Northern Lights

Northern Lights won the indica category of the High Times Cannabis Cup in 1989, entered by The Seed Bank, the seed company of Nevil Schoenmakers; a retrospective on the competition names the winning plant as selection #1. A year later, Northern Lights #5 took the overall win for the same company. The Seed Bank later merged into Sensi Seeds, which lists the strain at 90 % indica and also records a 3rd place in the outdoor category of the 2017 Gran Canaria High Pro Cup.

Genetics and Origin:

The strain's beginnings date to the 1970s in the Seattle area. They have been passed down only orally and in differing versions. One account credits the strain to a grower nicknamed "The Indian," who grew numbered plants of purely Afghani descent on an island near Seattle, with Thai sativa said to have been added only in later hybrids. A more detailed reconstruction instead describes a circle of growers in Seattle and holds that #5 was a cross of Afghani and a Hawaiian sativa. Sensi Seeds names Afghani and Thai landraces as the origin.

In 1985 the line reached Schoenmakers in the Netherlands, and The Seed Bank added it to its catalog that same year. Today's Sensi Seeds version is described as a combination of #1, #2 and #5. Strains descended from Northern Lights include Shiva Skunk, Jack Herer, Super Silver Haze and the autoflowering strain Lowryder. The cross Northern Lights #5 x Haze also won at the High Times Cannabis Cup: Sensi Seeds dates its win in the sativa category to 1990, while an independent list of winners records it for 1993.

THC Content:

Strain descriptions state 15 to 18 % THC. Royal Queen Seeds gives up to 18 % for its own version and up to 14 % for the autoflowering variant.

Aroma and Flavor:

Sensi Seeds describes the smell as pungent and earthy with hints of honey and herbs, and the taste as sweet. Other strain descriptions add pine, wood and spice, and in some cases citrus, mint and sage. The dominant terpenes named there are myrcene and caryophyllene, alongside limonene or pinene.

Effects:

Reports mainly describe a body-focused relaxation and sleepiness extending to a reluctance to move, alongside euphoria, elevated mood, talkativeness and creativity. Consensus places the strain in the evening; one report also describes it in a social setting, and one person found the sedation unexpectedly strong on first use. Buyers of the feminized seeds report that plants harvested early felt more uplifting, while those harvested later felt more relaxing. Side effects mentioned include dry mouth, dry eyes, dizziness and harsh smoke, and in one case anxiety.

Cultivation:

Sensi Seeds states a flowering time of 45 to 50 days, indoor height of 80 to 130 cm and around 500 g/m², and outdoor height of 150 to 200 cm. The breeder's own pages disagree on outdoor yield: up to 1.5 kg per plant for the regular version, around 600 g for the feminized version. Outdoors, the compact, heavily branched plant needs a sunny, Mediterranean climate with long, hot summers according to Sensi, and for the feminized version the breeder also names the greenhouse as an option. Strain descriptions highlight a high flower-to-leaf ratio.

Several reports cite longer flowering times: buyers of the feminized seeds report 57 to 60 days, German-speaking growers 60 to 70 days. In the breeder's hydroponic grow report, a feminized plant flowered for 77 days, grew into a Christmas-tree shape reaching 130 cm, and produced 82 g of dense, resin-rich buds. The report considers removing lower shoots nearly essential and recommends a carbon filter because of the strong odor. One grower considers the strain fairly resistant to mold and cooler weather.

Sensi Seeds gives the automatic version a total runtime of 11 to 13 weeks. In an outdoor report from the breeder under changeable weather, 2 plants took 112 days, reached 50 to 70 cm in height and together yielded 30.2 g.

Versions from Different Breeders:

Numerous other seed companies offer their own versions, some with different ancestry:

• Seedsman: regular seeds from Afghani, Skunk #1 and Haze, flowering 6 to 7 weeks, outdoor harvest mid to late September
• Royal Queen Seeds: listed as Northern Light S1, flowering 55 to 60 days, outdoor harvest late September; the autoflowering variant from Northern Light and Ruderalis with a total runtime of 70 to 85 days
• Nirvana Seeds: listed as Northern Light, feminized and as an autoflower, flowering 9 to 11 weeks, 400 to 500 g/m² in a Sea of Green

Community Experiences:

Among experienced growers it is disputed whether today's Sensi version still corresponds to the Northern Lights of the early years. One grower reports that only one plant from a pack recalled the earlier quality; older German-language discussions criticize inconsistent and hermaphroditic plants, also with other providers. Buyers on the breeder's own page, by contrast, praise resin production and uniform growth and consider the strain forgiving of mistakes.