Growing the new Runtz XL Auto from Sweet Seeds, By Tommy L. Gomez

From time to time, I like to run a fast grow - getting a high-quality harvest in just a couple of months. But aromas and potency can’t be compromised, or else it would be counterproductive. It’s not so usual to be automatically convinced to start a new autoflowering grow without having to give it a few thoughts first.

When Sweet Seeds® announced the release of the brand new Runtz XL Auto® (SWS88), I had no doubts. This 6th Generation autoflowering strain with Zkittlez and Gelato genes seems to have everything it needs to become the star of the season of 2021, both indoors and outdoors, so I had to give it a try.

Here is my story with this bombshell.As soon as I received the seeds, I immediately placed 9 of them in a wet paper towel and left it hermetically closed in a Tupperware placed in a dark spot of the house. About 24 hours later I checked it for the first time but it was not until another 24 hours that the first seeds started to sprout. By the 4th day all the seeds were ready to meet the soil.

Around 16 days after the appearance of the cotyledons, the plants were ready to be transplanted to the final pots. My Runtz XL Auto® plants already showed a strong stem, with a very interesting caliber for such young plants. They were healthy and resistant, so the transplant went perfectly fine.

By 17 days they were already in their final pots. This time I used 7 liter pots. After this, they were placed under a 600W HPS, which with the use of a RVK extractor, together with the fact that they were grown in the peak of the winter, never got even close to generating heat problems within the plant’s environment. Minimum temperatures never went lower than 19 ºC (and it was only a very few nights) and maximums were always kept under 28 ºC. 25 days after germination, all the plants showed short internodal distance and a good number of small side branches seemed to be ready to stretch and build up on buds.

At this point a few plants started to show their pre-flowers. Some differences in structure from plant to plant started to be visible but nothing too significant. The difference in height between the shortest and the tallest plant was of only 6 cm (26 cm - 32 cm). As I strengthened my soil mix with organic nutrients, such as worm humus, powdered bat guano, among others, I didn’t use any liquid fertilizers while the plants stretched. And they stretched a lot: in just 12 days the plants went from around 30 cm to around 75 cm. That’s a remarkably vigorous stretch.

At day 37, all my Runtz XL Auto® plants were building up on their main cola and side branches. A lot of flowers were starting to gain shape and it was all very promising. The first sweet aromas also started to show up and the plants seemed to be ready to take advantage of some liquid organic fertilizers.

But I had to keep in mind that the catalog description for this strain features an estimate of around 8 weeks from germination to harvest and it is important to stop feeding the plants at least 14 days before the final cut. Either way, I like to enjoy my stash with a good maturity so I was counting on harvesting them with around 60 days.

I ended up feeding them only 3 times: at day 37, 41 and 44.Although Runtz XL Auto® is a very well balanced Indica-Sativa hybrid, the plants presented a slightly more Indica structure, with a compact shape and a lot of short but strong branches, holding tight buds that are thick but not too long. All together you can expect a very long and compact main cola and then about 5 to 7 side buds with a very good caliber. The 9 plants showed a very homogeneous structure. The tallest plant ended up with 88 cm while 76 cm was the height of the shortest one.

At day 54 the plants were almost ready. Two of them could be harvested immediately, but I decided to harvest all of them in the same day. The fragrances and aromas were delightful and filled all the room. They were also very homogeneous with a quite similar smell to all of them when I rubbed the flowers with my fingers to get a high-terpene experience of exotic fragrances.

Maybe some had a stronger fruity smell than others, but all of them delivered deliciously sweet scents. This is one of the reasons why the Runtz strain revolutionized the Californian marijuana scene as one of the most aromatic and potent genotypes on the West Coast of the USA.

At day 60, all the 9 plants were more than ready. I had plants with the exact point of ideal maturation (or at least as I judge it might be) and plants a bit over mature, which is a plus in regards to my cannabinoid profile preferences as a cannabis user. They were all harvested and manicured that same day. Every cannabis grower knows that it is very usual to get such an intense smell in the house when it is harvest day that sometimes it even becomes a bit unpleasant.

But this time, with this amazing strain from the Sweet Seeds® genetic collection, it didn’t happen. All the house smelled like sweets and fruits for many hours. The flowers dried in about 12 days and they went into the glass jars, hermetically sealed, to cure for 2 or 3 weeks. I got around 50 grams per plant, which was great considering a 60 day grow operation with 9 plants in a 1 square meter and with 7 liter pots.

The smoke and vapor of this strain is really exquisite and delicious. The sweet and fruity aromas that filled the house in the last few months end up allowing for a truly marvelous organoleptic experience. It remains in your mouth and nose for a long time after you light up or vaporize some resinous flowers.

Runtz XL Auto® features a powerful and well-balanced effect that produces peaceful and relaxing vibes. But that’s not all...you also get a good time of highly stimulated creativity and imagination, wondering which Sweet Seeds® candy you’ll use in your next cannabic adventure.