Northern Lights

Also known as: NL, Northern Lights #5, NL#5, NL#1, Northern Lite

Breeder: Steve Murphy (original Purest Indica seeds); Greg McAllister / Seattle Greg (numbered selections); Nevil Schoenmakers / Sensi Seeds (stabilization and commercialization)

Lineage & Genetics

Cross: Afghani landrace (Purest Indica) x Thai landrace (in some numbered lines)

Afghani Landrace (Purest Indica): From the Hindu Kush mountain region, brought to the US via Hippie Trail travelers. Short, broad-leafed plants with extremely dense bud structure, extraordinary resin production, fast indoor flowering (6-8 weeks), heavy stone effect, pungent hash-like aroma. Steve Murphy's personal inbred line maintained through multiple generations. Thai Landrace: Equatorial sativa adapted to warm humid conditions. Tall plants with long branches, bright green foliage, long flowering times, citric and fruit aromas, uplifting euphoric cerebral effects. Introduced hybrid vigor, flavor complexity, and the subtle euphoric quality that keeps NL from being one-dimensional.

Terpene Profile

Aroma: Musky dank earthiness (myrcene base) layered with warm peppery spice (caryophyllene) and finished with clean resinous pine sharpness (pinene). Some phenotypes carry hints of fruit or citrus. Classic old-school indica — hash-like, deep, and organic. Notably lower-odor than many comparable indicas.

Flavor: Inhale is smooth, sweet-earthy pine with woody undertones. Exhale brings warm spicy finish with lingering herbal sweetness. Cured flavor notes: wood, pine, damp earth, subtle citrus/lemon tang, spicy-herbal finish. A proper 4-6 week cure brings forward the distinctive sweet-earthy-piney profile.

Effects & Experience

Onset: Quick quieting of mental noise within 5-10 minutes; stress eases; calm, centered mindset without heavy psychoactive intensity.

Warm, weighted body sensation starting in shoulders and spreading downward at 10-30 minutes. Deep physical relaxation and classic couch-lock at higher doses. Mind remains clear enough to stay present. Mood is peaceful, content, mildly euphoric. Smooth wind-down with no grogginess the following morning.

Duration: 2-3 hours total with residual calm persisting another 1-2 hours.

Growing Characteristics

Grow Tips: Northern Lights is universally recommended as a first-grow strain for five reasons: compact size fits small tents/closets, short flowering time (7-9 weeks) gives fast feedback, natural pest and mold resistance from Afghani mountain genetics, tolerant of nutrient errors (responds well to half-strength making overfeeding less fatal), and stable predictable growth with minimal phenotypic variation. Moderate feeder — start at 50% of manufacturer's recommended dose. Veg NPK higher nitrogen (3-1-2), EC 1.2-1.6 in soil. Flower: switch to bloom base (low N, high P and K), EC 1.4-2.0. Add PK 13/14 during weeks 5-7 for bud density. Flush final 10-14 days. CalMag important under LED or in coco/soft-water. Critical feeding rule: NL will burn at full-strength nutrients. Brown crispy leaf tips are the #1 sign of overfeeding. Responds exceptionally well to training. LST is the single most effective technique — bend and tie branches for even canopy, dramatically increases yield. Top above 3rd or 4th node. ScrOG ideal for maximizing yield in 4x4 tent. SOG also works well with untopped clones due to short single-cola growth pattern. When flipped to 12/12, NL typically doubles in height at most — far less than sativa hybrids, making height management easy. Despite above-average natural resistance, dense tightly packed colas are a magnet for bud rot if humidity isn't controlled. Keep flowering humidity 40-50%, drop to 35-40% in final two weeks. Oscillating fans, defoliate lower fan leaves, prune interior dead-air pockets. Outdoor growers: harvest before fall rains (late September). Harvest when trichomes are milky white with 10-20% amber for peak potency with relaxing body stone. Use 60x jeweler's loupe on calyxes not sugar leaves. Dry at 60-70°F, 50-60% RH for 7-14 days. Never point fans directly at buds. Cure in airtight glass jars at 75% capacity, 58-62% RH with Boveda packs. Burp twice daily first two weeks, then every 2-3 days. Minimum 4 weeks, optimal 6-8 weeks where the full earthy sweet piney profile develops. Common mistakes: overfeeding (start at 50%), high humidity in flower, overwatering (lift pot, water when light), harvesting too early (use loupe not pistils), rushing cure (grassy smell = not ready), skipping defoliation. Pro tips: red-heavy LED spectrum (660nm) in final 2 weeks boosts myrcene production. 3-5 gallon fabric pots are the sweet spot. High flower-to-leaf ratio means less trimming and more usable product. Takes clones readily for perpetual supply. Use soil for beginners (natural buffer against nutrient imbalances). One of the few strains you can recommend without reservations to any skill level.

History & Origin

Origins trace to the late 1970s when Steve Murphy, operator of the Indoor Sun Shoppe in Seattle and author of How to Grow Marijuana Indoors Under Lights (1975), gave four seeds of his Purest Indica line to Greg McAllister around 1979. Greg bred them as F2 and distributed to friends who hybridized and returned seeds. Greg created the numbering system #1 through #11. In 1985 Greg sent seeds to Nevil Schoenmakers at The Seed Bank of Holland who stabilized and commercialized them. NL#5 emerged as the standout. The Seed Bank merged into Sensi Seeds in 1991. NL dominated Cannabis Cup competitions in 1988-1993, winning so consistently requests were made to retire it from competition.

Notable Crosses

Strains bred using Northern Lights as a parent: