Cream Mandarine XL Auto

This exceptional extra-large autoflowering strain develops plants with a structure typical of Indica-Sativa hybrids, featuring short internodal spacing, and a generous central cola. With 35% Indica, 63.4% Sativa, and only 1.6% Ruderalis genetics, Cream Mandarine XL Auto plants grow quite tall.

The flavor profile features delicious citrus notes with hints of mandarin combined with a smooth spicy and woody background.

XL is the honest part of the name. With about two thirds of the genetics on the sativa side and only a trace of ruderalis (the wild, short-season cannabis that gives autos their built-in clock), she grows more like a small photoperiod than a typical auto: 110 to 150 cm indoors. That is tall for an autoflower, so check your headroom before you sow. An auto runs on a fixed schedule, and a plant that reaches the lamp in its final weeks leaves you no time to fix it.

Like every auto, it flowers by age rather than by the light schedule, so run it on 18/6 or 20/4 from seed to harvest. Skip topping, because the plant won't wait around to recover from the cut. Bend the main stem over instead while it is still soft in the first few weeks, and tie it down. The energy that would have gone into one tall central cola spreads across several tops, and the canopy stays level under the light. Sow the seed straight into the final pot if you can. A transplant costs an auto days it can't get back.

By the breeder's count it takes about nine weeks from sprout to harvest, though sativa-leaning autos often run a little past the estimate. Let the trichomes decide, not the calendar. The mandarin note builds through late flower and keeps best with a slow dry and a few weeks in the jar. Rush the cure and the citrus fades into a plain woody sweetness. The sativa side shows in the effect too: a bright, creative head high rather than a body stone, better suited to the afternoon than the couch.