Sweet Seeds Femme Fatales: Red Poison, Dark Devil, Ice Cool, Cream Caramel, and Gorilla Girl XL Autos

[Subliminal Criminal]

Really pleasant to view that!  

[Shumroom]

Very clever 

 

Best of luck with the video competition  

 

Atb 

 

 

[delagdo]

@mr rhino thank you very much, I do really appreciate hearing that, it's very motivating to know you have enjoyed it. Well done on placing in the Grower of the Month, well deserved 

 

 @Subliminal Criminal thank you, I am very glad you enjoyed it.

 

@Shumroom thank you very much!

 

I'm still a little in shock at the sudden interest in the video on YouTube. It's now over 50k on that one minute first 2 weeks video. It's fun but distracting, sitting and looking at the numbers. A thousand views in Brazil, a thousand views in Argentina. A thousand in Mexico, a thousand in Russia, and Canada, and India. 

 

204 views in Jamaica  

 

14 views in French Polynesia 

Edited May 11, 2021 by delagdo

[jadenugs]

Well done mate, very nice video, enjoyed it.  

[delagdo]

@jadenugs thank you very much! I am really glad you enjoyed it, I really appreciate you saying that. 

 

I have very little time right now but the other day I lost a bit of it to your thread and your focus stack images - really great work, they look really nice and clean. And the buds!! 

[Woodie2010]

wow what a video, makes me wanna go check if my plants have grown anymore even though i checked them like ten mins ago lmao. What an absolutely incredible, creative and unique diary mate. With all the effort you have put in you definitely have earned the attention/views you have gotten.  All the best in the diary and video comp man and let me know what supermarkets in ireland will be selling your beverages cause i wanna preorder lol.

[delagdo]

Final Timelapse Video

Here’s my final edit of the seed to harvest timelapse video:

 

It is very similar to the previous video, but I have changed some things since I had a bit of time to work on it:
-    Added a shot of the seed for an intro screen/thumbnail.
-    Tried to manually stabilize a bit of the jerkiness that remained in the seedling phase
-    Added some zoom effects to bring a bit more motion
-    Added still photos showing flower development detail during timelapse
-    Changed the end photos a bit, added some motion with zoom
-    Changed the music

This new music is the first idea my friend gave me, which I preferred. It’s a bit more mellow than the other. I gave him a rough cut of the timelapse a couple of weeks ago for inspiration. I remember years ago reading about Mercury Rev starting as a band by improvising along to nature documentaries, trying to mirror the animals and plants with their instruments. I feel the track he’s given me fits so well. 

I was going to add more text to the video originally, such as equipment details. I calculated all the frame numbers to add week number scrollers, but I realised this was just distracting. I think the simplicity works better and adds impact. The information is available elsewhere for anyone who would really want to know.

Hopefully the flower development photos throughout are not too distracting. I first made a version with nine of them popping out showing different things besides flowers, it was really annoying, and didn’t look good. I felt like the four that remain still added something without taking anything away. 

Thank you for watching, I hope you enjoyed it 

[delagdo]

5 minutes ago, Woodie2010 said:

wow what a video, makes me wanna go check if my plants have grown anymore even though i checked them like ten mins ago lmao. What an absolutely incredible, creative and unique diary mate. With all the effort you have put in you definitely have earned the attention/views you have gotten.  All the best in the diary and video comp man and let me know what supermarkets in ireland will be selling your beverages cause i wanna preorder lol.

 

 you just missed out on the updated improved version by minutes. 

 

That's really really kind of you!! Honestly, I am not sure you would really want more than one bottle of the beer, I dont know if the taste is going to be great. Hopefully I will try some this weekend, and carry on with some strain testing, but I have a vaccine jab tomorrow 

[Woodie2010]

 i just watched the other video on the sweet seeds video comp forum and i agree its even better  

[jadenugs]

Love the updated version mate, and how you've added the stills for each stage of growing. Not distracting at all, adds that bit of punch, brilliant!  

 

I realise just how time consuming learning stuff like this is dude, learning new stuff myself every day. Thanks for catching up with my diary, appreciated  

[delagdo]

Thanks so much @jadenugs - I'm really glad you said that. You've reminded me of a song which is very relevant to our hobbies as gardeners, photographers, diary-keepers etc which expresses an attitude I've found really motivating the past decade or so since I heard it. I should have included it in my trimming songs but I didn't think of it then. But now I can mention it separately and also copy the lyrics - you don't need to watch the video (but I do recommend it, then going back and listening to his other music from The Last Time I Did Acid I Went Insane onwards, and looking at his comics!):

 

Quote

Time is gonna take so much away
But there's a way that time can offer you a trade.
Time is gonna take so much away
But there's a way that time can offer you a trade.
You gotta do something that you can get nicer at.
You gotta do something that you can get wiser at.
You better do something that you can get better at
'Cause that's the only thing that time will leave you with.
'Cause time is gonna take so much away
But there's a way that time can offer you a trade.
It might be cabaret.
It could be poetry.
It might be trying to make a new happy family.
It could be violin repair or chemistry.
But if it's something that takes a lot of time that's good.
'Cause time is gonna take so much away
But there's a way that time can offer you a trade.
Because your looks are gonna leave you.
And your cities gonna change too.
And your shoes are gonna wear through.
Yeah, time is gonna take so much away
But there's a way that you can offer time a trade.
You gotta do something that you can get smarter at.
You gotta do something that you might just be a starter at.
You better do something that you can get better at.
'Cause that's the thing that time will leave you with.
And maybe that's why they call a trade a trade,
Like when they say that you should go and learn a trade.
The thing you do don't have to be to learn a trade
Just get something back from time for all it takes away.
It could be many things.
It could be anything.
It could be expertise in Middle-Eastern travelling.
Something to slowely sure to balance lifes unravelling.
You have no choice you have to pay times price,
But you can use the price to buy you something nice.
Something you can only buy with lots of time
So when you're old, which you will, some whippersnappers mind.
It might be researching a book that takes you seven years.
A book that helps to make the path we take to freedom clear.
And when you're done you see it started with a good idea.
One good idea could cost you thousands of your days,
But it's just time you'd be spending anyways.
You have no choice, you have to pay times price
But you can use the price to buy you something nice.
So I've decided recently,
To try to trade more decently.

 

 

[delagdo]

Final Results and Reflections

I’ve been busy the past few weeks and the buds have had a chance to begin to cure. They’ve not quite had as long as ideal but I’m up against the end of the contest, and after a month or so in the jars there is a bit of difference versus freshy dried buds. I’ve written some vape reports based on the little samples I’ve had over the past couple of weeks, and taken some pictures. I will have to add a drink report when I get a chance to have a proper sample, unfortunately this weekend it is just not possible.

First, the yield. The Dark Devil Auto was the lightest as expected, at 55g. The Ice Cool Auto did a bit better giving 68g. I said it was difficult to guess between Cream Caramel Auto and Gorilla Girl XL Auto which was more, and they both measured at 92g. So, all in all 307g. That does include some stem, and a little bit of leaf because my trimming is not thorough, I’d expect it adds up to 5-10% if you saved it all up and measured it. I just vape the leaf anyway, and the stem is good for poking etc.

It’s OK, but it is significantly less than I can get from the tent. There are understandable reasons why, and I did expect the yield to be down on previous grows from the outset. I did not train the plants, which is really the first time ever I haven’t. I’ve always LST’d since I first started growing photoperiods, but since I was making the video, and since I never had done it, I thought I would experiment with allowing them to grow vertically but controlling the height with pinching and supercropping only. I knew I wouldn’t get as good side growth and canopy shape to fill the tent.

The next reason was a knock on effect from the lack of training, which resulted in the plants growing too close to the light and suffering damage. I’m a bit annoyed at myself still, because I knew 30cm was too close really, but I didn’t have many options and I thought I would just leave it and see what happens. I won’t make that mistake again. When I did move the light, I was surprised just how much of an effect on the airflow round the tent it had. Before, with a decent space above the lamp, the whole space was more even and warm throughout. When I’d moved it up just a few inches and the air couldn’t circulate above it so well, there was a pooling of heat at the top of the tent, and a drop in temperature lower down. I have to remember that is partly because the canopy filled up, but I am convinced the space worked so much better before I had to move the light.

My lesson is learned and I will train my plants next time, it is essential with my limited headroom. I’ve been inspired by some of the things I’ve seen here this year so I have more ideas how to do this, without it being a too much of a problem for watering the plants, moving them and draining the runoff whilst using fabric pots.

I posted the updated feeding schedule back on page 3, which is just how the grow proceeded for the Gorilla Girl XL Auto, Cream Caramel Auto and Ice Cool Auto, until flushing on days 74-76, and chop on day 79:

The Dark Devil Auto was very similar but move through from veg to flower feed ratios a few days earlier, and finished slightly sooner. She did seem to be the quickest to develop, but it was mostly because she sprouted a few days after the others. 

The schedule worked well but it was not perfect. It was good at the start I think, despite my slightly overwatering them at times during the first few weeks. Later, in flowering the plants faded quite quickly, perhaps the feed at the end was not so well suited. I don’t know if I should make the switch over later, or perhaps use the intermediate 1:1:1 ratio for a bit longer? The Gorilla Girl XL Auto in particular I think could have had a bit more nitrogen and then gone another week or two.

Nearly time for the vape reports, but first a bit of fun I had trying to come up with a cool photo for Ice Cool Auto. 

Making a Dynavap Stem

I wrote vape reports, not smoke reports. I have not smoked for nearly three years now, although glass pipes used to be my main method of consumption. Dynavap must really take the credit, I am not sure I would be able to say the same thing if I had not bought a vapcap. I have other vapes but I use vapcaps by far the most. 

I have a small collection of different tips, stems and caps. I think it’s great how George embraced the development of third party accessories for the vapcap, and nowadays there are all sorts of different stems available in different materials. I have spent too long on places like Instagram, Etsy, eBay, vape dealer websites, Reddit etc essentially looking at these tubes, and too much money having them sent to me. I have metal stems, glass stems, wooden stems, even a meerschaum stem.

When I was harvesting my plants, I had an idea. I thought it was strange how I had never seen a stem made of, well, a stem. There is someone who posts about their quince stems, but I hadn’t seen anyone using our favourite plant. 

My plants always seem to have a hollow centre to their stems, and they did again this time. I kept the main body of the Ice Cool Auto once it had dried and the buds had been chopped off. I saw there were two decent sections I might get from the main stem – a knobbly section which showed the scars of supercropping, and a smoother section from the node below. I got my sharp knife:

Ice Cool Auto stem

I trimmed down the sections carefully so as not to split them, and to try to cut them straight. I managed to get both sections fine, so I used the straight piece, and kept the knobbly one as a backup.

To attach a tip I used a short steel collar, from an old metal hash pipe from back in the day. It’s a bit wider than a Dynavap stem, so I added a couple of extra fat o-rings over the existing ones on a tip. To get a good fit around the top of the stem I wrapped some degummed hemp fibre around it.

Making a stem stem

The collar has a thread inside it, so it could screw onto the stem, and the tip could then be gently twisted into place. My real aim was to make something which looked cool for the photo, I wasn’t sure it was really going to work very well, however I was pleasantly surprised when I covered the top of the tip with my finger to test, and the seal was virtually airtight. So I loaded it up and tested it out – it actually works very well! The stem is 92mm in length so it’s a bit longer than a usual vapcap, which helps with cooling. The material doesn’t really absorb much of the heat so the vapour is still a bit fresh and warm. The biggest problem is that it’s a bit fragile, and could easily split if crushed (e.g. with your teeth) – if it wasn’t for that I’m sure I’d be linking you to my new shop now. 

 

Vape Report: Ice Cool Auto

Ice Cool Auto, with Ice Cool Auto Vapcap

Ice Cool Auto is the strain I had grown before. I just wanted more of what I got last year really, one of my favourite plants ever. I’ve only sampled this a little bit, but it’s not disappointed me so far. It’s not quite the same but it’s 90% there.

The smell and taste were very strong with the last plant, whereas this time it’s just a little less. It’s very similar to before, very sweet and sugary smell, almost vanilla. I notice light earthy and spicy undertones in the smell I don’t remember so much from last time. This adds a bit of woodiness to the sweet taste when I’ve vaped it. 

The effects are perfect to me. Very relaxing physically, accompanied with a mental massage that gets my mind wondering and pondering. It’s good in lower doses where the cerebral side is more stimulating, or in larger amounts where it will push me back into a chair, happy and relaxed but not sleepy. The last one had great strength, and so far this one seems just as potent.

Vape Report: Cream Caramel Auto

 

Cream Caramel Auto

There is a fruity freshness in the smell that comes out when it is ground up, very pleasant and sweet. When I vape it, it is very smooth and easy, the fruitiness is a background note in a more general creamy flavour. It is tasty, but the flavour is not a strong overpowering one.

It’s a relaxing, laid back high. I seem to feel it rise up from my legs and through my body first, then follow into the head where it stays for a few hours. It’s a great one to have before bed, but also it can be nice in the daytime too, if I have time to sit back and relax and feel nice but don’t want to feel too mangled.

Vape Report: Dark Devil Auto

Dark Devil Auto

I was pleasantly surprised with this one. I’m not quite sure why but I had a preconceived idea it wasn’t going to smell or taste very nice, I thought it was all about the looks with this one. Actually it has a very pleasant aroma, very sweet and floral with background incense notes. There’s something extra to it, almost like mint or eucalyptus. This translates into a lovely rich sweet flavour, I would say floral and lavender tones dominate.

I have had cannabis with this quality before (the particular smell, but not the colour), but it was a long time ago before I grew my own, and I remember it distinctly and have wondered what it was ever since. I sometimes wish I had the knowledge and language to be able to accurately describe it, so I could say for example, this plant must have had a lot of this terpene or that terpene, but I just don’t. Then I could find it in other strains, it is a flavour I really like.

I’ve really enjoyed the effects, which I find are light and uplifting. It’s a great daytime vape. It’s not especially powerful and it’s more of a relaxed, meandering mindset I find myself in, compared to some other more sativa types which get thoughts racing. It’s been great for creative inspiration, where it can oil the brain a bit to loosen up some ideas, but then give some energy and focus to keep going. The more subtle effects, combined with the lovely taste makes it very moreish!

Vape Report: Gorilla Girl XL Auto

Gorilla Girl XL Auto

No surprise, I really like this one! I said at the start it promises a lot and I haven’t been disappointed. It has a pungent aroma, that is immediately hash-like, heavy and earthy, but then there is a sort of fruitiness or citrus that’s underneath. When I vape it I find there’s a complex taste, more sweet and nutty more earthy, but a bit of both. It’s similar to the Sweet Gelato Auto I grew before, which is not surprising, but not the same.

The effect is not subtle at all, I find it a buzzy uplifting high that has more of a cerebral side than most other autos I’ve grown. I don’t find it sleepy or couch-locking, more like the opposite. Instead it seems to inspire thoughts and either push me to focus on something, or be happy to sit and watch something interesting. It’s been a great one for music, listening and playing.

All four strains are ones I potentially would like to grow again. The biggest reason I might not is simply that I can only grow a limited number of plants. I already have a good stock of seeds including several varieties I haven’t grown but would like to, and I see Sweet Seeds have added several new autos to their catalogue this year including some very special sounding strains. Bruce Banner Auto and Runtz XL Auto continue a theme I like a lot, and have both gone straight to the top of the want list. Red Strawberry Banana Auto looks like a chance to try something like Red Poison Auto again, hopefully with more success. 

 

I am not sure what I will grow next time. Hopefully I will be able to share a diary with you. Thank you very much for looking at my diary, pictures and videos. 

 

Edited May 21, 2021 by delagdo

[Clumsy]

Excellent diary from start to finish

 

Love the video and the Vapstem, a true Macgyver of weed.

 

Thanks for sharing, really enjoyed it, all the best.

 

[mr rhino]

Great diary mate, top notch stuff, I particularly enjoyed your vids

 

Good luck in the comp 

[jadenugs]

Love the tune and the lyrics mate. Yes, very fitting for our hobby. It doesn't matter how you spend your time, as long as you enjoy it  

 

Your final post is superb, great photos and descriptions of the strains.

 

Very best of luck in the comp dude