In this issue:

GROWING MEDICINE FOR FREE

The The plants shown in this article were
all grown for free. The freedom that this
involves will form the basis of this Medicinal
Marijuana report. The only thing that was not
free during this process was time. Otherwise
all of the physical and material aspects of
cultivation were free.

28
HOW TO MAKE WATER HASH
To make water hash, we use a method which
utilizes ice cold water to loosen the THC crys-
tals from the leaf trimmings or buds, and then
separate them with the use of two sieves. One
sieve lets the crystals through and keeps the
leaf material out, while the other sieve catch-
es the crystals and lets the water through.
The process is similar to that used by a skuff
machine, better known as a pollinator. Making
water hash is work-intensive but the quality of
the product is very high.



12
With so many weed magazines floating
around these days, how do you choose
which to read? Perhaps youre only a
smoker for now, but want to learn more;
or, as with many gardeners around the
world, you simply wish to keep up with
the latest cultivation techniques. Weve
made the choice easy for you here at
Soft Secrets HQ in Amsterdam by intro-
ducing an American installment of our
international family of publications.
Never before have US growers had such
unlimited access to all the latest innova-
tions of the world-wide Cannabis indus-
try, brought to you from the birthplace
of the movement.
Back in 1985 (!), Soft Secrets NL was
offered to the Dutch public for the
first time, a stapled zine version of the
full-color, professional Cannabis news-
paper that has taken over the world.
Perfectly complementing the inaugural
indoor hybrids of the decade, Dutch
growers finally had all the information
they needed in one convenient place.
Demand, however, was increasing.
In 2002 Soft Secrets UK was saturating
England, educating the Brits on Dutch
techniques and paving the way for
many more language versions: Spanish,
French, Italian, German, Polish, and
Czech. Each countrys industry has its
own unique aspects, so Soft Secrets cov-
ers content relevant to readers in their
own particular region. As information
Welcome to new
readers and old fans
of Soft Secrets!
Dear American friends. What you
now hold in your hands is the
brand-new American edition
of the worlds largest and most
successful Cannabis publication.
Its free to anyone over the age
of 18 and will unlock the secrets
of the international Cannabis
industry. This will be your new
favorite pot publication!
Continues on page 3
THE ORIGINAL CANNABIS NEWSPAPER FOR GROWERS AND SMOKERS, SINCE 1985
ISSUE 1

2011
18+ For adults only. Soft Secrets is published
six times a year by Discover Publishers USA, Inc.
FROM THE EDITOR
Using a deck of
playing cards, lets
take a look at some
principles of basic
Mendelian genetics.
Breeders solitaire 38
In this series for
the organic grower
each issue will fea-
ture another weed
farmer from the
Netherlands. This
time it is the turn of
Arthur 8
Medical Marijuana
Doctor 31
3
FROM THE EDITOR
Power Flower is a highly popular commercial
strain. Easy, quick and reliable. This variety is
suitable for indoor and outdoor grows and does
extremely well in good soil, but once planted
in a hydroponics set-up, Power Flower will just
explode with buds and THC.
Mostly indica, Power Flower has a sativa
influence which energizes her effect adding a
nice high to an incredibly powerful body stone.
Power Flower is perfect for beginners and a
dream come true for professionals.
Power Flower produces reliable, heavy yields (up
to 150 gr. per plant! ) of very dense, sticky buds.
All in all, a Winner!
Genetic background: Indica dominant
with sativa influence
Height: 100 140 cm.
THC: around 15%
Flowering time: 7 to 8 weeks
Yield: 500 gr per M2
Harvest outdoor: start of October
Photo: Royal Queen Seeds
F
l
o
w
e
r

P
o
w
e
r
Welcome new readers 1 FROM THE EDITOR
Page 3 girl 3 STRAIN REPORT
A note on self-medication 5 MEDICINAL
CMCR Center for Medicinal Cane 6 MEDICINAL
Arthur and his black outdoor weed 8 MADE IN HOLLAND
The Attitude Seedbank 10 INTERVIEW
DIY: Water Hash 12 DO IT YOURSELF
Soil and Hydroponic Gardening 14 SERIOUS GARDENING
Mountain High 16 PRODUCT FLASH
Landrace genetics 18 INTERNATIONAL GROWERS
Nirvana Seeds 20 INTERVIEW
Easy bud 22 GROW WITH STEVE & DAWN
Column: Wernard 24 PROFILE
DNA Genetics 27 SHOW REVIEW
Growing medicine for free 28 MEDICINAL
Medical Marijuana Doctor 31 MEDICINAL
Detoxification: Clean Up Your Act 32 BACKGROUND
DP Jorges Diamond 33 STRAIN REPORT
Rudalis 37 GENETIC BACKGROUND
Breeders Solitaire 38 GROW REPORT
A stoned selection 41 MUSIC
Dear Soft Secrets 42 FROM OUR READERS
Happy in the haze 45 COMIC
Colofon 46 FROM THE EDITOR
IN THIS ISSUE:
Continued from front page
spreads, so does interest, and European
growers always scramble around their
home towns in an effort to grab the
freshest copy of Soft Secrets from their
local grow shops.
For years, readers from all over the globe
have depended upon us to deliver
dozens of pages of detailed product
descriptions, international and local
Cannabis news, improved cultivation
techniques and equipment, grow shop
reviews, strain guides, medical updates,
legislation changes, hemp innovations
and much, much more. Our contribu-
tors keep a vigilant eye on the Cannabis
industry all over the world, delivering
the freshest and most relevant informa-
tion to you, our loyal fans.
Now growers, activists and enthusiasts
in the USA have access to the same
professional advice in one conveni-
ent newspaper. As legislation relaxes
around the United States, more and
more people are seeking an honest, reli-
able and authoritative source of infor-
mation regarding anything and every-
thing related to our favorite plant. Due
to our Dutch and European connections,
the Soft Secrets empire has become the
worlds largest and most successful
Cannabis publication, famous among
the most important seed banks and
industry giants. We are able to supply
you with the most intimate interviews,
detailed reviews and specialized guid-
ance from your heroes and mentors,
tailored to educate all levels of experi-
ence and interest.
At Soft Secrets USA, we understand
just how tense and stressful clandes-
tine cultivation can become. In order
to keep things light, youll also find
music reviews, competition results from
around the world, festival and parade
highlights, comics and more.
Contact your local compassion clubs,
grow shops and garden centers to receive
your free copy of Soft Secrets USA. If you
cant find it, free downloads of the entire
archive are available on our website. So
welcome American readers, happy read-
ing and lets keep things green!
The Soft Secrets team, Amsterdam
www.softsecrets.nl
5
THE SATIVA DIVA
5
With the advent of relaxed legislation and
attempts by several states to actually dis-
tribute medical Cannabis, one concern
is that some might feign an ailment in
order to illegally gain access to a legal
prescription; another is that some patients
whether ganja veterans or rookies
might incorrectly dose themselves, per-
haps worsening their condition (not to
mention striking a blow to the legalization
effort). At present, more folks than ever are
aware of the potential relief that Cannabis
can bring to those suffering from multiple
sclerosis, arthritis, AIDS wasting syndrome,
asthma and many more. Unfortunately
there are other health issues, such as
migraine headaches or Alzheimers, that
are not as straightforward when it comes
to medical Cannabis treatment.
Although one thing is usually agreed upon
throughout medical Cannabis literature: if
a patient gets high or stoned, therapy is
by-passed and the realm of overdosing is
reached. That is to say that any time a user
achieves this altered state or in fact sim-
ply becomes aware of the psychoactive
effects taking hold, medicine is no longer
the priority as too much has already been
consumed. If recreational use is what
youre looking for, thats fine. In order for
the medical industry to continue gaining
credibility and positive press, however,
all Cannabis users must make an effort
to promote healthy and informed self-
medication, to whatever degree possible.
For unseasoned users, a smaller amount
is often prescribed; whereas with rec-
reational smokers who may be used to
quite strong products a more aggressive
approach can be taken. A good rule to
follow is that the therapeutic effects of
Cannabis are easier to build upon, but
more difficult to dilute if too much is
administered. If this should happen, sugar
water or fruit juice often brings sobri-
ety back in a timely manner, although
caffeinated beverages should be avoided
in order to not compound any negative
effects. Much information on this subject
can be found via hundreds of scientific
texts, thousands of medical journals on
the internet, your local compassion club
and even some grow shops.
For medical patients in any degree of dis-
comfort or poor health, smoking is defi-
nitely counter-productive. One downside
of this is that inhaled Cannabis delivers
much more immediate relief for certain
ailments, such as asthma. The most effec-
tive and health-conscious way to inhale
Cannabis, therefore, is through a vapor-
izer. Technically aromatherapy with weed,
vaporizers heat the plant product to a
range of between 356 and 428F, releas-
ing the essential oils (cannabinoids) from
within their shiny trichome membranes in
steam form, instead of smoke.
The trichomes, or resin glands, grow on
pistillate structures on female Cannabis
flowers, protecting her from winged pred-
ators and producing plant toxins that have
allowed the plant to survive and evolve
over the millennia. While male Cannabis
flowers, or pollen sacs, also produce stami-
nate trichomes, the drug content for which
weed has become famous is distinctly
lacking, leaving the male plants relegated
to waiting for a breeder to introduce some
females so that new seeds can be made.
Female Cannabis flowers vary widely in
coloring, size, smell, taste and effect, but
the majority tend to resemble the buds
or nuggets for which the drug is known.
Those paying close attention will notice
that when smoking high quality pot, two
distinct effects can be achieved: the heavy,
stony indica type and the floaty, cere-
bral high of the sativa varieties. (More on
the differences between these two can
be found throughout the pages of Soft
Secrets USA.)
While a doctor should always be consult-
ed before beginning treatment, enough
patients have received relief for hundreds
of symptoms over thousands of years,
laying a foundation for modern Cannabis
therapy. Sativa strains tend to be pre-
scribed to those suffering from ailments
in need of bronchial dilation, anti-emetic
properties (anti-nausea) or pain relief;
while the indica varieties provide mus-
cle relaxation, seizure and spasm control
and sleep aid. Since such a distinct effect
is often required or desired for differ-
ent ailments, and due to the individual-
ity of each patient, dosage and strains
will vary widely by case. Careful, notated
experimentation is often the only way for
each person to find what works for them,
although over the years other patients
have provided feedback that is now help-
ing those in the medical community with
this difficult task.
Since smoking is bad for anyone, healthy
or otherwise, and the vaporizer some-
times delivers the opposite therapeutic
effect than required, space cakes and tea
have also secured a permanent slot in
the medical Cannabis world. Grow room
trimmings are reduced into butter, result-
ing in a big batch of green, refrigerated
medicine that can be baked into a cake or
separated into doses for freezing. Eating
pot takes a lot longer twenty minutes to
three hours before the impact is noticed
or felt, making space products a slightly
less-predictable (and controllable) meth-
od of consuming medi-weed. As with
any method of ingestion, only the high-
est quality and cleanest-grown products
should be used, especially as the cooking
process for space butter can leach leftover
chemicals from the vegetable matter.
Anyone who has ever eaten too much
space cake can tell you that theres not
a whole lot you can do about it, other
than to think happy thoughts and per-
haps sleep it off. Those are trauma tales
from the recreational realm. If youre eat-
ing space products medically, perhaps to
help with fibromyalgia or epilepsy, then
obviously getting stoned isnt a priority.
Small pieces of cake, cookies or whatever
else you can make should be consumed,
up to several times a day, according to
each individual patients needs. There is
absolutely no point in using too much
medicine; moderation is the key.
In many space recipes it is often consid-
ered normal to incorporate up to one
gram of weed butter per slice of cake,
but if the product is highly concentrated
then less is required. Almost daily new
advances are being made in both the cul-
tivation and medical industries, leading to
better and stronger Cannabis medicines.
Between the active spread of medical
information across the globe, and per-
haps the popularity of cooking and bak-
ing shows on television, these days the
possibilities are endless.
However you decide to medicate, remem-
ber that Cannabis is a drug, however
natural. And just because the plant itself
is natural doesnt mean that its always
grown organically. Always get your medi-
cine from a trusted source, and make sure
to educate yourself as much as possible. Of
course, a doctor should always be consult-
ed before electing to try new therapies.
A Note on Self-Medication
Currently, over two-dozen states in the US are upholding some type
of pro-pot legislation, and many people are experiencing the myriad
therapeutic effects of Cannabis for the first time. While safe access
and the removal of punitive policies towards medi-weed users are
becoming appropriate and understandable priorities for those in the
medical industry, not much has been said in the mainstream regard-
ing self-administration.
How to Make Space Tea:
Simmer one gram of ground
Cannabis in one liter (ca. two pints)
of water for 15 minutes. Do not boil;
this releases the chlorophyll and/or
growing chemicals and turns the tea
green and bitter.
Add chamomile, mint or other tea to
adjust/improve the flavor.
Mix in some type of fat to release the
medicinal properties; i.e. whole milk,
butter, heavy cream. Soy alternatives
are also possible.
Dosage, depending upon ailment, is
usually between one and three small
cups per day, or until the desired
effect is achieved.
Store tea in an air-tight container for
several days in the refrigerator. If tea
turns opaque or cloudy, discard.
ONE THING IS USUALLY AGREED UPON THROUGHOUT
MEDICAL CANNABIS LITERATURE: IF A PATIENT GETS HIGH
OR STONED, THERAPY IS BY-PASSED AND THE REALM OF
OVERDOSING IS REACHED
6
BACKGROUND
6
Imagine you are a medical patient expe-
riencing the positive therapeutic effects
of Cannabis for the first time. Unless the
doctor in question is the one prescribing
the weed, you may have a difficult time
even being permitted to speak about the
subject during medical check-ups. These
days, some experienced medi-weed users
are insisting that their doctors hear their
feedback, and are pro-actively research-
ing their ailments and bringing along the
backing scientific evidence to support
their claims.
Much literature exists in the way of
patient testimonies regarding the plants
efficacy; however, many people still
believe that the science has yet to catch
up. This is simply not true, as evidenced
by the University of Californias Center for
Medicinal Cannabis Research, which acts
as a database for scientific studies assess-
ing the safety and accuracy of Cannabis
and its related products from a medical
and biochemical perspective.
The CMCR website is no trouble to navi-
gate and the articles are relatively easy to
understand, compared to Cannabis entries
in certain medical databases that ten
years ago were the only commonly-used
sources of information. Fully accessible
to the public, completed studies are pro-
vided as PDF downloads, including such
titles as: Effects of Medicinal Cannabis on
CD4 Immunity in AIDS, Effects of Cannabis
Therapy on Endogenous Cannabinoids,
Short-Term Effects of Cannabis Therapy
on Spasticity in MS and many more.
Studies that are currently active or ongo-
ing are also noted on the site, such as The
Analgesic Effect of Vaporized Cannabis on
Neuropathic Pain in Spinal Cord Injury.
Its important to keep your research cur-
rent, as previously unknown positives and
negatives of Cannabis therapy are con-
stantly being discovered. In comparison
with the thousands of years the plant has
existed on this planet, the amount that
even scientists concretely know about the
chemical workings of it is relatively low.
Luckily, with more progressive legislation
sweeping across the United States, its
become evident that thorough medical
research is a modern necessity, and long-
held theories are being proven to be fact.
If you need background information on
or are suffering from a specific ailment, or
simply wish to see how the relevant thera-
py and information has changed through-
out the years, a portion of the website is
dedicated to discontinued studies. While
some of these articles may sound famil-
iar Treating Chemotherapy-Induced
Delayed Nausea with Cannabinoids,
Cannabis in Combination with Opioids for
Cancer Pain: A Pilot Study others merely
reveal just how much the average user
doesnt know about alternative applica-
tions of therapeutic Cannabis. Read, for
example, the study on Cannabinoids in
Fear Extinction. It is often possible to learn
more about your own condition by read-
ing up on others, so the variety of articles
provided on the site is more helpful than
perhaps it seems at first glance.
Access to dozens of scientific reports is
a major advantage of the CMCR compi-
lation, and both traditionally pro- and
anti-Cannabis organizations are equally
represented. Peruse titles from authors
as varied as the Canadian Consortium
for the Investigation of Cannabinoids
in Human Therapeutics (CCIC) and the
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).
The Center for Medicinal Cannabis
Research also supports the publication
of other scientific reports, many of which
are investigated in conjunction with the
MDs and PhDs acting as CMCR directo-
rates, coordinating core, scientific review
board and national advisory council.
The latter includes Dale Gieringer, PhD
(CA NORML) and Lester Grinspoon, MD,
Professor Emeritus at Harvard Medical
School, noted author and proponent of
Cannabis medicines.
Interestingly enough, a link to one of
the most infamous threats to Cannabis
legalization the cancer question is also
listed, Dr. Donald P. Tashkin. For over three
decades he strove to uncover a definite
link between smoking Cannabis and lung
cancer, and was certain of its existence. A
pulmonologist for UCLA, Tashkin was par-
tially funded by the NIDA and the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) to permanently
seal the fate of legal weed in America. If
he had succeeded, not only would the
War on Drugs have experienced vindica-
tion, but any efforts to legalize or distrib-
ute medical Cannabis would have been
crushed under likely even more punitive
policies.
The largest of its kind ever to be success-
fully completed, Marijuana Use and the
Risk of Lung and Upper Aerodigestive
Tract Cancers: Results of a Population-
Based Case-Control Study permanently
dispelled the notion that Cannabis smoke
is carcinogenic, although no one will
argue that smoking does not lead to other
respiratory complications, such as chronic
bronchitis. Tashkin fully expected to prove
definitively that Cannabis causes cancer;
however, he and his colleagues not only
found no association between the two,
but revealed an actual protective effect
that the THC provided. Apparently the
much-loved chemical compound acts as
a sort of anti-tumor agent, where cells die
earlier before they age enough to develop
mutations that might lead to lung cancer.
It is favorable and promising research
such as this that has turned former oppo-
nents like Grinspoon and Tashkin into
legalization supporters over the decades.
The CMCR functions as a one-stop online
shop for research and studies at this level
of significance and academic author-
ity. Activism and education have become
much easier and more accessible in the
Cannabis world, thanks in large part to the
internet. In addition, groups or organiza-
tions with a more political or pharma-
ceutical slant can also benefit from other
information provided by the CMCR.
Some of the studies on their website can be
used as a policy template or guide, due to
the detailed coverage of legislation relating
to topics such as bureaucracy surrounding
scientific studies on controlled substances.
DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration)
and FDA (Food & Drug Administration) reg-
ulations are supplied in an effort to clarify
the guidelines and restrictions by which all
US researchers and scientists must abide.
In light of the progress of whole-plant part
medicines like Sativex, Investigational New
Drug (IND) applications are being obtained
from within the Cannabis community at a
growing rate. Links to proper procedures
and relevant info can be found here, as the
CMCR attempts to make it easier for legal
issues to be predicted and avoided. If any
further clarity is needed, the DEA Controlled
Substances Act is also accessible by a single
click of the mouse.
In our modern times there is almost no
excuse to be ignorant when it comes to
medical Cannabis, especially due to recent
advances regarding legalization (Prop. 19
aside). There is no longer any such thing as
just a smoker; we all have a responsibility to
proceed in a respectful and knowledgeable
fashion towards our goal of Cannabis as a
mainstream medication. With organizations
such as the Center for Medicinal Cannabis
Research, its now easier than ever to get
involved and informed, at any level.
CMCR Center for Medicinal
Cannabis Research
If youre looking for scientific proof that Cannabis is a viable medicine
for dozens, if not hundreds, of ailments, then look no further. The
Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research in California has compiled
hard biochemical evidence that medi-weed is a valid therapy for many
sick patients. In addition, they conduct their own studies exploring
the safety and efficacy of Cannabis and its related compounds, plus
alternative means of administration. In order to most thoroughly
examine the issue, the CMCR also collaborates on scientific medical
research with experts in state- and Federal experiments, as well as
those of academic institutions. The Sativa Diva
www.cmcr.ucsd.edu
cmcr@ucsd.edu
Address:
Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research
220 Dickinson Street, Suite B
Mail Code 8231
San Diego, CA 92103-8231
(619) 543-5024
ITS IMPORTANT TO KEEP YOUR RESEARCH CURRENT, AS PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN
POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES OF CANNABIS THERAPY ARE CONSTANTLY BEING DISCOVERED
8
MADE IN HOLLAND
8
The biggest difference between growing
weed outdoors and growing it indoors is, of
course, that you can only harvest your crop
once in a year. It is, in principle, anxious work
because the closer you get to the harvest
period the more nervous you become. (Im
not just talking about myself, practically half
the village does.) That mostly comes from
the light aircraft that sometimes fly so low
that you can read the badges of the national
police force members inside. They know
everything and brought everything under
their surveillance by photographing the
entire district. We have a little bit of luck on
our side. We mostly grow Double Powerplay
(Double Purple) and this is much harder to
recognize from the sky as a weed plant. For
as long as it lasts, at least. We can always
hang artificial roses among the plants as it
gets close to harvest time.
Growing weed outdoors is, in itself, not a
source of great stress. You put the plants
in and you then have pretty much nothing
more to bother about. So long as you pre-
pared the soil in advance a bit, to get things
just to your plants liking.
The real work starts again in autumn: the
harvesting, the drying and the trimming.
You have to keep a close watch on the
weather and the various weather stations
during autumn. Once I almost lost a com-
plete harvest because mold struck, thanks
to the [humidity] being too high. The plant
comes in nature from areas where the
autumn is warm and dry; whilst here we
often have to contend with a damp and
cold autumn. That is precisely the opposite.
You have a much greater chance of mold
infection here, and if it does strike you have
to harvest immediately. That is the disad-
vantage of outdoor weed. It can happen
that you have to harvest before the crop
really hasnt fully ripened. Youve got to... [or]
else everything will just rot away. Then you
end up with not such good quality.
You are always dependent on nature. Last
summer was a really lovely one, but the
end of summer and autumn were great too.
These are the kind of conditions that lead
to marvelous, ripe weed. But we do still get
bad years and then the weight of the weed
is negligible.
Powerplay especially the Double
Powerplay is sacred to us. This plant is, to
my eyes, the variety with the best resistance
to all kinds of sickness. The result is always
perfect and above all it is a plant that you
can harvest before most other varieties; its
ready by the end of September, mid-Octo-
ber or even later. I find it better than any
other variety and I have tried quite a few in
the 20 years that I have been growing.
One other big difference to growing
indoors is the large quantity that needs
drying and trimming all at the same time.
People who try and raise a field of weed
for the first time outdoors underestimate
this part of the process. If it is the first time
you have planted outdoors, my advice is,
try not to grow more than 50 plants. Some
people begin with a couple of hundred
or more. Then when it comes to harvest
time, they discover what a huge amount of
painstaking work is involved.
Harvesting
Come harvest time, first of all we remove
the crown buds, so that the side buds can
still spend a bit more time ripening. Before
we start hanging them up to dry, we pluck
the large leaves off. Actually, this part is a
really social bit of the job. We set to work in
a large group... sometimes we have around
20 trimmers going at it at the same time.
Having said that, I should point out that the
last time we did have around 600 plants to
get through. That was a bit over the top; it
was also just a try-out.
Thanks to the lovely autumn we were able
to harvest in three slices. First the crown
buds, and then working from the top
downwards. It was simply a question of,
each day, taking a walk through the field
and snipping off only the ripe buds. As
long as the weather allowed us to, at least.
Just before the planned harvest I take a
close look at the plants to see how ripe
they are. The riper the better. I have been
known to be dumb enough in the past as
to harvest too early, but of course I do have
to take account of the weather. If I hear on
the forecast that there is expected to be
a period of rain, with a week of 80-90%
chance of rain and the buds are already
pretty well ripened then I just gather
them in. You should never bring your buds
in if it is wet weather. If the buds are full of
water then I guarantee that at least half
of your harvest will rot. And this happens
quickly; within just a couple of days itll
be gone. If I think its going to be wet for a
couple of days and they still need a short
while, then I usually gamble, leaving it until
a sunny period afterward. The last week of
September [or] the first week of October
are the most favorable weeks in which to
harvest. When this time comes around, it
is incredibly busy. Then the whole village is
busy trimming.
I dont just check to see if the little hairs
are already brown, but also whether the
seed cases are ripe. If the Purple has been
allowed to really ripen well, then I reckon
there is not better outdoor weed around.
Then it can be almost black. I do not know
exactly what the percentage of sativa and
indica this variety contains. That is a secret
that the breeder (of the original) let me
in on.
Theft in the Industry
What you also have to take account of
when growing outdoors is the theft of your
almost-ripe buds. We had a lot of trouble
with this in [this past season]. When we
began here growing outdoor weed, only
the people in the immediate vicinity knew
about it. But in the weed world it often
goes that as soon as a few people know
that weed is being grown somewhere,
then half the world soon knows it too. Im
talking mainly about people from the big
cities... not just those around here, such as
Windhoek, Nijmegen and Den Bosch, but
people even make their way from Arnhem
in to the countryside to take a look around
and see if they can uncover a few fields.
Then they return for the almost ripe buds.
[Vacationers] from Amsterdam... are also
involved in this. They only come here in
the summer and spend their weekends
sitting around on a camping site. This is
something we never used to have to deal
with, and we are getting a bit pissed off
with it. Criminality goes up because of it.
Out here in the sticks we want to keep the
weed trade nice and relaxed, without any
hassle. The kids from round here do not go
pinching buds. Their dads or moms often
have a patch of their own, so they can get
hold of their weed from home.
We are also [experiencing a] problem with
industrial-scale weed. This is going to be
the biggest single problem in the future.
A couple of villages down the road have
got [several acres of] this industrial stuff.
Despite being a good six miles or so away,
we can notice it here. Sometimes when
there is a south-easterly wind blowing, sev-
eral fields here in this area get pollinated by
the male pollen. It just has to blow once in
the wrong direction and your plants end
up only producing seed.
In Eindhoven and even as far as Den Bosch
theyre having to deal with this. The weed is
no longer sell-able, theres so much seed in
it. We are the only growers who so far have
managed to stay reasonably seed-free.
The Soil
Location is really important... in Holland.
Where we live happens to be really good.
We are located on sandy ground, on the
moraine of a prehistoric glacier. It is a sandy
spit with a layer of loam under it. That
sand has the same structure, composition
and deficiencies as the plant is used to
in nature. Actually, it is heath land. Once
it was all heath here, but that has been
plowed up and made into agricultural land.
It is, by nature, pretty infertile soil. When we
plant new weed plants in the sandy soil, in
a patch of earth where there have never
previously been weed plants raised, then
in the first year you should do nothing to
it. Do not fertilize nothing and then the
plant will always do [its] best.
The worst thing in the whole growth cycle
that you can encounter is that the soil
becomes really dry, and that you have to
give them water at the beginning. (On
top of the nutrients present they also get
a lot of nutrition out of the air.) We try to
not give them any water at all. Only in the
first two or three days, just until they get
a good start. As soon as you can see that
they are going to make it, dont give them
any more water; even if they look as if they
might be a bit short, just let them get on
with it because then they will be nice and
Arthur and His Black
Outdoor Weed
In this series for the organic grower each issue will feature anoth-
er weed farmer from the Netherlands. This time it is the turn of
Arthur, a 38-year-old bricklayer from a region around Nijmegen,
in the south of the country. Not under the rays of an artificial
light, but in the full glory of sunlight. He shares his outdoor expe-
riences here with Soft Secrets Text & Photos by Smiley Grass
HOW TO MAKE WATER HASH 12 GROWING MEDICINE FOR FREE 28 SOIL AND HYDROPONIC GARDENING: WHATS THE DIFFERENCE? 14
YOU SHOULD NEVER BRING YOUR BUDS IN IF IT IS WET WEATHER. IF THE BUDS ARE
FULL OF WATER THEN I GUARANTEE THAT AT LEAST HALF OF YOUR HARVEST WILL ROT
9
busy sending out roots to go look for it. The
deeper the better. This is what produces
the loveliest plants. The roots go off in
search [of water]; they are active and go
deep into the ground.
The main tap root gets into the loam layer,
which is usually found at a depth of 20 to
30 inches. This loam has such a compact
structure that water is trapped here for a
long time. With many other soil types this
is not the case, and water runs easily away,
so that in a dry summer you are forced to
give water to your plants. Luckily we have
that loam layer, which works as a buffer.
Loam is even finer than clay and has the
same buffering qualities [regarding] nutri-
ent salts. As well as this loam holds water
for longer than clay, for example, or just
sandy soil alone. Of course you dont want
too wet a summer though, otherwise the
water has trouble running off. Then you get
puddles lying around on the surface, and
this is not good.
Clones
I do not use seeds, only clones. [In the win-
ter] we keep the mother plants in a green-
house round at a friends place, where
we use extra light to create a constant 18
hours of sunlight each day. (They need that
in order to be able to remain in the vegeta-
tive stage.) Also, then we know that soon
after winter the whole field is going to be
filled with female plants; we dont need to
do any further checks on them.
At the end of the winter we clone the
mother plants and at the same time make
new mother plants. From these plants we
eventually take the clones we need, as well
as those [that] we share with a couple of
other farmers. We plant these around mid-
May outdoors.
If you want to grow for several years after
each other in the same place then you
have to make sure that the soil is adequate-
ly compensated. Your soil gets increasingly
depleted of nutrients so you have to pro-
cess the soil and enrich. The best way is
actually the classic way, fresh cow dung
spread over your growing patch before the
beginning of winter.
I am fortunate in having a stall with a few
goats, chickens and pot-bellied pigs. I mix
their manure up with some bird guano
that I get from a couple of friendly pigeon
enthusiasts, and then just leave it to fer-
ment. Preferably for three years, so that it
breaks down nicely. You have to look at
it as everything that [you] fertilize today
is not going to do its good work until a
year later. That changes the structure and
the biological life of the soil. The ground
becomes more grainy, and just better for
the purpose we have in mind.
Another possibility is to take the used-up
soil from indoor grow-ops, either by you
or friends who grow indoors, and dump
it over your garden. Add a bit of lime and
blood meal and you have the perfect soil.
What I also use sometimes is Osmocote, a
total fertilizer used in the garden industry
that works for a good five months.
This is a granule that lets its nutrients
slowly dissolve, with nutrients in a 14-9-15
NPK ratio. Its very good for using when
making up the soil for tub-grown plants,
for weed you want to grow on a balcony,
for example. But not for indoor growing,
because the majority of the nutrients will
only become available when the indoor
plant does not actually want any more
nutrient, after eight weeks of bloom and
shortly before harvest time.
Nor should you use dry cow dung, not
directly at least. Its fine to use as a prepa-
ration for a nice garden next year... or for
the years thereafter, because it will be a
good five years before it has been totally
removed from the soil. Then the fresh cow
dung is actually a bit better for being taken
up immediately thanks to the presence of
urea (urine).
The best option then is to mulch your gar-
den in advance in order to avoid having to
add extra nutrients during the growing pro-
cess. Then you can pretty much leave the
plants unattended for the whole summer. If
you do it well, you will end up barely being
able to squeeze through the plants, even
with one plant per square yard (three feet
by three feet). Just let nature take her course.
After the harvest I, first of all, leave the
ground to rest for a while and just do
nothing. In November [or] December I rake
it totally clean and spread some manure
around.... Preferably Ill leave the roots from
the previous crop in the ground too, for the
nitrogen, but because of the annoyance of
legal evidence we no longer do that.
In the spring I give the soil a good turning-
over. Then it is clear how nice and granular
and healthy it is. Sometimes I toss some
pigeon guano around for the large quanti-
ties of lime it contains. That keeps the soil
nice and neutral. The majority of weed
farmers if they want to go the whole
hog and really do things right spread calf
manure, cow manure and horse manure
together. Everything from a dairy farm. My
brother also experimented for a couple of
years with digging rabbit droppings into
his garden. His plants were more than ten
feet high! Thanks to the high concentration
of nitrates they shot up like rockets. We had
to saw them down! ([Unfortunately] the
buds also grew upwards into the air and so
the eventual harvest was, sadly, no bigger
than usual.)
Pots
For pots on balconies in the city it is, of
course, a bit harder to make use of the pun-
gent brown gold from a dairy farm. So too,
guano whether Peruvian seagull poop
or bat shit can stink quite badly when it
is used. In order to fill your pots you can
[most] easily use the complete mixes from
the grow shop, or even put together your
own recipe based on compost made for
geraniums. [Other options are] a compost
that you dilute by a couple of percent with
clay mixed into it, or an ordinary compost
with clay and some lime mixed in, to get a
neutral pH of 6.8 to 7.0.
In order to get relatively good plants then
the [capacity] of the pots must be of 20
liters (5.3 gallons) or more. The bigger the
better also applies in this case. A cement
tub is ideal. Do make sure that whatever
size you use... has good drainage by, for
example, filling the base with hydro-gran-
ules or perlite. Your babies will not like wet
feet at all. They dont like it in the country-
side and they wont like it at your place in
the city, either.
Double Powerplay is actually... very easy
[to clone], certainly when grown in soil.
Particularly with clones, the plant reacts
better to soil than rock wool. The rooting
takes place twice as fast. (Certainly, when
theres a dry springtime you can run into
problems when using rock wool, because
the moisture from the rock wool is sucked
into the soil rather than vice-versa.) Whats
more, the plants just take off... which can
quickly make up a weeks difference. Its as
if the rock wool plant has difficulty in get-
ting used to the soil. You can get very nice
clones off the mother plant, but sadly not
many of them.
I prefer to plant the clones in the wind.
Between the rows in maize (Indian corn)
fields is ideal. Both the planting and the
harvesting of the maize take place at the
same time as the weed. By the constant
movement of the wind, the roots devel-
op a good firm grip and you get a nice
sturdy plant. The plants are woodier, and
it does look as if they are better able to
fight off diseases as a result. An additional
advantage is that the plants, especially in
spring, have all their moisture dried off
them thanks to the blowing of the wind
through and around them. This of course
gives mold less chance of establishing a
foothold.
Yield
The yield varies. If the plants stay short,
are put in late and the summer is a bit dry
throughout, then you have to reckon on
about 6.4 to 7 oz. per plant. That is actu-
ally very poor. But if everything works well
during the summer you can easily count
on double that. I reckon 17.6 oz. a plant
is possible, certainly if you give the plants
a bit of space. At the most one plant per
1.2 square yards, but preferably 1.8 square
yards per plant. Actually its the same story
when growing indoors. If you give them
enough soil, itll turn out alright.
The loveliest plant that I ever had gave me
26.5 oz. (ca. 1.7 lbs.) of fantastic weed. In
general, you can reckon on with a bit of
knowledge and understanding of the soil
and your garden getting 14 oz. off each
plant without any problem. On a balcony
it is certainly possible to get 3.5 oz. per
plant. At least if you take it a bit seriously,
that is. But whatever the pot, tub or vat you
choose to use, it can never be as marvelous
as the yield you can get [from] growing in
real earth. That has, I reckon, mostly to do
with the moisture-holding qualities of the
soil. You simply cannot imitate that. The
self-regulation of the plant is maximized
by this ability.
The best thing you can do is take a sample
of the soil in your garden before you
are due to set out on your grand, weed-
growing adventure and have it analyzed
at a laboratory in order to know how things
sit in your garden and what you can expect
in the coming years. Not everyone is so
fortunate as to have such good soil in their
plot. Now there is something I believe we
have been very lucky with.
TAKE THE USED-UP SOIL FROM INDOOR GROW-OPS,
EITHER BY YOU OR FRIENDS WHO GROW INDOORS, AND
DUMP IT OVER YOUR GARDEN. ADD A BIT OF LIME AND
BLOOD MEAL AND YOU HAVE THE PERFECT SOIL
10
INTERVIEW
What makes someone quit his job and
decide to create the worlds largest col-
lection of Cannabis genetics? Three-and-
a-half years ago, working in occupied
Baghdad was more than enough reason
for Keith to move back to the UK and cre-
ate The Attitude Seed Bank.
SSUSA asked him about the very moment
that changed the lives of collectors look-
ing for all the best strains in one place.
During a much-needed respite from
work in Baghdad, a friend offered him
some weed. It was Christmastime... we
were sat on a roof, just me and this guy... I
thought, why not? We werent doing any
work because all of the teams [had] gone
home... I thought to myself, enoughs
enough. Its a dangerous place; Ive got
to get out at some point.
So I said to myself, what business can
I get into? And because I obviously
enjoyed smoking... I thought, well, why
not open a seed company? If only it
were that easy. I came back to the UK
and basically started from there, in my
bedroom, he recalls. People are very
discriminative towards people who... sell
seeds or have anything to do with the
word Cannabis. People suddenly start
judging you.
Naturally, legality is an ever-present issue,
still frustrating for seed banks in the
UK despite the seeds themselves actu-
ally being legal. Different laws in different
countries complicate the problem. Keith
adds, Its a very difficult industry to be in,
in that sense.
Its not the responsibility of international
seed banks to confirm that customers are
allowed to possess or purchase their prod-
ucts. We cant be responsible for people
who dont follow their laws. Obviously we
do our best for all our customers and we
understand the difficulties people have,
but we... have to leave it up to the custom-
er to make the choice whether its legal
for them and whether theyve checked
that before ordering; we cannot be held
responsible for customers ordering from
us despite the laws of their country, as
laws vary.
Now graduated into a proper profes-
sional space, a staff of 15 extremely help-
ful and cheerful people provides sup-
port regarding telephone queries and
emailed orders. Each order is checked
promptly and personally and each cus-
tomer is treated as a valued individual,
belying the stereotype that everyone in
the Cannabis industry is just interested
in profit. This respectful approach to a
sensitive business is what has propelled
The Attitude towards the top in such
a short period of time. Keith proudly
reminds us, We are the worlds biggest
seed bank; there isnt anybody who even
comes close to us at the moment, and its
going to stay that way. I mean, we are a
very new company but... the difference
when dealing with us is that our primary
focus is our customers, which in turn we
believe has resulted in us being the best
seed bank.
Orders from almost every country
in the world are present in the com-
panys database, proving the necessity
for such a comprehensive seed bank.
Keith nowadays a non-smoker was
never interested in the minimum-effort
approach. Initially I wanted to sell only
the Cannabis Cup winners; thats what I
originally thought: Ill only sell the finest
genetics. After I met loads of different
seed banks I realized... you cant just nar-
row it down to one labels genetics, or
just the Cannabis Cup winners, because
theres so many great genetics out there.
So we had to make the company big-
ger, and now we stock as many genetics
as possible because it gives people a
greater variety. Its got everything under
one roof.
The extensive list of strains from the
best seed companies in the world holds
an irresistible draw; hours can be spent
browsing the menus on The Attitudes
website. Trends in the Cannabis indus-
try are changing constantly; conversely
there will always be growers who pre-
fer to stay with what works for them
and their unique situation. The European
seed companies have been around since
the beginning of the home-growing
movement, and folks deserve to have a
seed bank that offers honest access to
the strains that made quality Cannabis
cultivation possible and worthwhile.
Due to relaxing Cannabis laws around
the world strain collectors are also
enjoying outdoor gardens, made pos-
sible by solid seed stock from labels that
have had the benefit of years of expe-
rience and selection especially the
Dutch brands, now chased closely by
the Spanish. Keith points out that due to
the current trend sales are slightly more
on the indica side... slightly, but obvi-
ously an indica/sativa mix. We also have
feminized seeds, which are very popular
at the moment.
The Attitude also plans to continue flow-
ing with the tides in the market, offering
the most stable and reliable varieties
out of the auto-flowering (crossed with
ruderalis) corner of the industry. While
much has been said about the qual-
ity and stability of both feminized- and
auto-flowering seeds, Keith reminds us
that his job is not to judge. The Attitude
exists simply in order to provide access
and variety, not necessarily to force opin-
ions upon the customers who purchase
their seeds. Besides, the first feminized
and ruderalis hybrids have been replaced
with much more careful crosses.
You always want to have original seeds...
and basically a large proportion now
is going auto-flowering. New technol-
ogy gets placed into these seeds; new
techniques in potency come in to play...
its constantly evolving and things will
always change. Auto-flowering is getting
stronger, definitely.
The Attitude is an incredibly successful
business, destined to go only upwards
from here. Keith naturally had some help-
ful advice for anyone attempting to rec-
reate his success with their own seed
bank. Id say: get up at six oclock every
morning and get your ass in to work, and
be prepared to finish late. Commitment,
drive, ambition and a bit of hard work: its
as simple as that. If you get passionate
enough about anything, youll succeed.
www.cannabis-seeds-bank.co.uk
GOT ATTITUDE?
The Attitude Seed Bank
If youre a grower (at any level of proficiency) and arent yet familiar
with The Attitude Seed Bank, then youve got some catching up to
do. Luckily, just in time for the charter issue of Soft Secrets USA,
proprietor Keith was more than willing to introduce himself and
explain just how his company with 1,500 varieties from over 80
brands became the largest seed bank in the world. The Sativa Diva
AFTER I MET LOADS OF DIFFERENT SEED BANKS I
REALIZED...YOU CANT JUST NARROW IT DOWN TO ONE
LABELS GENETICS, OR JUST THE CANNABIS CUP WINNERS,
BECAUSE THERES SO MANY GREAT GENETICS OUT THERE
WE ARE THE WORLDS BIGGEST SEED BANK; THERE ISNT ANYBODY WHO
EVEN COMES CLOSE TO US AT THE MOMENT, AND ITS GOING TO STAY THAT WAY
12
DO IT YOURSELF
What we need to make water hash is
a bucket with a volume of about 20
liters (4.4 gallons), a set of ice-o-lator
bags or bubble bags, a food mixer, some
leaf waste, ice cubes and ice-cold water.
The colder the water the better, as the
crystals more easily break loose when
they are agitated. For that reason it is a
good idea to put a few large plastic bot-
tles filled with water into your freezer
an hour and a half before you are set to
make the water hash. Mind that you do
not leave them in too long or the water
will freeze.
Fill the bucket with the ice cold water
from your bottles, topping it up with
ordinary tap water. Place the sieve with
the smallest holes in first, as this is the
one that will be catching your THC crys-
tals, and then the sieve with the larger
gauge. You can add some ice cubes now
too to the water, then start adding your
leaf trimmings, then throw some more
ice cubes on top of these. The idea of the
ice cubes is that they make the water as
cold as possible so that the crystals that
come into contact with them will more
easily be knocked free of their vegeta-
tion. In fact, you probably dont need the
ice cubes if you can make sure that your
bucket is about 80% full of water out of
the freezer. This water is so cold it will
hurt your hands if you keep them in it
for more than 20 seconds. Ice cubes melt
really quickly thanks to the churning of
the food mixer and they will last longer
if you use them in this way.
We are now ready to start mixing. Since
the mixing of the leaf trim will take a
good hour and a half or more you need
to build yourself a system whereby you
can fix the mixer in place so that it can
operate without you having to hold onto
it the whole time. There are so many
ways of doing this that I will not go
into it in detail, except to say that what-
ever way you choose, make sure that the
mixer is firmly kept in place.
There are several attachments you can
use for the mixing. Just make sure that
the one you use does not have any
sharp edges on it; an attachment you
use for beating eggs or whipping cream
is ideal. We just want to make sure
that the crystals are beaten loose, not
that the vegetation is emulsified. If you
let this happen you will pollute your
hash, meaning it will be less pure. It is
also worth noting to make sure that
the speed of the mixer is set to slow
or medium and not let it run on high
speed. Once again, we are not aiming to
beat the marijuana into a puree.
By observing the color of the water you
can see how large your yield is going
to be. The darker gold-brown the water
turns, the more crystals there are in it.
By mixing for too long at too high a
speed the chlorophyll from the leaves
will be released and youll get a green
coloration.
In order to give the crystals that have
been beaten free some time to settle
and be caught, you are best off letting
the mixer rest for a few minutes every
half hour. If the mixer is running con-
stantly you can get a suction effect that
lifts the crystals back upwards to be
mixed up with the leaf waste again.
Your choice of bucket should prefer-
ably be a deep, elongated one so that
the loose shaken crystals can sink deep
enough so as not to be whisked back
up once the mixer is switched on again.
A broad, shallow bucket is not recom-
mended; not that it will do any harm,
just that it will take a lot longer to wait
for the crystals to be gathered.
The first time you make water hash will be
a pleasure and an experience in itself. Just
like a gold prospector you will taste the
joy of hauling your sieve to the surface
and beholding your treasure. But once
the novelty has worn off it will become
just another tedious chore that eats into
your valuable time. That is why it is handy
to rig up your mixer to a time switch that
can be programmed with the number of
minutes to run. With this you can set the
mixer to switch itself off for a few minutes
every half hour and then automatically
switch itself back on to continue mixing.
Then you do not have to rush back to your
mixer every 30 minutes. But to reiterate:
make sure that you have 100% confidence
that the mixer is secure.
After a period of time you will be ready
to remove the sieve and harvest your
How to make water hash
To make water hash, we use a method which utilizes ice cold water
to loosen the THC crystals from the leaf trimmings or buds, and then
separate them with the use of two sieves. One sieve lets the crystals
through and keeps the leaf material out, while the other sieve catches
the crystals and lets the water through. The process is similar to that
used by a skuff machine, better known as a pollinator. Making water
hash is work-intensive but the quality of the product is very high. The
most expensive hash you get offered in most Dutch coffee shops is
usually the water hash. Water hash will get you high as a kite, rather
than flat-out stoned. By Bart B.
13
crystals. We take the first sieve the one
with the leaf trim in it making sure that
no leaf matter falls into the sieve with
the crystals. Squeeze the majority of the
moisture out of the vegetation and lay
the sieve down gently somewhere clean
and out of the way. We do not want to
get the underside of the sieve covered
in dirt or dust before we put it back in
the water. Take the sieve with the crystals
out and hold it up, with a firm grasp. All
the water will slowly dribble out, but the
crystals can slow down this drainage. To
speed the process up you can hold the
sieve bag with one hand and with the
other, squeeze gently downwards on the
sieve. After a couple of minutes most of
the water will be out.
Gently press the crystals together while
they are in the sieve. You can use a hand
towel or kitchen roll when doing this to
absorb most of the remaining moisture
out of the wet hash. Once this is done
you can spread the sieve open on a clean
surface of a nice, level table. We can now
use a credit card or something similar to
scrape the hash together into a single
pile. Gently scrape together all the crys-
tals from the sieve and press them once
again with your bare hands to press out
the excess water. To get every last drop
of moisture out of the hash you can stick
it in your freezer for a night. The next day
all the moisture will be drawn out as a
layer of ice on your water hash and this
can simply be rubbed off.
The difficulties in making water hash
are mostly to do with drying it out. I
have noticed that if you just lay it out
in the open the hash will become hard
sooner. The really good quality water
hash should easily become knead-able
from the warmth of your hands or from
sitting in your pocket for a short period
of time. Even though the freezer has
removed a lot of the moisture there is
still some left in the hash. What works
for me is to put the water hash I have
in a plastic bag and let the remaining
moisture evaporate, while especially
in the first few days, opening the plas-
tic bag and wiping away the damp
before closing it again. In this way it
can take up to a week before the bag
gets damp again. Should you forget to
open and wipe, then your water hash
may become moldy. This is not really a
problem if you smoke the hash within a
week or two, but if you wish to store it
for a longer period then you will need
to keep a continuous check on it for
mold and even if the hash seems dry
and smokable, bear in mind that there
is still moisture in it that can result in
mold damage when stored for a longer
period. It will only take about a month
without exposure to a source of heat
before your water hash has fully lost
all its moisture.
So to wrap things up, various types of
Cannabis make various types of water
hash. Some Cannabis varieties maintain
their taste when they have been made
into water hash, while others lose their
flavor. With one variety you can make
better skuff and so should use a pol-
linator, and the other is better for water
hash (some are good for both of course).
Its up to you to test things out for
yourself, and do not forget the higher
the quality of your leaf trimmings (i.e.
the more THC in them), the higher your
yield of hash will be!
Good luck!
SOME CANNABIS VARIETIES MAINTAIN THEIR TASTE
WHEN THEY HAVE BEEN MADE INTO WATER HASH, WHILE
OTHERS LOSE THEIR FLAVOR
14
The difference between soil and hydro-
ponic growing is more a matter of degree
than a black and white line. On one
extreme is a plant growing naturally on
a hillside, on the other, a medium-less
aeroponic system. Everything else lands
someplace between the two.
Nutrients are delivered as an aqueous or
water-based solution. Even if nutrients are
supplied directly as a solid (e.g., sprinkled
on top of the medium), water acts as
the transmission agent to the roots. The
plants have to have some form of mois-
ture available to them, and how the mois-
ture is made available to the plant varies
from system to system. Damp medium
(soil or rock wool), direct contact as in
an NFT or DWC environment, or misting
in an aeroponic rig are all ways to make
moisture available to the plant roots.
Air is another necessity that the roots
require; again, the exact method depends
on the technique used. Soil growers allow
the soil to dry slightly, keeping the medi-
um from staying too wet for too long.
Hydroponic systems sometimes allow
the roots to breathe through this same
method, or by adding air to the nutrient
solution. Air pumps and air stones are
a popular method of aerating nutrient
solutions.
The root system must have access to both
air and water. Similar to a human throat,
too much water and too little air causes
drowning; too much air and too little
water causes dehydration. In both cases,
slight dehydration is a less traumatic
experience than a slight drowning. While
you are adjusting the watering schedule,
erring on the side of too dry is better than
accidentally making the plants too wet.
Soil
A plant growing naturally in the ground
receiving resources from its environ-
ment without human intervention is
about as soil or bio- as you can get.
Light, air, nutrients and water are either
naturally occurring, or the plant dies. One
advantage to human intervention is that
if one of the requirements is not naturally
present it can be added to the system,
dramatically expanding the range of pos-
sible planting locations.
A tended garden grown outside bene-
fits from additional nutrients, removal of
competing plants and a regular water-
ing schedule. As the initial nutrients are
consumed they must be replaced, as the
system does not generate fresh nutes
(unless care is taken to do so by com-
posting or otherwise fertilizing). Outdoor
container plants benefit from a more
controlled environment, but in return are
more dependent on human intervention
to survive.
When moving indoors plants that natu-
rally grow outdoors, some choose to bring
a little pocket of soil with them. Growing
plants in pots of soil is a very common
traditional method. There are benefits to
this: pots of soil buffer against changes;
the plants have a very natural root sup-
port structure and the method is a famil-
iar medium to many. This is commonly
referred to as being a soil grow, but once
the nutrients in the medium are used up,
it functions very similar to a hydro grow.
As the plants root system replaces the
medium in the available space, adjusting
the watering schedule to a more tradition-
ally hydroponic one can mitigate some
of the ill effects of plants becoming root-
bound, although extra care must be taken
to prevent over- or under watering.
Hydroponic gardening
Passive? Active? Film? Deep-? Aero-? Once
the basic principles are understood, there
is a dizzying array of ways to implement
them. There are many variations on each
method. When considering your own
hydroponic system, keep in mind that
the system must supply both nutrient
solution and air to the plants. Each hydro-
ponic system meets these requirements in
slightly different but related ways.
Passive Hydroponics
In a passive hydroponic system the plant
sits in the medium, and either the medi-
um or a wick is in contact with the nutri-
ent solution. Capillary action draws the
solution to the roots as it dries. To main-
tain proper aeration, only a day or twos
worth of nutrient solution should be used,
and the medium should be very airy
or allowed to dry slightly before adding
more solution.
Most hand-watered systems use a varia-
tion of this principle. The principle uses
capillary action to draw the water up;
although, in practical applications, occa-
sionally watering the top of the medium
to introduce new solution is recommend-
ed to help flush the medium itself. The
total amount of water in the system must
synchronize with the plants usage, so that
water is not allowed to stand long enough
for the dissolved oxygen to disperse and
start to become anaerobic.
This is an excellent method for beginners
to use: simply fill a pot with your chosen
medium (such as perlite), set in a tall dish
or 1020 tray and water by hand with a
hydroponic nutrient solution, as needed.
For the price of some growing medium
and a couple of bottles of fertilizer
you can try a simple passive hydroponic
system without making a large financial
commitment.
Active Hydroponics
Active hydroponics uses some sort of
mechanical force. On one end of the
scale is an ebb and flow system, which
introduces large quantities very quickly,
alternated with periods of no access to
solution. On the opposite end is an aero-
ponic system that uses a small amount of
nutrient solution continuously, without
any break in the application cycle.
SERIOUS GARDENING
Soil and Hydroponic Gardening:
Whats the Difference?
As long as her roots are supplied
with air, water and nutrients,
Lady Cannabis is amazingly flex-
ible as to the exact method of
cultivation. All successful sys-
tems address these needs, but in
slightly different ways. Grubbycup
Perlite and potting soil in fabric grocery
bags
An indoor soil grow uses potting soil in
pots.
A passive hydroponic grow is very
similar to a soil grow, and inexpensive
to try.
Roots grown in hydroponic medium
In a passive hydroponic system, media
should be kept moist, but not soggy.
Sprinklers spray plants from above, and
are not well-suited for indoor gardens.
Drip systems slowly deliver nutrient
solution over a period of time.
A DWC SYSTEM CAN BE AS SIMPLE AS ADDING AN
AIR LINE TO THE NUTRIENT SOLUTION FOR AERATION.
BECAUSE THE SOLUTION IS NOT SITTING STAGNANT AND
AIR IS REINTRODUCED DWC SET-UPS CAN HOLD MORE
NUTRIENT SOLUTION THAN PASSIVE SYSTEMS
other systems. The spray can be difficult to
control and these systems are more likely
to over- or under water plants. Sprinklers
deliver a fair amount of hydration over a
brief period. Traditional sprinkler systems
are not recommended for a home indoor
grow, although some parts such as tim-
ers may be well-suited to adapting to
other systems.
Drip System: Nutrient solution is dripped
from low-volume emitters over a longer
period of time than sprinklers.
In drip systems the nutrient solution is
timed to either pump from the reservoir
to low-volume drip emitters under pres-
sure; or, water is pumped to an elevated
reservoir and gravity supplies the pres-
sure. This can be either run to waste or as
part of a recirculating system. The intent
is to supply the nutrient solution in small
amounts over a length of time.
Aeration is regulated by the media used,
the amount the medium is allowed to
dry between nutrient applications and
amount of air added to the solution. Drip
systems are very popular not only for
growing marijuana, but for home garden-
ing in general.
Nutrient Film Technique (NFT): A low vol-
ume of nutrient solution is continuously
applied to the roots.
A nutrient film system functions much like
a continual drip. The roots are constantly
exposed to a thin film of aerated nutri-
ent, or a mat continuously soaked with
nutrient. Aeration needs are met by both
using an aerated solution and exposing
the roots above the film or mat.
Ebb and Flow: Roots are flooded in the
nutrient solution, which is then removed
to allow respiration.
Ebb and flow systems are timed to pump
the nutrient solution to the plants under
pressure, and then allow the nutrient solu-
tion to recede or drain back to the nutri-
ent tank. A timer controls the tempo.
These systems supply a flood of solution
in a very short length of time, in compari-
son to others. A well-aerated solution will
help buffer minor over-watering.
Deep Water Culture (DWC): A high volume
of aerated nutrient solution is continu-
ously available to the lower portion of the
root system.
A DWC system can be as simple as add-
ing an air line to the nutrient solution
for aeration. Because the solution is not
sitting stagnant and air is reintroduced
DWC set-ups can hold more nutrient
solution than passive systems. These sim-
ple systems are sometimes referred to as
bubblers. The plant is suspended above
the nutrient solution, and the roots are
allowed to dangle down.
Since the bottoms of the roots are con-
tinuously submerged, care must be taken
to allow the upper potions of the roots to
have access to air, and the nutrient solu-
tion must stay well-aerated. Debate rages
over how exactly how well-aerated the
solution should be, since at the extreme
end of aerated nutrient solutions are the
aeroponic systems.
Aeroponics: Small liquid solution parti-
cles are continuously applied to free-
standing roots.
Aeroponic systems use the same basic
principles as DWC, but instead of adding
air to the solution, they spray the nutrient
solution into the air and onto the roots.
Choosing a Method
When considering which system is
best for a given situation, take a look
Sprinklers: Nutrient solution sprays the top
of the medium, soaking the root system.
This is one of the most common meth-
ods, particularly for lawns. Timed sprin-
klers spray water or nutrient solution over
the plants, which falls onto the medium
and soaks down into the root system.
Aeration is achieved by using fresh water
and allowing the medium to partially dry
before watering.
Sprinkler systems are often run to waste
(meaning runoff is not recovered) or as
part of a recirculating system. They are
inexpensive, but generally less exact than
15
In this drip system, solution was
pumped to the upper reservoir twice
a day; gravity fed drippers constantly
watered the plants for several hours,
while the solution drained back to the
lower reservoir.
Perlite and potting soil in fabric grocery
bags
The nutrient solution in this drip system
returns to this lower reservoir. The solu-
tion can then be pumped to an upper res-
ervoir, acting as a miniature water tower.
In this model of a drip system, solution
is pumped to drippers, which drain
back to the reservoir.
In a nutrient film system, a small quan-
tity of solution is continuously circu-
lated to the roots along a path.
This plant is being grown in a water-
fall using NFT principles. Fish waste in
the pond fulfills the nutritional needs
of the plant.
The nutrient solution in a deep water
culture must be well-aerated.
Roots grown in DWC can be very pretty,
and a good indicator of plant health.
Aero-grown roots should be plump and
appear robust.
at all the available options. Soil is com-
mon, but tends to have the most insect
issues. Hand watering works well for a
few plants, but can become arduous
if there are a large number of plants
to be tended. Prefabricated systems are
more expensive, but DIY systems tend to
require more creativity and understand-
ing of the principles involved. Aeroponic
systems do make beautiful roots, but
require continuous electrical usage with
little tolerance for a power failure. What
works best in one situation may not be
the best in another. Find what works best
for you, in your situation, and learn to
make the most of it.
Soil is a very nice medium to start out
with, and teaches skills that come in
handy if you decide to try hydroponics.
If you prefer it, by all means grow in
soil; however hydroponics doesnt have
to be elaborate or expensive. A passive
hydroponic system is similar to growing
in soil, and can help you learn how to
manage hydroponic watering and nutri-
tion needs. Dont let the cost prevent you
from trying out a bag of hydro- medium
and some hydro- nutrients in a hand
watered pot to see if you like it. Get an
air pump and/or a water pump, and you
can turn a passive system into an active
one. Educate yourself, keep learning and
enjoy bountiful harvests.
Peace, love and puka shells,
Grubbycup
SPRINKLER SYSTEMS ARE OFTEN RUN TO WASTE
(MEANING RUNOFF IS NOT RECOVERED) OR AS PART OF A
RECIRCULATING SYSTEM
16
FLASH
In this Soft Secrets there is an
advert in which Mountainhigh
is looking for distributors.
But where do we know
Mountainhigh from again?
Mountainhigh
on tour
Cones The ready-to-use, pre-rolled
sleeves; the standard in Dutch coffee
shops. Already for 16 years they have
been having a big impact with Cones
around the world. And now Cones are
available in handy Blister Packs for con-
sumers. Do you sell King Size papers?
Then you can sell Cones as well!
Blunt Wraps The popular fresh-
packed tobacco leaves with the deli-
cious taste. For ultimate enjoyment and
the taste sensation of pure cannabis.
Mountainhigh has always embraced this
product and is one of the biggest dis-
tributors in Europe.
Mach 6 The quickest joint filling
machine in the world! This electrical
wonder mill fills and compacts hun-
dreds of joints per hour. Developed
by two Dutch brothers, the owners
of Mountainhigh, Martin & Arthur van
den Berg.
Fairs and trips Sydney or
Vancouver? Medicinal use or recreational?
The two brothers serve the global market.
Their products are available in all four
corners of the earth. And they export just
as readily to Nigeria as to America. Thats
why youll also bump into Mountainhigh
at all the top fairs.
Do you want to become a distributor?
Then make contact and take a look at all
the products at: www.mountainhigh.nl
HOW TO MAKE WATER HASH 12 GROWING MEDICINE FOR FREE 28 SOIL AND HYDROPONIC GARDENING: WHATS THE DIFFERENCE? 14
INTERNATIONAL GROWERS
18
Zamalito is a Cannabis anthropolo-
gist and herbal botanist. Rooted to the
earth, his studies are mostly conducted
in the field, alongside his plants. Very
few people can actually claim to have
grown as many pure landrace genetics,
collected from all over the world. From
the Congo to Kashmir, from Burma to
Brazil, the tapestry of Cannabis genet-
ics is a vast subject. Soft Secrets US
arranged a Q & A session with Zamalito
to get back to basics.
Whereabouts in the world are you based?
Lately, Ive been growing in the eastern
Blue Ridge Mountains in the southeast-
ern United States. Ive found this area
to be capable of producing some truly
fantastic herb that, in my opinion, is far
superior to any indoor product. Being
different from Europe and the Pacific
Northwest there are very few commer-
cial genetics available that are capable
of taking advantage of outdoor growing
conditions here. Thats the main reason
I started getting into breeding landrace
genetics.
The weather this year has just been
phenomenal. Its been an El Nio year,
which has eliminated the hurricane and
tropical storm-related rains that normal-
ly plague us in September/October. The
flowers harvested so far have taken on
a look that Ive only seen from flowers
cultivated in Hawaii, where after curing
you see just a huge array of color. Many
different shades of green, lots of amber
and red pigments; its just a stunning
crop. Im the most proud Ive ever been.
The pure Zamals have yet to finish but
when you pack a large bowl of Zamal
x Parvati, this years [crop] has a strong
sweet carrot overtone that Ive been try-
ing to get since growing the Zamal. Its
always produced wonderful flavors but
until now I never understood why locals
on La Runion describe their herb as
having a mango/carrot flavor. Its a really
nice feeling to know that Ive grown a
landrace to produce the qualities it has
in its native environment.
When did you start growing Cannabis?
At the time when I started and even
still now there wasnt much qual-
ity available except for a locally grown
fluffy Road Kill Skunk sativa that they
called Donkey Dick. Youd get one or
two seeds in a quarter (QP). Though
I didnt have a clue what I was doing
I grew some of these seeds in the
woods near my parents house. Deer
ate most of them, and I harvested the
herb prematurely before drying it in
the microwave.
Quite a few years later a friend who
was down on his luck was selling a
hydro-farm, a one-KW MH and copies of
both Ed Rosenthals Handbook and Mel
Franks Growers Guide. Id just gotten
my tax return and took him up on the
offer. He had been growing for a couple
years and had obtained some Shiva
Skunk seeds before Sensi stopped ship-
ping to the States. He gave me a nice
cutting, but for the most part the mad
scientist in me was more interested in
growing bag seed.
Once a year this sweet piney Skunk
from Oklahoma came to town. I hit the
dealer up for seeds and this became
the first staple strain I worked with.
It produced a nice yield and purple
pistils. Over the years I had collected a
glass cigar tube filled with seeds, partly
from fresh, Skunky compressed North
Georgia mid-grade. These turned out to
grow into wonderful plants. About half
were pure Afghans. The other half were
hybrids with some Colombian influence,
and a grape taste. One plant had long
narrow leaves. The serrations were very
coarse and resembled alligator tails. The
stem was different also; it was a Thai! Id
grown my first landrace sativa.

Which method do you use?
For a nu mber of years now Ive had the
outdoor growing bug. Since I mostly
grow landrace sativas and do not live in
the tropics I have to use a few tricks to
cause the plants to mature more quick-
ly. The first is that I start my plants very
early, either indoors or in a cold frame. If
I start them indoors I run them under 24
hours of light to make them more sensi-
tive to darkness. Im fortunate enough
to have a growing situation that allows
me to grow very large plants in full sun
and still have them camouflaged into
their surroundings. Full sun is crucial to
getting the landrace herb to finish as
fast as possible (though I really love the
concept of building the soil with some
of the more extreme sativa strains).
This year, I grew them in grow bags.
With many varieties, especially those
from the very lowest latitudes, the root
binding helps trigger the plants to flow-
er. The plants still root into the ground
out of the bottom of the bags, but
that doesnt seem to lessen the advan-
tages of using containers. I then cover
the bags in a large ball of straw and
lignin grasses. My theory is the lignin
grass increases the presence of benefi-
cial fungi in the soil, and also the high
concentration of spores in the grass
ball inoculates the plant. I fertilize with
five-year-old chicken manure; Im also a
huge fan of compost and teas.
What is your favorite type of plant
to grow?
Its hard to pick a favorite. Ive always
been partial to the Pacific Mexican lan-
draces. The problem with the Mexican
[genetics] which I have is that they
dont produce anywhere near as high
quality herb indoors as they do under
sunlight. Naturally I love the Zamal and
its hybrids. I like all landraces for the
most part. What I like the least are the
Dutch indica types. It seems that almost
all of the ability to produce accessory
cannabinoids has been bred out of the
modern indica gene pool. Which is odd
since hashish traditionally has very high
CBD levels. We must not forget that CBD
is medicinal also, and crucial to the buzz
of the older hashish varieties.
Do you prefer landrace or culti-
vated genetics?
Since Ive started growing almost solely
outside there arent many cultivated
lines that are appropriate so Id have
to say landrace. I definitely understand
the value of cultivated lines but the
level of diversity with landrace genet-
ics is so nice. I also believe that when
more chemotype work is done we are
going to find there isnt much differ-
ence between the heavily cultivated
lines, be they sativa or indica. Maybe
theres something wrong with me but I
dont notice a huge difference between
a 75% sativa Skunk #1, a Cinderella and
Northern Lights. Whereas you can take
Kashmiri Resin Factory and Deep Chunk
both 100% indica from central Asia
and theyre worlds apart.
Please explain a little about the
genetics in your collection.
My three staples that I love and could
never lose are my Zamals, the Ghanaian
Accra Skunk, and the heritage Mexicans.
Currently Im working with getting
these Congolese and Senegalese seeds
and the Wo(Men)s Alliance for Medical
Marijuana (WAMM) Malawi reproduced.
Recent acquisitions include Kona
Landrace Genetics with Zamalito
Fashion has it that the majority of Cannabis growers these days prefer
to be growing varieties of cultivated Cannabis indoors. Ultimately,
these cultivated varieties descend from a small base of genetic stock,
mostly Skunk/Haze varieties. The collection of landrace genetics is
then restricted to just a handful of dedicated enthusiasts across the
planet: sowing and growing, then reaping and mowing Cannabis
seeds from far-off lands is their passion. By Lazystrain
IN BRAZIL WE CAN MAINTAIN THE AFRICAN, MEXICAN AND
SOUTH AMERICAN GENETICS WITHOUT WORRYING ABOUT CHANGING THE LINES TO THE
DEGREE THAT, SAY, AN INDOOR OR TEMPERATE LATITUDE GROWER WOULD
19
Gold, Colombian Punto Roj, Brazilian
Cabea de Negro (Black Head), Angola
Red, Colombian Black, a few Thais, a Sri
Lankan, some wonderful Paraguayan
landrace and a very old un-worked
Vietnamese line.
I also have a Burma Jam female that
was the only plant that germinated
from some 25-year-old seeds. At this
moment my main breeding indica is the
Parvati. Its as close to being a perfect
pollen receiver for landrace hybrids Ive
seen. It has a huge variance of acces-
sory cannabinoids, so when it is used in
a landrace cross, the accessory cannab-
inoids of the female are usually carried
to the F1. Dr. Greenthumbs Kashmir,
Pine Tar Kush and Deep Chunk are also
being tested for breeding qualities. As
you can imagine this is a lot of work.
Thankfully my wife and best friend are
into this as much as I am. Right now,
Im looking into a new greenhouse
facility and hopefully I can find some-
thing that fits.
How and why did you gather all these
strains together?
The obvious answer is preservation
and that is a large part of my motiva-
tion. However, since reading Terence
McKennas The Archaic Revival Ive been
developing my appreciation for what
indigenous cultures have to offer. Many
of what I consider to be the finer things
in life come from indigenous people:
the finest Cannabis, music, coffee, food
and tobacco. Being from the more civi-
lized world we often consider the lives
of those in the third world as hard, bleak
and filled with suffering. I feel that the
Cannabis varieties that have been with
a given culture for a substantial length
of time tend to invoke the moods, atti-
tudes and philosophies of that culture
in the user.
Jamaican, Ghanaian and Hawaiian herb
are great examples. The people of these
cultures are laid-back yet active, happy
yet spiritual; these paradoxes are cer-
tainly present in the herb. After growing
and trailing my first landrace varieties
I found that they had so many distinc-
tive qualities. I was stunned to see that
herb of incomparable quality has been
in existence for thousands of years. In
many instances it is nature that helps
people lucky enough to live in certain
sweet spots to breed some of the high-
est quality herb available. This is what
motivates my collecting.
Has securing landrace genetics from
across the globe become a hobby?
Yes, very much. If not a hobby, then a
way of life! Ive filled a kind of niche
in my community where about 20%
of the people who smoke what I pro-
duce are those that had long given
up on Cannabis because whats com-
mercially available has no appeal. We
have this product in the States from
Canada, which is the blandest product
one could imagine.
When and why did you start breeding
your own seed lines?
When I first started breeding I didnt
have a choice because I was growing
from unlabeled bag seed. I wanted to
make more seeds many times but I
couldnt be certain what the males were.
They could have come from somewhere
totally different as another seed that
was female in the same bag. Its just the
nature of commercial bud. Needless to
say my original breeding experiments
were slow going.
Eventually I tried Dutch genetics and
they produced excellent bud, very
different from what Id grown before,
indoors. However, in my environment
the indoor varieties would mold and
the outdoor varieties would flower too
small and too early. I knew from read-
ing Marijuana Botany (R. Clarke) that
breeding is best when done with stable
varieties. Eventually through the trav-
els of myself, my friends and family
and searching through seed catalogs
Id gathered together an assortment
of mostly tropical heirloom varieties,
landraces and in-bred lines (IBL).
Which strain(s) do you prize most
and why?
Thats a hard one because theres a few
strains that I couldnt live without that I
could replace easily; then theres a few
that I love slightly less that could never
be replaced. Right now the WAMM
Malawi is very high on my list, simply
due to the fact that its a Malawi inbred
to finish in a temperate climate. It has it
all: painkilling properties, anti-anxiety,
mood enhancement and it is simultane-
ously energizing. The Zamals and Zamal
x Parvati, when grown properly, make
the highest quality herb possible.
The Ghanaian is an all-round fantastic
herb that is one of my most potent yet
incredibly natural strains. Ghana has a
close relationship with some countries
in the West that have a strong African
influence, like Guyana and Jamaica. Its
a very natural earthy herb with strong
Malawi and Congolese influences.
Last but not least are my two favorite
Mexicans: the Acapulco Gold and the
Oaxacan Pelo Rojo. I believe the high
of these two cannot be improved upon.
What advice would you give to fellow
breeders of landrace genetics?
If youre a person who wishes to see
a line preserved contact Rahan over
at www.strainguide.overweed.net. The
site is mostly in French; however, Rahan
speaks English also and there should
be enough English on the site to find
your way around.
An important aspect to remember
is that genetics arent static. Theyre
extremely dynamic and the environ-
ment must be replicated to that of the
region of origin (or as close as pos-
sible). If this is not done you could be
changing the line youre working with
quite substantially. One way to combat
this is to use the best seed storage
techniques available to you and to
breed as few generations as possible.
When breeding the seed there are two
aspects I try to consider:
The first is the percentage of the gene
pool preserved from generation to gen-
eration. This is accomplished by using a
large population of plants. The second
aspect is the frequency or occurrence
of the genes, particularly the desir-
able ones. When I say desirable I dont
necessarily mean potency, flavor, bag
appeal, etc. Im mostly referring to what
makes the line unique. Since the female
offspring tend to mostly resemble the
ovum donor, I select one very desirable
female for representation of each phe-
notype. Then I pollinate with a larger
amount of males, with a good level of
hardiness and disease resistance being
the main selection criteria.
The most important part of preserva-
tion is to use any opportunity to return
the landrace to the region of origin. At
the very least try to distribute tropical
varieties to the tropics if at all possible.
Returning an indica to an appropriate
environment is tricky since North India
and Afghanistan are difficult places to
get to. Fortunately some parts of North
India and Pakistan at least from what
I hear are quite welcoming and it
seems quite possible to return some of
these lines to their home.
What projects do you have planned
for the future?
Im working on bringing the Brazilian
Seed Company back. We need more
breeders in the sweet spots, where
the environment produces amazing
Cannabis with little help from man.
In Brazil we can maintain the African,
Mexican and South American genetics
without worrying about changing the
lines to the degree that, say, an indoor
or temperate latitude grower would.
Luiz from the BSC is a great guy.
Together we have an unprecedented
array of landrace genetics to make avail-
able to growers. We have about a dozen
African strains spanning the whole con-
tinent; a dozen Brazilian strains, half-
dozen Colombians, a couple amazing
(thought to be extinct) Hawaiian strains
and many, many more. Unfortunately
Luiz has become ill recently and had to
sell his breeding facility to support his
family. Im working on getting him a
new one and within a couple years we
should have everything together.
Anyone who has any questions regard-
ing the status of the BSC can contact
me, Zamalito, on the international
forums anytime.
WHAT I LIKE THE LEAST ARE THE DUTCH INDICA
TYPES. IT SEEMS THAT ALMOST ALL OF THE ABILITY TO
PRODUCE ACCESSORY CANNABINOIDS HAS BEEN BRED OUT
OF THE MODERN INDICA GENE POOL
HOW TO MAKE WATER HASH 12 GROWING MEDICINE FOR FREE 28 SOIL AND HYDROPONIC GARDENING: WHATS THE DIFFERENCE? 14
20
INTERVIEW
Soft Secrets: How did you get involved
in the seed business?
Buddy: I moved to Amsterdam 12 years
ago from Germany my wife and I had
been coming here every weekend to
party - and it was a coincidence I got into
this business. My first apartment was just
a few doors down from the old Nirvana
shop, so it was pretty much the first
place I went to. Being an American it took
about 8 months to get a work permit and
during that time in the grey area I had to
make a living, and thats when I started
growing; I had to eat! I had no plans to
grow grass and the coffee shop I was
growing for, they knew Mau (owner and
founder of Nirvana) and when I got my
SOFI number (entitlement to work ed),
he was looking for a new manager and I
got the job. Id never grown before; I read
High Times and always had the intention
to grow. So I just read all the books and
really got into it.
How many staff do you manage?
4-5 full time packing seeds, and maybe 20
independent growers we work with. We
keep a mother room and the contractors
do all the growing. We do our own devel-
opment and testing.
Can you explain how a new variety is
made?
Usually through friends or ourselves, they
give us a seed and we grow it out, mix with
one of our males. If its tasty, we market it
as an F1, otherwise we backcross it five
times to stabilise it.
And how long does the whole process
from planting that first seed to selling its
genetics on the market take?
F1s are easy; a few months. Stabilised stuff
can take a year or two.
How important is backcrossing?
Very, because then we can use it for breed-
ing later. F1s you cant breed with; they
create totally unstable offspring.
What are the highlights from Nirvana
that have sold well or that readers might
have used?
Weve won awards for Crystal, Master Kush
and our Royal Flush since I worked here.
How was the company originally set up?
Mau used to work for Wernard (Bruining)
at Positronics, the first grow shop in
Amsterdam, probably all of Europe. He did
the Positronics seeds, and when Wernard
went out of business Mau set up Nirvana,
in 1995.

Is Amsterdam still considered a leading
centre for seeds?
In my view, we have coffee shops here
and thats the ultimate test of a strain,
because it can be evaluated in a relaxed
way and theres pricing on it an open
market instead of a black market. Things
just go way quicker and are done more
properly in an open market.
In Spain, people are growing weed in their
backyards all over, but theres no control of
the quality. Its just grow it n sell it. Here,
the coffee shops wont buy it if its not
good. And there are so many drug tourists
here, it all adds up to intense evaluation
of the strains in Amsterdam. In Spain,
its mostly Spanish people smoking their
weed, so theres not much feedback.
Amsterdam, just like it has traditionally
been with flowers and vegetables, is a
central moving point.
Yes, plus theres Schiphol airport; thatll
never go away. Theres more weed in other
places but here will always be a more dis-
criminate place.
Some of the Californian pharmacies
seem to have a very different way of
looking at the product; checking for
fungus, doing microscopic analysis as
a result of it being seen as a medicinal
thing. Theyre treating it almost like a
pharmaceutical, offering a wide range
of cookies and sweets and butters for
non-smokers. Do you think the relaxed
smoking laws here means theres not
been same pressure to innovate, qual-
ity control?
Thats true, but AmericaI dont agree
with that whole medical angle. Everyone
I know smokes because they like it, not
because theyre sick! And I dont like the
idea of having to fake to get a prescription.
Did you see the recent South Park,
where they opened a marihuana dis-
pensary in town (Medicinal Fried
Chicken)? Stans dad gives himself can-
cer so he can use the place.
I havent seen that episode, but the whole
approach in the US is contradictive; its a
medical store but the dispensaries have
pool tables. Ive never been to a chem-
ist that has a pool table, yknow? But I
guess its a scene we have to reckon with
because its gone crazy there.
When did Nirvana first develop femin-
ised seed?
6-7 years ago, we had about six strains, but
it was the early days of female seeds and a
bumpy road. But weve really worked on it,
hired some actual scientists to work on it
for us, and its now going well. We have all
our strains feminised.
Are feminised seeds the future?
Theres a market for it, but there will
always be a market for the natural seeds,
were finding, because some people like
to breed, others dont like the way the
seeds are treated with chemicals. Thy-
sodium something and silver nitrate, very
poisonous. It just about kills the plant but
it forces her to hermaphrodite-ize and in
the flowers there are no male chromo-
somes. Thats the theory but there has to
be lots of testing. You cant just take any
plant and do it. You first need a thorough-
ly tested female; she cant be hermaphro-
dite on her own in order to be a candidate
for the chemicals. It came from Dr David
Wasson, who did hemp research, living
with the Hayes brothers (and now lives
in Amsterdam). He did the first research
20 years ago. Hes also done research on
male seeds that is, making a male plant
produce female seeds. Hes something of
a mentor to me; was at his house a few
weeks ago discussing the science of it all.
Whats the use of all males?
Its very useful, as its hard to know what
the male plant is, it doesnt produce THC,
but if you can treat it with chemicals and
get buds, you have some kind of idea what
qualities it has.
You also sell auto-flowering seeds a
more recent innovation?
Yes, another new trend which I person-
ally dont like, because it contains ruderalis
genes, which forces it to flower automati-
cally but also contains lots of CBD and
CBNs; its sort of a headache weed. Theres
a price to pay for auto-flowering the
highs not as clear as in the other strains.
What are the advantages?
The strains grow well in extreme Northern
(and Southern) latitudes; Denmark,
Sweden, Canada they can plant in the
backyard and harvest before the first
frost. If you live where its temperate, you
shouldnt grow it.
How has the Net changed the seed
business?
It revolutionised the business, begin-
ning probably 8-9 years ago. Gypsy
Nirvana seeds direct in England started
the whole thing. Before that, people
would drive to Amsterdam or answer
the ads in the few weed magazines
there were at the time. Since the Net,
business has exploded 10-fold, for sure.
Its just too easy seeds are so small
they are considered letter post.
But do you still have to take precautions
sending to other countries?
You can pretty much pop it in an envelope.
In most countries they cannot be legally
An American in Amsterdam
Established in 1995, Nirvana Seeds has become one of the leading
cannabis seed breeders in the Netherlands. Originally from the US,
Buddy currently manages Nirvana from the wholesale shop in central
Amsterdam. Soft Secrets caught up with him there to discuss the
companys new strains, and how the seed business has changed with
increasing professionalization and globalisation. By Jules Marshall
BUDDY IN FRONT OF HIS SHOP IN AMSTERDAM.
AUTOMATIC STRAINS ARE A SORT OF A HEADACHE WEED. THERES A PRICE TO PAY
FOR AUTO-FLOWERING THE HIGHS NOT AS CLEAR AS IN THE OTHER STRAINS
SOFT SECRETS INTERVIEWS BUDDY FROM NIRVANA SEEDS
21
opened. You need a court order, unlike
packages. Information, thats your privacy.
Is there a trend for countries to be relax-
ing restrictions on growing your own?
Yes, all over the world. Im researching
each night on the Net. Pretty much all of
South America is decriminalised, every-
ones realising the jails dont need to be
full of cannabis users. Its just stupid. Even
Bolivia, you can have up to 20 grams of
marihuana as long as you dont have any
cocaine on you. If you have marihuana
plus other drugs its illegal. But on its own,
not. Strange twist on the law
Any plans to move into other plants or
products in the future?
We used to have cannabis beer and wine
when seed business was small, before the
net. They shut us down. We did not have
the right facilities, just brewing it in the
shop. Bottling the wine ourselves. Said we
needed proper facilities.
What further innovations can we expect
in the next few years?
Been fighting the last 18 months to get
all our female seeds out, and weve finally
accomplished that, and now were intro-
ducing 3 more auto-flowering strains in
coming weeks and I feel weve caught
up now. These are the trends for the next
years. You cant go any further. Some com-
panies have been putting a coating on
the seeds but were not; were going to
keep it natural. Its a colour coding, so
the seed varieties are not confused with
each other, plus a germination enzyme
in it. But I hear theyre not allowed in the
UK because its not a souvenir any more.
If it has a germination enzyme it is meant
to be grown. Actually for the UK we have
to make special packaging that does not
have any description on it, only a name. A
description is too much for the UK at the
moment.
I guess you can always go back to sell-
ing them as canary feed.
Yeah, or fish food,..
They always seem to be threatening to
fiddle with the laws in the Netherlands.
Are any aimed at your business, or are
they mostly dealing with coffee shops?
Im not worried, because to change any-
thing to do with seeds theyd have to
change some major world treaties, which
is never going to happen. The (Dutch)
Opium Act has not been adjusted since
the 1930s even. They would have to adjust
that. I just think world leaders have better
things to be dealing with. Plus you cant
arrest people for seeds because theres
no drug in them and you cant arrest
someone for a potential crime. Theres an
increasing lack of drive to bust for weed.
Politicians can now admit to smoking and
even enjoying it. The whole culture has
changed. Its changed so much now if
you find your teenager smoking weed
you compliment them on their choices,
there are so many worse things out there
- methamphetamines, and so on. Weeds a
pretty humble way to entertain yourself.
How would legalisation of marihuana
change your business?
Were against it because the Dutch sys-
tem has kept us small. Big corporations,
tobacco and pharmaceuticals businesses
will come in with their billions and take it
over. So long as its in a grey area, these big
companies will not touch it. I hope it stays
decriminalised and not legalized.
One thing that struck me was the rela-
tive freedom in seed breeding; breed-
ers have been quite generous in the
past about exchanging germ lines. You
dont get this in the over-patented reg-
ular agribusiness.
Exactly. It will be in the hands of the big
guys and the small guy would be squeezed
out. The price would go down and it would
not be as glamorous anymore. It would be
like selling tomato seeds.
A recent Rolling Stone article on the
weed business in California concluded
that even with legalization there will be
room for the small niche grower cater-
ing to the gourmet end of the market.
There will always be room for the guys
with the skills and patience needed to
grow top weed.
Its similar to the wine scene. Big wineries
stocking supermarkets but always little
chateaus, every hill having different fla-
vour. There will always been a connoisseur
market, and do their own breeding. Its so
easy. I really hope they do not legalize the
industry, but it is a good time for it. The
tobacco companies are under threat and
if they can replace that pressure theyre
all for it and back in the money. They have
facilities ready for it.
For breeding or growing?
For all of it. Theyve been doing it with
tobacco and its simple enough to do
again with weed.
The three new strains I mentioned earlier,
theyre not even named yet - and I have to
be careful. I named a strain White Castle
and I got a letter from their lawyers claim-
ing trademark infringement. I didnt even
realise theres a White Castle burger chain
in the USA. I wrote back saying I didnt see
the competition between a marihuana
strain and a cheeseburger. So Im doing
a bit of research before I name any new
strains now, as weve had to change a
few names now because of trademark
infringement. The other seed banks are
copyrighting names.
So the free and easy situation I
described earlier is already out of date.
Yes, weve already changed 3-4 names
like our Bubblegum, and Blueberry -
due to letters from lawyers. Someones
copyrighted these names. Thats why we
have Bubblicious and Blue Mystic. Over
the years seed breeding has become a
proper scene with lawyers and trade-
marks, distributors fighting over turf,.
We were even banned from Spains
Spannabis expo. They didnt want us to
sell seeds because they said it was the
job of Spanish distributors.
So with acceptance comes a new set of
problems?
Sure; there are people coming out of busi-
ness school and getting into this business.
College graduates running head shops
and distribution centres now. Its getting
tighter. Which is good, as it was a bit
sloppy in the beginning.
And the pioneers are retiring now, hav-
ing done their job.
And the next generation, the Internet
Generation, they want well, if my dis-
tributors dont get their orders within 48
hours theyre pissed off at me. They want
it quick and fast and accurate. Plus theres
so much competition nowadays, we have
to. 10 years ago there was maybe 20 seed
banks; now there must be 200 all over
the world. Not exclusively in Holland any
more. The monopoly is over and now we
really have to work for our money! It used
to be easy in the old days; 5-6 companies,
we were really lazy, people had to wait
until we wanted to send out stuff. Now
Spain has 5-6 big companies in competi-
tion with the Dutch companies; England
has 1-2, theres a couple in Switzerland,
Austria has one.
Anything in Eastern Europe?
The Czech Republic just changed its laws
and people can have four plants. Business
is doing well in Bulgaria; Ukraine and
Russia are really big. They missed the
counterculture of the 60s because of the
Iron Curtain, and theyre going through
that experimental phase with drugs for
the last 5-6 years.
Plus the Rave scene, in fact 30 years
of western alternative culture all
crammed in to one mega scene.
Exactly. Plus theyre starting to realise
the damage alcohol has been doing to
their countries, and cannabis is seen
these days as a less damaging alternative.
Young people see their parents wrecked
by vodka and dont want to be like that.
Whats interesting is 20 years ago you
had to get your hands on a book, fly to
Amsterdam for seeds. Now its so easy;
you can download the information you
need off the Internet, order seeds with
your credit card, lamps and be up and run-
ning in days of deciding to grow!
Nirvana
St Antoniebreestraat 14
1011 HB Amsterdam
Tel: +31 (0) 20 627 5113
www.nirvanaglobal.com
www.nirvana.nl
WERE AGAINST LEGALISATION BECAUSE THE DUTCH
SYSTEM HAS KEPT US SMALL. BIG CORPORATIONS,
TOBACCO AND PHARMACEUTICALS BUSINESSES WILL COME
IN WITH THEIR BILLIONS AND TAKE IT OVER
22
GROW WITH STEVE & DAWN
22
Once upon a time there was a wise old
man who, through trial and error, discov-
ered that in order to grow good fat, sticky,
smelly, potent buds you needed several
things, and of all these things, probably
the most important was patience. This
wise old fellow would tell you that on
average, to get a reasonable crop of rea-
sonable strength, and reasonably tasty
bud, you would have to wait a reasonable
amount of time. If you wanted a greater
crop, with a greater strength and taste,
you would have to wait a greater amount
of time.
As time has passed cropping times have
gotten shorter and shorter. This is because
of many factors: modern fertilizers,
advances in lamp technology and, impor-
tantly, the growing wealth of information
out there on growing your own. No one
has to grow in ignorance, and unlike the
wizened old man, you dont have to learn
through trial and error, over decades. But
even so often to get a fast crop you have
to put such small plants into flower that
unless youve got dozens and dozens on
the go, youre not going to get a crop that
will make you grin insanely!
Even a fast, 45-day bloomer (from seed
or clone) needs 15-20 days veg to make
it worthwhile, so youre still looking at
60-65 days to harvest. Unless youve taken
the time to select your clones/seeds care-
fully, you could end up with much less
from your speedy harvest than you had
hoped for. (Its a bit like fast sex: it satis-
fies the moment but gives no long term
pleasure.) Of all the things the old man
learned through his lifetime of growing
good weed, one fact remains a constant:
genetics. If you want devastating buds,
you need devastating genetics; if you
want heavy yields, you need heavy genet-
ics, and if you want super strong, super
sticky, super fast crops you need Royal
Queen Seeds!
Easy Bud (feminized) from Royal Queen
Seeds is quite simply amazing! Having
now tested three different RQS auto-
flowering strains Easy Bud, Quick One
and Royal Automatic I can report that
they all do the job well, but Easy Bud is in
a class of its own. Earlier this year I plant-
ed eight Easy Bud seeds and kept two to
do this report. The eight plants endured
some hellish summertime temperatures
and an attack by my old friends, spider
mites. On top of this, three were not
fed anything, three were fed excessively
and two were fed normally. From this I
learned a few things.
First, they are susceptible to spider mites.
Of all the different plants in the veg room,
the mites seemed to congregate on the
Easy Bud. Because the Easy Bud spends
the best part of its life flowering rapidly
its not easy to spray the plants for mites,
so they got a lukewarm shower upside-
down once every three days for nine days.
That got rid of the little bastards!
Second, providing they are well-watered
and fed, they dont seem to mind small
pots. I had two in seven-inch pots and
one in a short six-inch pot, and apart from
having to keep a close eye on the water-
ing they did very nearly as well as the
ones in deep eight-inch pots. I had one in
a 14-inch pot but on inspecting the soil
after cropping I felt it had been a bit of a
waste. In its short life, it hadnt had time to
fill out the pot well, and was subsequently
a bitch to water.
As vigorous as they are, Easy Bud dont
seem to lay that super-dense mat of
roots associated with some vigorous
plants. (White Widow, for example, can
be very vigorous in its root development,
and if you dont re-pot it, it will repay you
by breaking the bottom of your plastic
flower pots trying to punch its way out!)
So an eight-inch (or ten-inch) pot seems
fine for the short time they are alive.
Third, they certainly didnt seem fazed
by the furnace that was the veg room
occasionally this summer.
Fourth, they need as much light as is
humanely possible. I set the plants in the
eight-inch pots at different distances from
the lamp; however, it didnt appear to
affect the overall yield. What it did affect
was how fast things happened. Move the
plant six to ten inches outside its optimal
light requirement and itll take six to ten
days longer to finish. The two that sat in
the best possible position for the light fin-
ished nine days ahead of the next furthest
away, and 16 days later for the ones on the
edge of the room. The ones Ive just done
for this report finished at 56 and 61 days,
the former being closest to lamps. But the
prime-positioned ones from the summer
grow went from tearing the seed packet
open to crop in just 53 days!
Damn! They gave near 20g. (.71 oz.) dry
product each. And heres the weird thing:
whether you starve them, force feed them,
stick them in stupid little pots, subject
them to temperatures hotter than hell,
even let spider mites party on them (until
you shower them off ), none of it seems to
make much difference: youll yield around
20g. dry each, its just that some may take
a little longer to get there! Because these
plants dont bush out much, and because
you can get away with smaller pots, the
potential providing youve got plenty of
light is around 17.7 oz. (1.1 lbs.) every 53
days! Sweet! That yield covers 25 plants in
deep eight-inch pots per 1.2 square yards
(1.2 yd.2 = 10.8 ft.2 ).
As for the two plants grown in this report,
two Easy Bud seeds were put into Root
Riot blocks that had been pre-soaked
with a hormone enhancer and placed in
a bottom-heated propagator. This in turn
sat about 24 inches away from a 400-watt
MH (18/6 hour cycle) in a fully reflected
vegetative area. By day three both had
wiggled their way up from the blocks.
Because you only get a limited amount
of vegetative time, you should make the
most of it. Get the plants close to the
light(s) as soon as possible, and providing
your base mix isnt heavily loaded with
nutrients, feed them little and often as
soon as possible.
On day four I potted the seedlings into
three-and-a-half-inch pots, with a mix of
Bcuzz (Kilomix) and an extra mix of per-
lite (ratio ca. 15/85 perlite/Bcuzz). On day
seven I gave them a half dose feed of
Canna Terra Vega, and then a full dose
every other watering. Apart from a re-pot
up to five-inch pots, all was going well.
I had been keeping the plants as close
as I dared to the lamp, but even so they
were a little stretchy (maybe too much
Nitrogen early on).
On day 16 I swapped their veg feed for
a bloom feed (Canna Terra Flores), and
from then on they were fed a full recom-
mended dose every watering. On day
20, the first flowers started showing on
one of the plants, and around this time I
carefully potted up again to eight-inch
pots. Many people would say its wrong
to keep potting up as it shocks the plant,
and considering the short life of these
plants, every moment counts. But if you
are careful and considerate you can do it
with little or no shock, and when your veg
room is as busy as mine can be, space is
valuable!
On day 23, as the veg room was home
to flowering Easy Bud, I put in an extra
250-watt HPS to complement the 400-
watt MH (luckily winter temperatures
allow more watts without creating heat
problems). Now running at 650 watts per
yd.2, the Easy Bud went crazy, gaining
size rapidly with one growing much faster
than the other. The bigger plant was also
flowering much faster than her sister.
By day 30, the biggest plant was still
flowering at a crazy rate, and by day 35
I decided to give them a PK 13/14 mix
in addition to their normal feed, for four
waterings, until day 39. By day 46 both
plants were in full swing. The smaller,
slower plant had been flowering so fast it
had almost caught up with its big sister.
It does appear that the plants show two
distinctly different flowering patterns
(phenotypes). One is very resinous, with
tight, nugget-like buds and a distinct
Afghan or Hollands Hope sort of smell.
The other (slower) type appeared far less
resinous and has much more elongated,
airy buds. It too has an Afghan smell, but
Auto-flowering for the people!
THE HIGH IS, AS YOUD EXPECT FROM THE SMELL,
A FULL BODY STONE THAT ALLOWS YOU TO WATCH ANY
OLD SHIT ON TV FOR HOURS
EASY BUD FROM ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS
23
with a much sweeter accompanying odor,
a bit like freshly cut honeydew melon.
By day 48 the bigger of the two had filled
out, was covered in resin, and looked like
it was starting to finish (shock!), so from
then on she only got pure water for din-
ner. Her sister on the other hand was still
in full flow and putting weight on nicely.
By day 56 the biggest one had finished,
three-quarters of her flowers were brown,
and a quick glimpse with a 10x magnifier
showed the resin glands were milky and
drooping. So down she came.
Five days later at 61 days the second
Easy Bud finished. At the same time I
planted the Easy Bud I had also planted
some Quick One (another feminized auto
from RQS; I included a few pics of them),
which I hope to cover in my next report.
So after each of the Easy Bud had been
allowed seven to ten days drying, it was
time for a sample.
As I had already grown and smoked Easy
Bud earlier in the year, I was really looking
forward to toking on it again, as the two
different phenos had distinctly different
highs. The tight, resin-soaked nugget-
like buds from the fastest flowering plant
smelled sickly sweet when crumbled, with
a slight hint of rotting meat. It had a thick
frosting of crystals and was a pleasure to
roll up with. When lit, the whole room
filled with thick pungent blue smoke that
hung for ages. Theres no hiding this one;
once lit, everybody knows!
The high is, as youd expect from the smell,
a full body stone that allows you to watch
any old shit on TV for hours. Its a very long
lasting effect, and after smoking it for a few
days you do start to wake up in the morn-
ing and find A) youre still stoned, and B) it
is, in fact, the afternoon. The other one has
less dense buds, but they are still weighty;
there is plenty of resin, but its more in the
bud than on it, if you know what I mean.
Rather than a dry frosty bud, its quite
sticky inside even after curing and is
well capable of wrecking any joint you try
and stonedly roll up. Almost everything
will stick to your fingers: rolling papers,
tobacco... and everything else that isnt
stuck to your fingers is on the floor!
Once lit, (in a pipe) it smells like Afghan
Black, a real resin-y aroma, but with some-
thing else. Its difficult to explain; some of
you may get what I mean, but it smells
like the 1980s! The effect is excellent; very
stoney, but also uplifting. It makes you
totally content, equally as happy to be
sociable as to just chuck another log on
the fire and stay in.
As for yield, as I mentioned earlier,
around .71 oz. per plant seems to be
what they give regardless of what you
do. The worst I got was .6 oz., and the
best was just shy of .92 oz., but out of all
ten plants, six gave very close to .71 oz.
Overall, 10 plants yielded around 7.06 oz.
in 55-60 days.
When automatic flowering plants first
became popular, all I could think about
was the headaches we used to get years
ago when smoking too much of any-
thing crossed with a ruderalis, and hav-
ing grown again years ago ruderalis/
indica indoors and out-, I couldnt help
but remember the disappointment at
the end result although back then it
was probably as much my fault. But in
the last year I have been converted. Not
only is there no effort involved in the
grow with autos, which gives you more
time with your special ladies, but the
grow results are good. The yield is for
such small plants brilliant, and the
smoke results are outstanding.
Having now grown eight different femi-
nized varieties from RQS, I can honestly
say they have been one of the most
consistently brilliant seed companies
Ive had the pleasure to grow from.
Thanks guys!
So Easy Bud really is an easy bud! It is an
excellent strain for anyone with little or
no experience of growing. Some people
Ive known over the years have eventu-
ally shied away from the growing experi-
ence, because, amongst other things,
they are just not very good at it. Easy
Bud changes all that because itll put up
with mistakes like over-/under fertiliza-
tion, excessive heat, bugs and to some
extent, over-/under watering. Also this
strain yields just as well when left to grow
naturally as it does when you pinch out
early on, so again its ideal for those with
little experience, or a phobia of pinching
out and the like.
I have a friend who illustrates the point.
An inveterate booze hound and stoner,
hed killed more crops and risked break-
ing his neck on wobbly step ladders so
many times, hed given up growing. A
while back I gave him an RQS catalog,
and now not only is he back growing
successfully hes become a total auto
evangelist. My point is that if an ancient,
insane, totally out there, permanently
drunk stoner (love him to death, real-
ly!) who grows in a place about as safe
and accessible as Chernobyl and who,
through total and utter uselessness, kills
pretty much everything he touches can
now successfully grow auto-flowering
strains, then in theory so can anybody.
Whether youve never grown before, and
have very little or no knowledge at all; or
you have grown but failed to achieve that
all-important grin factor at harvest, you
will almost certainly succeed with femin-
ized Easy Bud, if not all the auto-flowering
strains from RQS!
Until the next time, be cool yall.
Steve & Sexy Dawn
SO EASY BUD REALLY IS AN EASY BUD!
IT IS AN EXCELLENT STRAIN FOR ANYONE WITH LITTLE OR
NO EXPERIENCE OF GROWING
24
PROFILE
I was asked by my chief editor to intro-
duce myself, so here we go! I was born in
1950 in Sorong, New Guinea when it was
still a Dutch colony. My father worked for
the Shell Corporation. Every three years
we had a long holiday in the Netherlands
for a couple of months. Here, my parents
rented a house and I went to a neighbor-
ing Dutch school.
By the time I was ten years old my moth-
er and father stayed in the Netherlands
permanently; however, I was a com-
pletely displaced person who had lived
in eight different houses. I was used to
never having friends for longer than a
couple of months, since I attended so
many different schools. This gave me the
constant feeling that I came from a dif-
ferent planet.
In 1960, when I was ten years old, I was
sitting on the floor in my parents living
room, reading and listening to some
music, when I realized I was not alone. A
person dressed in a long white robe was
standing next to me: my guardian angel.
So, today I feel like an alien in this world,
but I am not alone.
In 1970, when I was 20, I lived with nine
hippie friends in a small, one-room apart-
ment in Amsterdam. The first thing we
did every day was roll a joint, still laying
in bed, and share it. We had lots of friends
visit us they were all smokers. We used
to buy small amounts of hash and sell it
to our visitors, so we had free smoke for
ourselves.
In 1973 I started a tea house called
Mellow Yellow. It was the very first coffee-
shop in Amsterdam. One of us would sit
in front of the bar, pretending to be just
a visitor, selling hash and grass in deals
of DFL 10,- ($4.50) and DFL 25,- ($9). This
was the Golden Coffeeshop Formula; in
the years after it would be copied by so
many other coffeeshop owners. We were
overwhelmed with thousands of custom-
ers who lined up in front of our dealer,
and we made lots of money. But I was
mainly interested in having free smoke
and playing lots of table football, a game
I became pretty good at.
After a couple of years, in 1978, the
Mellow Yellow burned down. That ended
my career as a coffeeshop owner. I went
to the US in 1979, teamed up with a
couple of Americans, and we called
ourselves The Green Team. Our dream
was to teach the Dutch how to grow
sinsemilla American-style and turn the
Netherlands into the Jamaica of Europe.
We were dreaming of millions of tour-
ists coming to Amsterdam, enjoying
Dutch marijuana and taking the idea of
a Cannabis-friendly society home with
them, thus improving the world.
One of the Americans was a 65-year-old
grower called Old Ed, who stayed in my
house for five years. Old Ed taught us
how to grow and speak with the plants.
I passed on his message to the Dutch
and sold his seeds under the name of
Lowlands Seed Company, the first seed
company in the Netherlands.
In 1985 I started a business of my own,
called Positronics. It was the first grow
shop in Europe. I designed a new reflec-
tor and a remote ballast built in a box.
Soon I had 60 people working for me; I
had a shop, a small factory, a restaurant
with a fooseball table of course where
I was selling hash and grass as usual
and a Dutch-language newspaper called
Soft Secrets. Positronics produced com-
plete light systems, soil, fertilizers, seeds
and clones, and was visited by thou-
sands and thousands of people from all
over the world. I hosted journalists on a
weekly basis who helped me to spread
the message: marijuana is free, if you
grow your own!
In 1994 I woke up with a few words
in my head: mediwiet en anders niet!
Medi-weed and nothing else! I realized
that I had to introduce the new word,
medi-weed, so people would get a more
positive idea about marijuana. I designed
a logo, picked up the phone and within a
couple of weeks I had 50 Dutch coffee-
shops who were willing to sell marijuana
at a 50% discount, making no profit at
all, to people who smoked Cannabis for
medicinal reasons.
I thought I did my part of the job and that I
could continue with my grow shop affairs,
smoke marijuana and play table football.
That was a big mistake! Within two years I
went bankrupt for one-and-a-half million
Dutch guilders; I lost Positronics, and the
newspaper and had to fire my 60 employ-
ees. In the ten years after my bankruptcy
I tried all sorts of other businesses but
was never successful again. All that time I
had the constant, agonizing feeling I had
betrayed people who could have used my
help with their medical problems.
In 2009, I finally decided I had to listen to
the soft voice of my guardian angel and
devoted all of my time to medi-weed. I
created the Medi-Weed Foundation and
began to interview people who benefited
from the medicinal use of marijuana. At
the end of 2009 I saw a movie on the
internet called Run from the Cure about
a Canadian named Rick Simpson, who
cured people with marijuana oil. I copied
his production process and improved it.
I developed a production process so sim-
ple that anybody can make this ideal peo-
ples medicine at home, in their kitchen
sink. I diluted the viscous, pure marijuana
oil five times with olive oil so that it
could be measured out, per drop, with
a drip emitter. This gave people much
more control over the amount taken, ena-
bling them to avoid the effect of get-
ting high. When the oil is dripped under
your tongue it works within ten to fifteen
minutes and stays effective for between
four and five hours. Oil gives reassurance,
balance and control, even if you take too
much.
By the end of 2010, I had helped a couple
of hundred people who suffered from
sleep disorders, including fibromyalgia,
chronic pain, arthritis, rheumatism, osteo-
arthritis, IBS, ADHD, Asperger Syndrome,
depression, schizophrenia, trauma, etc. I
interviewed about 40 people with differ-
ent medical cases, which I want to publish
in a book. I am convinced that within the
next ten years most of the medicinal use
of Cannabis will be by means of oil.
People often praise me for starting up a
coffeeshop and a grow shop. My answer
to them is that maybe both ideas were
important to 250 million Cannabis con-
sumers, but marijuana oil is important to
the rest of the world to six point seven
billion people. It is the ideal peoples med-
icine of the future. Using my dowsing pen-
dulum I know that I am probably going to
die at the age of 73; I am 60 years old now,
so Ive got about ten good years left in me.
I have to hurry and finish my job on this
planet called Earth!
wernard@xs4all.nl
www.medi-weed.nl
My Name is Wernard Bruining
IN 1973 I STARTED A TEA HOUSE CALLED MELLOW YELLOW.
IT WAS THE VERY FIRST COFFEESHOP IN AMSTERDAM
OUR DREAM WAS TO TEACH THE DUTCH HOW TO
GROW SINSEMILLA AMERICAN-STYLE AND TURN THE
NETHERLANDS INTO THE JAMAICA OF EUROPE
THE MELLOW YELLOW TEAM
Photo: Eva Seeds
P
i
n
k

P
l
a
n
t
27
SHOP REVIEW
In case you arent familiar, Don and
Aaron, founders of DNA Genetics, have
been growing ganja since the late 80s
in Hollywood, California. You can read
that story and check out full menus for
DNA and Reserva Privada strains on their
website, www.dnagenetics.com. What
wed like to show you is the latest look
inside their lovely shop, centrally-located
and simple to find when you next visit
Amsterdam. Tucked into a side street but
easy to walk past if youve just sampled
some of the local coffeeshop delicacies
the DNA shop is a welcoming, efficient
establishment destined to be a popular
stop on many tourists travel itineraries.
Upon entering this chilled-out location
your eyes are subconsciously drawn to
whatever it is that you have been crav-
ing: expertly made glass bongs (beauti-
ful works by Sheldon Black), trendy DNA
label gear (keep an eye out for a new
clothing line styled by their friend Remix),
assorted smoker accoutrements and of
course seeds, as it is a seed shop. The DNA
seed shop.
The two guys relocated from Hollyweed
to Amsterdam in 2003 and opened their
business on the Sint Nicolaasstraat in
2005. Aaron points out that what sets
them apart from the competition is the
information. There arent so many places
where you can just come and buy seeds
right after testing the product in one of
the coffeeshops. Id rather we give you the
information and then send you to one of
these places where you can actually try
the product... and then buy the seeds if
you like it. Id rather give you information
than just sell you something.
This is an approach to business that really
works. As fans of their famous varieties
range in age from 18 to 80 and come from
all walks of life, the shop remains popular
with an international following of grow-
ers, likely to stream in and trade stories
during your visit. Due to the fact that DNA
respect international drug laws, many of
their customers originate from countries
where it would be illegal for seeds to be
shipped, such as the US.
Americans and Canadians do make up
a large percentage of foreign tourism in
the Netherlands, especially regarding the
Cannabis scene in Amsterdam, and its
comforting for some to know that not only
is English spoken in this shop, but North
American-English at that. Something
else that might annoy the Europeans but
pleases those from across the pond is the
strict pure-only policy in the shop. Thats
correct: Pure joints and bongs only! In our
post-tobacco-ban world most of us relish
the ability to smoke a joint mixed with
nicotine, but the guys are sticking to their
roots on this one.
The DNA strains reflect the proprietors
origin as well: West Coast, fruity, resin-
ous genetics imported from sunnier
climes. These varieties were all quite
new and exciting when thrust upon the
Dutch scene over the past few years,
as Aaron reminds us of the legendary
LA Confidential, Sour Diesel, OG Kush,
#18 and Lemon Skunk. Personally the
Cannalope family and Chocolope (a.k.a.
D-Line) have always satisfied my sativa-
loving palate, but the old-school indicas
ReCon and RockLock have a special place
in my heart as well.
Its only fair to ask one of the owners
what he likes, and Aarons pick was the
Sleestack. I have to admit, Id forgotten
about that crystal-covered treasure, with
glittering buds and a super sweet smell.
He defends her honor: Personally I would
have to say the Sleestack is one of my...
holy grail strain[s] because the resin it pro-
duces is just so, its just covered with resin.
I wouldnt give it to just anybody to grow
out for crops, but its good for hash pro-
ducers. The way the hash comes off the
plant but it doesnt clump together. It acts
dry. And the taste and flavor and the room
smell... its a winner if youre a hash smoker.
With such success at producing memora-
ble, stable genetics, what tricks do DNA still
have up their sleeves? Their most notice-
able innovation, keeping them at the top
of the industry, would be the introduction
of the DNA Genetics Feminized line. While
the growing community is divided on the
issue, no one can argue that the success-
ful seed companies are the ones who can
adapt to the needs of their customers,
withholding judgment and reserving their
opinions for their own gardens. Aaron is no
exception. I think its good for the growers
but if you ask me, if I had to run anywhere,
Id be grabbing my regular seeds. Then
Id be able to make more, since I wouldnt
necessarily have the equipment to make
feminized seeds wherever I go.
This sort of honesty currently runs at
a high premium in an industry that is
not completely legal in the Netherlands.
In order for DNA to continue offering
Californian genetics and flavors to our
low lying, sun-deprived country they
must continue surfing the fine line
between holding a legitimate business
permit and specializing in a product
whose origins lie in dark, illegal locations.
Well, not dark exactly but certainly not
spoken-of in most settings. Aaron men-
tions this as one of the largest hurdles
encountered by business owners in the
Cannabis industry:
People come to Amsterdam from abroad
and they think its just ok for us to make
our seeds and grow weed, and for cof-
feeshops to sell. Well its not. Its ok for
us to sell seeds and trade in seeds; its ok
for coffeeshops to sell weed, but its not
ok to grow our own seeds and its not ok
for coffeeshops to grow their own weed
or [obtain] the weed. And now there are
police helicopters with forward-looking
infrared cameras, there are remote-con-
trolled [mini-] helicopters with noses on
them, they send out letters to everybodys
house asking you to snitch on your neigh-
bors, even if they just smell Cannabis....
But I can do my business here, which is a
great thing. If I ever got caught for doing
something Im not a criminal; Id have to
pay a fine or something like that. But the
more pressure [the government] puts [on
the industry], the worse it gets.
In comparison, it seems that the US
especially California is becoming as pro-
gressive as the Netherlands is conserva-
tive. Aaron keeps things in perspective.
...There are pros and cons to both places.
The biggest thing is, its not easy to grow
over here. You really have to be a Dutchie
to not get caught. Someone whos grown
up in that town, who can grow their 100
lamps and not get caught because they
grew up with all the cops. The cops will tell
them, hey were going to come and get
you, and [the growers] close everything
down.... Then they fire it up again the next
week. Thats the way it works out here.
Lets hope Mother Nature keeps deliver-
ing those precious seeds.
www.dnagenetics.com
DNA Genetics
Sint Nicolaasstraat 41
1012 NJ Amsterdam
Catching up with DNA Genetics
Since Soft Secrets is brand-new in the United States, we thought we
would introduce you to an American seed company that has become
an eminent force in the Dutch Cannabis scene. If you know them or
their strains, its likely that youve already visited their cozy seed shop
in the center of Amsterdam. By The Sativa Diva
ARON (AT LEFT) AND DON SHOW OFF
A PRECIOUS HIGHLIFE CUP
28
MEDICINAL MARIJUANA
Free Light
The light source used to cultivate the
plants shown in this report was free.
The light source used was of course
provided by the biggest light-bulb
in the sky the Sun. All plants have
evolved to adapt towards and utilize
the Suns energy during the process
of photosynthesis. The Sun therefore
naturally produces the most benefi-
cial light spectrum available to plants.
Indoor lamps in fact aim to replicate
nature and the power of the Sun.
Currently however no combination of
indoor lamps can produce exactly the
same available light spectrum.
Seasonal variation in the Suns energy
(and a gardens exposer to it) is predict-
able in light terms. The longest and
shortest days of the year always fall
on exactly the same days of the calen-
der. This means that medicinal mari-
juana growers can anticipate natural
changes in the available light spectrum
and manage their garden to the plants
highest potential.
In the Northern Hemisphere, during the
Summer months when the Sun is at its
highest in the sky, the majority of light
omitted is blue; which triggers a veg-
etative period of growth in Cannabis.
During the Autumn the Sun sits lower
in the sky and must travel a greater dis-
tance through the Earths atmosphere
in order to reach the garden. Optically
this produces a light which is richer in
the red end of the available light spec-
trum; which triggers a floral period of
growth in Cannabis.
Besides the visible wave-lengths that
the Sun produces, the Sun also natural-
ly omits several invisible wave-lengths
including Ultra Violet and Infra-Red.
When working in combination with
all the other bands of light produced,
the Sun literally out-shines all of its
artificial competitors. For this reason
the Suns energy-saving potential is
perhaps most evident when replac-
ing existing indoor lamps. After all the
Sun provides us with a clean and non-
renewable energy source - which is just
burning away in the sky. The Sun thus
allows growers to cultivate Medicinal
Marijuana safely and at zero cost.
Free Plants
The genetic material in the photo-
graphs was free. The plants were each
bred together from a free female clone
and male plants sourced from free
packets of seeds. Once crossed togeth-
er the seeds produced were free. The
seeds were then planted. Once estab-
lished the female plants in return gave
as many free clones as were needed.
These genetics were naturally shared
with other Medicinal Marijuana grow-
ers for free, so that they could also
enjoy growing these new hybridized
variety of cannabis.
Today free genetic material is availa-
ble everywhere. Competition between
seed breeders is so healthy that it often
means that most professional seed
companies are happy to donate thou-
sands of seeds every year as testers,
promotions, and freebies. Likewise
Amateur breeders by nature (of which
there are literally thousands) donate all
the seeds they produce for free.
The existence of free genetic material
is not only healthy for the progression
of cannabis culture, yet it also helps
Medicinal Marijuana Growers gain
access to valued medication. These
seeds are usually available at canna-
bis cups, trade fairs, and exhibitions
overseas. In Europe where cannabis
seeds are still legal, then free seeds are
also available via competitions held by
dedicated cannabis publications such
as Soft Secrets.
Free Growing Medium
The soil and coco fibre mediums that
the plants in the photos were grown
in were free. Recycling soil and coco
fibre mediums works well in practise -
so long as the mediums are pest and
disease free to begin with. Collecting
second-hand growing mediums from
fellow gardeners that do not recycle,
is both cost efficient and environmen-
tally friendly. Medicinally however care
should always be taken to only source
free growing mediums from organic
growers, since residual chemicals and
unwanted salts may otherwise persist
in the garden, plants, and your body.
Growing Medicine for Free
The plants shown in this article were all grown for free. The freedom
that this involves will form the basis of this Medicinal Marijuana
report. The only thing that was not free during this process was time.
Otherwise all of the physical and material aspects of cultivation were
free. In order for us to understand just how easy it is to cultivate
medicinal marijuana for free, let us take a closer look at the free
method, starting from the top and working our way down.
with lazystrain
URINE IS ALSO USED AS ANACCELERATE IN TEAS BY ORGANIC GROWERS
DURING THE LATER VEGETATIVE STAGES OF PLANT GROWTH; ESPECIALLY WHEN
PLANTS ARE SHOWING SIGNS OF NITROGEN DEFICIENCY
29
Many organic growers will enhance
their free growing medium further
by introducing natural soil additives.
These soil additives may include home
made compost, worm-castings, animal
manure, human urine, mole-hill soil
or mineral rich earth collected from
the entrance of animal burrows. These
ingredients are then added to second
hand growing mediums as a way of
enhancing the overall nutrient content
and soil structure.
Free Nutrients
The nutrients fed to the plants in the
photos were home made for free. By
placing the crushed leaves of several
native weed species into a bucket of
water, with an added cup of sugar
from a neighbour, then a home made
organic tea can be made. There are
many species of wild plant that can
be used as fertilizer, the best of which
include Nettles and Burdock.
Once fermented for one week the
leaves of the nettles and burdock break
down to form a Nitrogen, Calcium, and
Iron rich soup. The additional sugar
helps to load the soup with carbohy-
drates - which natural aerobic bacteria
can then feed on. During this process
natural compounds are released as the
plant material is broken down to its
most basic natural elements.
Urine is also used as anaccelerate in
teas by organic growers during the
later vegetative stages of plant growth;
especially when plants are showing
signs of nitrogen deficiency. This is
because urine contains ammonia
nitrates which is readily converted into
a sterile source of Nitrogen when fed
to plants.
Overall a well balanced organic tea
should hold many beneficial proper-
ties, which when fed directly to the
growing medium ultimately helps to
promote healthier plants in the garden.
Free Containers
The container/plant pot used to grow
the plants in the images was, youve
guest it, free. Sourced from the local
refuge point, the containers were col-
lected from a stack of plant pots in
perfect condition destined for recy-
cling. Any depth or diameter of plant
pot is usually available at any recycling
depot, from small 1x1 inch cell trays
all the way up to larger scale 20 gal-
lon planters (the big ones with han-
dles). This is just one aspect that Free-
Growers take full advantage of when
setting up their Free Garden.
Free Water
All plants require water to survive.
Whilst the owners of the photos assure
Soft Secrets that they used tap water
that had been stood for 24hours to
remove chlorine, the water used to
water the plants could have been free.
Not only is rainfall in the Northern
Hemisphere plentiful, it also lands to
earth at close to pH neutral, which is
the ideal water pH for cannabis.
Rain water does not contain anywhere
near the same level of chemical con-
tamination that tap water contains.
The growers of the plants did however
confess to using any rainwater they
collected on their food crops; which
(when in limited supply) makes perfect
sense. Free water can of course be col-
lected easily, using gutters and water
butts, or even as simply as laying a
large plastic sheet on the ground just
before in rains.
Free Growing
Once established as seedlings the
plants were transplanted into a grow-
RAIN WATER DOES NOT CONTAIN ANYWHERE NEAR
THE SAME LEVEL OF CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION THAT
TAP WATER CONTAINS
ing medium in a container. The plant
was then placed outdoors under the
sun in a glasshouse. Once the plants
had established themselves further
they were re-potted into larger con-
tainers of soil and coco medium to con-
tinue their vegetative stages of growth.
At the end of summer as the days
naturally grew shorter, a plant mecha-
nism deep within the genetic structure
of cannabis was triggered. The plants
then started to enter into the floral
stages of growth. The grower then gave
the plants a liberally fed of nutrients
(at an EC of 1.2 to 1.6) once a week for
the first 4 weeks of flowering.
A few weeks later the plants were har-
vested in the wisdom and enjoyment
that everything that went into the
plants being was sourced as naturally as
possible for free. Once established the
Free Garden really does offer the Free
Grower the freedom and opportunity,
the confidence and continuity, the reas-
surance and reliability, to cultivate their
own Medicinal Marijuana plants forever.
31
INTERVIEW
His office was just down the street from
a good sized shopping mall, in a normal
office complex. It did not appear out of
place with the more mainstream nearby
businesses and offices. The sign on the
window reads simply M.C.N.C with his
name and phone number. Inside, the
waiting area is similar to many other doc-
tors waiting areas, save for a sign pro-
claiming that marijuana is not used on
the premises.
One of the first things that struck me
about Dr. Pettinger was his easy smile
and warm handshake. In a country where
industrial, cold, clinical, and impatient
doctors seem to be gaining in numbers, it
was a nice change.
SSUSA: What is your educational degree?
M.D. (Medical Doctor)
How long have you been recommend-
ing marijuana for medical use?
About two years. I have a friend who has
been doing it for five years. He was so
busy he was getting overwhelmed, and I
started out by helping him with his back-
log. The hours are flexible, and it seemed
a logical thing to do, and then it took off.
What was the reaction of your peers?
Cannabis is still not well accepted through-
out the (mainstream) medical community.
Thats a big educational process, and the
large pharmaceutical companies have a
financial interest in keeping things the
way they are.
In general, how does someone go
about getting a recommendation?
Make an appointment, and bring an
interpretation of a medical report deal-
ing with surgery, accident, diagnosis, or
treatment plan.
How can people make sure that a rec-
ommendation is legitimate?
Call the office, they should be willing
to give you the medical license number
and you can check it with the California
Medical Board.
Is there a delivery method that you
believe is best?
Realistically, the differences between the
ingestion methods alter the onset and
impact of the effect. Smoking or vapor-
izing is the most efficient, but it may also
be taken orally, in liniments, tinctures,
or a skin rub. There are multiple meth-
ods, it just depends on the needs of the
individual.
Why you think its important that
Medical Marijuana remains a Medical
option?
It isnt a cure all, but it is a wonderful
adjunct to a number of different ailments.
Many of the current treatments involve
continuously increasing the dose as the
patient becomes more resistant. But it
can often be used as a baseline for a
patient, who can then use other medica-
tions on an as needed basis, minimizing
the (acquired) resistance.
As a medicine, it is safer than many
medicines available today. There are no
accidental overdoses with cannabis. In
a vodka tincture, you would overdose
on the vodka before you suffered any ill
effects from the cannabis. Many grand-
Medical Marijuana Doctor
In California, the legal situation for medical use is confusing, arbi-
trary, and out of sync with the citizenrys daily lives. Medical marijua-
na users attempting to be good law abiding citizens can be afforded
some protection from state authorities, if not federal persecution, by
following the state laws concerning obtaining a recommendation. To
comply with state medical marijuana law, it is a requirement to get a
physicians recommendation for use as treatment. Medical Cannabis
of Northern Californias Dr. Nate Pettinger M.D. graciously agreed to
meet Soft Secrets to share some of his thoughts. by Grubbycup
mothers carry pills in their purses that if
dropped and picked up by a small child
could be lethal if eaten. Cannabis pre-
sents a bigger threat as a choking hazard
than anything else if it is unintentionally
ingested by a child.
What difficulties do you see in using
Medical Marijuana as a Medical option?
One problem is that the FDA tests are all
on the same strain, and therefore dont
take into account the availabilities of high
CBD strains. We need a broader range of
strains examined in research.
What tidbit of wisdom do you carry
with you that you can share with Soft
Secrets readers?
Cannabis has shown direct anti cancer
angiogenesis in tumors, to increase for-
mation of peroxidase in cancer cells which
can cause them to overproduce perox-
idasions, and burst themselves. It can
have an effect on length of remissions
in advanced cancers. Contributory assis-
tance to other medications, and may help
with extended cancer remissions.
Dont be surprised if you see cannabis
become a much more significant medi-
cine in this country, especially with the
cutbacks in Medicare and such.
What cultivars do you recommend?
What Ive found is that the effectiveness
of a strain is very person independent.
The effects of a particular strain grouping
vary between individuals. If one strain
doesnt have the desired effect, try a simi-
lar strain from the same grouping. I sug-
gest that people try different strains, and
find the one thats best for them.
CANNABIS IS STILL NOT WELL ACCEPTED THROUGHOUT THE (MAINSTREAM) MEDICAL
COMMUNITY. THATS A BIG EDUCATIONAL PROCESS, AND THE LARGE PHARMACEUTICAL
COMPANIES HAVE A FINANCIAL INTEREST IN KEEPING THINGS THE WAY THEY ARE
32
BACKGROUND
grass juice being the best. Although most
fresh juices are beneficial, carrot, apple
and parsley are especially cleansing;
celery juice is particularly useful in the
removal of heavy chemicals. Use organic
fruit and vegetables whenever possible
and treat yourself to a good juicer.
Another useful aid to elimination is green
tea. Drink as much as you like: the more the
better. It is a powerful antioxidant and a fast
fix when youre feeling down. Dandelion
tea will clean the blood, parsley tea will
remove heavy metals and chemicals and
la pacho tea will tone up the whole show.

Other aids are light exercise and fresh air
ride a bike or take a walk, for example.
If this is too much for you then I suggest
regular visits to a sauna instead. A good
sweat expels the toxins out through the
pores of the skin rather than loading it
all onto the liver.

It is also important to cut down on the
intake of toxins. Watch what you eat and
drink and make sure your weed is the
best quality available, free from pesti-
cides and chemicals.

Then theres smoke. Sucking 400 degree
of heat into the lungs is not something
you can do indefinitely and remain
100% healthy. So perhaps its time
to think about alternatives. A vapor-
izer will deliver a satisfying taste with
a cleaner more energetic high, without
the accompanying carcinogens. If you
still need a bit of smoke, a glass vapor-
izing pipe heated by a flame will give
you the hint of smoke that you crave;
if you simply cant give up smoking
altogether, suck in plenty of cooling air
with each hit.

Ingesting (eating or drinking) Cannabis
has still got to be the cleanest and most
economical way. The body absorbs
everything, giving a longer lasting and
more intense high but be sure you
to get the dosage right! Half a gram
of hash or a gram of weed per serving
should do the trick. There are plenty of
Cannabis cookbooks out there educat-
ing medical- and recreational users.
Alcohol: we all know how much damage
it does. If you drink and smoke weed,
always be sure to smoke first in order to
avoid the technicolor yawn. Hangovers
can be avoided by drinking a glass of
water before you go to sleep. Taking
homeopathic aconite or a 400mg milk
thistle capsule before you go to bed will
also the keep the men with jackham-
mers at bay.

If you have never experienced a thor-
oughly cleaned body, then you have no
idea how good it can make you feel. If
you have done it, then perhaps its time
to do it again.

Remember, use drugs wisely and
responsibly; dont let the drug use you.
Its all about mind set. The body is the
vehicle that transports us through this
reality. If you can become more aware of
its needs, it will serve you well. Maintain
the vehicle; stay clean!
Every day our bodies suffer an ever-
increasing onslaught of mild toxic sub-
stances, ranging from the air we breathe
to the plastic wrappers that contain our
food. Although the amounts are small
and quickly dealt with by a healthy
immune system, not all the toxins leave
the body. Its this accumulating cocktail
of chemicals and heavy metals that can
cause the immune system to slow and
eventually expose the body to a variety
of ailments. Warning signs are frequent
colds and infections.
If you are a regular Cannabis user there is
an added pressure. The last ten years has
seen a marked increase in the strength
of the marijuana supply. Nowadays, it is
quite common to find weed with THC lev-
els of 10% or more and some ice hash con-
taining up to 50%. Fun as it is, Cannabis
use affects the immune system and pro-
longed exposure to these levels without
detoxification can layer on even more
pressure. As the immune system main-
tains the whole body and keeps every-
thing in balance, a break down here can
lead to serious health trouble.

The secret is to create a continuous pro-
cess of bodily elimination. Using herbal
teas, a healthy diet and supplements,
combined with light exercise, will improve
the quality of your life and the quality of
the high from your favorite herb.

Indulging in the wonderful experience
that is Cannabis is not a bad thing; how-
ever, as far as the body is concerned, THC
is just another toxin. When finished work-
ing its magic, it doesnt leave, but rather
camps out in the fat cells like an unwanted
party guest. Even if you stopped consum-
ing Cannabis tomorrow, it would take up
to a year for the body to rid itself com-
pletely of all the toxins. Luckily there are
ways to speed up the process.

The first step is to begin by flushing the
system with water, the solvent of life.
Start each day with a large glass of luke-
warm water containing a few drops of
fresh lemon or cranberry juice. This will
cleanse the intestinal tract and kill bacte-
ria. Drinking a glass of water every hour
through out the day should become a
regular habit.
Along with the water take vitamin C
(1000mg of the non-acid Ester C) daily;
combining it with 100mg of alpha-lipoic
acid should do the trick. This will not only
eliminate stubborn toxins and clean up
free radicals, but also protect the body
from the damage they cause. These
should be taken on an empty stomach
along with that morning glass of water.
Another useful substance is noni juice, a
Tahitian fruit that has deep cleansing abili-
ties and also helps with the elimination of
free radicals. Try to find the pure variety.

Toxins in the fat cells need something
more to shake them free. Lecithin, which
comes in numerous forms, combined with
dandelion and milk thistle form a pow-
erful combination that flushes out the
liver and gall bladder. These are especially
good after alcohol use.

Freshly made juice is also another won-
derful aid to cleansing the system, wheat-
Detoxification: Clean Up Your Act
RIDING A TOXIC WAVE? WEED MAKING YOU SLOW AND SLUGGISH? WELL, MAYBE ITS TIME TO GET
YOU BACK ON LINE WITH A FEW LIFESTYLE CHANGES. ORIODON
INDULGING IN THE WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE THAT IS
CANNABIS IS NOT A BAD THING; HOWEVER, AS FAR AS THE
BODY IS CONCERNED, THC IS JUST ANOTHER TOXIN
ALTHOUGH MOST FRESH JUICES ARE BENEFICIAL,
CARROT, APPLE AND PARSLEY ARE ESPECIALLY CLEANSING;
CELERY JUICE IS PARTICULARLY USEFUL IN THE REMOVAL
OF HEAVY CHEMICALS
33
Jorges Diamonds #1
from Dutch Passion
DIAMONDS ARE A GROWERS BEST FRIEND
If a worldwide well-known, highly successful Cannabis cultivation author
stakes his good name on a new Cannabis strain, the quality of the outcome
is particularly interesting after all, the name shall stand for a high-quality
product. Would Jorges Diamonds #1 really prove to be a diamond treasure?
Words & Pics: Green Born Identity G.B.I.
STRAIN REPORT
34
DUTCH PASSION ALSO PROVIDES SPECIFIC INFORMATION TO
MEDICAL USERS: BY THIN LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY, THE THC
PERCENTAGE OF JORGES DIAMONDS #1 WAS MEASURED AT
16-18%, WHILE THE STRAIN IS HIGH IN THCV, CBD AND CBN.
35
Jorges Diamonds #1 is the result of a con-
joined strain project by Dutch Passion and
Jorge Cervantes, author of many popular
Cannabis cultivation books and numerous
respectable articles in worldwide Cannabis
magazines. I asked Jorge how the collabo-
ration with Dutch Passion came about: I
have known Henk personally for more than
ten years and we have grown to know one
another well. I see him at many Cannabis
fairs. Dutch Passion is the biggest seed sell-
er in Europe and is very reputable. [Their]
strains are some of the strongest and they
take much care in seed production.
We got to talking one day and started dis-
cussing a strain with [my] name on it. We...
thought it would be a good idea for both of
us. Dutch Passion sends out thousands and
thousands of catalogs every year. I wanted
to sell more books in Europe and decided
it would be a good idea to have my name
on one of his seeds. Its free advertising for
my books!
Asked about the role Jorge played in the
development of Jorges Diamonds #1, he
said: I was the... strain taster and selector. I
was presented with several selections from
Dutch Passion; I chose the one I liked best. I
went with my instinct and chose the sweet
taste and aroma, smooth smoke and potent
long-lasting soaring high. I also looked at
the fact that this plant is easy to grow and
very resilient, so that anybody can grow it
successfully.
The genetics of the strain were selected
from the 25-year-old Research Gene Pool of
Dutch Passion. The seed company describes
it as a unique resin-packed indica-domi-
nant strain that is potent, sweet, flavorful
and incredibly smooth smoking. As for the
pedigree of Jorges Diamonds #1, Dutch
Passion claims, rare indica-dominant genes
mixed with just the right amount of sativa
to give the smoke a very strong, soaring
long-lasting high. Also, with regard to the
aroma, Dutch Passion promises a lot: The
exceptional taste and aroma are fruity and
sweet. The insatiable taste is sweet and simi-
lar to wild honey smothered in raspberries.
Apart from that, according to Dutch Passion,
Jorges Diamonds #1 is expected to be almost
maintenance-free, with spider mites and
other pests known to leave it alone. Dutch
Passion also provides specific information to
medical users: By thin layer chromatography,
the THC percentage of Jorges Diamonds #1
was measured at 16-18%, while the strain is
high in THCV, CBD and CBN. Plants take eight
to nine flowering weeks to ripen indoors,
yielding between seven and almost eighteen
ounces per 1.2 yd2. But thanks to quite an
early ripening time of mid-October under
natural light, Jorges Diamonds #1 can also
be grown outdoors successfully, so its a very
versatile strain.
When the strain was released to the seed
market in 2008 exclusively in the form of
feminized seeds it came highly recom-
mended, attracting a lot of curiosity among
growers worldwide. One of them was The
Doc, an experienced German grower who
earned his nickname from the fact that
he always precisely knows what his plants
need, quickly solving any kind of cultivation
problem with his green fingers and propel-
ling the plants to the best performance
possible.
The Doc put a whole bag of feminized
Jorges Diamonds #1 seeds into the ground.
A couple of days later he happily realized
that all the seeds had successfully sprouted.
The ten seedlings grew in one-liter (1.6 qt.)
pots filled with seedling soil for two
weeks, on an area of 2.7 ft2. under two
125w CFLs (6,400 K). They thrived very well,
exhibiting lush green, very compact growth,
perfectly indica-style. It was amazing how
homogeneous the ten seedlings were,
almost looking like clones.
Then, The Doc transplanted the young
plants to seven-quart (1.75 gal.) pots filled
with Plagron Standard Mix, plus five per-
cent hydro correls to further improve the
aeration of the soil. Now it was time to give
the Jorges Diamonds #1 plants plenty of
light. The Doc replaced the two CFLs with
two 600w and one 400w Osram Planta Star
(HPS) bulbs and moved the plants to a culti-
vation area of just under three square yards.
They spent another two weeks in the veg-
etative stage at 18 hours of light per day. The
powerful illumination and perfect climate
in the growing chamber (that technically
was perfectly equipped with, among other
things, an automatic SPC temperature con-
troller) led to rapid growth that still was very
uniform and compact; the Jorges Diamonds
#1 plants had very short internodes, ten to
twelve per plant, at a height of only 16-20
inches! They also heavily branched out so
there were lots of strong side branches.
After four weeks, The Doc induced flower-
ing by switching the photo period from
18/6 to 12/12. A week later all the plants
had revealed their gender and proved to be
female. The Doc removed some lower fan
leaves, as they had become so huge that
they completely shaded the side branches
below. In the course of flowering, consider-
able differences in the grow pattern became
apparent. Most of the plants suddenly start-
ed to stretch heavily. Six of them still grew
homogeneously, rapidly gaining height.
After two weeks of flowering they already
had arrived at breast height. Another plant
was becoming even taller, strongly remind-
ing me of a classic sativa plant. The other
two plants remained small and stout, clearly
exhibiting dominant indica genes, growing
into very compact flowering bushes.
After the third week of 12/12 light, numer-
ous flowerettes had emerged at the top of
the branches and lots of resin glands were
about to develop: flowering was in full effect
now. The Doc nurtured the plants very well,
foliage still was completely healthy green,
no yellowing at all. After four weeks of
flowering most of the plants had arrived
at shoulder height. The buds got bigger
and bigger, becoming impressively dense
and thick. Meanwhile, a lot of resin glands
had emerged on the fan leaves. Jorges
Diamonds #1 proved to be an extremely
resinous strain.
The huge plants consumed a lot of water,
two to just over four pints a day. On most
of the plants, the flowering structure was
sativa-dominant, buds were long and
lanceolate with a high calyx-to-leaf ratio,
but much denser and thicker than classic
sativa buds thanks to the indica influence.
Without a doubt, these were true heavy-
weight bud champions. Between the sev-
enth and eighth week of flowering, many
buds became so heavy that they needed
support and were staked by The Doc. The
Jorges Diamonds #1 plants had grown into
really big dimensions, bearing large snow-
white buds in abundance that were com-
posed of countless small, tightly-packed
calyxes. An extraordinary harvest was to
be expected. The Doc was heavily infected
with green diamond fever now!
Amongst the eight tall Jorges Diamonds
#1 plants, there was one exemplar that The
Doc called the haze phenotype. It was, by
far, the tallest plant and produced huge
long, almost leafless silver buds with par-
ticularly small calyxes, and also smelled like
a haze plant. This made The Doc believe
that haze is one of the genetic components
of Jorges Diamonds #1. He realized that
his Jorges Diamonds #1 plants had to be
harvested in two steps: the main cola and
tops of all branches were harvested after
about eight weeks of flowering; the remain-
ing buds took another one to two weeks
longer to fully ripen. After all the buds had
been dried, The Doc put them on the scales
and was stunned by the result the yield
was just over three ounces per plant on
the average and the heaviest plant had
yielded an amazing 3.9 oz. In addition, he
got plenty of resinous leaf material for his
Ice-O-Lator.
Most of the buds really provided a honey-
sweet smell and taste, and some of them
also had a fruity side to the aroma. The
high was as strong as expected and also
complex, producing an overwhelming,
long-lasting cerebral sativa effect in combi-
nation with a slight degree of stoned-ness.
It came as no surprise, then, that the haze
phenotype plant caused an accordingly
crystal-clear, vibrant haze high with no indi-
ca influence at all, while the two indica phe-
notype plants provided a lot more indica
stoned-ness.
One of the ten plants had produced a tiny
amount of male flowers, after six weeks
of flowering, at the base of two buds, but
The Doc managed to quickly discover and
remove them. From then on this plant
produced only female flowers. Two other
plants exhibited some single bananas in
the main cola at the end of flowering, but
these were infertile (unable to shed pollen).
Altogether The Doc was very impressed by
Jorges Diamonds #1: His treasure chamber
was filled with two pounds of the finest
green diamonds; potency and aroma were
a true cannasseurs delight. He feels that
this strain is undoubtedly worthy of honor-
ing Jorge Cervantes and arrived at the con-
clusion that these kinds of diamonds really
are a growers best friend.
Feminized Jorges Diamonds #1 seeds are
available in units with five or ten seeds.
www.dutchpassion.nl
Cultivation Data:
Strain Jorges Diamonds #1 (mostly indica)
Vegetative Stage In this grow: four weeks
Flowering Stage In this grow: eight to ten weeks; eight to nine weeks in general
Medium (Substrate) Plagron Standard Mix, 6.9 qt. (1.7 gal.) pots
pH 6-6.5
EC Vegetative stage: 1.2-1.6 mS
Flowering stage: 1.6-2.0 mS
Lights First half of veg stage: two 125w CFL (6,400 K)
Second half of veg stage and flowering stage:
two 600w and one x 400w Osram Planta Star
Temperature Vegetative stage: 22-24C
Flowering stage: 24-28C
Air Humidity Vegetative stage: 40-60%
Flowering stage: 50%
Watering By hand
Fertilizers HeSi Bloom Complex, HeSi Phosphorus Plus
Nutrients Nitrozyme, HeSi Boost Complex
Height 63-71 in. (53-511); two plants were considerably
shorter
Yield 3.2 oz. per plant on the average
I WAS PRESENTED WITH SEVERAL SELECTIONS FROM DUTCH PASSION; I CHOSE
THE ONE I LIKED BEST. I WENT WITH MY INSTINCT AND CHOSE THE SWEET TASTE AND
AROMA, SMOOTH SMOKE AND POTENT LONG-LASTING SOARING HIGH
37
GENETIC BACKGROUND
It is still a moot point whether the genus
Cannabis consists of three differing
Cannabis types, or one type with a vari-
ety ranging from it. Such differences in
opinion are also held with regard to plants
such as Datura (Thornapple), Lophophora
(Peyote) and some fungi in the Psilocybe
family. Cannabis expert Mathias Brckers
declares, it is only recently that science
makes premises of single types from
which variations develop. This can be
seen with regard to differences in cli-
matic conditions for the wild growth of
Cannabis ruderalis compared to the resin
rich Cannabis indica.
And further, the question whether the
genus Cannabis exists in many types or
are all derived from one strain is highly
controversial. The three strains Cannabis
sativa, Cannabis indica and Cannabis
ruderalis can be partly differentiated by
subdividing two groups under Cannabis
sativa, with indica as the second or by
subdividing two groups under Cannabis
indica with sativa as the second.
Consider this from the book Plants of
the Gods by Schultes and Hofmann: by
just raising the question of how many
varieties of Cannabis sorts exist, it soon
becomes debatable whether the genus is
a single strain that encompasses a large
variety or whether there are definitive dif-
ferences that separate the sorts. Currently
the evidence seems to point towards
three distinctive strains. Cannabis indica,
Cannabis ruderalis and Cannabis sativa
can all be classified with differences in
their elementary fib[er]s.
Characteristics and Nicknames
Cannabis ruderalis was first formally
described in 1924 by the Russian botanist,
Janischewski. It originated in Southeast
Russia but currently grows wild, from the
Caucases right up into China. The name
ruderalis is derived from the tough, stony
places on the plains where this sturdy
little plant prefers to take hold. These
places are known as ruderal, so ruderalis
indicates a plant that can even survive on
building rubble.
Ruderalis is short and stocky with a maxi-
mum flowering height of between two-
and five feet. In comparison with Indian
hemp (indica) ruderalis has very small,
short leaves, hardly any branches and pro-
duces one small, firm flower right on its
main growth stem. The seed casing shows
a difference in the outer covering tissue,
which appears wrinkly and almost spotty.
These seeds are usually smaller than their
sativa counterparts but are still larger than
those of indica.
Traditional nicknames for ruderalis
are Anascha, Konopli, Mimea, Momea,
Mumeea, Penka, Penscha, Ruderalhanf,
Russian Hemp, Primeval hemp, Wild Hemp,
Rough Hemp, Hemp and Weedy Hemp.
Botanical synonyms are Cannabis intersita
(SOJAK); C. sativa LINN ssp. spontanea
(SEREBR) ex. (SEREBR et SIZOV); C. sativa
LINN var. ruderalis (JANISCHEWSKY); C.
sativa LINN var. spontanea (MANSFIELD)
and Cannabis spontanea (MANSFIELD).
The History of Primeval Hemp
The Greek historian Herodotus of
Halicarnassus (ca. 484-425 BC) described
the use of ruderalis hemp for burial rituals
practiced by the Scythians. A tent would
be constructed from sticks and folds of
felt cloth above a fire pit, then everyone
would gather under the tent and throw
ruderalis seeds onto the glowing rocks
and embers, whilst deeply inhaling the
rising fumes. Archaeological finds have
confirmed this theory of Herodotus by
uncovering incense holders and leather
pouches full of hemp seeds that date
back 2,400 years, found in Scythian burial
mounds around Mongolia.
The following text was excerpted from
the notes unearthed at his own burial site.
Both vats contained a large amount of
hemp seeds and these were placed next
to the aforementioned large stones. The
seeds found were Cannabis sativa L., of
the strain Cannabis ruderalis, described
by Janischewsky. Hemp seeds were also
discovered inside a heavy leather bottle
that was attached to the base of a large
vat in the form of a Scythian cauldron. The
stones in the smoking vats were burned
and some of the remaining seeds were
carbonized. Apart from its use in burial
rituals, the Scythians used this strain of
hemp as their favorite tranquillizer. In
Central Asia, Cannabis ruderalis has been
used since prehistoric times by shamans
for rituals, and that still happens today in
parts of Russia and Mongolia.
Cannabis ruderalis as Folk
Medicine
In both Mongolia and Russia, Cannabis
ruderalis is widely used as an antidepres-
sant. A Mongolian bagashun or a Russian
mumio are tonics against any and all dis-
eases and ills. They are probably created
out of a mix of ruderalis, juniper berries
and bat guano. The Mongolians identify
two strains of Cannabis: Cannabis sativa,
which is usually used for its oil; ruderalis
is usually used for its psychotropic side
effects. Jettmar (1981) believes that it is
very likely that Mongolian shamans used
ruderalis with juniper berries to induce
trance-like states.
Chemical Composition
Ruderalis contains about the same
amount of cannabinoids as its coun-
terparts. That includes the three main
components of THC (delta9-tetrahydro-
cannabinol), CBD (cannabidiol) and CBN
(cannabinol). The quantity of THC in rud-
eralis is set at about 40%. In compari-
son, analysis shows that Cannabis sativa
contains up to 70% THC. Ed Rosenthal
has this to say about the psychoactive
effects of ruderalis, the high from rud-
eralis is more of a zoom that quickly
descends into a headache. Hybrids and
cross breeding, on the other hand, often
produce a very respectable high.
With cross breeds, Rosenthal is refer-
ring to modern Cannabis hybrids that
have evolved due to selective breeding
between the ruderalis hemp plant and
a sativa or indica (or already established
hybrid). To conclude, lets have a quick
look at some of these interesting devel-
opments in modern hybrids founded
with ruderalis.
For outdoor growing, Cannabis ruderalis
can best be crossed with plants derived
from Cannabis indica. Both types are
small and robust and have a hearty
immune system the influence of rud-
eralis and produce a potent high, the
influence of indica. These factors are very
important to the successful cross cultiva-
tor. Cross breeding with sativa produces
hybrids with an average high content.
Ruderalis Indica and Ruderalis Skunk are
outdoor strains produced by Sensi Seeds.
Ruderalis Indica, as the name implies, is
a cross between ruderalis and an indica
hybrid that originated from Hungary and
the former Soviet Union. The producers
advertise this strain as being a fast and
early bloomer that is still a potent hybrid.
With the other early bloomer, Ruderalis
Skunk, great care was taken to maintain
the original characteristics of the ruderalis
strain. This hybrid is also exceptional from
its primeval origin in that it is able to flow-
er automatically, regardless of daylight
hours. It will just start when it reaches a
certain age. For this reason both strains
are very popular as a beginners plant.
One of the more exquisite sorts from Sensi
Seeds is the Fourway made up of 25%
each of indica, ruderalis, Northern Lights
and Skunk #1 perfect for either indoor
or outdoor cultivation.
The original Northern Lights is an indica
hybrid with a very high potency and is
the hallmark of the Sensi Seed Bank. All
these different strains are evidence of how
interesting games between genetic prop-
erties and conditions can be. As different
as all these individual varieties of hemp
are in appearance and form, so they are
also different in their effect, smell, taste
and vegetative habits and preferences.
Cannabis ruderalis is important to cultiva-
tors, not only for its hardiness but also for
its exceptional flowering ability.
Ruderalis 101
Text: Markus Berger / Photos: Sensi Seeds
FOR OUTDOOR GROWING, CANNABIS RUDERALIS CAN BEST BE CROSSED
WITH PLANTS DERIVED FROM CANNABIS INDICA. BOTH TYPES ARE SMALL AND
ROBUST AND HAVE A HEARTY IMMUNE SYSTEM THE INFLUENCE OF RUDERALIS
AND PRODUCE A POTENT HIGH, THE INFLUENCE OF INDICA
HOW TO MAKE WATER HASH 12 GROWING MEDICINE FOR FREE 28 SOIL AND HYDROPONIC GARDENING: WHATS THE DIFFERENCE? 14
38
GROW REPORT
Marijuana has 10 chromosomes in its
reproductive cells, which shuffle from
plant to plant like playing cards. Each
chromosome has many genes which
move together as a unit, and some
complex traits require multiple genes
to express. It would be daunting to
take on all the variables at once, so this
example illustrates a single regular trait,
controlled by a single gene, located on
a single chromosome. These types of
traits are called Mendelian traits, and
appear in two forms, a dominant form
(illustrated by black cards), and a reces-
sive form (illustrated by red cards).

A trait is a particular characteristic of

the plant, one example is phyllotaxis.
Phyllotaxis refers to the leaf pattern,
which in cannabis the dominant form
starts as an opposite leaf pattern (two
leaves on either side of the stem, each
node rotated 90 degrees from the last),
which later develops into an alternate
leaf pattern in later life. The whorled
form, which has three or four leaves,
spaced evenly around the stem starting
from the same node, is the recessive
form. The black cards show plants with
normal phyllotaxis, and the red cards
show whorled phyllotaxis. Height, struc-
ture, flavor, aroma, THC, CBD, flowering
habits, are all influenced by these rules.

To represent a set of 25 starting plants,

set up the board:
Take a deck of cards, remove the jokers,
shuffle, and deal out 25 cards face down
in an 5 x 5 grid.
Then deal a card face up on each of the
down cards. Suits and values on the
cards are ignored. Only whether the
card is red or black is counted. For
each pair that has a red card face up,
flip the pair to exchange the up card
and the down card. This simulates
dominance. At this point, you should
have approximately one fourth face
up cards red, and the rest black. For
each trait, the seed receives two cards
(alleles). One from each parent.

The phenotype is the plant that is

expressed by growing out the seed.
No matter what the face down is, the
face up card determines the pheno-
type.The genotype referrs to both the
up card, and the down card together.
If the face up card is black, then our
hypothetical plant will grow with the
dominate trait of opposite leaves. This
will happen 3/4 of the time, since the
four possibilities in the two cards are:

Black, Black: True breeding for oppo-

site leaves.
Black, Red: This will show as opposite
leaves, since black is dominant.
Red, Black: Again, this will show as
opposite leaves due to dominance.
Red, Red: True breeding for whorled
leaves.

Keep in mind, that with real plants,

there is no way to peek at the hole card.
The only way to determine the value is
by testing and deduction. What can be
observed directly, is that about 3/4ths
of the face up cards are black.
This is why recessive traits are easier to
breed than dominant traits, if a reces-
sive trait expresses itself, you know it
will breed true if crossed with another
plant that also expresses the trait. If
you take a plant with two red cards,
and cross it with another plant with
both cards red, all offspring will have
only red cards. Feel free to check for
yourself, but all the face up red cards
should have a red hole card as well. As
long as you only breed the recessive
form to the recessive form, there will
be no black cards to express domi-
nance, and the trait will breed true.

However, most of the time the face

up card will be black, and the plant
will show the dominant form. The rea-
son that dominate traits are harder to
work with, is that you can never be
completely positive of what color the
face down card is, because it doesnt
matter if the down card is red or black,
the plant will express the domi-
nant trait. What you can do with
dominant traits, is keep breeding
plants that appear to be true
breeding for the trait until it
is statistically improbable that
they arent true breeding.

If your plant is true breeding

for the trait, because both cards
are red, or both cards are black,
it is considered to be homozygous
for the trait. To stabilize a strain, as
many important traits as possible are
bred to be homozygous. If your plant
has one red card, and one black card,
it is considered to be heterozygous for
the trait. Hybrid vigor tends to express
itself in heterozygous plants.

F1s are the first generation after a

cross. If you cross two plants, each with
two black cards, then all the offspring
will have two black cards, and have
opposite leaves. If you cross two plants
with two red cards each, then all off-
spring will have two red cards, and the
recessive form will express.

If one of the parents with a black up

card has a red down card, you will still
get offspring with opposite leaves, but
as the generations continue, at some
point two red cards will come together
in the same plant, it will be a throw-
back, and show the recessive form.
If you cross two plants that show the
recessive form, the offspring will also
show the recessive form, since there
arent any black cards in the gene pool.
Traits become stable or fixed when
the other color card is eliminated or at
least greatly reduced in the gene pool.

Hybrids are ideally the product of two

true breeding plants of opposite color.
Two red cards to two black cards. This
is why many of the better hybrids are
an indica crossed with a sativa. If all the
cards were the same color, which hap-
pens more often if very similar plants
are crossed, then the trait would just
be stable, and uneffected by hybridiza-
tion, although other traits in the same
plant may be hybridized.

Breeders Solitaire
USING A DECK OF PLAYING CARDS, LETS TAKE A LOOK AT SOME
PRINCIPLES OF BASIC MENDELIAN GENETICS BY GRUBBYCUP
HYBRIDS ARE IDEALLY THE PRODUCT OF TWO TRUE
BREEDING PLANTS OF OPPOSITE COLOR. TWO RED CARDS
TO TWO BLACK CARDS
RED CARDS STAND FOR A RECESSIVE TRAIT, SUCH AS
WHORLED PHYLLOTAXY, QUAD LEAF VERSION SHOWN.
BLACK CARDS STAND FOR A DOMINANT
TRAIT, SUCH AS OPPOSITE PHYLLOTAXY.
39
Seperate the cards by suits into four
stacks. Put the two black stacks face up
together to symbolize the mother, and
the red stacks face up for the father.
The mother plant will show the domi-
nate form since she has a black card,
and the father plant will not, since
both his cards are red. Randomly take
one card from one of the two mother
stacks. Since all her cards are black, it
doesnt matter which stack you take
from, the card will be black. Then take
one card from one of the father stacks,
again, no matter which stack you take
from, the card will be red. Since all chil-
dren get one card from their mother,
and one from their father, all the chil-
dren will have one black card, and one
red card. Therefore, the children will
all express the dominant trait, because
they will all have a black card. This is
the situation in a hybrid.

The F2 generation, is the generation

after that, or the grandchild genera-
tion. Since in our example, we know
all the offspring will have one red card,
and one black card, arrange the stacks
so that the mother has one
red stack and one black
stack, and the father
has one red stack,
and one black stack.

Again, to simu-
late crossing the
two parents, take
one card from the
mother (randomly
choose between her
two stacks), and do the
same with the father. What you should
find, is that the results change dramati-
cally from the F1 hybrid. The possible
results are the same as in the first
example, 3/4 opposite leaves (black),
and 1/4 whorled (red). This is why
growning seeds from hybrids result
in plants that look different than the
original F1 seeds, and how some traits
can hide or skip generations. By
understanding these basic principles,
you can imrove your own seedmaking
efforts dramatically.

Peace, love,
and puka shells,
Grubbycup
25 CARDS FACE DOWN IN A 5X5 GRID. THE FACE
DOWN CARDS ARE THE HIDDEN GENES, THE ONES
NOT EXPRESSED IN THE PLANT.
THE FACE UP CARDS SHOW WHAT THE PLANT
EXPRESSES, HOW THE PLANT WILL APPEAR IF GROWN.
THE PAIRS WITH RED CARDS ON TOP ARE FLIPPED
ONCE TO SIMULATE DOMINANCE.
IF A VARIETY HAS ALL DOMINANT OR ALL
RECESSIVE GENES FOR A TRAIT, THERE IS NO
VARIATIONIN THAT TRAIT.
IN A HYBRID BETWEEN TWO TRUE BREEDING
PLANTS OF OPPOSITE FORMS, THE CHILDREN WILL
BE SIMILAR TO EACH OTHER, AND THE DOMINANT
FORM WILL EXPRESS ITSELF.
F2 PLANTS SHOW VARIATION, SINCE THE
PAIRS CAN RECOMBINE TO EXPRESS BOTH
THE DOMINANT AND RECESSIVE FORMS.
41
MUSIC REVIEWS
Sedge Warbler Welcome To The Universe SPANKY PANKY RECORDS
Welcome to the year two, zero, zero, zero, zero, zero, zero, nine. We are about to take you to the next level!Take an emcee
that has stepped out from under the vanity induced, preschool talent fog that clouds modern day rap and lyricism. Take
one producer, who despite pressure from peers, money or commercialism has stuck to his guns and produced music
that he loves and music that will last. Pour these two ingredients into the mixing bowl and beat until the mixture nears
perfection.. Children, get your light sabers, the space-shits hit the fan! Introducing Sedge Warbler; a duo sent back in time
to f**k up your mind using the deepest, dankest bass rumbles experienced by any carbon-based life form. S.W. is Dank
& Disko, two extraterrestrials from the year 20000009. Originating from the furthest reaches of the cosmos, South Africa.
Sedge Warbler, have come to take control of your mind, and your bitches. Sedge Warbler brings us an earth shattering
debut album consisting of ten mind and body altering tracks collectively named Welcome To The Universe. Spanning
and advancing numerous genres, Sedge Warbler gift us with an ocean of Glitch Hop, Dubstep and all things Wonky &
wonderful. However, one question remains, can our primitive technology handle Sedge Warbler? Only you can find out...
FROM THE OPENING TITLE TRACK WELCOME TO THE UNIVERSE, SEDGE WARBLER MAKES THEIR INTENTIONS
CLEAR, SETTING THE STAGE FOR A SPACEWARD VOYAGE.
Next up slamming into the awkward jilting bass blams of Paranormal Ox Man and
tales of creatures that go bump in the night. Face Rap is a cranked out tipper-esque
bass juggernaut & the pace continues on with hard-hitting thumps and angular
lyrics dripping with funk. Pretty Hop brings the tempo down a notch and comes
with an infectious laser bass wonk. Rolling on Super Thug smacks the tits off it once
more with gangster strings and more ass clapping glitch hop rhythms. Octopus
Lover & Sand Kids bring the temperature back up to boiling point with more def.
jug style bass bin ruckus. Welcome To The Universe wraps up with Epilogue, the
tale that perfectly closes the final chapter in this epic.
Kabanjak Tree of Mystery ESL MUSIC
Released on ESL music, home of The Thievery
Corporation, comes Tree of Mystery the debut
album from Germanys own Kabanjak. Here, one
half of the block-rockin German hip-hop produc-
tion and DJ duo Ancient
Astronauts, presents his
own musical vision with
his debut solo album Tree
of Mystery! Kabanjak not
only tackles much of Tree
of Mysterys live instru-
mentation, including gui-
tars, bass, keys, kalimba,
flute, and melodica but also teams up with various
other vocal and instrumental talents: Ulf Stricker
provides snapping live drum rhythms, Canadian
DMC champion and Juno Award winner DJ Brace
provides cuts and scratches, poet Azeem drops
conscious rhymes, and Sitali and Rykarda Parasol
provide soulful incantations.
WITH ITS BROAD SPECTRUM OF HAUNTING MEL-
ODIES, ROUGH RIDDIMS, AND SOLID ARRANGE-
MENTS, SPANNING FROM DOWNBEAT TO HIP-
HOP TO DUB REGGAE, KABANJAK LETS TREE OF
MYSTERY DIG ITS ROOTS DEEP INTO THE MUSI-
CAL UNDERGROUND AND GROW ITS BRANCHES
RIGHT UP INTO THE SKY!
Dub Gabriel Restless Youth EP
DESTROY ALL CONCEPTS
Dub Gabriel is on fiyah!!! Restless Youth is the
follow up to his groundbreaking single, Luv n
Liv which featured the legendary U-Roy on the
mic. With Restless Youth, Dub Gabriel continues
to push the musical envelope, delivering a deep
and heavy dancehall-meets-dubstep scorcher.
For the lead track, No Lies, Dub Gabriel has
paired up with none other than MC Zulu, one
of the most sought-after raga vocalists in elec-
tronic music today. Zulu has been killing dance
floors worldwide over the past few years having
collaborated with Ghislain Poirier (Ninja Tune),
Soulico (J-Dub) and a host of other top produc-
ers his newest track with Dub Gabriel is set to
be one of this years hottest dance-floor bang-
ers! On the studio front, Dub Gabriel once again
enlisted the services of electronic music icon,
Mark Pistel (Meat Beat Manifesto, Hercules &
The Love Affair, Grace Jones) the two of them
immersed themselves in Room 5 Recording
where they went all-out, pushing an arsenal of
analog synths, drum machines, vintage tape
echoes and
outboard stu-
dio gear to the
max. Restless
Youth features 4
tracks including
the incendiary
No Lies, the
post-apocalyptic
sounds of Babylon Shall Fall, the riddim treat-
ment of Set the Lazers to Destroy the Sun
and, the dance floor crushing frequencies of
Tactile Evasion - a remix of No Lies from
one of our favorite producers, Liquid Stranger.
ONCE AGAIN MASTERED BY TAYLOR DUPREE
OF 12K, RESTLESS YOUTH IS DEFINITELY
NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!
Rockin Acoustic Circus Lonestar Lullabye FLYING WEASEL RECORDS
The Bluegrass genre is one that has some of the best musicians at their instrument of choice and also has one of the most devoted
followings from their fans. With the release of their new album, Lonestar Lullaby, Tulsa based Rockin Acoustic Circus is ready to
continue forging down the bluegrass path before them. The astonishing thing is that the groups
members range in age from 15-17, but with their expertise in their craft you would never know
it by just listening to them. There mostly folk influenced bluegrass based sound is a little left of
the dial in comparison to those traditional bluegrassers out there as they seem to be stretching
genre borders and testing its boundaries more often than not. The instruments throughout the
album include the standard fiddle, banjo, mandolin, etc. but this is a band that more often than
not allows their vocals to take center stage leaving the music to simply accompany them as is
evident on songs like You Aint Goin Nowhere. However, with songs like Bethany you see the
prominent use of the fiddle take center stage while on songs like Money In The Bankit is the banjo that gets you tapping along.
ROCKIN ACOUSTIC CIRCUS BRINGS TOGETHER INFLUENCES FROM THE ACOUSTIC COUNTRY SCENE AND COMBINES
THEM WITH BLUEGRASS FLARE AND FOLK TO MAKE FOR WHAT CAN BEST BE DESCRIBED AS AN AMERICANA FEEL TO A
BLUEGRASS SOUND WITH THEIR NEW ALBUM LONESTAR LULLABYE.
The Orb featuring David Gilmour
Metallic Spheres COLUMBIA RECORDS
The Orb, the visionary UK ambi-
ent/house collective, came to
collaborate with David Gilmour
after working together on a ver-
sion of Graham Nashs Chicago
for a charity project. Youth (aka
Martin Glover), a frequent Orb
accomplice, was invited to cre-
ate a remix, and he and Alex Paterson, as The Orb, were so
energized by the task that they continued working until it
was an album-length entity. Having asked Gilmour to bring
his guitars to Youths studio in South London to prolong and
enrich their new creation, the trio worked up a sonic mixture
in a range of styles. Thus, the Metallic Spheres project was
born. Metallic Spheres is designed to be heard in two parts
Metallic Side and Spheres Side. EACH TRACK, OR SIDE,
CONSISTS OF FIVE MOVEMENTS. THE ALBUM UNIQUELY
UTILIZES DAVID GILMOURS DISCERNABLE ELECTRIC
GUITAR AND LAP STEEL GUITAR, ALEX PATERSONS
SOUND MANIPULATION, KEYBOARDS AND TURNTA-
BLES, AND YOUTHS BASS GUITAR AND KEYBOARDS.
Cheikh Lo Jamm WORLD CIRCUIT RECORDS
Jamm is the first
new album in five
years from one
of Africas great
musical mavericks,
Senegalese sufi
troubadour Cheikh
L. This is his most
distinctive and
personal album since his groundbreaking, Youssou
NDour-produced debut Ne la Thiass in 1996.
THE DREADLOCKED SINGERS SIGNATURE BLEND
OF SEMI-ACOUSTIC FLAVOURS - WEST AND
CENTRAL AFRICAN, FUNK, CUBAN, FLAMENCO
- HAS BEEN DISTILLED INTO HIS MOST MATURE,
FOCUSED, YET DIVERSE STATEMENT TO DATE.
AND HIS HUSKY, SENSUAL VOICE IS SOUNDING
BETTER THAN EVER.
By Kaz Peet
42
LE POISON ROUGE, FRANCE
Dear Soft Secrets
The plants pictured with my gorgeous 23yo (Im 40 you know!!!) girlfriend didnt produce the yield I was expecting but I
have been experimenting with different pot sizes, and have concluded that 19cm pots are better than 10cm, dur!!
I chose Cheese Wreck predominantely because of the amazing aroma which have a weird aniseed/creosote smell
when wet, but the most mellow yet strong roasted coffee aroma when dried out. The buds are hard and teardrop
shaped and this strain seems to have a lot of haze in it as the leaves turn purple and the buzz is a heavy body hit,
so Im assuming its mostly sativa.
The Big Bud and plant pictured was some Northern Lights I grew last year and was amazed at the results consider-
ing I used a mixture of baby bio and miracle grow. Check out the roots on this Cheese Wreck! This was achieved by
standing the plants on a one inch bed of perlite which has to be kept moist at all times.
YOURS SINCERELY, A&K
Your grow room looks well lit and healthy and so does your 17-year younger girlfriend junior. The roots growing out of
the their pots can be a problem when transplanting since the tender root follicles can get damaged easily. In future pot
the plants on as they reach the base of the pots and they will develop quicker and become even more robust. But con-
grats on your Lolita-girl, it keeps us old farts staying young at heart!
Soft Secrets,
This is one of 2 Big Bang I have had on for 9 1/2
weeks now, it was grown with 2 Blue Cheese
that were chopped 3 weeks previous. Grown in
11litre pots with Soil/Perlite mix, nutes were a
range of Bio Bizz, vegged under a 125ww Fluro
and flowered under a 250w Sodium. After taking
out the BCheese it has really come on, no probs
with mold and covered in resin, Ive heard mixed
reviews about this but Im looking forward.
Next up, SOG including some OG18#, Pineapple
express, LA Conf and Chiesel! In a bitch!
GERRADO
This Big Bang plant could have grown much wider
had it been given the room to expand early on.
In future try concentrating on a few larger plants
rather than many smaller plants if the aim is to
increase yield. Otherwise this is a great example of
homegrowing.
Attention Readers!
Become part of the world wide growers com-
munity and star in Soft Secrets legendary
Dear Soft Secrets column. A marihuana
plant, a copy of Soft Secrets and preferably
your wife or girlfriend in a sexy bikini must
be in the frame.
Simply e-mail your entries to
kristie@softsecrets.nl. NOTE: All entries
are handled with the utmost discretion.
Remember, we dont publish out of focus or
low resolution pics, and we dont like photos
of young plants in the veg stage. Its fat buds
and sweet babes we want to see!
E-mail:
kristie@softsecrets.nl
Readers Stuff s Stu aders Re uff
43
This is a picture of the
love of my life......and
my girlfriend! Shes a
Super Skunk from the
Greenhouse grown under
600W sodium, they were
vegd for seven weeks
and flowered for eight.
The medium used was La
Canna Gold Mix soil using
La Canna fertiliser and La
Canna boost with a final
push of PK13. Produced
around 8oz per plant.
Thanks for all the infor-
mation provided by the
Soft Secrets crew over the
years, its been a pleasure.
PEACE
Well, youre not quitting,
are you? Or is it that you
are going to be mar-
ried (understandable),
and become a good citi-
zen? Your girlfriend is an
extraordinary beauty, if
you prefer your garden, you
better send her over to Soft
Secrets HQ in Amsterdam.
Shell have plenty of mates
to play with.
Dear Soft Secrets, Iam sending you my first attempt of Big Buddha Cheese.
BOB
Big Buddha Bob strikes again. Next time remove the lower branches that yielded nothing,
and use a bigger plant pot. Youll get a better harvest. And stop toking for a while, we cant
put our finger on it but somehow you look a bit pale
Grew these 6 Cheese plants in soil from B-Q using General Hydro
Flora nutrients, PK13-14 at 5 weeks and got an average of .5 ounce
per plant. Then the 6 foot 6 inch grew two of these using hydro sys-
tem with air pumped into baths using mini-mouse pump flooding
root mass using vita link a and b and house and garden products all
under 4 x 600w hps both monsters. Yield 16 ounces, the plant Im
standing next to was 6 foot 6 inch, unreal. All for less than 250! Well
worth it and thank N.A.S.A for your help and always remember ELVIS
is alive and well and living in the U.K
YOURS WANKINGLY, ELVIS
Good old B-Q soil and PK 13-14 , a grower cant grow wrong with that
formula its that simple. What type of Cheese is that man?
This is a picture of my first grow in darkroom 60x60x140. x9 One Buds in 12/12
only, under 250w Osram Plantastar, with Plagron Alga Bloom. Harvest after 12
weeks, 3 weeks with water and 10 days of black.
ANONYMOUS
The 10 days of black at the end slightly confuses us. When was the last time the
sun went away for 10 days? Or did you mean you smoked them and then went
black for 10 days straight? In that case we want a puff too! But remember: an
input of high intensity light during the last few days of flowering is essential to
help the natural oils of the plant develop to their fullest.
44
Hi Soft Secrets
Here I have some pics of my Super Skunk grow on harvest day. I have been using House and Garden A+B formula with the added bonus of using their shooting powder
additive which the plants just adored. They were grown in clay pebbles and under 2x 600w HPS lights with Cool Tubes and extra suplimentary lighting. Please keep a
close eye out for more pics from me as I am after editors choice!
HAPPY TOKIN FROM SMOKEDOUTALLDAY
Well we were about to crown you photo of the month but then we saw all those rotting, decaying dead leave tips.. Theyre an open invitation to diseases and mould.
But do try again mate.
FROM OUR LADY IN SPAIN Take note readers, of that great red tub!
45
WE WANT YOU / INDEX OF ADS / COLOFON
46
Colofon Index of ads
Name Page
Advanced Seeds 1
All American Healing Group 48
Attitude the 2
Attitude the 4
Dinafem Seeds 25
Distribuciones Marianas 40
Doctor the 30
Eva Female Seeds 40
Evergreen Collective 11
Hemcy 39
Mountain High 17
Paradise Seeds 1
Royal Queen Seeds 47
Serious Seeds 40
Sweet Seeds 1
Sweet Seeds 7
Sweet Seeds 36
Soft Secrets is published by
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Editor: Kristie Szalanski
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To the chagrin of the US Federal Government,
almost half of the states have embarked on a
process of relative liberalization towards the
use of Cannabis, and Cannabis activists are
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townships, mayors and police chiefs on a
local level now actively support a compassion
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In the meantime, the publisher hopes Soft
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