Flowering stage: 68 days

Total time, seed to harvest: 99 days

Final yield: 107 grams

THC content: 27.23%

Mandarin Punch Feminized (also available in an automatic variety) was created to harness the finer qualities of four fan-favourite cultivars. Reaching to the past for inspiration, we selected the best traits of Maple Leaf Indica, White Widow, NYC Diesel, and California Indica to be the building blocks of this robust strain. 

Created using classic cultivars, Mandarin Punch Feminized brings new and exciting traits to the forefront for growers to enjoy. It was exciting discovering and documenting these fantastic qualities for our latest grow diary.

We began our grow cycle by selecting and hanging our lights. For germination, we used a 600W Green Power Philips HPS, and for the rest of the cultivation cycle, we chose a 1000W Green Power Phillips HPS bulb and fixed it to the ceiling at a distance of three meters above the soil height. Soil and nutrients are vital components of any indoor garden. We have used BAC Lava Mix soil in our previous grows with great success, so we did not change anything there. We also continue to use Bio Grow and Bio Bloom nutrients.

From the beginning, our environment was dialled in. Control over these parameters makes for better crops. The temperature with the lights on was maintained at 24 °C. With the lights off, the temperature dropped three degrees to 21 °C. To promote airflow, we installed multiple personal-sized oscillating fans below the canopy and lower branches, which were moved as the plants grew taller.

Germination & seedling

Week one began by placing our seeds into pre-moistened jiffy cubes. To encourage germination, we kept the cubes in an environment with 68% humidity. Once the seeds were placed into the cubes, they were placed 80 cm under our 600W Green Power HPS, and we started our vegetative light cycle of 18 hours on and 6 hours off each day. 

Mandarin Punch Feminized seeds will only produce female plants, so we had confidence in germinating only as many seeds as we had space for in our growing area. Within a couple of days, we saw the cotyledons emerging from the jiffy cubes. All of the seeds had sprouted and were reaching up to the lights. 

We allowed our Mandarin Punch Feminized to grow for three days before pouring 100 ml of water around the central mainstem. Our seedling was left for seven days in this medium before we saw roots sticking out from the sides and bottom of the jiffy cube and decided it was time for the larger container.

Vegetation

Week two began by placing our Mandarin Punch Feminized seedling into a 5-litre container. Because we transplanted into such a large container, there was no need to transplant during the cycle, and the roots had plenty of room to stretch out. 

We fed our plant a solution of water and Bio Grow nutrients in a volume of 100 ml, applied directly around the base of the stem. Our nutrient solution registered an EC of 1.4 and a pH of 6.2.

Starting the grow, we took precautions to minimise the chances of unwanted insect presence in the garden. Our choice was to use an organic method, one that gardeners have used for generations, predator bugs. After transplanting our Mandarin Punch Feminized into the soil, we released our beneficial insects.

A sachet of Amblyseius Californicus was released to hunt and kill any two-spotted spider mites that may be in the garden. A separate sachet of Amblyseius swirskii was released too. This predator bug is a “generalist predator” and will eat small, soft-bodied insects. They are commonly used to control white flies and thrips. 

Week three saw the plant responds well to the addition of growing nutrients and the extra soil space. Our Mandarin Punch Feminized grew from 8 cm to 17 cm in one week. We continued to feed the plant with a nutrient solution that registered an EC of 1.4, but we increased the volume to 200 ml. The solution was applied to the base of the stem.  

Mandarin Punch Feminized was showing great vigour. Our plant had over six nodes at this stage. Large-fingered, vibrant green leaves shaded the soil below. If growers prefer to ‘top‘ their plants, now was a great time, but we decided to let the plant continue to grow naturally. 

Week four began, and the strong growth had continued from the week before. We were quickly developing a bushy plant, leaves extended over each side of the 5-litre container. The tight internodal spacing on the Mandarin Punch Feminized plant meant that the 28 cm frame had numerous lateral branches. 

This foliage created a dense area of stale air within the canopy. Although we had a sufficient ventilation system moving air within the grow space, we went one step further to prevent conditions conducive to bud mould. We removed a few of the larger leaves to improve airflow and reduced the humidity in our growing area to 60%.

We started the week by giving the soil 400 ml of water. To support the increasing root zone, we gradually increased our watering volume to 800 ml by the end of the week. The nutrient load was increased slightly, and the final EC of the solution before feeding was 1.7. Our pH of the solution never changes and will always be adjusted to 6.2. 

Towards the end of week four, we flipped our Mandarin Punch Feminized to the flowering cycle by changing the photoperiod. Our light schedule was adjusted to 12 hours on and 12 hours off each day.

Flowering

In week five, we increased the nutrient load in the solution to an EC of 1.8. This is the EC level we continued for the remainder of the grow. The water volume started the week at 800 ml and gradually increased to 1500 ml by the end of the week. Our plant had reached 47 cm in height and was beginning the period of stretch during the transition into flowering.

We saw a small amount of stretch in week six. The measured height of our Mandarin Punch Feminized registered at 71 cm. The plant had benefitted from earlier defoliation, but new growth was rapid, and our plant was getting bushy again. We removed some of the lower branches, which created better airflow around the plant, but also redirected some growth potentials into the remaining branches. 

It had been four weeks since applying our beneficial insects. We released another sachet each of Amblyseius Californicus and Amblyseius swirskii. This combination should keep two-spotted spider mites and damaging soft-bodied insects from harming the plant.

By week seven, we had the beginning stages of bud formation. The explosive tip growth had slowed, and white stigmas began forming on each branch end. Our plant was a healthy, vibrant green colour, and all of the fingers on the leaves stretched outward to catch as much light as possible. 

We had been feeding high fertigation levels, so we started the week by giving the soil a flush with pure water. The practice of flushing the soil is meant to remove accumulated salt nutrients from the root zone. We achieved this by using plain water to pour over the soil surface until we achieved run-off. 

This excess water from the bottom was collected in the drip pan and removed so that the soil does not reabsorb it. After the flushing at the beginning of the week, we returned to the regular nutrient solution at each feeding with an EC of 1.8. 

In week eight, the vertical growth remained steady. Our Mandarin Punch Feminized now stood 116 cm above the soil surface. The branch tips and the apical stem saw an increase in space between the nodes compared to the week before. There now stood a frame for the apical cola to develop and an evenly spaced candelabra structure from the lower branches. 

We completed another round of defoliation, and this allowed maximum light to penetrate the canopy to impact the lower bud sites. Our Mandarin Punch Feminized was in the perfect condition to begin packing on the bud weight. We eagerly anticipated the switch from vertical growth to bud formation.

At the start of week nine, we removed a few more thinner lower branches, not wanting to shock or stress our plant unreasonably. However, we felt these branches were too far from the light source and allowed more energy to be focused on the forming buds.

By week ten, our Mandarin Punch Feminized had developed chunky flowers covered in white stigmas. A thin covering of trichomes on the surrounding vegetation began to form near each bud site. The flowers were dense, but there was also a wispiness created by the stacking bracts. Because of the increasing bud mass and the threat of mould in moist conditions, we lowered the humidity in the grow area to 56%.

The flowers on the apical stem were increasing in size and slowly growing together into what we anticipate will be one large cola. It had been four weeks since our last release of predatory insects, so we released more of the Amblyseius Californicus and Amblyseius Swirskii.

Week eleven began with us flushing the soil to remove excess nutrients before returning to our regular feeding schedule. The plant was not near the harvest date yet, but we also wanted to avoid a toxic accumulation of nutrients in the soil that could affect growth in one of our most essential stages, bud development. 

Mandarin Punch Feminized, like most plants, will add the majority of its bud density in the last three to four weeks. The increasing bud density was starting to make a few branches dip down, so we attached them to stakes for support. Stakes are one way of adding support to heavy branches; using a SCROG net would be another effective method of supporting bud heavy branches.

We checked our height measurements in week twelve, as it had been a couple of weeks since our Mandarin Punch Feminized added any height. This confirmed what we suspected: all of the plant energy was now going to bud and trichome production. Visually, we could see the growing buds forming, but we paid close enough attention to notice that the bracts were not yet swelling. 

This indicated that we had more than a couple of weeks remaining before harvest. Another observation of our Mandarin Punch Feminized was that we could not ignore the growing floral scent that filled the grow room each time we entered. 

Our plant was becoming fragrant, and to ensure discreteness, an exhaust fan and carbon filter were used to remove and clean smells from the grow room. Outside, the odour was undetectable.

Week thirteen was slow but allowed us more time to be hands-on with our Mandarin Punch Feminized. As we checked her out from top to bottom, we saw a few little lateral branches forming into small airy flowers instead of a tightly constructed bud. Not wanting to trim the airy, leafy larf, we removed a few more small branches from the bottom branches of the plant. 

The colour of the trichome heads is the optimal visual indicator of plant ripeness. We inspected them using a jeweller’s microscope and discovered that most were still clear or milky. We knew it would be at least three more weeks before a harvest and released one last round of beneficial insects, one sachet each.

Towards the end of week thirteen, our Mandarin Punch Feminized began showing signs of senescence in the larger fan leaves. Senescence is the natural fade of leaves as a plant reaches maturity. An experienced grower can tell the difference between the yellowing of leaves due to nutrient deficiencies compared to the natural fade of a maturing plant. 

This visual indicator prompted us to inspect the trichome heads once again. This time, there were fewer clear heads, more milky-coloured heads, and a few amber heads developing. Harvest was getting closer, but we continued to feed our Mandarin Punch Feminized at the regular amounts. 

Week fourteen, and the floral smell inside the grow room had been steadily gaining strength. Visually inspecting the buds with our naked eyes, we could see that the bracts were now reasonably swollen. A thick layer of trichomes was covering the biomass below, and the once protruding stigmas have almost all turned orange and retreated into the bracts.

Although those are not prime indicators of peak ripeness, they are good signs. We once again checked the colour of the trichome heads and discovered a ratio near what we would consider full maturity. From this point forward, we cut out all of the nutrients from our solution and only fed the plant with plain water. 

As the nutrients were flushed from the soil, the stored nutrients in the plants were consumed, and the remaining foliage was now showing a heavy fading of colour. We inspected the trichome heads using our magnifying loupe. This time we saw the desired ratio of 10% transparent, 80% milky, and 10% amber trichome heads. We were excited to discover this. It meant that the growing portion of our Mandarin Punch Feminized was finished. It was now harvest time, and then onto the drying and curing process. One step closer to sampling these gorgeous flowers.

Harvest

To reduce moisture surrounding the buds and large concentrations of undesirable chlorophyll (which can lead to a hay-like taste), all of the large leaves were removed from our Mandarin Punch Feminized before being cut and moved to the drying area. The plant was cut at the base of the stem, and careful attention was paid not to brush the branches in the soil or against other objects.

A controlled environment is a crucial component of a successful dry and cure. Our drying area was climate controlled to remain at 15.5 °C and maintain a humidity level of 60%. Air circulation is another crucial aspect for mitigating mould potential in the large, dense buds of our Mandarin Punch Feminized.

We achieved a gentle breeze in the drying room by using one of the small fans inside the growing area. The goal is to create a light breeze around the plants, but not directly on them. Aiming the fans at an angle to bounce off a nearby wall can help create the desired vortex of air within the drying area.

The whole plant was hung upside-down in the dark for 18 days. After that time, when we bent one of the thinner lateral branches, they would snap instead of fold, and we were confident our Mandarin Punch Feminized had reached an optimal dryness level to be trimmed and jarred. 

Bud structure on the Mandarin Punch Feminized was round, dense, and featured small stacks of swollen bracts that created a textured surface. After the large leaves were removed before harvest, there were not many remaining, which made trimming these flowers a quick and easy job. To maximise THC, we avoided touching the buds directly and handled all the flowers by the stem.

After trimming, we placed our buds into glass jars and left them with the lid off for 24 hours. Trimming really brings out the aroma, and these buds had sweet and citrusy notes coming to the forefront. We opened the jars several times a day for the next two weeks, leaving the lid off for an hour each time.

A unique terpene profile was developing each time we opened the jars. The Mandarin Punch Feminized flowers had reached an acceptable moisture level through frequent burping. We continued to cure our flower for four more weeks, but during this time, jars were opened only once per day. 

After the curing process, our Mandarin Punch Feminized flowers were tested in a second-party laboratory to reveal our cannabinoid and terpenes levels. Lab results confirmed our Mandarin Punch Feminized we had just grown tested at a phenomenal 27.23% THC content. It is a heavy-hitting strain with a loud terpene profile!

Terpene profile

Mandarin Punch Feminized features a large number of minor terpenes, but the easily distinguishable limonene terpene pops out front. Limonene terpenes have been described as refreshing, zesty, but more frequently, citrusy. The cured buds of this strain have an enjoyable but sharp scent of fresh lemons. Smoothing that out is an airy, sweet scent backed by slight floral undertones.

The flavour of Mandarin Punch Feminized is very similar to the terpene profile. The sweetness joins the fresh lemon taste to leave your mouth watering without making your mouth pucker. From beginning to end, the flavour is just as strong, making this a great-tasting strain to enjoy at any pace. 

The vibrancy in both the terpene and flavour profiles are indicators of a job well done in the garden, as well as with the curing process.

Combining the influences of the indica and sativa lineage, Mandarin Punch Feminized starts as an uplifting strain that finishes with a soothing, full-body stone. The initial effect is a refreshing vacation from mental stress as a cerebral melancholy becomes the focal point of attention. 

As unpleasant life distractions are moved to the side, a mellow body buzz begins to radiate from top to bottom. The hybrid effects of Mandarin Punch Feminized offer enjoyment to suit a variety of preferences.

The outcome

We successfully raised our Mandarin Punch Feminized in 99 days from seed to harvest. The germination rate was perfect, the feminized seeds ensured only flower-developing females in the garden, and the curing process accentuated the splendour of the profiles. 

It felt like an easy end goal to achieve, and this will be a plant for growers of all skill levels to consider. Mandarin Punch Feminized is also available in an automatic variety.

Mandarin Punch Feminized grew in an easy-to-manage morphology, the nutrient requirements were basic, and trimming was made easy by the favourable bract-to-leaf ratio. 

The final height of our Mandarin Punch Feminized was 122 cm. After drying and curing, we weighed the flower before placing it into our CVault. We harvested a total of 107 grams of dried flower. Lab results reported this as a high THC strain, with a THC percentage of 27.23%.

We enjoy reading feedback from growers who have had experience with our strains. If you have grown Mandarin Punch Feminized, please share it in the comments below. New grow diaries are coming out frequently, so keep your eye on the blog. But most importantly, happy gardening!

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• Source: https://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/mandarin-punch-feminized-grow-report-indoor/