaces. Check out the pictures and let us know if you would like to have such a useful fridge at home instead of yours.

Time at Cannafair flew so fast. I have to admit that this year I missed the whole professional conference and didn’t see any lectures. Next time I am definitely going to reserve more time for this event and I am already looking forward to repeating my trip to Düsseldorf next year.

Low cost CBD weed.

New hydroponic growing medium.

GROW WITH JORGE CERVANTES

Jorge Cervantes jorge@marijuanagrowing.com

HOW TO IRRIGATE CANNABIS

roots grow deeper and help protect plants against drought conditions. Watering a little every day will encourage a shallow root system that provides a short-term supply of water. If you miss a few days, plants suffer water stress.

evenly and avoid dry pockets. Mulch reduces water use by up to 80 percent by slowing evaporation in the lazing sun.

Water plants in containers until water comes out the drainage holes in the bottom. The drainage water carries out any unwanted nutrients that have built up in the soil.

Water wands have a nozzle/breaker head that disperses the water into a series of small streams. This simple action aerates water just before entering the soil and it breaks it up into soft streams that penetrate soil quickly and evenly.

A heavy stream of water from a single nozzle or hose partially capped with a finger disrupts soil surface and penetrates soil inconsistently.

A thick layer of mulch will keep water from disturbing the top layer of soil where the bulk of feeder roots are located.

Watering soil covered with mulch allows the water to soak into the soil

Do not leave water under pressure in a hose or water wand for more than a few minutes. Garden hoses are designed to transport water, not hold it under pressure, which may cause it to rupture. And a hose full of water is much heavier and stiffer than an empty hose. Sprinklers work great to wet a large area over time. The small aerated

Water should saturate soil and wet it evenly. Containers should be watered until runoff water exits the drainage holes in the bottom. Water should penetrate outdoor soil evenly so that all the soil in the root zone is saturated and drains downward.

Water cannabis gardens by hand or with an irrigation system. Watering by hand is relaxing but time consuming. Another main benefit is that you can inspect plants for diseases and pests as well as cultural problems while hand watering.

An automattic watering system keeps irrigation more consistent. A timer doses out water at a specific time before turning off. Water sensors can also turn the automated irrigation system on and off. Drip system emitters can be set to dole out specific volumes of water per hour.

Setting up an irrigation system can be as simple as attaching a sprinkler or soaker hose to a timer or waterflow meter. Irrigation systems add precision to water application, save time and labor. A drip irrigation system is easy to set up in gardens and saves you time and energy. More sophisticated systems employ moisture sensors that supply exact quantities of water. Many irrigation systems deliver nutrient solution (fertigation) to plants either continually or periodically.

Hand water outdoor plants around the base wetting all the way to the drip line, the edge of the foliage. Give plants a good soaking so that there is enough water to penetrate the soil deeply. The excess water will continue to sink in the soil and roots will follow the water downward. Hand-watering is a great way to apply a lot of water to a small area of soil.Water every few days or weekly. Less frequent watering will ensure

Water big containers with an automated irrigation system to save hours of time. This drip irrigation system is set up on a timer with a manual override.

A water wand with a shower head attached to the hose will save time and make watering easier. A water wand will extend your reach and help avoid broken branches while leaning over to water in tight quarters. Buy a water wand at the nursery or construct one from plastic PVC pipe. I have been using Dramm water wands for years.

drops of water penetrate the soil slowly, but 30-50 percent of the water evaporates before penetrating the soil. More water evaporates and blows away in the wind. Irrigating with a sprinkler works well if you have an endless source of water.

Avoid sprinkling water on cannabis foliage when the weather is warm to avert water damage and problems with diseases. If you must sprinkle foliage, irrigate early in the day so that water droplets can dry before nightfall.

Set sprinklers on a low setting so they throw water a short distance and wet less foliage.

That said, my good CBD-growing friend, Steve Rogers, uses a large “big gun” impact sprinkler to “ice-up” his crop to protect it from freezing.

He uses a wheel irrigation line with rainbird sprinklers every 40 feet (12 m) to irrigate his field of cannabis. Rogers also turns the sprinkler irrigation system on in the summer during the heat of the day to cool the area and refresh the plants.

He notes “they grow super-fast that way, about 2 inches (5 cm) a day!” See chapter twelve, Outdoors, for more information on icing up crops.

A gravity-feed water system is easy to set up. Place a barrel at least four feet (120 cm) high in the garden or at one end of the garden.

Four feet (120 cm) of elevation will ensure enough pressure when watering. If growing in a small space, place the barrel outside the garden. Purchase a barrel with an on/off spigot near the bottom or install the valve yourself. The threads on the spigot should match those of a common garden hose fitting. A spigot should be a minimum of 0.75 inches (2 cm) so that it supplies adequate flow when there is little water in the barrel.

Attach a garden hose with an on/off valve to irrigate your garden. Water pressure is great until the water level drops in the container.

Install an on/off float valve near the top of the barrel that turns off the water when it is full and on when water is needed. Or attach an inexpensive flow

meter that measures the volume of water. It is easy to walk away and let the barrel overflow.

Make sure the barrel or reservoir has a lid on top to reduce the evaporation and keep debris diseases and pests and algae out.

These attached greenhouses at BioCanna farms near Barcelona, Spain collect all of the rainwater that falls on the roof and store it in a large underground concrete reservoir. One third of the raw water comes from rainwater.

Catch rainwater from rooftops to irrigate your garden. In Northeastern Spain, all greenhouses are required to catch and use rainwater.

Many of them catch and store enough to use exclusively rainwater in their greenhouses. Storing large volumes of rainwater can be expensive. But, setting up a couple of barrels to catch rainwater under downspouts is easy and inexpensive.

Attach an irrigation hose near the bottom of the barrel with an on/off valve.

This article was excerpted from the new FREE 100-page digital Teaser – Marijuana Horticulture “Bible” (6th Edition) by Jorge Cervantes. The new digital edition will be available as autumn, 2022. Jorge is very excited about the new digital edition that will help hundreds of thousands of growers grow more and better cannabis! © 2020, © 2021, © 2022. Download your FREE copy of the new FREE 150-page digital Teaser – Marijuana Horticulture “Bible” at www.Jorge-Cervantes.com. Sign up for our mailing list at www.marijuanagrowing.com for updates on the new digital 6th Edition.

Set up a gravity-feed irrigation system with rainwater runoff. The roof gutter above drains rainwater into the barrel. A filter screen covers the top of the barrel. An on/off valve is installed at the base of the barrel.

High-volume sprinklers are able to supply water to a large field of cannabis. Irrigation pipes on wheels are easy to move to irrigate another portion of the field.

HIGH CUISINE WITH BETTY GREEN

By Betty Green

CROQUE "MARY JANE MADAME"

The croque madame and croque monsieur are classic French inventions that are quick, classy, tasty wins to have up your chefs' sleeve. They make excellent hybrid meals that I like to call "dinner sandwiches" They are quick, easy to make, comforting and very, very filling!

With a literal translation meaning "mister crunch," the legendary "Croque Monsieur" is probably the better-known version and is a delicious amalgamation of textures. Think of a gourmet version of a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. You start with lashings of finely sliced ham, melty cheese, and a crispy satisfying crunch from the freshly toasted bread. Add to this the indulgence of a traditional Mornay sauce: béchamel sauce pimped up with melted Gruyère cheese, and you have one hell of a sandwich! So much so that it is more like a meal between 2 pieces of bread.

The "Croque Madame" is essentially the same as its male counterpart but with the welcome addition of a fried egg slapped on top of the cheesy summit of this decadent culinary creation. Runny yolks are a must!

The perfect indulgence, a cannabis infused croque madame, is a great excuse to get to grips with making your own infused "white sauce" or "bechamel" sauce. Known as one of the "mother sauces" of French cuisine, bechamel is a versatile base that you can use once you've mastered it in anything from fish pie and lasagne to creamy pasta dishes. Whether you are cooking with infused ingredients or clean.

Bechamel sauce is an excellent carrier sauce for creating cannabis-infused dishes as it has a high fat content. If you didn't already know, cannabinoids find it easy to bind to fats in the cooking process, producing more effective, potent results.

BETTY'S BECHAMEL SAUCE MAKES ROUGHLY 500ML Ingredients

500ml whole milk

• onion, halved

• 1 bay leaf

• 2 cloves

• 50g butter- substitute with canna-butter partially/totally to suit individual tolerance 50g plain flour

METHOD

• In a small pan on the stove, bring the milk to a boil with the onion, bay leaf and cloves. (Bay leaf and cloves are optional but will add depth of flavour to the sauce.) Once at a boil, turn off the heat and leave to infuse for 20 mins.

• Melt the butter in another pan and then sieve in the plain flour. Stir continuously until the mixture forms a paste- called a "roux". Continue to cook for about 2 mins.

• Remove the onion, cloves, and bay leaf from the milk. Add the infused milk to the roux a little at a time, constantly stirring as you go until you have a smooth sauce. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring continuously until the sauce thickens. Finally, season to taste.

Your Bechamel sauce can be frozen in portions and used as a base to make many other infused dishes such as lasagne, parsley sauce, moussaka, soups,

chowders, tuna mornay, Fish pie, Pasta bakes and Chicken pies.

So now you have your saucy-infused base, let's get on with assembling the sandwich of dreams...

Ingredients

• 4 slices of thick fresh bread

• 2 tbsp. butter softened

• 2 tsp of Dijon mustard

• 250ml of bechamel sauce

• 6 thin slices of ham

• 32g shredded Gruyère (for the filling)

• 32g.shredded Gruyère (for the sauce)

• 32g. shredded Monterey jack or cheddar cheese (for the topping)

• 2 large eggs

• 1 handful of chopped fresh chives (for sprinkling)

METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 180°c. In a small saucepan over medium, bring your bechamel sauce to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in 32g of Gruyère cheese. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Your bechamel sauce has now become mornay sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

• Toast your bread until lightly golden on both sides. Spread half a tablespoon of butter on each slice, flip two pieces over and spread each with 1 teaspoon mustard and 1 tablespoon of Mornay sauce; these are now your sandwich base layers. Add 3 slices of ham and the remaining Gruyère, then top them, butter side down, with your other 2 pieces of bread.

Spread the tops of each sandwich with around 2 tablespoons of Mornay sauce, then add your topping cheese (cheddar or Monterey Jack). You can layer this with more Gruyère if you wish. Now transfer your sandwich structures to a baking sheet, place in the middle of your preheated oven, and cook until the cheese melts and the top is golden and bubbling.

• Meanwhile, melt some oil in a non-stick pan on medium-high heat. Crack your eggs into the pan and fry until whites are set. This should take about 3 minutes. Finally, season with salt and pepper and top each sandwich with a fried egg. Sprinkle with your chopped chives for that bistro finish.

That's it. Heaven on a plate, and hopefully, if you have dosed it right, you will be in a state of bliss long after consuming this gourmet high-class toasted sandwich delight.

Whilst on my weed-induced munchie adventures, I have discovered that mango chutney is the perfect accompaniment for this sandwich. I know this sounds crazy but trust me. I love mango chutney and the salty sweet mix is incredible. It may not be authentically French, but there is just something about the zesty, sharp tang of the mangoes and spices that marries up perfectly with all the warm salty, savoury melty madness contained between these two pieces of toasted bread.

Enjoy!! Try it now, thank me later.

By Rich Hamilton

REDMAN CHALLENGES U.S. GOVERNMENT WITH HIS PROCANNABIS POLITICAL PARTY

Regarding rappers and weed culture, Redman is somewhat of an authority. In his prime, the New Jersey native helped popularise the plant with his long-time friend and collaborator Method Man, following in the footsteps of hip-hop pioneers like Cypress Hill and Snoop Dogg.

A rapper, DJ, record producer, and actor, Redman came to notoriety in the early 90s as an artist signed to the legendary "Def Jam" label. He is well known for his work with Method Man and as a member of the "Def Squad" in the late 1990s.

Redman has been advocating for weed musically for three decades, putting out classic pot anthems like "How to Roll a Blunt," "How High", and "Smoke Buddha".

In 2001, Red and Method Man starred in the stoner comedy film How High, featuring the pair playing two stoner students attempting to survive at Harvard.

Now in 2022, cannabis has become one of the most popular features of Hip Hop culture, and Redman has made no secret of his desire to position himself on the frontline.

He was recently named as the new executive producer and director of "The Dab Roast", a show where celebrity guests take dab hits while answering questions.

Most people would expect Redman to follow many of his hip-hop brethren and launch his cannabis brand; however, that would've been too easy for him.

"The reason why you have never seen a Redman product, a Redman vape pen, a Redman strain, anything is that I've been holding my brand for the bigger purpose, which is NCP, the National Cannabis

Party, and what we are doing is, we are about giving the plant back to the people, the structure of the cannabis industry and education. Whether you are black, white, or green, if you need education, we are about having the right platform to deliver that to you."

Redman established the National Cannabis Party (NCP) in 2021 with his sister Sephida Artis-Mills to help educate people about all the benefits of cannabis. The party has already seen some success in creating a bill concerning the rules and regulations of legal cannabis in New York, which the newly reformed state has accepted.

Redman proclaims that the NCP is making history with their bill being accepted, which only fuels the rapper's desire to hit politicians even harder with this cause. The U.S. government has a messy history with cannabis, and the public has become all too familiar with politicians making empty promises about legalisation.

The NCP want to stop that ongoing trend and is not afraid to go up against the big established political parties to make it happen.

The NCP is a grassroots organisation that is not backed or funded by anyone. They are just trying to make a real change. Everything that they're doing is for purpose, not profit.

They aim to change the landscape of cannabis reform and hold politicians accountable when they do not follow through on campaign promises.

"If you're on the side-lines complaining and not doing anything, you will be pissed off all the time. We are not in competition

with anyone or any cannabis business. We do not deal with the plant directly or get financial backing from the plant. But we can challenge the government on why they got a patent on a plant that's supposed to be accessible to the world. We can challenge why cannabis is still a Schedule I drug.

Redman and the NCP now have the power to potentially put someone from their organisation in the White House, which is a genuinely ground-breaking vision for the cannabis industry.

"I'm in the business of helping people and want to be behind the gun. We want to put someone in the seat that deserves it. We need a president that has smoked weed and is transparent. Someone that can understand what's required in this cannabis industry".

Redman says that he is intrigued at how far things have come with weed. Back in the 90s, no one could have believed it would someday become legal, never mind a billion-dollar industry.

In the 1990s, most of the population didn't understand cannabis. Rappers like Snoop Dogg, B-Real, and Method Man put the cannabis industry in the limelight. Still, at the same time, they missed out on these big money endorsements as governments, medical science, and corporate companies had not yet realised the full potential of weed. "You may have just said that cannabis was crack in the 1990s".

Now, however, Redman and the NCP have a real chance at making a real difference. It's refreshing to see a celebrity who, instead of just looking to make some money off their association with weed, is trying to do something that could change the political landscape for everyone, improving access and awareness of this fantastic plant.

"I feel that I made a great choice in my life by dealing with this plant. Cannabis brings people together. Through the music, while everyone was talking about being a gangster... we just stuck to talk of weed and the fun it brings."

By Rich Hamilton

SOFT SECRETS MEDIA

HERE IS SOFT SECRETS RUN DOWN OF WHAT TO WATCH, CREATE AND READ THIS MONTH.

WATCHHOW TO CHANGE YOUR MIND- NETFLIX

This new documentary will make you want to do drugs. Not in the sense of going partying all weekend, but to open your mind and find new ways of thinking and living.

Based on the book of the same name, "How to Change Your Mind", wants to change how you look at psychedelic drugs. It uses streamlined storytelling and efficient explanations to examine compellingly psychedelic drugs' healing potential.

The mini-series totals four episodes and primarily focuses on psychedelic therapy. That is the use of psychedelic drugs to treat mental disorders. Each episode looks at a specific drug, namely Psilocybin, LSD, MDMA and Mescaline.

The documentary takes us through each drug's discovery and turbulent history, culminating in its recent resurgence in popularity as a medical research candidate.

The stories are supported by various chemists, psychologists, researchers, and regular people who volunteered to try psychedelic therapy.

We hear the story of a man suffering from severe OCD who found that after one session using psilocybin, his symptoms began to reduce, eventually disappearing altogether.

Similarly, we hear other stories of those who have used these substances under controlled conditions to overcome various mental health issues.

This documentary brings all the facts, figures and experiences together, making a solid case for the stance that psychedelics may have real potential at getting to the source of mental disorders.

CREATESTREET ART SKETCHBOOKPACKSPROTECT.COM

Sick of spending hours just scrolling Netflix looking for something to watch without success?? Then do something more productive with your downtime.

If you are like me, you have no doubt visited Barcelona more than once to enjoy its laidback cannabis culture and soak up the sights and vibes of this beautiful, incredible, busy, vibrant city. You will have noticed if you have been there that graffiti

and street art are everywhere. It's hard to find a clean door sign, post, or shutter anywhere in the city centre. Graffiti is as part of the city as anything else.

Street Art Sketchbook -Barcelona Edition gives you a chance to focus and do something creative in those times when you are just chilling out, high or not. Street Art Sketchbook, Barcelona edition, takes you on a virtual tour of this beautiful city's backstreets and forgotten corners. Celebrating the ordinary, the abandoned and the yet-to-be-discovered.

The book contains a mix of city landscapes from clean wall spaces and shutters that have already been painted, setting a trueto-life Barcelona scene. There are also night shots, trains, garbage trucks, vans, a bus, a boot, a sticker wall and even a brass lion! It gives you a feel of what it's like to paint in Barcelona. Journey through this book with page after page of readyto-draw-on templates, including unique urban landscapes and spaces.

The user-friendly style of the street art sketchbook provides a unique experience for all skill levels, designed to bring out the artist in everyone! Graffiti is probably one of the most misunderstood forms of art or self-expression. This book is a series of blank canvases upon which to unleash your artistic potential, however raw or unrefined. Think of it as a "way in" for anyone interested in graffiti or street art to experiment and make these locations

come alive with their unique styles of creativity. This book is best used with paint, pens, pencils, and anything else you can find to make a mark on the city.

READTHE DIRT- MOTLEY CRUE- AMAZON

An oldie but a goodie, if you are looking for the ultimate memoir of "sex, drugs and Rock and Roll", this book is about as close to perfect as you are going to get. Critically acclaimed and recently made into a movie, this is a MUST read if you are looking for an entertaining holiday or airport read. One of the most iconic and influential metal bands of the 1980s reveals everything in the ultimate confessional." The Dirt" probes the rebellious lives of all four band members. Mötley Crüe was the voice of a comingof-age Generation X. They were the faces of backwards-masking pentagram glam rock and the architects of MTV's first "power ballad." Their personal lives were just as high profile as romances with 90's TV icons like Heather Locklear and Pamela Anderson. Their tussles involved every celeb of note from that era, from Axl Rose to 2LiveCrew. Their legendary exploits involved collecting automatic

weapons, acquiring long arrest records, unparalleled drug abuse, and backstage antics that surpassed every other rock act out there. This book also includes over 100 photos, many of which have never been published previously.

Soft Secrets is published by Discover Publisher BV Galvaniweg 11, 5482 TN Schijndel, Netherlands Telephone: +31-(0)73-5498112 E-mail: info@softsecrets.nl Web: www.softsecrets.com

Editor: Cliff Cremer

Contributors: Jorge Cervantes, Stoney Tark, Rich Hamilton, Mr. José, Green Born Identity (G.B.I.), Betty Green, TricomaTeam, Tommy L. Gomez, Fabrizio Dentini, Boisterix and others.

Photography: iStock

Editorial adress: readers@softsecrets.nl

Advertisements: E-mail: info@softsecrets.nl

A word from the publisher: Soft Secrets is a bi-monthly free magazine which is published in The Netherlands (called Highlife), Germany, France, Italy, Spain, UK, Poland, Czech Republic and Chile.

World wide there is a process going on of relative liberalisation towards the use of cannabis, be it for medicinal or recreational purposes. Several countries legalised cannabis as a way of separating soft and hard drugs, as it has proven to

do in Holland. Other countries legalised the use of medicinal cannabis, including the right to grow cannabis plants for one’s own use.

The publisher wants to highlight the pro cess of normalisation of cannabis use. This assumes that the publisher does not necessarily agree with everything that appears in articles and advertisements. The publisher therefore distances him self explicitly from published statements or images that might give the impression that an endorsement is being made for the use and/or production of cannabis.

Nothing from this publication may be copied or reproduced in any format with out prior permission from the publisher and other copyright holders. The pub lisher is not responsible for the content and/or point of view of advertisements. The editor takes no responsibility for unsollicited submissions.

The publisher has endeavored to reach all copyright holders of photos and/or images. Those who still believe they are entitled to these rights may contact the publisher.

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