S.A.D. (Sweet Afghani Delicious)
Sweet Afghani Deliciuos S1 (S.A.D.) is an easy-to-grow, mainly indica strain. Its medium size and resistance to fungi and insects, and the opportunity to rapidly harvest enormous and dense buds in only a few weeks make it suitable for both indoor and outdoor growing.
TricomaTeam (tricomateam@gmail.com)
The Big Dwarf
Sweet Afghani Delicious S1 is a fantastic feminised photoperiod seed released from Sweet Seeds. S.A.D. has all the qualities of champions, which won it numerous cannabis cups both in Spain and worldwide. It was produced from the self-pollination of one of its strongest and most aromatic mothers, a Black Domina selected in 1998. This highly homogeneous 90% Indica strain has THC levels of 15 to 20% and CBD levels of around 1.8%. It is very easy to grow and resists diseases and plagues. It perfectly adapts to any growing style such as SOG or SCROG. Its size is quite small, making it suitable for indoor growing, where space is limited. It grows in a Christmas tree shape and develops a robust structure with large, thick branches and short internodes. Leaves are large and dark green. It flowers under lamps at week 8 or 9, is among the earliest strains to ripen outdoors and can be harvested as early as in late September. Yields average 400 to 500 g/m2 indoors, but can rise well above half a kilogramme per plant outdoors.
Buds are all long, compact and highly resinous, and the central bud is particularly impressive. Despite its relatively small size, the use of training rods is indispensible in order to bear the heavy weight of flowers. The plant spreads a strong and sweet aroma. Taste is fruity with hash notes. The final effect is physical, powerful, and instils peace and relaxation – a perfect fit for people under stress or end-of-day smoking. For growers who are more into quick harvests, Sweet Seeds also offers a Fast Version of this plant – to be harvested after only 6 to 7 weeks under lamps, and in early September outdoors. In addition, a third-generation auto version is available, which will be ready in only 8 weeks after germination. Finally, for medical cannabis consumers or anyone seeking a milder effect, an ideal choice is Sweet Afghani Delicious with a high CBD content (the THC:CBD ratio is between 1:1 and 1:3).
Germination and growth
Over the last few years, we have been harvesting various seed packs of S.A.D. S1. The germination rate was invariably 100%. As we always do after the first tests, we placed seeds between wet cloths. When we did so, the first radicle appeared in little less than two days. We then transferred the seeds to pots of little less than one litre, filled with a quite light substrate, where they remained two weeks. We added a root booster in the early watering cycles. We then moved the plants to pots of six and eleven litres, filled with a nutrient-rich soil. We applied again a root booster in the early days after transplanting, in order to favour the development of a good root ball, and we also started to supply small doses of growth booster. 400W lamps were required for the growth phase. Plants are Christmas tree shaped with big branches and wide green leaves. Roughly one month after germination, plants had developed their early pistils. When then reached a suitable size, we moved them to the flowering room, where we changed the photoperiod to 12 hours of darkness.
Flowering
After a few days of changing the photoperiod, our S.A.D. S1 specimens had a last growth spurt. At 12 hours of light under 600W lamps, the plants grew to their highest potential. These plants are not too big at all. Nevertheless, they are consistently strong and robust. Internodes are very short, which favours the formation of large flowers. After reducing light hours, we started supplying a specific fertiliser for this phase, when plants developed their first clusters of flowers. Many of the pistils took on an orange colour and buds rapidly reached a spectacular size. On top of them, we also noticed a white, sticky resin cover. Unlike other plants, S.A.D. S1 does not release a pungent smell when it is raw and green. Two weeks after harvest, we washed the roots to avoid traces of fertiliser residues in the final product. At the end of flowering, we noticed a very compact plant, with a distinctively long and big central bud and dense flowers at the end of each branch.
Harvesting and tasting
Harvest was quite rapid and abundant. Foliage was scant making the use of scissors quite easy. We also noticed that its leaf-to-bud ratio is very low, so it can be trimmed in a short time. The concentration of trichomes in buds was visible at plain sight. Although the quantity of buds may seem poor, for their limited size and density, yield per m2 or per plant was by no means inferior to that of other varieties. All harvested quantities necessarily have to be moved to a well aerated dark space for at least two weeks. When we did this, we could appreciate a full, strong, fruity and somewhat earthy taste of our S.A.D. S1, with clear hash notes. Effect is strong, lasting, very relaxing and somewhat narcotic.
