Auto Blackberry Kush 4-star indoor grow review in spite of spider mites attack!
Auto Blackberry Kush has been one of the top selling indica autoflower seeds ever since she was released. The genetics are genuinely special, with THC levels up to/around 20% and seed-to-harvest times as short as 60-65 days for the fastest phenotypes.
The plants remain compact but with an XL yield rating you are assured of numerous heavy yielding blooms. Auto Blackberry Kush seeds often produce strikingly beautiful deep purple and blue hues in the buds. The stunning visual bag appeal is matched by a raft of deep Kush aromas and a smorgasbord of sweet skunky scents.
The cannabis genetics come from the cannabis cup winning Blueberry and a dark gene-bank hash plant. Lavish resin production gives a white crusty trichome frosting to the autumnal colours in the leaves and buds. Auto Blackberry Kush is part of the Blue family of cannabis seeds, home to some of the tastiest and most colourful strains. This grow review comes from Sticky Green of the Urban Growers Collective with pictures from Antonio.
Auto Blackberry Kush indoor organic grow review with LED growlight and airpots
Grow Details
| Variety | Auto Blackberry Kush |
| Cannabis seed type | Autoflowering cannabis seeds |
| Number of seeds | 10 |
| Date of germination | Early 2019 |
| Germination rate | 100% |
| Days required for germination | 4 days |
| Length of grow cycle (20/4 light schedule) | 11 weeks (it took 4 – 4.5 weeks before signs of flowering began) |
| Stretch during bloom | Around 100%, compact bushy autoflower |
Basic Grow Information
| Grow room type | Homebox R120 |
| Grow room size | 120cm x 90cm |
| Plant numbers | 5 plants |
| Plant containers | 5 x 20L Airpots |
| Grow medium | Light mix soil:Coco fibre in a 4:1 ratio |
| Nutrients | Organic, Biotabs & BAC |
| Grow system | Watered by hand – soil/coco grow |
| Grow technique | Natural grow with some bending/supercropping |
| Grow light | One LED light of 200w in the middle and 2x HS1 of 75w on the sides. Total of 350W at full power |
| Light distance to canopy | Around 30-50cm in bloom |
Auto Blackberry Kush seeds germinated and grown
Remarks during germination:
We germinated 10 autoflower seeds in total. All 10 auto seeds germinated successfully so that was another 100% germ rate. We always use the cotton pad germination technique since this is the one that has always been the most successful during the years, and it’s quite easy to use too.
Related:
Easiest way to germinate cannabis seeds, the moist cotton pad method
Remarks during vegetative phase – VEG (20/4) :
So with a 10/10 score for seed germination we transplanted all 10 of them into small 0.25 litre pots. The Auto Blackberry Kush plants were then pre-grown for about 2 weeks in these small containers. The plants all grew homogeneously and there wasn’t a big difference between them.
We selected the 5 best looking plants and transplanted them to their final container, which was a 20L Airpot. These were filled with a mixture of Lightmix soil and Coco fibre. We then used the Biotabs organic nutrient range to fill up the pots. In addition to this, the BAC organic (liquid) nutrients were used as a supplemental feed for the plants. The other 5 plants went to a friend who was more than happy to grow a few of these purple ladies too!
Unfortunately, during the next few weeks the plants had to battle a pest infestation. The plants were attacked by spider mites that must have come from clones that were gifted by another friend. Such pests can be quite hard to get rid off, especially when you are dealing with such resistant little critters. We didn’t use any chemicals but some natural predators instead. So unfortunately during the phase they normally grow the most in height, these plants were battling this pest instead of focusing purely on lush and vigorous growth.
This resulted in smaller plants than normal, but in the end, they still reached around 40-65cm, depending on the phenotype. We bent and supercropped the 2 biggest plants to make it a flat/level canopy so that all plants would receive the same amount of light (PPFD) during flowering.
Remarks during Flowering period – Bloom (20/4):
Around week 6 (from autoflower seed germination) the plants were all starting to show some serious flower development. Most of them seemed to be quite Indica dominant pheno’s while 2 of them had a slightly thinner leaf structure and a more airy/fluffy bud structure. One thing we noticed is that the plants all had purple hues in the flowers. We were of course very glad to see this. We heard that it was also possible to get a green phenotype of Auto Blackberry Kush but I guess we were lucky to have 5 purple ones!
In terms of colour there was a difference between the plants though. Some had that violet purple while others had a more pinkish glow. Two plants ended up very dark purple, coming close to black which was special to witness.
The contrasting colours make this a beautiful strain to look at! Each time you open up the tent you are surprised by the wide array of colours in these phenotypes. The more subtle pinkish Blackberry Kush plants seemed to get the biggest buds. These flowers were stacking pretty nicely and we had a feeling that these would eventually become the best yielding phenotypes.
There was one plant with an airier bud structure. This lady was completely dark purple and it had an amazing smell. An aroma of dark forest fruit, hash and berries. Truly amazing terpenes which surely put a smile on your face each time you smell them! Most plants recovered well from the spider mites.
Luckily, the pests were now under control. However you could still see some damage on the plants and the leaves. The plants completely recovered from that which showed us it’s a tough and forgiving autoflower strain. We were very happy that this pest didn’t get the chance to damage the plants even further.
2 weeks later and the buds were becoming decent sized. The pinkish flowers became the biggest and those particular 2 plants accounted for about 2/3 of the canopy. The contrasting colours makes this a very interesting field of green to look at. All buds get covered in a thick layer of trichomes and they feel much like glue if you touch them. It’s sticky weed for sure!
We noticed the purple plants with the darkest colours stayed quite open/airy in structure. It also seemed these 2 plants had a bit less resin on the buds than the other ones. However, the aroma on these ladies was simply amazing. Not only of these dark purple phenos but from all of the plants. Pretty pungent and stinky too. A mix of dark forest fruit and earthy hash tones were accompanied by sweet and berry tones.
Auto Blackberry Kush in bloom, beautifully coloured buds
Final height in cm:
All of the plants stayed rather small. Around 50cm on average. There was a smaller plant and a bigger one so we used some growing/control techniques to create a level and flat canopy. The plants probably would have become a bit bigger if we haven’t experienced those issues with the spider mites. Overall, the Auto Blackberry Kush seems to have a bushy structure. We might have had plants of around 60-100cm if this would have been a normal grow without problems.
Calyx-leaf ratio (Easy trim/yes or no) :
Yes, she was really easy and quick to manicure. The plants have a good calyx-to-leaf ratio, with only a few small leaves in the buds. The buds are firm although most of them had a more airy and fluffy structure – looking a bit more like a Sativa than an Indica. They are quite dense but not as compact as we would have thought. The pink phenotypes had the biggest buds and were our favorites.
Quality (Resin/Smell/Compactness) :
The buds of Auto Blackberry Kush look simply amazing! They have a great bag appeal, the contrasting colours and nice resin coating makes this a real winner for visual bud quality. The buds are quite compact, although looking slightly more like a Sativa than an Indica. They are dense though and a small bud definitely goes a long way!
The smell is great, very powerful and pungent. It’s a wild mix of terpenes. The most dominant aroma is a mix of earthy hash and dark forest fruit. You can also smell sweet hints of berries, roses and candy. Some might have a chemical sour edge to it. It’s dank weed for sure!
Harvest report for Auto Blackberry Kush
Yield :
The 5 ladies yielded around 220 grams of dried buds. Which isn’t quite as high as hoped. But knowing we have had those spider-mite problems from the start we weren’t disappointed either. With only 300watts of LED light the result was average. However, the quality of the buds made up for that!
Remarks after curing :
The buds still smell amazing after a good cure. Very pungent with dominant earthy hash tones and fruity tones like forest berries. Others smell a bit more like sweet and sour candy. It is a well-balanced mix of terpenes that will surely capture your senses. The taste is very nice too, with the fruitier tones having the upper hand. It can be sweet and chemical on the inhale and more earthy and fruity on the exhale, depending on the phenotype you are smoking.
The high is quite strong though, she hits pretty hard and fast. The effect calms you down and will let you enjoy all the things you have at hand. Whether it be listening to music, gaming, watching a movie or cooking food. It’s a well-balanced body high that brings you into a slightly euphoric and happy mental state. Great herbal medicine!
Overall rating (out of a 5 star rating) : 4
| Aroma | ★★★★☆ (4 stars) |
| Taste | ★★★½☆ (3.5 stars) |
| Effect | ★★★½☆ (3.5 stars) |
| Bag appeal | ★★★★½ (4,5 stars) |
| Overall rating | ★★★★☆ (4 stars) |
Auto Blackberry Kush has an amazing bag appeal and is definitely a stunning looker! The purple flowers make her really standout from the crowd. The aroma is also very pungent and powerful. We absolutely loved it!
Auto Blackberry Kush seeds grower remarks and tips
Auto Blackberry Kush is quite a strong and forgiving autoflower. These plants had to endure a severe pest outbreak during their early growth stages and still came out very strong! Nutrient wise she was very straightforward, not a fussy eater at all. Although her stature seems to be more Indica leaning, however the density of the buds and the structure of the flowers looks more like a Sativa and can have some foxtails.
The branches are strong and sturdy and have no trouble holding the flowers upright. We feel the 20L airpots are big enough for this auto to reach full potential. It’s smart to use new carbon filters for this strain because her aroma is quite pungent. Each time you enter the room a strong cannabis odour comes your way.
The use of gloves during trimming is recommended, since the buds tend to get very sticky. All in all a beautiful purple autoflowering strain with a strong aroma and taste with a potent high.
