Nous avons commencé la culture par la germination de 12 graines. Après un peu plus de S semaines de croissance, nous avons eu SS boutures. En 10 jours, toutes les boutures avaient des racines et nous avons choisi les plus homogènes pour remplir nos deux mètres carrés. 40 plantes au total. Dès le début, nous leur avons donné un régime lumineux de 12/12 avec une lampe de 600 w connectée à un rail de lumière. Cette plante accepte vraiment beau­coup de fertilisant et est d’une vigueur extraordinaire. Au 12ème jour de florai­son, on pouvait voir les premières gouttes de résine… Incroyable! A partir de ce moment, le développement des glandes de résine est devenu tellement abondant qu’elle a réussi à me faire peur car j’ai cru qu’il pouvait s’agir d’oïdium. Dès la 7ème semaine, nous ne lui avons plus donné que de l’eau à osmose inversée. Les plantes ont été prêtes après 52 jours de floraison et avaient atteint une hau­teur de maximum 28 cm, ce qui était beaucoup plus qu’on espérait. Comme c’était la première fois que nous utili­sions un rail pour la lampe, nous avions prévu un rendement de 15-20gr par plante, et nous en avons eu 20-25gr. Nous avons choisi cette variété parce que la banque de semence dit que c’est une Indica pure avec une grande valeur médicinale et comme je souffre d’hyperactivité chronique, je l’utilise comme médicament. Après de longues semaines de séchage et au moins un mois d’affinage, les têtes montraient avec orgueil leur resplendissante cape de résine, lançant un défi à tout can­nasseur expert pour sa douceur et son odeur enivrantes. Les odeurs de levure et de fromage dominent les autres nuances d’agrumes qui ressortent plu­tôt quand on la fume. Environnement: 250 W HM – 600 W APS Méthode: sea of green Substrat: plaques de coco Nutriments: Aqua Grow A+B, Aqua Flores A+B et Cannazym; renforçateur de boutures, Delta THC, PK 13-14 y pH- de Organik Nature, Final Phase AN Durée de floraison: 52 jours Structure de la plante: Indica Structure des têtes: denses et couvertes de résine ArSme: levure avec un arrière goût de fromage et de légères nuances d’agrumes Effet: légèrement dévastateur Rendement: 2 0-25 gr de fleurs sèches par plante

Strain Hunters are people that can’t sit still for too long. After completing the Malawi expedition in 2008, Arjan and myself began to think about the next mission. We had many destinations in mind, because the list of places where amazing landraces are awaiting is a long one. After much thinking and talking we selected a few “top-spots” on our list, and started gathering information and ideas. It became very clear that there was one place that could not be overlooked: the region of the Himalayas, particularly the Indian side, where the best charras and creams are from. Ever since 1993, when the Green House won the Cannabis Cup with a cream from Malana, Arjan wanted to explore the origins and the history of this wonderful hashish. His last trip to India was in the 1980s, when he acquired the genetics that gave birth to the Himalaya Gold, one of the most acclaimed outdoor strains ever produced. So we decided time had come to go strain hunting in India. Now we needed a good guide, someone that could show us the right path to the highest fields, the tastiest creams, and the holiest of mountains. A few years back, during one of the Cannabis Expos we attended in Europe, we met Italian book writer and connoisseur Franco Casalone, author of the most famous books on cannabis written in Italy. He lived in the Indian Himalayas for several years, living the life of a true charsí (master of charras-making). We suddenly had the feeling that he was the right man for our mission, so we contacted him. Loving the chance to get back to his beloved mountains, he accepted to be our guide, to become a Strain Hunter, and to make our dream possible. What started as an idea was now becoming reality. Time to organize a scouting-trip to have a look at the area and prepare the path for the realization of the second Strain Hunters documentary. In June 2009 we boarded a flight to Delhi, and the adventure began. We spent two weeks trekking the mountains and the valleys of Himachal Pradesh, meeting several key-players in the area, from mountain guides to growers, and we visited more than 30 fields for the production of charras and cream. In this area the seeds are planted in May, so we could see tens of thousands of young plants already growing in the fields. For most of the fields we visited, we sampled the charras made the previous season. This way one can select the best fields and the best growers and charras makers. Planning for a documentary involves truly challenging logistics: every route has to be walked in advance, camp sites have to be checked, and because electricity is needed to charge batteries and back-up of tapes it’s not easy to stay too long away from civilization. Moreover, moving through rough mountain terrain with a whole camera-crew can prove difficult, unless every detail is considered and every issue is addressed and solved beforehand.

Our planet is home to millions of species of animal and plants with their own habitat, and each plays a unique role in the perfect design of nature. Unfortunately many species of plants and animals are victim of uncontrolled human development. Cannabis, one of the most ancient plants known to man, used in every civilization all over the world for medicinal and recreational purposes, is facing a very real threath of extinction. Besides the threath posed by human development, one of the goals of the United Nations, published years ago in official reports, was to wipe out the cannabis plant from the face of the earth by the year 2010. In reality this is far from being achieved, because man keeps using the cannabis plant for religious, medicinal and recreational purposes no matter what the law says. Most cultures cannot comprehend how a plant can be made illegal. In most people’s perception, plants and animals stand above a status of legality or illegality, they just exist in a higher design of nature that goes beyond human laws and regulations. Nevertheless most governments of cannabis-producing countries are implementing drastic measures to destroy crops. Dangerous chemicals are sprayed over fields and over the farmers themselves in most of the third world countries, and the poorest people of the planet are the ones paying the highest price for cultivating a plant that does not kill. But in the economy of scale, where demand dictates supply, the poorest people of the planet have no choice but to cultivate cannabis as a cash crop to feed their children and send them to school. Communities that are isolated in remotes areas in the poorest regions of the planet are often the keepers of very special landraces. The worldwide prosecution on the cannabis plant generates the need to go hunting for the real landraces that are left in the most remote corners of the planet. These strains, isolated for decades and sometimes for centuries, costantly inbreeding, are at the origin of all the thousands of variations that we know today in the cannabis industry. In these landraces there are hundreds, maybe thousands of unique cannabinoid profiles that have never been evaluated by the pharmaceutical industry; nevertheless they could be of enormous help in the future, when the knowledge about the medicinal properties of the cannabis plant will advance further. One of these cannabinoid profiles could be hiding the next miracle drug for the treatment of very serious diseases. The concept of strain hunters stems from the need to preserve nature’s gifts to man, in a quest for a better future. Being a strain hunter is a personal challenge, a passion, and a way of life. Strain hunting is a very delicate task, one that involves social skills, a travelling-oriented mindframe and a pinch of crazy. Besides being physically fit, the strain hunter has to speak several languages, be able to blend and socialize in different environments, and has to be willing to commit to a lifestyle on the fast-lane. From the jungles of Africa and Asia to the mountain ranges of South America, the strain hunters are on a mission to bring back the most important and isolated cannabis landraces known to man. The logistical challenges involved in strain-hunting are quite considerable, but Arjan, owner and founder of the Green House empire, has been devoting a great deal passion, time and resources to this task. After two decades spent strain hunting for the breeding programs of the Green House Seed Company, it is now time to show the world what the hunt is all about. Strain Hunters is a brand new series of documentaries, real-life reports of the search for the greatest lost cannabis strains, a deep insight in the typical « day at the office » of the breeders at Green House Seed Co. The first episode of this serie tells the quest for the Malawi Gold, one of the legendary African strains much appreciated in the 70s and 80s, very well known in the cannabis subculture, and yet still waiting to be standardized and introduced to the markets to be enjoyed by growers, breeders and patients worldwide. visit Green House Seed

Strain Hunters

We began growth by successfully germinating 12 seeds. After a little over five weeks’ growth, we had 55 cuttings. In ten days, all the cuttings had taken root and we selected the most homogenous to fill two square metres. 40 plants in all. From the very beginning, we used a system of 12/12 lighting with a 600 W bulb connected to a light rail. This plant can take a great deal of fertiliser, as it is extraordinarily vigorous. At 12 days of flowering, the first drops of resin appeared… Incredible! From now on, the deve¬lopment of the resin glands was so amazing that it scared me; I thought it could be mould. From the seventh week onwards, we only watered with osmosis water. The plants were ready at 52 days’ of flowering, with a maximum height of 28 cm and results far better than expected. As it was the first time we had used the light rail, we had forecast performance of 15-20 g per plant, whereas we actually ended up with 20-25 g. We chose this variety because the seed bank says that it is a pure Indica with high medicinal value, and as I suffer from chronic hyperactivity, I used it as a medication. After several weeks’ drying and less than a month to ripen, the marijuana looked proud to Show off the splendid resin layer, challenging any expert cannabis-connoisseur to a sweet, inebriating duel. The aromas of yeast and cheese dominate over other citrus hints that are revealed to a greater extent upon smoking. World of Seeds Conditions: 250W HM – 600W APS Method:   green sea Medium:   coco shelves Nutrients: Aqua Grow A+B, Aqua Flores A+B and Cannazym; cuttings strengthener, Delta THC, PK 13-14 and pH- by Organik Nature, Final Phase AN Flowering time: 52 days Plant structure: Indica Marijuana structure: dark, resin-covered marijuana Aroma:   yeast with hints of cheese and slightly citric allusions Effect: gently devastating Performance: 20-25 g dried flowers per plant World of Seeds