Critical + 2.0 Grow Report: Spain’s next cannabis top model

Words & Pics: Green Born Identity – G.B.I.

The famous Critical strain, a revised version of the all-time classic Big Bud, has achieved a legendary status in Spain. As it served as a dynamic green engine for the cannabis cultivation boom in that country, becoming the most well-known and most frequently cultivated plant in the Iberian Peninsula. For good reasons – it accomplishes the feat of producing massive yields of big fat buds within a very short flowering time, which in addition are highly potent and pretty aromatic.

In other words, Critical is an ideal combination of quality, quantity and efficiency, which makes it a great commercial strain on a sophisticated level. Behind Big Bud and therefore also Critical hides a very traditional Afghani x Skunk #1 hybrid which impressively proves once again that the old school genetic cornerstones of the world of cannabis strains nowadays still have tremendous strain building capacity.

As a matter of course, also Spain's biggest seed company Dinafem took Critical under their wings, however, not without leaving their own breeder's mark on it and teasing even more performance out of it. Thus Dinafem's 'Critical +' strain was born, coming with the promise of even outmatching the original Critical's cultivation performance. Which the Spaniards could obviously keep, as Critical + turned out to be a huge seller for them, even becoming their most popular plant. But due its fabulous monster yields and enormously voluminous dense buds, things can literally get critical with certain cultivation scenarios, particularly in the case of outdoor growing, as humid weather conditions near the end of flowering carry an increased risk of mold.

Dinafem addressed this issue by developing a modified version of Critical + which is particularly mold resistant and in addition also ripens even faster under natural light which further reduces the risk of mold. This special version, created within the Critical + gene pool by selective breeding, they called 'Critical + 2.0'. With that enhanced mold resistance and an early harvest time of September 15th-25th, Critical + 2.0' is perfect for outdoor cultivation, delivering bumper yields of 900-1300 grams per plant under optimum conditions.

Indoors it performs no less fantastically, with rapid 45-50 flowering days being enough to slam extreme yields of up to 700 grams down on every square metre. Dinafem says Critical + 2.0 is their fastest and their most productive plant, but not enough with these superlatives –it's also claimed to be the most penetrant strain in their assortment (so you better check your carbon filters!), which is translated into a likewise intense taste. Its smell and taste are characterized by a strong Skunk aroma, but also carry notes of citrus and pine.

A THC content of 20% (CBD: 0.3%) leads to a long-lasting hefty buzz that is cerebral and stimulating, causing a wave of euphoria. Critical + 2.0 consists of 70% indica and 30% sativa. Thanks to the aforementioned characteristics, it's a great all-rounder, working perfectly for beginners as well as expert growers. The Doc couldn't resist its outstanding strain profile and wanted to find out whether all those fantastic things he had read about Critical + 2.0 were true. So he got two feminised seeds started, together with a close relative of Critical + 2.0, Critical Jack. Just as the latter, Critical + 2.0 germinated in next to no time, already after less than 2.5 days, the two seedlings had broken through the surface of their Jiffy pots.

They kept up this high growth speed in the vegetative stage, soon there were numerous side branches eagerly stretching towards the light, generating a proliferating bush-style growth pattern. Despite their genetic indica dominance, the two plants produced thin, finger-shaped leaves as typical of sativa, with one of them exhibiting a darker leaf colour.

When The Doc switched to flowering after four weeks of vegetative growth, two pretty homogeneous Critical + 2.0 plants were standing in front of him, measuring 42 and 50 cm in height. Their extensive branches were very solid, well-prepared for bearing big fat buds. In the first half of the flowering stage, one of the plants showed a stronger sativa influence than the other, as its stem elongation effect was more pronounced which resulted in a bigger height difference than in the vegetative stage.

Nevertheless this taller plant remained pretty compact whilst flowering. Both plants quickly kicked into full gear, not even two weeks after the time switch from 18/6 to 12/12, countless little flower "roses" had emerged all over the plants – it seemed as if these plants wanted to leave no doubts about their status as fast production wonders.

In the course of the following weeks, buds were bulging out of the branches in vast amounts, increasing in size day by day. Reported The Doc, 'one can literally watch the buds getting bigger and denser. So dense and so hard as if they were casted in green phyto concrete!' In the end, The Doc stared at one single green sea of densely placed flowering branches that were laden with true picture-book buds from the bottom to the top. In addition to their enormous size and density, these buds impressed him with an extremely high calyx-to-leaf ratio, only a very few flowering leaves were protruding from the buds, and also their resin content was amazing which surprised The Doc a bit as he thought if a cannabis plant produces extraordinarily massive yields within a very short flowering time, a lot of energy goes into the sheer volume of the buds, and as a consequence, resin production cannot be on the same champion level then.

But that's not the case with Critical + 2.0, this strain is also blessed with an almost abundant trichome richness, looking as if someone had emptied a whole bucket of sugar over its buds, and they're feeling just as sticky. 'The taller plant arrived at a final height of 88 cm, protruding beyond the other by 16 cm. Their super dense flowering structure with hardly any leaves was almost identical though, and with 49 and 51 days, there wasn't much of a difference in the length of flowering either, so both of the plants were able to stick to that express flowering timetable.

In terms of smell, the plants revealed more fruitiness and sweetness and less penetrance than The Doc had expected in view of the strain description: 'The delicious odour given off by the buds reminded me of a freshly picked basket of wild berries. But it also carries an earthy tinge of pine. While this aromatic blend smells intensely, I wouldn't describe it as penetrant.'

Weighing the dried rock-hard buds was a thrilling moment for The Doc as he supposed that the taller Critical + 2.0 plant may have come close to an all-time harvest record. Which, indeed, was the case with sensational 142 grams - for sure it had set a new record in the category 'super-fast flowering strains with bumper yields'.

The delicious odour given off by the buds reminded me of a freshly picked basket of wild berries

With a yield of 114 grams, much to The Doc's delight the other plant had also made it beyond the 100g mark. While the buds still smelled fruity sweet in the first instance, that woody pine note had gained intensity after the drying process. When he finally took a huge puff from his first Critical + 2.0 joint, The Doc instantly booked a skyrocketing sativa flight which he described as follows –'quasi at the push of a button, without fastening the mental seat belt, an elevating kick set in, and after a few more tokes, that soaring sativa power was pulsating in my veins and seemed to raise my skullcap. When I closed my eyes, it really felt as if I was lifted into the air, as if I had said 'Dinafem, beam me up' and it had really worked to some extent.

So he was mentally orbiting in lofty heights for a while, being fully aware though that at a certain point, that trip would flow into a more calming state of mind, that the strain's indica share of 70 percent would sooner or later take its toll. This was the case after about an hour then, when The Doc noticed that the indica brake parachute was released which made him gently land in a cozy mental relaxation pool where he spent another hour. Then he was ready for the next flight... The taste was very sweet on the inhale, leaving a woodsy, almost hashy spiciness behind which veteran ganja gourmet The Doc liked a lot.

Asked about his conclusion, he went into rhapsodies: 'Once again, a Dinafem strain has fully lived up to its promise. Critical + 2.0. has everything a grower could wish for, very quickly producing world-class buds in abundance and delivering a great two-phase effect plus a lovely flavour. I am sure – if Spain had a TV casting show for cannabis strain models, the winner would be announced as follows in the end: Critical + 2.0 – Spain's next cannabis top model!'

Green Born Identity – G.B.I

Cultivation data:

• Genetics: Critical + 2.0 (Critical + x Resistant Critical + Pheno)
• Vegetative stage: four weeks (after germination)
• Flowering stage: 49 and 51 days / officially 45-50 days
• Medium: Plagron Grow Mix soil, 11 litre pots
• pH: 6.0-6.5
• EC: 1.2–1.8mS
• Light: Up to 2x 600 W MH + 1x 400 W HPS in the vegetative stage, 2x 600 W HPS + 1x 400 W HPS in the flowering stage
• Temperature: 19-29°C
• Air humidity: 40-55%
• Watering: by hand
• Fertilisation: Organic Grow Liquid and Organic Bloom Liquid from Green Buzz
• Liquids Additives/stimulants: More Roots, Humin Säure Plus, Big Fruits, Fast Buds and Clean Fruits from Green Buzz Liquids
• Height: 72 and88 cm
• Yield: 114 and 142 grams