Growing Black Jack Auto^® – The classic super-auto from Sweet Seeds^®

When your jars are empty and you need a fast harvest without compromising taste, aroma and effect, the modern autoflowering strains from Sweet Seeds® are always a perfect option to consider. I recently found myself in that precise situation which led me to the decision of growing the 3rd Generation autoflowering strain Black Jack Auto® (Sweet Seeds® variety SWS21).

In this article I am going to share with all the readers of Legalizace the grow report of this exquisite strain from the Sweet Seeds® genetic collection.

By the 15th of October I sprouted 9 seeds of Black Jack Auto®. I decided to grow 9 plants because in the grow tent that I used for this grow I can fit 9 pots of 7 litres. For the first 10 days of life I placed them under 2 CFL lights of 18w each and since then until harvest they were left under a 400w High Pressure Sodium (HPS) light. Always with the photoperiod of 18/6, from germination to harvest. For the medium I used Canna Bio Plus soil mix, to which I added about 15% of perlite. I also used fertilizers from the organic range of Canna (BioVega and BioFlores), alternated with liquid Guanokalong bat guano. A 100% organic grow.

Black Jack Auto®

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The plants grew very fast, showing great hybrid vigour since the beginning and 22-28 days after germination they started flowering. This was a very fast flowering to which I was not used according to my short experience with autoflowering strains. By the 20th of December, only 65 days after germination, the plants were ready to harvest. Well, 2 or 3 of them could even be harvested with 60 days, for growers who prefer to harvest with a minimum maturity to obtain a more psychoactive and energetic effect. As you can see in the trichome pictures from the final days before harvest, with more than 50% of amber trichomes, my flowers ended up very mature, with the relaxing and physically comfortable effect that I prefer in cannabis.

After a very short flowering of only 35 days, the flowers got as big as they usually get in photoperiod-dependent plants that I usually grow in the same tent and with the same growing parameters. For 7 litre pots, the flower production is great in terms of quantity and size. The flowers of Black Jack Auto® are very beautiful for the huge concentration of trichomes, getting totally covered in aromatic resin. This is normal as this strain is the autoflowering version of the queen of resin, the classic Black Jack® (SWS01), developed from a cross between two outstanding elite clones: Black Domina’98 and Jack Herer. The nine plants yielded a total of 232 grams of dried and well trimmed flowers. About 26 grams per plant and an extra 5 grams of hash extracted with my 6 litre Top-Beef (158μ and 95μ meshes).

The flowers are very compact and about 8 days before harvest the weather predictions on the news indicated a final week of rain and very high humidity for my plants. With hard compact buds, I got a bit scared that they could get mould. I was really worried but, as the humidity never went above 55% with the HPS light on, I had an idea: giving them the last week with the light always on (24/0), with the guarantee of a constantly low humidity because High Pressure Sodium lights tend to dry the environment, helping to keep the humidity low in the flowering area. Autoflowering strains are not sensitive to photoperiods and they flower with 18/6, 24/0 or with any other photoperiod. As there was only one week left to harvest I thought that nothing bad could happen besides their normal maturation. And I was right, humidity never went above 60% so everything was normal until harvest, with no signs whatsoever of stress and, most importantly, no traces of mould. Besides that they even got a bit bigger and more compact with the final ripening.

The high humidity in this stage was also helpful for a slow drying, as desirable, allowing enough time for the flowers to get rid of the undesirable chlorophyll. It took them about 15 days to get dry, which is ideal. When they were already inside the glass jars to cure, one or another plant that presented visible traces of humidity, were taken out of the jars for about 2 or 3 hours in sunny days and clear sky. For the other plants, about 20 minutes per day with the jar open for a period of 3 weeks. Carefully avoiding to open the jars in days of excessive rain and humidity, when it is better to leave the jar closed to avoid the reabsorption of humidity, which would negatively interfere with the final aroma. Now, with about 5 weeks of curing, they reached to their full organoleptic potential. There is not even a minimum trace of chlorophyll. The tastes are pure in all their splendour.

Black Jack Auto® features a strong sweet aroma with a background of cathedral from the Haze type. The sweetness is citric and floral. Sometimes the aroma is so strong that it is even hard to smell it, but when you smoke or vaporize this strain the aroma is really pleasant, with a taste that remains in the mouth from the first hit until a few minutes after finishing the smoke/vapor. The taste is so pleasant and aromatic as the one from the photoperiod-dependent version of this genetic line. To be true, I even prefer the taste and effect of this autoflowering version. The thickness of the smoke or vapor is very pleasant for the respiratory system, allowing for a perfect recognition of the complexity of its aromas in our tongue and nose.

The effect is very uplifting and happy, making it a very special strain to use in the company of friends. It is a long-lasting effect and after the laughs finish you can feel the relaxing effects of this strain together with a strong appetite stimulation. But even after eating a good meal you can still clearly feel its effects. Black Jack Auto® is a genetic with an effect leaning to the Sativa side, making it and adequate option for parties, some sports or even to go for a walk in the nature. But the effect is not overwhelmingly energetic. It is well balanced and easy to control even for users who prefer effects leaning to the Indica side. A 3rd Generation autoflowering strain that everyone should try at least once as it is a great pleasure to grow and to enjoy its sweet aromas and delicious effects.