What happened to the REAL Skunk?

Kayne said:

Here's a little knowledge for everyone.... Sorry it's so long....But very well worth reading, Or just save yourself some time and completely ignore post 25..lol.



JessE


“Ooooh that smell, cant you smell that smell, Ooooh that smell, the smell of death that surrounds you.”- Lynyrd Skynyrd

Skunk #1 is perhaps the most famous and widely grown variety of cannabis in the world. Touted as a true breeding, homogeneous variety that underwent extensive selection to produce a quality yielding plant that grew in a semi predictable fashion, Skunk #1 is nothing short of a legend in its own right. Many varieties, including the UK Cheese Clone are said to have originated from Skunk #1, in this case a Sensi Seeds Skunk #1 variety is said to ultimately be the source responsible for the UK Cheese cut. There is little question that Skunk#1 has played a major role in the breeding of professional and amateur cannabis strains, literally, the world over. Said to have been the only variety Sacred Seeds would not offer a discount on in bulk, the Skunk #1’s breeding history dates as far back by some accounts as the mid to late 1960’s.

The pedigree of Skunk #1 according to Sam the skunk man is (Afghani x Colombian Gold) x Acapulco Gold. With the original male selection(s) used in the breeding process of Skunk #1 coming from a selection of 10,000 individual male specimens, from a total number of 20,000 plants from seed ultimately. In Sam’s own words, “I focused on branching, smells, potency, type of high, yield, flower to leaf ratio, as well as a few other things. I still have the best males.” According to Sam hundreds of males were ultimately selected and cloned, later to be tested against his best Skunk #1 female’s in an effort to determine the best male varieties for his specific breeding vision. The earliest versions of Skunk #1 Sam claims to have worked with for no less than 10 years prior to the lines arrival in the Netherlands. Along with Skunk #1, Sam also brought along Skunk #2, a variety he himself admits he worked very little with, but that it was very “Road Kill Skunk “like in fashion. Although Sam the Skunk Man takes complete credit for the breeding of Skunk #1, there is a school of thought designed around the notion that in fact the responsibility for breeding this world renowned variety should lay in the hands of quite a few individuals, rather than that of just one man.

Another version of events surrounding the famed Skunk #1 is that its original breeder was a man who went by the name of “Jingles” and its original unstable pedigree consisted of Colombian Gold x Afghani. It remained a selected variety in private hands for sometime before ultimately making its way around the general vicinity of the Bay area, California. Originally a small group of individuals from this area (known as Sacred Seeds) are said to have taken an interest in this variety and an effort was soon underway to stabilize the variety known as “skunk”. After some time, this organization of individuals is said to have grown in numbers, with even a handful of separate groups forming all with the same goal in mind ultimately. One is said to have been able to become a member only after being recommended by another member from within the “inner circle”, with obligations of working with earlier versions of the Skunk #1 mandatory for all growers. The Acapulco Gold was said to have been added to the original skunks’ pedigree in an effort to reduce the “leaf to calyx ratio” as well as bring down the flowering times of the Colombian Gold dominant genes. Interestingly enough, although Sam the skunk man denies there was ever any “collective” that participated in the breeding of Skunk #1, the two stories share similarities, not the least of which is the pedigree of Skunk #1 ((Afghani x Colombian Gold) x Acapulco Gold.) The famed Maple Leaf Indica offered by Sensi Seeds is said to have originated from a man known as Maple Leaf Wilson, who is also speculated to have been a member of the Sacred Seeds “collective."

By some accounts the Sacred Seeds “collective” was a serious enterprise, which would prove invaluable during the early 1980’s when the group was ultimately busted by Law Enforcement Officials and Sam the Skunk Man is said to have been arrested (a point of contention by Sam the Skunk Man), but only for a short while. Sacred Seeds is rumored to have retained counsel long before their operation was interrupted and the Skunk Man was out on bail within a few short hours. As legend now has it, Sam quickly put surveillance on the warehouse where they had been running their primary growing operation only to discover the police officers had left it virtually unattended with only crime scene tape used to secure the premises. Even more shocking, its alleged that a great deal of seed was simply tossed in a near by dumpster, along with a number of plants that are said to have been salvaged by members of Sacred Seeds who were quickly assembled to strip the area of all valuable equipment and evidence, some of which was later sold to fund the Skunk Mans defense. The fact the warehouse is said to have been stripped of a great deal, if not all of the evidence may have contributed to the Skunk Mans supposed sentence of less than a year, upon release Sam is said to have collected a great deal of the varieties salvaged from the dumpster and moved to Holland where he started Cultivators Choice seed company. Among the skunk varieties said to have been salvaged from the bin was Skunk 18.2 (Skunk #1 x Afghani bx-1), a variety developed by Sacred Seeds that was said to have been bred to be disease and pest resistant. At some point during the Sacred Seeds project to stabilize the Jingles “skunk”, a great deal of the Afghani varieties available at the time are said to have suffered from botrytis cinerea, otherwise known as grey mold (a disease that commonly strikes wine grapes in particular), this development is said to have initiated quite a search for Afghani Indica lines that were disease and pest resistant.

Sam is said to have taken Skunk 18.2 along with other Skunk #1 material from the dumpster to Holland, (sum 250,000 seeds according to Sam himself) with these strains being among the first of a wave of new varieties from the United States destined to change the landscape of the Dutch cannabis breeding scene forever. Cultivators Choice Seed folded within a few short years and the stock was ultimately sold to Neville Schoenmaker, the original “King of Cannabis” and father of Dutch Seed Banks. It’s alleged that Neville was working with the same Skunk #1 P1 mother plant as Sam the Skunk Man from Cultivators Choice, while using a separate male from that of Sam the Skunk Man. This particular version of events in summary, is suspect at best, but illustrates another side to the story of Skunk #1 and offers a glimpse into the oral traditions of marijuana cultivators, something that is all too often all we are left to work with when researching these varieties due to the illicit and illegal nature of marijuana cultivation. Somewhere between the time Sam introduced the Skunk #1 varieties to Holland and their ultimate acquisition by Neville, at The Seed Bank, something of a debate arose about the true Skunk #1’s identity, the “sweet Skunk” camp (which without a doubt includes Sam the Skunk Man) versus the “Road Kill Skunk” school of thought. According to Sam the Skunk Man, the original Skunk #1 released in 1976 was mostly all “Road Kill Skunk”, but the subsequent breeding of the variety was designed around an effort to sweeten the taste and aroma, with the more powerful, couch lock type of affect generally associated with the “Road Kill Skunk” bred out in favor of a more enjoyable and relaxing type of high, one that enables you to still function relatively well in the world without being completely comatose. In contrast, the “Road Kill Skunk” phenotype of Skunk # 1 is said to be so foul of an aroma and essence that paranoia of having your crop discovered can literally consume you both night and day. As in the case of the “Original Haze” (a variety Sam describes as Colombian x Mexican, with Thai and Afghani coming later in its development. Also said to contain the same Colombian used in the Skunk #1 by some accounts) Skunk #1’s ultimate formula may indeed depend on the vintage year in which the Skunk #1 variety in question was developed. According to Sam, “new females and new males were used each year to make the seeds for Skunk # 1 and while pretty homogeneous it would change dependent on the selection used to make the next generation of seeds.” Later in the history of Skunk #1’s storied path at Neville’s The Seed Bank, Skunk#1 is rumored to have underwent a change designed around making a new skunk variety, whether or not this is the case, I can personally vouch for the existence of a variety known as “New Skunk” that is said to have been worked by both Neville and Sam the Skunk Man. Sam has on more than one occasion denied ever working with Neville together in any kind of joint project, lending some credence to the notion a new skunk line was created. Coincidentally, this is said to have happened right around the late 1980’s, in the general time frame many a stoner recount their experiences with the elusive “Road Kill Skunk” variety.

Today, the sweeter version of Skunk #1 is known as “The Pure” and is offered by The Flying Dutchmen seed company in the Netherlands. An example of an Afghani skunk line can be found at Mr. Nice Seed bank as well. Known as “Shit”, this varieties lineage is described as “skunk x skunk, the origins of which coming out of Afghani dominant Indicas.” Which is an important piece of information for many out there; because Skunk is often times one of the most misused words in the Cannabis industry. Afghani lines are renowned for their odor, and it is not out of the question for many varieties containing Afghanica genetics to be referred too as “skunk” based on simple observation of the aroma’s alone. Regardless of the varieties(s) true connection to the cultivar known as “Skunk #1”. Other varieties from Mr. Nice Seeds that are said to date back to early work of Neville include the (Afghan x skunk) x (Afghan x Haze), with the Afghani Skunk father due for hybridization with both Neville’s Haze and Mango Haze in the very near future as well as a separate skunk line that may see re- introduction sometime in 2009. Along with Shit, Mr. Nice also offers several Skunk #1 hybrids including Master Kush x Skunk #1, G13(skunk #1) x Skunk #1 as well as Critical Mass(a heavy yielding (Afghani x Skunk) x Skunk), which is a reworked version of the renowned Big Bud variety from the Pacific North West of the United States.

Like with most good stories involved in the history of various cannabis strains, there exist quite a few versions to original event and the story will ultimately vary upon who is recounting the tale. It should be noted that according to Sam the Skunk Man, today most of the varieties currently offered on the market as Skunk #1 were not bred by himself, but are rather varieties bred by others from his lines. Despite what you may read on the internet, Sam also has stated he has not released genetics in more than a decade to anyone and can not personally vouch for the authenticity of anything you may acquire labeled as Skunk #1, although the original genetics are said to be safe and secure in Sam’s possession in both clone and seed form. Ultimately it would appear the Skunk Man is gearing up to release his own wave of seeds in the future and the only strains of Skunk he is willing to extend validity too are his own. What we do know for sure is that Skunk #1 is without a doubt one of the most successful strains of cannabis to surface of all time and in fact took first place at the first annual High Times Cannabis Cup in 1988. Literally found in gardens a crossed the globe, it’s become one of, if not the, most prolific varieties used in the hybridization of quality cannabis in the world today. Described by the Flying Dutchmen as a “bench mark in uniform, reliable performance” legendary varieties such as the Shiva Skunk (NL#5 x Skunk #1), G13, Early Girl and Haze just to name a few have all been entrusted in the care of Skunk #1 not just because of its supposed homogeneous state, but because of the enhancements that can be brought about through the hybridization of your favorite male or female variety to that of the storied line known as Skunk #1. For those looking for an Afghani dominant Skunk, which is sure to bring back memories of a time long sensed past, the “Shit” at Mr. Nice seeds (www.mrnice.nl) would be among the very first places one should investigate further into in order to find anything of the “foul smelling” side of the Skunk lines.
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skunkd0c said:

go for the blues m8, from UGORG it is the next step on the run from killer skunk .. the goal was to get as close to the blues cutting as possible
killerskunk has phenos that lean more towards the blueberry male end while blues is much more uniform and closer to the original cutting

peace

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gladstoned said:

thank you for that info. I will order the no name and get blues for free.

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15yearsofbreeding said:

that skunky smell everyone is looking for is still around. it comes from AfgT.

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theexpress said:

i miss that old school body odor smelling skunky skunk.. all the skunk nowadays is milder/sweeter... lots of fruity skunks, sweet skunks, lemony skunks...

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jimdandy said:

Huh? please explain!!

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gladstoned said:

thank you for that info. I will order the no name and get blues for free.

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conor c said:

People always said the foul and skunky notes came from the Afghan side of things I seen this the other night it looked interesting

https://www.christianiaseedbank.org/strains/chimtal-balkh-province

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MrFrance said:

I was just thinking that. I remember the sticky smelly stuff that was the norm back then. Powerful, illegal, two tokes and stoned for an hour

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Kayne said:

Yeah sadly man, A lot of breeder's have capitolized off of The Legendary RKS, without delivering the goods to the only people that truly matter....The Grower! I can tell you first hand that CannaVenture Seeds does in fact have a greasey Indica leaning, Real Deal Road Kill Skunk (RKSv2.1), It took 7-8 years to perfect..and at harvest, 8-9 weeks, there is absolutely zero sweet smell or taste...It's 100% Nasty, Dank, Dead Skunk Smell, with subtle piney under tones...but the dead Skunk smell over powers the piney notes... The RKS is a nice yielder, no matter what grow style, Can be used nicely with SOG, SCROG or huge Bushes, Indoors or Outdoors..... If you opened an air tight container with a small bud of The RKS in it, It will literally stink up the entire room within minutes.. It's the best, horrible, rancid dead skunk smell, I have ever witnessed before....lol. No bullshit Brothers...Take care fellas...Hope you all find what you are looking for.

Here's a link that you all might be interested in... http://www.seedheaven.net/index.php/board,81.0.html

By the way, Seedsman has GREAT gear, they seriously do.. But I would pass on their Skunk#1, unless you are looking for a nice sweet skunk....But other than that, Seedsman is the Shit!

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roderpertusadamant said:

Here's a variation of Roadkill Skunk, bought in BC, late 80s early 90s. Deep foul acrid skunk in full flower with some lemon and pine coming through in drying... 80% indica. Dense heavy buds with enormous resin.. takes 2 carbon filters in series, and can still smell it.. in 2022, this one is heirloom.. watched the beans pop with my own eyes, never let it go since....cheers! Pics are of a 4 plant grow last fall..

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roderpertusadamant said:

Here's a variation of Roadkill Skunk, bought in BC, late 80s early 90s. Deep foul acrid skunk in full flower with some lemon and pine coming through in drying... 80% indica. Dense heavy buds with enormous resin.. takes 2 carbon filters in series, and can still smell it.. in 2022, this one is heirloom.. watched the beans pop with my own eyes, never let it go since....cheers! Pics are of a 4 plant grow last fall..

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