Strain Review – T.H.Seeds – Chickle AKA Bubbledawg by GBI

Based on the genetic building block Chemdawg, T.H. Seeds had already created two superb crosses, Dawg Star and Underdawg Kush, which in previous cultivation tests conducted by The Doc proved to be extremely potent and high-yielding smashers. No wonder that they successfully made their way into the global seed market. And as a matter of course, T.H. Seeds strived to build on that success, with “Sagemasta” Adam Dunn also hybridizing the legendary T.H. classic Bubblegum with the well-tried Chemdawg male. The subsequent selection work for the breeding project “Bubbledawg” was committed to the Spanish section of T.H. Seeds, and after they had cultivated the new cross for the first time, looking through the microscope the Spanish T.H. compadres were amazed by the enormous size and amount of its resin glands, thus regarding it an ultimate hash production plant. An opinion that was confirmed later on through official honors – at the ExpoGrow Cup 2014 in Irun (Spain), the new T.H. breed took second place in the hash category, then even clinching a triumphant victory there one year later, plus a third prize at the Resin Champions Cup of the Spannabis fair in Barcelona. These great achievements on Spanish ground and the strain’s development history there inspired T.H. Seeds to give it the alternative strain name “Chicle” (Spanish for chewing gum), since then it’s officially called “Chicle aka Bubbledawg“. Only available as feminized seed, this indica-dominant plant is fast-flowering (50-60 days) and has a medium height gain. Yields are excellent, ranging between 450-550g/m². Its utterly sticky buds give off a spicy odor reminding of Chemdawg, whereas the taste is a sweet and fruity one, pronouncing the plant’s Bubblegum heritage. The same is true for the smoke which causes a tremendous body stone of long duration, interspersed with waves of euphoria. Medicinally noteworthy is the fact that Chicle has high levels of both THC and CBD.

Full of curiosity, ardent cannabis strain tester The Doc got to work again, expecting a lot from Chicle aka Bubbledawg: “T.H. Seeds has never disappointed me, all their stuff I’ve ever tested in my grow room was a raving success, and what else other than world-class weed shall result from such a spectacular pedigree as Bubblegum x Chemdawg?” That being said, he sowed two Chicle seeds and after less than three days already, two young seedlings stood stiff and straight in the light. The Doc gave them a veggie time of only two weeks, considerably shorter than usual as he wanted to find out whether his new opulent light setup consisting of lots of SanLight S4W LED modules would outperform his old HPS setup even with a much shorter veggie stage. So the two Chicle plants were given only sixteen days to accomplish a good basic branch structure, a task that they fulfilled very well – when The Doc brought them to bloom, they had developed into strong little bushes with five internodes and a respective number of side branch pairs, clothed with medium broad dark green leaves. Plant heights were 23 and 25cm, so they had grown very homogeneously up to that point, just the way The Doc was accustomed to when growing a T.H. Seeds strain. He expected the plants to double their height during flowering, if not even triplicate.

One week after he had switched the light cycle to 12/12, The Doc witnessed female pre-flowering on the two Bubbledawg plants. Which then quickly started budding, as early as after 2.5 weeks already, the branches had sported lots of knobbly little “flowerets” that were soon developing into thick clusters full of white hairs and beautifully glistening resin glands. As The Doc had expected, stem elongation was substantial during the first four weeks of flowering, with the plants gaining almost three times as much height, indeed, and also further growing into width considerably. The Chicle buds became heavy and bulky in the following weeks, day by day they were getting denser, rounder, fatter and more resinous, soon almost dripping with resin. The Doc was very impressed: “Yeah! It’s that sort of spectacular flowering show I had hoped to witness! What I also like a lot is the fact that the calyx-to-leaf ratio is pretty damn high for a mostly indica variety. And their extra chunky top colas are unusually broad, as broad as a bull’s head! It’s really insane how big and succulent these monster bulbs are.”

Also, the plants lived up to their classification as a splendid hash production powerhouse – in the last weeks of flowering, they oozed out an additional flush of trichomes so that they were emblazoned with a majestically white resin coat in the end, a coat with an extremely intense smell which made The Doc rejoice, “Folks, forget about those little tree air freshener for your car, THESE are the one and only aroma trees, I guess one could perfume a whole lorry fleet with these two plants!” The Chicle fragrance was not only intense, but also kind of complex, reflecting both the spicy nature of Chemdawg (with hints of fuel and lemon) and the sweetness of Bubblegum. With 57 and 61 days of flowering, the two plants crossed the finishing line in due time, having arrived at final heights of 64 and 69 cm which meant they really had almost triplicated their vegetative height.

After the buds had been properly dried and cured, they still were rock-hard and super crystalline. The Doc: “The two plants have created some kind of green concrete! And those tons of trichomes add a gorgeous bling-bling effect to it.” That Bubblegum sweetness had gained strength over the curing stage, while that Chemdawg-like lemon fuel scent was fully retained. Of course that awesome smell was anything else but discreet – with a little bit of Chicle bud (wrapped in foil) in the inside pocket of this jacket, The Doc found himself walking in a cloud of weed! His huge preserving jars were filled with enormous 219 grams of finest Chicle weed, so also this T.H. Seeds strain had easily made it beyond the magic 100g-per-plant-mark.

Half a gram went into the first test spliff, and with relish The Doc deeply inhaled the intensely sweet and somewhat hashy smoke. Which conjured a blissful smile on his face as he sensed this was a sort of weed that right from the first toke provides placidity and inner satisfaction. With every hit off the joint, he felt his internal balance increase, and from time to time, a sense of euphoria rose inside of him. So once again he was sitting totally stoned in his beloved armchair, in harmony with himself and the world, with a thick mental blanket wrapped around the senses. What surprised him though was the fact that the Bubbledawg weed didn’t make him tired although it hit home that hard: “it’s a cool ’n’ easy stoner marijuana for indica fans who wish to remain active instead of getting completely couch-locked and soon being overcome by sleep.” That state of indica-driven blissfulness lasted for much more than two hours, it wasn’t until then that The Doc felt the desire to roll another spliff.

His concluding words: “Chicle aka Bubbledawg produces super heavy heads – with plants and smokers alike! I’ve rarely seen such bull’s head-style colas, and its heavy head effects are most appreciated as they don’t put you to sleep, but lead to deep blissful relaxation and a high degree of internal balance. Plus amazing productivity in a reasonable time, resin in abundance and a lovely smell and taste – this sublime strain has it all!”

Green Born Identity – G.B.I.

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Originally published in Weed World Magazine Issue 130