Early Girl: The Strain That Made The Impossible Possible

Early Girl is the short, leafy, hash flavored cannabis strain out of northern California that proved a real harvest could beat the cold, wet autumns of the north, and this video tells the full story of how it went from the hills of the late seventies to Holland, where it became the parent of a whole family of fast finishing Dutch outdoor strains that people still talk about today. What’s covered in this video: Why outdoor cannabis up north was a losing bet for years, with October rain rotting buds in Holland, Ireland, and Canada, and almost every strain coming from hot places like Mexico, Colombia, and Thailand. How Early Girl came out of the northern California sinsemilla movement of the late nineteen seventies and what Robert Connell Clarke wrote about it. Why nobody’s name is attached to its creation, and how season after season of saving the plants that ripened first made the line a little faster every year. The fun coincidence behind the name, a famous short season Early Girl tomato from nineteen seventy five. How David Watson, better known as Sam the Skunkman, carried Early Girl across the ocean, and his handwritten notes from nineteen eighty five describing early, strong, medium yield plants that were done by the end of September, along with his honest warning about hermaphrodites. The box of roughly a quarter million seeds that left California for Amsterdam in the eighties, holding Skunk number one, Haze, California Orange, and Early Girl. How the Australian born breeder Nevil Schoenmakers made Early Girl famous in Holland, and the old description of short, strong plants with excellent potency finishing on September first at forty degrees north. Why that latitude was the whole point, how Amsterdam sits above fifty two degrees and why autumn fog and dew start rot in dense buds. The old Dutch outdoor strains with names like Willem’s Wonder and Holland’s Hope, and why Ben Dronkers said almost nobody tried outdoor cannabis in Holland back then. How crossing Early Girl with Pollyanna around nineteen eighty seven created Early Pearl, an upbeat, sativa leaning strain built for a northern summer. How Early Pearl crossed with Skunk number one became Early Skunk, which flowered two full weeks faster than Skunk itself, plus the stories of Early Skunk plants in the sand dunes on the west coast of Ireland. Silver Pearl, the Early Skunk and Northern Lights number five cross that got so popular in Dutch coffeeshops people just called it SP. Operation Green Merchant, the DEA crackdown that started in nineteen eighty eight and led to nearly seventeen hundred arrests, and Nevil’s arrest in Perth in June of nineteen ninety. How Nevil’s eleven months in custody ended with the genetic library and the famous Cannabis Castle passing to Ben Dronkers. Why Early Girl ended up as the ideal balcony plant for people in Dutch and European cities, and how its single main stem and tight branches keep it narrow, compact, and easy to tuck into a corner. The look of the plant, with one long central cola, broad dark Afghan style leaves, a column shape, and purple colors when cold nights show up near harvest. The genetics on paper, about seventy five percent indica and twenty five percent sativa, a seven to eight week flowering time, and an Afghani, north Indian, and Mexican family tree. The smell and flavor, earthy and sweet old school Afghan hash with a clean squeeze of lemon on top and a little pine in between. The high, a mild, slightly euphoric indica stone that starts a little giggly, settles calm and loose through the body, and brings the munchies right on time. Why Early Girl became a favorite in Quebec, Ireland, and other cold, wet places, flowering at the end of August and finishing by late September. Why its toughness against pests and mold mattered more than any THC number, and why its speed suited small, hidden outdoor gardens. Why Early Girl never won a Cannabis Cup, and why it played the role player next to Northern Lights and Skunk number one by bringing the one thing they didn’t have, the calendar. The family tree that came after, including Early Queen, Early Misty, and crosses with Durban Poison and Lowryder, plus the Early Girl OG Hybrid that isn’t related at all. How Early Girl shows its age next to modern autoflowers and high THC hybrids, and why it still does exactly what it was bred to do. A fair footnote on the impossible in the title, and how a modest, leafy plant made a northern harvest a plan instead of a miracle. Mentioned in this video: Early Girl, Robert Connell Clarke, David Watson, Sam the Skunkman, Skunk number one, Haze, California Orange, Nevil Schoenmakers, Ben Dronkers, Willem’s Wonder, Holland’s Hope, Pollyanna, Early Pearl, Early Skunk, Northern Lights, Silver Pearl, Operation Green Merchant, Cannabis Castle, Early Queen, Early Misty, Durban Poison, Lowryder, Early Girl OG Hybrid.