Super Lemon Haze
Super Lemon Haze is one of two strains to ever win consecutive first place prizes for best overall strain at the High Times Cannabis Cup (it did so in 2008 and 2009). Since then, it’s placed in at least 25 major cannabis cups in the US, and at least 12 in Europe, making it one of the most decorated strains of all time. It’s been so popular over the years that it often just goes by the name ‘SLH’.
Released in 2008 by the Green House Seed Company, Super Lemon Haze is a cross of the 1998 classic Super Silver Haze and Lemonman’s ‘vegas cut’ of Lemon Skunk. It’s essentially an updated version of Super Silver Haze, which just so happens to be the only other strain to win consecutive cannabis cups (in 1998 and 1999).
Super Lemon Haze is attributed to the work of the late Franco Loja, best known for his passionate relationship with cannabis culture and breeding. When he interacts with each plant, eyes closed and buds pressed into his face, it’s hard not to be inspired by his deeply meditative experience and intuition, as if he’s communicating something otherworldly with each deep breath.
So how did the World’s most passionate strain hunter go about creating the likes of Super Lemon Haze? In a 2012 interview with the National Post, Franco surprised Mark Haskell Smith by making it sound all too easy. Franco described the Super Lemon Haze as “a very old-school classic taste with a new twist,” and later continued, “Lemon Skunk is a very special plant. Combining the two has been a natural success story. And actually the breeding was very easy.”
“We just made an F1 hybrid from the parents, planted a bunch of them, and made a selection. Select, select, select.” Franco said, “That’s the key to finding something amazing.”
Super Lemon Haze Effects
Super Lemon Haze balances the stimulating and spacey effects of its Haze lineage with a moderate level of body-buzzing euphoria brought by the Lemon Skunk, creating a long-lasting and potent blend of uplifting and mellow effects that will please enthusiasts of all strain types. For lovers of the best cerebral strains, the effects of Super Lemon Haze nail the soaring, head-in-the-clouds feeling with less of the confusion and mental fog that’s typical of haze varieties. Within an hour, the Lemon Skunk begins its ‘creep’ into the body and melts away physical stress and tension into a warm feeling of well-being that doesn’t punch your lights out but welcomes you into kicking back and getting comfortable. Most of the time that makes for a relaxing combination, but it can quickly become overwhelming at higher doses or with less cannabis experience.
Super Lemon Haze Medical Benefits
One of the best uses of Super Lemon Haze reported by patients is relief from nausea and lack of appetite. It’s also been reported as effective in improving mood and taking the edge off of depression and other psychological stress, and according to patients it may also work well to refresh creativity and attention when fatigued or bored with a project or task.
Super Lemon Haze Characteristics
Super Lemon Haze has top-notch effects, but the reason it’s so popular probably comes down to the way it delights a person's senses. It’s skinny, light-colored buds are probably easiest to recognize by the vibrantly orange pistils that twist and wind from it’s calyxes.
As for the aroma, True Terpenes describes it as something that “rivals a stroll in a citrus garden during peak of the season”. If you know anyone that wants to take us strolling through their lemon trees, let us know, otherwise we’re gonna imagine that’s as refreshing as it sounds. They further describe the smell as something tangy that lingers in the air, with flavor that bursts like a “tart lemon treat”.
That lemony goodness is enough to get us drooling, but it’s not all that Super Lemon Haze has to offer. Behind the zesty, sour characteristics, it brings a wide palette of spicy, earthy, and floral notes that combine into a deep and complex incense that will keep you coming back to explore it’s every nuance.
Super Lemon Haze Terpenes
Although it’s known for its lemony perfume, you may be surprised to find that limonene isn’t a dominant terpene in Super Lemon Haze. It’s often full of caryophyllene, terpinolene, and humulene, but has little to no limonene according to True Terpenes. So where does it get the sour citrus characteristics? That’s due in part to the abundance of terpinolene, which is a major component in citrus oils and carries a strong floral essence. It also may have lesser amounts of ocimene, which also has a berry-like fruit essence, and myrcene, which is known for being an aromatic component of mangoes.
Super Lemon Haze Seeds
There are a number of sources for the Super Lemon Haze in seed form, but unfortunately it’s unlikely that any of them come from the same parents as the cup-winning SLH. According to Colin Gordon of Ethos genetics, most SLH seeds are actually a cross of Jack Herer and Lemon Skunk (which explains the high level of terpinolene). Whatever the true lineage, the original breeders at Green House Seed Co are still offering this strain in feminized and autoflowering form.