Shiskaberry

Right out of the indica picture book

Without a doubt a must-grow plant for the die-hard indica lover, The Doc! He would have taken her “blindly”, but was of course full of curiosity when he found out beforehand about the characteristics of this promising sounding variety. The Barney’s breeder have put a lot of work into its development and bred it for years to reach complete satisfaction. On the mother’s side, there’s an old acquaintance – the sublime fruit strain classic Blueberry. Shiskaberry’s father makes for for down-to-earth robustness and reliability, it’s a classic old-school Afghani. Hybridising these two resulted in a powerful indica plant with above-average indoors yields (500-600g/m2) produced within a fairly short flowering period of just 7-8 weeks. Outdoors it works very well, too, thanks to a pretty early finishing time under natural light in the third to fourth week of September. Another plus factor for both outdoors and indoors, Shiskaberry’s mould resistance is rated at 4 on a scale out of 5, i.e. very good. Although being a rather short stature variety, with an extended vegging stage it has stunning outdoor yield potential of up to 1.5-2kg per plant.

The vegetative stage: ultra-compact bushes

According to Barney’s, Shiskaberry is a very easy grow room companion with a difficulty level rated at 1, “easy-peasy“, as they say in California. Well, for the highly experienced master grower The Doc things don’t necessarily need to be easy, but of course he doesn’t mind growing uncomplicated strains as well. Just as expected, the two feminised seeds sown aced germination, standing straight up above the surface after three days. Due to their heavily indica dominant nature, The Doc gave his two Shiskaberry plants a vegging time of five weeks, which they really needed as they grew extremely tight-noded, evolving into ultra-compact bushes with dark green wide foliage. “One cannot see through them a single millimetre, as super-dense and multi-branched as they are”,  reported The Doc at the end of the veggie stage: “these two plants are presenting themselves externally as some uniform full-blooded indicas with low heights of 29 and 33 cm. But through stretching whilst flowering, certainly more light will reach the side branches and encourage lush bud growth. To additionally support this, I’ve removed some of the big shade leaves. Not too much of course since they contain a lot of nutrients important for the energy budget of the plants.”

A scintillating spectacle with thick buds and a sensational odour

During the first four weeks of flowering, the two Shiskaberries stretched very well, indeed, so much so that that their canopy became more open and those many flower formations could develop vigorously. It was one scintillating spectacle. From The Doc’s grow diary: “This is top-notch indica flower quality in the purest of forms! Almost even greater than looking at these buds though is smelling them – because the fragrance they’re exuding is simply awesome: As if one collected berries on a forest clearing, with the sun shining after rain, making the earthy spiciness of the damp forest soil rise up in the air, merging with a sweet and slightly tart berry scent into a heavy hearty aroma.”

Granite-hard buds sprang a happy yield surprise

After precisely 56 days, at the very end of the finishing time stated by Barney’s, the two Shiskaberries were fully mature, allowing The Doc to carry out his harvest, “to pick some real fat canna-berries” he chuckled. One plant stood 59 cm tall at the end and the other one 72 cm, due to stronger branch elongation. Once again The Doc got a big surprise when he weighed the buds a few weeks later as the two Shiskaberry specimens just scraped past the 100-grams-per-plant-mark, yielding 198 grams altogether.

Getting high on Shiskaberry: The Doc turns into a buddha, with the heartbeat of a blue whale

That bewitching scent translated into a similarly bewitching taste when The Doc sampled Shiskaberry for the first time: When the vapour out of his Mighty vaporizer wafted into his mouth, all taste buds signalled “this is berry-sweet spiciness to the max!” This full-mouth flavour also lingered on the palate for some time. “What a delicious treat, and entirely fee of calories!” The Doc joked. Soon after two voluminous drafts of vapour, he felt a pleasant bodily warmth arising deep inside, flowing into his limbs and making them soft and relaxed. Simultaneously his head underwent a gentle THC massage that seemed to put a cushioning veil around it, keeping away any negative thoughts and putting him in a state of blissful content and deep relaxation. Over two hours later he was sitting on a big pillow like a grey-haired buddha whose heart was beating – or at least was perceived to be - as slow as a blue whale’s. In conclusion, Doc said “Shiskaberry is a true champion strain right out of the Indica picture book! She has proven to be great in every aspect, with an excellent growth and bloom performance, fat yields, an adorable flavour and a meditative euphoric effect that pampers body and mind. This plant has a special place in my heart.” www.barneysfarm.com

Cultivation data:

GeneticsShiskaberry (Blueberry x Afghan)

Vegetative stagefive weeks (after germination)

Flowering stage56 days / 49-56 days in general

MediumPlagron Grow Mix soil, 11 litre pots

pH6.2-6.6

EC1.2–1.8 mS

Lightup to 12 x SANlight S4W = 1680 watts

Temperature19-28°C

Air humidity40-60%

Wateringby hand

FertilisationOrganic Bloom Liquid from Green Buzz Liquids

Additives/stimulantsLiving Organics, More Roots, Humin Säure Plus, Big Fruits, Fast Buds and Clean Fruits from Green Buzz Liquids

ToolsCleanLight Pro for mould prevention

Height59 + 72 cm

Yieldtogether, 198 grams

Photos: Green Born Identity – G.B.I.