Parvati grow and smoke report

[meizzwang]

If you don't like trees, stay far, far away from this strain, as it gets really tall very quickly! Even if you plant them somewhat late in the season, they'll still find a way to get very tall. However, Parvati responds well to low stress training, but be sure you give the plant sufficient space, as the internodes are very, very long.


So far, Parvati pre-flowered here in the pacific northwest around early September, and it looks like it'll finish late October at the earliest and Mid November at the latest. To give some perspective, In that sense, it's very early for a 100% pure sativa, and the early finish reminds me of the strain malana. Speaking of which, the resin glands are starting to form now, and I'm getting aromas similar to Malana, but they aren't really strong enough to describe in more detail.

Some pictures of Parvati for your enjoyment! These plants are about 2 meters tall, but they've been bent down a bit so they don't shade the rest of the garden. One plant has red stems, so maybe it'll produce colorful buds, we'll see!

Pollinated several branches of every plant with several males to preserve the line:

Very interesting phenotype. This one had 3 early male flowers show up, but no signs of other hermi traits since then. The other two plants have not shown any hermi tendencies so far:

Feel free to share your experience/photos of Parvati in this thread! Would love to hear how this strain performs for others! I'll keep this thread updated as the buds mature, so stay tuned!

 

[troutman]

I hope they ripen on time.

 

[meizzwang]

thanks troutman! In the past, the Himalayan strains that finished late November/mid december started getting botrytis after being rained on for 2 months, but none of the strains that finished late October to mid november had any rot issues.

 

[Aphilas]

Hi meizzwang, Parvatis look awesome as does all your other stuff. Enjoy i do fo sho!

I have few packs of these, came as freebies. Gonna try them in the future. Just kinda sad to do these types of plants indoors. Nice to see them outdoor where they can get huge and really show their true form and colours.

You are a valuable source for info on many Rsc strains. Big respect, keep up the good work!

 

[meizzwang]

Aphilas, thank you for the kind words!

I think you have a chance at finishing this variety indoors. I would start those seeds sooner rather than later: I only had 8/12 sprout, this was from the most recent offering. Others had better germination rates, but this just goes to show viability is variable with this seed lot.

Parvati isn't like the impossible to finish african or asian sativas that require 16-24 weeks indoors, it's more like a haze that takes maybe 11-13 weeks. In addition to low stress training, to keep the height to a minimum, I'd take cuttings and flower them as soon as they root. Like most pure sativas, parvati is very easy to clone.

 

[Aphilas]

You're welcome, just enjoying the show and giving some positive feedback in return. That's all i have to give for now.

I'll keep that in mind considering the germination. I know these freebies are most likely old and can have bad germ rates but i have two packs so maybe it helps a bit. Seeds are frozen atm so germ rates should remain as they were when i received them. Seems like many Rsc strains have some germination problems if they are straight from the source. Also maybe some people don't use correct techniques like germinating straight in soil and with higher temperatures.

As soon as i have space i wanna try some Himalayan strain but not sure yet which one. Parvati, Johaar and Nanda Devi are my current options and i'm leaning on the Nanda Devi atm. Many have liked the high and your Nanda pic on the Highland Thai thread certainly doesn't make me want it less. Such a hottie! Was that some special rare pheno btw? Someone had a rare pheno according to Angus and maybe it was you? Anyways, keeping my green thumbs up for finding something similar.

I'm not that worried about flowering time or stretch, i just had the thought maybe it doesn't deliver its full effects under artificial lights. Or maybe these Himalayans aren't as picky indoors. And yes, definitely gonna flower from cuttings and do some training, that's how i roll my sativas. Thanks for tips anyways and eagerly waiting for updates!

 

[Psy_explorer]

What a beauty, I’ll keep an eye to see the progress if you post more pictures. Do you find any “modern” terpen when rubbing ?
By the way, Aphilas said that to keep the original germination rate, freezing the seed may be good. how many degrees celsius are we speaking about?
Greetings

 

[meizzwang]

What a beauty, I’ll keep an eye to see the progress if you post more pictures. Do you find any “modern” terpen when rubbing ?
By the way, Aphilas said that to keep the original germination rate, freezing the seed may be good. how many degrees celsius are we speaking about?
Greetings

With landrace indicas, I found many that smell like modern hybrids. With Parvati, it smells nothing like modern hybrids!

I haven't frozen any seeds, but I have refrigerated them. I've been able to germinate such refrigerated seeds that were 13 years old; only difference is they take a few days longer to sprout than fresh seeds.

I've been having a hard time getting good shots of parvati: they're really tall and it's hard to get close to the main colas. Here's some updated pics:

 

[Psy_explorer]

Thanks! I ll keep them refrigerated aswell. This parvati looks... amazing, such a beautiful growing pattern. I ve also got 12 Parvati seeds from RSC, anxious to plant them.

 

[ngakpa]

hi,

we took the Parvati off sale and off freebies several months ago, because germinaton rates had fallen below 80%

but there is still Malana Cream available for people who want Himachali charas Sativas

plus, there's the Nepalese, which is a pure landrace and imo has superior pedigree to Malana/Parvati/Rasoli - all of which have been affected by introduced hybrids to a degree, even if not immediately obviously

btw, if landrace Indicas smell like modern hybrids, that's because modern hybrids have those genes in them, not vica versa

as things stand, hybrid contamination has not become widespread in Pakistan or Afghanistan... unlike India, where it's already a major problem in places like Himachal and in some ganja-growing regions

 

[aeroponique2]

hi,

we took the Parvati off sale and off freebies several months ago, because germinaton rates had fallen below 80%

Very honest. Not all do that....

as things stand, hybrid contamination has not become widespread in Pakistan or Afghanistan... unlike India, where it's already a major problem in places like Himachal and in some ganja-growing regions

In your opinion, is there any chance to find uncontaminated landraces when purchasing so called "Orissa gold" or "Sheelawathi" seeds?

 

[ngakpa]

Very honest. Not all do that....



In your opinion, is there any chance to find uncontaminated landraces when purchasing so called "Orissa gold" or "Sheelawathi" seeds?

Bear in mind these are names that don't necessarily correspond with strains per se.

The name Sheelavathi afaik is used to refer to the landrace-modern hybrid crosses used by "ganja mafia" groups. Certainly, Sheelavathi offerings from these IG guys have not been pure landraces. I can see that, and people I know who've grown them can confirm it.

To what extent Orissa has been affected by hybrids, I don't know. I'd expect it is still relatively easy to find authentic landraces there.
But I'd intepret "Orissa Gold" to mean good ganja from Orissa, rather than there being a definite strain called Orissa Gold.

The impression I get is that most of the Indian IG "strain hunter" guys don't have a great understanding of the plant. That's not a problem if you want to get seeds off them. But I'd take more or less all information from them with a big pinch of salt.

A couple of says ago I was reading one such account talking about how many "cultivars" there are in Kerala. Others claim the Idukki landrace has vanished. More likely what you have in Kerala is the basic Idukki landrace with variations upon that theme.

Differences in the end product (i.e., bud) are explained by variation, terroir, and how well the ganja has been cultivated and prepared. Clearly, eradication will have taken its toll on diversity. But the main reason for the decline in quality in Kerala is that farmers are forced to harvest early. People cut closer to 5 months rather than the 6 or more they would have done. Plus, the active role farmers need to take in selecting for quality has obviously gone down the pan since the '80s.

That said, there's absolutely nothing stopping people growing and working these genetics back toward their full potential. Even in a couple of packs you are very likely to find standout plants in a good ganja Sativa, i.e. mid to high double-digit THC etc.

 

[meizzwang]

some updated pics of Parvati! Buds are fattening up a bit, looks like they're be done pretty soon. One really intriguing characteristic of this plant is that when the seeds are ripe, they fall out of the bract! It's also interesting that from pollination to maturity, it has taken less than 30 days for seeds to ripen. There's some really interesting genetics up in these plants:

 

[ngakpa]

Seeds falling from the plant is likely a trait from ruderal (weedy, "wild", feral) plants growing in the region

All Himalayan landraces are part of crop-weed complexes

Do any of the seeds that have fallen have elongated bases?

 

[meizzwang]

that's a really interesting question. Didn't see the elongated bases on Parvati, the seeds look completely normal. However, I think I did see that on Shebergan, will try to get some pics in the near future.

 

[meizzwang]

some updated photos of Parvati, 3 different clones. They're getting close to done.

Aroma-wise, they smell like feijoa guavas, which are commonly known as pineapple guavas, but I don't think they taste like pineapples. Anyways, others have said Parvati smells like mangoes, and I can see that interpretation as well.

Here's the most resinous, stickiest pheno. It has the largest bracts. Aroma-wise, it's smells heavenly, but not as pungent as the red stemmed pheno:

Same clone, closer up shot:

Same clone zoomed out:

Here's the best smelling, red stemmed clone. Bracts also turned a little bit purple, maybe enhanced by cold stress, but they're not as big and there isn't as much resin production as the big bract individual. aroma-wise, it also smells like feijoa guavas, but with a more pungent sweetness to it. It's mouth watering!

Here's the last individual, that smells good as well, but not as exciting as the other two. It has fasciated stems, and the main growth point split into two on its own without any pinching:

 

[ctg]

Looks real nice

 

[Driver 8]

I have heard that strain is great for hash.

Landraces intrigue me but I can't get them in the States easily.

Real seed company has what I want, and rules against what I want.

Enjoy!

 

[kokomarin]

Driver 8,kwik seeds have rsc seeds.

 

[Driver 8]

Thanks!