Hello, and welcome! Thank you for being here, and letting the community get to know you better. Please introduce yourself.
My names Mark. Some know me as "Uncle Vacay" which honestly is much like my alter ego. I started VacationlandGenetics in 2012 with the help of my wonderful lady Rose. And have been working within the Maine cannabis community since as early as 1995. Started growing cannabis outdoors helping my parents at a pretty young age and learned about the plant early on.
I feel like you have a good story for this, First time smoking weed?
First time I smoked cannabis I was 13. I didn't start like most kids I feel like. There was no peer pressure. I didnt do it to be cool or to try and fit in. I came from what many could call a rough childhood. And for me it was a means of escape. I can remember I snuck a bit of bud from my father's stash in the freezer. Made a makeshift pipe from an old engine part of some kind and a tinfoil screen. I was big into skateboarding at that age and had a half pipe in my garage. I remember I sat on the transition after a heavy skate sesh and took my first puffs. I don't think I really got high that first time.
Not sure if I didn't do it correctly or perhaps the quality of the weed was poor. But it was for me the gateway into another world. After that it became almost a daily ritual. I was definitely in love with Mary Jane.
What Is Your Favorite Thing About Cannabis?
My favorite thing about cannabis is that it is so versatile. It's different for everyone. What may make one person giddy like a school girl makes another want to sit on the couch and eat popcorn. Flavors that may seem unappealing to some may be a lip smacking treat to the next person. It's just so different person to person. Not only that but the plants natural ability to adapt and overcome. I've seen cannabis plants pop up all on their own in the wildest of places. Flower pots, roadside, walkways and ball fields.
Currently I have a tiny "volunteer" seedling as I like to call them growing out of the crack in my porches door way. Just enough dirt fallen in there from foot traffic to support the rootlet. And just enough rain hitting it for the seed to germinate and take hold. To me, that is amazing. All but unstoppable. Cannabis always wins!
How did you get started in cannabis breeding?
I guess I've always had an interest in cannabis breeding. My first experience being when I was just 13. And I had taken two of my father's plants and kind of claimed them as my own pet project. I can remember watching one start to do the strangest of things far earlier than the other.
All these pods which at the time I excitedly thought were buds. Ended up being the male flowers. I can remember Dad telling me I needed to kill it off. But it was just so beautiful to me. So I let it flower and in turn it pollinated the smaller female beside it. I only got maybe a handful of seeds and like I prematurely harvested so they never quite finished. But it was that early experience as a youngster that sparked my imagination. It wasn't until around the year 2000 or so when I first started growing indoors that I really got serious about producing seeds.
In those times seeds were hard to come by. Harder than the grow equipment even. So truly it was a love born out of necessity. I wanted new and different strains to grow. And so I made them. I think my very first cross involved a Pineapple Trainwreck strain we had gotten from a homies cousin in Cali. And a Sage and Sour from THseeds that we had ordered out of the back of High times. Some amazing weed came out of those beans. To be honest I wish I still had some.
What Are Your Current Grow Methods?
My current grow methods are pretty old school in today's world of high power LEDs and crop steering methods. I prefer the traditional HPS lighting over anything. Although I like to incorporate CMH bulbs. That spectrum together I truly believe is superior to anything. Indoors I like to grow in a mix of Coco and Promix. And feed with salt based nutrients while incorporating additional organic inputs.
Lots of mycorrhizal additives and some enzymes to keep the root zone clean and happy. But outdoors is where I feel not only the plants but myself also shine. Under the sun I like to keep things 100% organic and have been working for years to learn inputs which are not only sustainable but also are available to me naturally on my own land. Fermented plant extracts and brewed teas are what I feel the plants love most. And I always recycle my soil. Waste not, want not right??
What do you think patients should understand about cannabis breeding?
Patients need to understand that there are some major differences in how different breeders are doing their work so to speak. I feel many smokers gravitate towards what is popular at the time versus what may be the best variety suited to treat their particular ailments.
Many of today's polyhybrid strains lack in many departments and especially potency. Lots of really catchy sounding names and supporting flashy packaging I think have pulled the wool over patients eyes. We need to try and concentrate on wellness and not hype. Education is the key.
What are some strains you have created that you are really proud of?
I'd have to say I am very proud of our BigTimeAl strain. One of the first things I set out to do once our brand was established. Was to enhance the Maine's MOB strain and make it available to everyone in seed form. Anyone who's smoked a lot of MOB knows that it's very tasty but lacks in potency. As do the buds in density. I took Dj Shorts Old Time Moonshine and crossed it to the MOB. The Old Time had these rock hard, trichome laden buds that were just super potent. Appetite stimulating and sleep inducing. I saw it as a perfect match. That original hybrid we called BigTimeMoonshine and she was an immediate hit. Checking every box of my goal list the smoke was potent and the buds were like stones. But I still felt there was more work to do.
The pink hues in the MOB enhanced would make for a beautiful bud. Now for some color. The following season I found a Alchemy male from Subcool seeds, may he RIP. Alchemy is a cross of Chem D and Subs Querkle. Querkle was this amazing Purple laden plant and it passed that trait on to the Alchemy. The trait obliviously being dominant in the genetics I knew the next step. Cross him to the BigTimeMoonshine. Then was born the Big-timeAl. Again a slam dunk. Just unreal colors came through, pinks and purples and even reds during the fade. The Chem D heritage upping that potency level even further. And the buds having even a more rock hard solid structure. Almost impervious to any and all molds and pests. It was a Maine outdoor growers dream come true.
What's available currently on the menu for this upcoming growing season?
we will get to with the new menu creation.....to be continued
