Expectations are funny things. When I smoked a one-hitter of Alice (Bruce Banner Fast Version) that was filled with the larfiest little immature bud, and was blown away by the terps, I thought “ooh la-la”. I was expecting harsh and not much stone. Funny.
Recently I stopped at a friend’s house and plopped down my jar of Banner. He smelled it and I told him that it had dried for 15 days and cured for a month. I asked if he wanted to roll one and his smile said everything. He rolled a big ol’ honker; 3 buds. It was huge, yet oddly shaped, but smoked gloriously. We only lit it once and had no canoeing. It smoked all the way down to a small roach, which smoked for a minute in the ashtray, then when it was out, there was nothing left but the paper. I got blasted! Eight hours later when I went to bed I was still high. Expectations… that first hit I hardly tasted because I was expecting taste similar to the smell. After that I just sat back and enjoyed it for what it was, an earthy, semi-diesel flavor. The effects were immediate, powerful, and long lasting with plenty of body high. To paraphrase @SlingShot, let there be no doubt, this is some serious stuff.
Dang guy. I got high just reading this. Lol
Wow.
You know, there nuttin like home grown. Not just the web site but the process. It just don’t get no better than when you are enjoying the fruits of your own efforts.
I just read this whole topic, what fun the process is; The growing, the web forum, the enjoying of product, and can’t forget the seeds, without which none of this would exist. Thanks Homegrown for making the seeds so most anybody can get them.
Has anyone ever wondered where the seeds come from? Think about it. These are a fast version seed, femmed, and with a little Ruderalis mixed in, not enough to make it auto, but still photo. Was this a happy accident? Were the seeds produced inside/outside? What temps? So many questions.
A lot must go into developing a cultivar. We are really fortunate to be able to benefit from all of their good work. $20 or less for premium genetics and all we have to do is grow it. Thank you Homegrown.
You know, I have to be honest here. I’m not impressed with this cultivar, or at least my crop.
I wasn’t sure what to think at first because I started vaping it. That was a new variable. Occasionally, I would smoke a bowl. It was then that I noticed that it just wasn’t up to par. What really tipped me off was when I found some old strawberry cheesecake and smoked it. Much stronger.
Another thing is the bud quality. They were always soft and not packed that tight. They almost had the characteristics of a thistle.
They grew great. They had a long veggie phase because I flipped them late.
They did not get that tall. Less than 3 feet.
The buds never got real sticky and I don’t think the trikes were as plump as previous. I pulled when all were milky and I thought I saw don’t amber. I don’t think they put out a strong some but I was not familiar with Banners. I might have rushed the harvest a day or so. I was going on for rotator cuff surgery the next day and wanted to get harvest done before being in a sling.
I have some SB CCs growing outdoors and I can smell them within 10 ft. The buds are them are firm and covered in sticky terpenes. And I still have six weeks to grow!
It could have been my technique or that I harvested too soon. Or my seed batch was lousy.
Or my expectations were just too high.
I am skeptical of the fast versions. What’s the rush? Can’t beat Mother Nature…
I was thinking the same. There is always a trade off when cycles are shortened.
That’s why you read so much about pheno hunting. I hit the jackpot right off the bat, but I’ve always been lucky that way. Are the other Banner seeds that I have going to be just as good?
In the “old days” we only had landraces to grow, hundreds or even thousands of seasons to develop their special traits. Then in some places selective harvest improved the strain. Most of the great strains were grown at higher altitudes. What is the average altitude in the emerald triangle where the good stuff is grown under the real sun? I’ll bet it averages over 1000 ft. where they are grown.
Will the seeds from my Banner be as good as the mother? I doubt it, but I will see eventually.
Ive found a few larfy buds in my “cut box” from December harvest and they smoked better than some of the popcorn buds that were smoked back in Feb. I also had 5 seeds from 1 cola and I’ve been able to get 2 to get to flower now. Hopefully they will deliver like their mom/dad did 
I’m going to try to cure longer this time for sure.
@Kojak I love me some larfy bud. You never get them out to share with others. That’s what the main buds are for, but they serve me well in the meantime. They help me give the good ones time to cure properly.
Oops, there goes a larfy bud now!
OK, here’s the official smoke report. 4 months of curing. Sweet diesel earthy berry smell cutting the bud up. Slight diesel earthy taste on the inhale, almost a cotton candy without the sweetness on the exhale. Still kicks my butt. Smoked really smooth and pleasant.
The buds are not packed real solid or tight, kind of airy, but packed with triches. All of the beautiful colors throughout flower are gone. Kind of a light greenish brown. If I bought this at the dispensary, I might be disappointed until I smoked it.
My absolute favorite smoke If I don’t have anything complicated to do, so far.
My Banner crop is really good. For awhile, I was disappointed because the buds were more like thistle. Real soft and fluffy. After 3 weeks cure, it smoked really harsh.
I turned to my old SBCs to smoke and nearly forgot about the banner. I would burp them on occasion but seldom smoked it. Since I always give “parting gifts”, I was saving my Banner for that.
A couple of months ago, I loaded a bowl of banner and it smoked super smooth and gave me a nice, deep high. No more couch couch.
I guess some cultivars require a longer cure.
@SlingShot Yeah, the buds are on the fluffy side. Not good for bag appeal, but I don’t sell it anyway. I really like it though. Smooth smoke and FIRE!!
Okay, so I’ve been smoking Alice for 10 months now and am no less impressed with these genetics. Kudos to Homegrown. I opened the jar a couple of days ago and was blown away with the sour almost lemony scent, yet with a cotton candy sweetness. It is so powerful that I usually mix the joints with another cultivar, which is okay, because it will help Alice to last longer. Still smokes smooth and tasty. I am currently smoking one mixed with my Papina (10% cbd; 14% thc), great for an evening smoke. My Lil Papina is a cbd cultivar from @MDBuds, Papi Gato. BBFV mixed with Papi Gato gives me numbers averaged at 6 & 21, cbd to thc. This works great for the evening, A little smokey, then a couple of cds, the last being “Brothers In Arms” by Dire Straights. It is perfect before bed.
I was reading this topic from the beginning and need to make a correction. My light array is ParfactWorks 1200 Pro, 120 watt. Sorry. Facts are important, except in fish stories.