[{"id":130892,"date":"2024-04-18T14:18:41","date_gmt":"2024-04-18T12:18:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/?p=130892"},"modified":"2024-04-09T12:28:47","modified_gmt":"2024-04-09T10:28:47","slug":"paradise-seeds-story-2000s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/blog\/paradise-seeds-story-2000s\/","title":{"rendered":"Paradise Seeds Story part 2: The 2000s"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article conttinues the Paradise Seeds story which began with a chapter on the 1990s<\/a> history. At the turn of the new Millenium, Paradise Seeds was sitting pretty! Paradise owner and breeder, Luc Krol, had just won the High Times and Highlife cups with Sensi Star and this had created a great buzz around the brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cannabis scene was changing rapidly and the internet was the catalyst along with advances in technology (and cheaper prices) which gave more cannabis lovers the power to grow their own. However, growers still needed good genetics! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paradise Seeds story: The Swiss Years<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Luc
Paradise Luc in one of the Swiss greenhouses.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The next part of the Paradise Seeds story saw the company move cannabis seed production to Switzerland at the start of the new decade, where it began working with local partners. At that time the country had developed a reputation for tolerance, based on its \u2018four pillars\u2019 approach to drugs policy <\/strong>and cannabis was effectively decriminalized in Switzerland<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This led to an explosion of dispensaries in the European country, where cannabis was allowed to be sold inside \u2018aroma\u2019 pillows and cushions.  Luc remembers that you could buy \u201cA thousand Euro cushion, with a kilo of weed inside!\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Swiss legalization dream ended in 2004 when the parliament narrowly voted not to officially decriminalize the plant. Not for the first (or last) time, the question of legality and criminality in relation to cannabis was shrouded in layers of gray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An unfortunate twist in the Paradise Seeds story saw a police raid on the seed production facility, despite lawyer\u2019s letters stating that it was legal, and a trial which followed. Although Paradise was acquitted on charges of cultivating cannabis, it was no longer able to stay in Switzerland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Seedlings<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Although it was a stressful time, it had some funny moments. Luc remembers that during the trial, the police were watering the plants at the seed production facility as it was unclear whether Paradise was acting against regulations that were in force at that time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in the Dam!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Paradise moved back to the Netherlands, nevertheless, \u2018the Swiss years\u2019 were fundamental in driving the Paradise breeding program forward. It produced new strains Rox, Swiss Bliss, Sugar Babe and strains which Paradise still sells today, including Dutch Dragon, Allkush and Belladonna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aside from breeding distinctive varieties, which enjoyed popularity across Europe, on the west coast of America and in little pockets of cannabis community around the world, Luc was driven by a desire to innovate. \u00a0It is a characteristic which repeats throughout the Paradise Seeds story spanning three decades.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Paradise<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Paradise Story in the 2000s: The development of feminized seeds<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the early 2000s, he turned his attention to creating feminized cannabis seeds<\/a>. There was clear potential in selling seeds with a guarantee to growers that each plant would be a female.\u00a0 Although feminized seeds had been in existence since the 1990s, there were limitations around the quality and consistency.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Nebula
The mighty Nebula!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Luc set to work to refine the process, using academic research papers. \u201cI pretty much had to learn how to do it myself,\u201d says Luc. \u201cI began work on this project in early 2000 and we released our first batch of feminized strains in 2002 (including Paradise\u2019s classic Nebula).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took a while for feminized seeds to become accepted by some growers who swore that regular seeds produced better plants. However, almost 20 years later, they are an industry standard and no grower would complain about the convenience they provide today!\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Paradise
The 2000s saw the birth of the cannabis expo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Paradise strains kept coming, as did the awards from the cannabis industry, with multiple cup wins over the 2000s. There were high performance sativas, such as Jacky White, and Delahaze, alongside indicas like White Berry, Wappa and Ice Cream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere were a lot of great strains in those years, but one of my favorites was Ice Cream,\u201d says Luc. \u201cAt the time, it was just so different. Very nosey, super sticky, with such an impressive build-up of trichomes and beautiful colors in the grow room.\u201dThe vanilla tasting plant was nicknamed \u2018The Ferrari of plants\u2019. \u201cFor four weeks it hardly grew at all and then boof, it suddenly accelerated!\u201d   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autoflowering varieties change the game!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Pandora
Pandora Auto<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As the 2000s approached the end of the decade, Paradise was also at the forefront of another innovation, as one of the first seed companies to breed autoflower seeds<\/a>. Although the Lowryder, with cannabis ruderalis in the genes, had been around since the 1990s, Paradise was one of the first seed companies to take autos to new heights with the release of Vertigo and Pandora.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The huge demand for autos mirrored the popularity boom across the cannabis industry from the mid 2000s. \u201cIt was a very dynamic time,\u201d Luc remembers. \u201cBusiness was booming all over Europe and home growing really took off. It wasn\u2019t just seeds either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The home growing revolution of the 2000s<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There were grow shops sprouting like mushrooms all over Europe. Not just in the big cities but also in small provincial towns. Because of the home growing\u00a0 boom, satellite businesses around the growing also did very well, for example those companies selling lights and fertilizers and grow tents. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The cup winning Pandora autoflower under lights.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0Growing knowledge just grew and grew thanks to these new networks \u2013 grow shops giving advice and also the amount of material available on the internet. Paradise was super popular and it was around this time that I started to think \u2018it would be great to open a Paradise Seeds store in Amsterdam\u2026 but that\u2019s a Paradise Seeds story for the next chapter!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article conttinues the Paradise Seeds story which began with a chapter on the 1990s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28870,"featured_media":131742,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5268],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130892"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28870"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=130892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=130892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=130892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=130892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":127343,"date":"2024-01-21T19:40:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-21T18:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/?p=127343"},"modified":"2024-02-14T12:52:29","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T11:52:29","slug":"paradise-seeds-history-1990s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/blog\/paradise-seeds-history-1990s\/","title":{"rendered":"Paradise Seeds History part 1: The 1990s"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

We begin our series about the Paradise Seeds history with the 1990s, the decade of Paradise\u2019s birth\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The weed world in 2024 looks very different to the world in which Paradise Seeds was born in 1994. The globe has been flooded with cannabis seeds and weed strains, cannabis celebrities have become normalised and legalization continues to spread its influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Paradise Seeds celebrates its 30th<\/sup> birthday, throughout this year we will be focusing on a different era of Paradise’s weed history to show how the company\u2019s story mirrors the changing face of the cannabis industry over the past three decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Paradise
One from the photo album. Paradise Seeds, High Times Cup 1998.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The birth of Paradise Seeds: Prologue <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before we begin exploring the Paradise Seeds history, it\u2019s useful to seek out a bit of background. In fact the story begins in the late 1980s in the Dutch suburbs, where a teenage Luc Krol planted some Kabala seeds a friend had brought back from a Caribbean vacation on the island of Aruba.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I grew that first plant,\u201d Luc remembers. \u201cI harvested it and smoked the buds with a couple of friends and that was it! I was in love with cannabis and from that day on I dreamt of growing the best cannabis in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paradise Seeds history: Amsterdam squat years\u00a0<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward a few years in the Paradise Seeds history and Luc is living in Amsterdam in the early 1990s. In order to put things into perspective in terms of weed history it serves to remind ourselves of what a different place the world was in the 1990s.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mobile phones were basic and not in wide use (they were also very big).  There was no internet and grow knowledge was only available in books, like the legendary grow bible, Marijuana Grower’s Guide<\/em> by Ed Rosenthal<\/a>, or passed on through word of mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amsterdam was a very different city to the tourist hotspot it is now. Since the 1960s, squatters had been occupying abandoned buildings and, following riots and street fighting in 1980 the squatter movement took on a political (anarchist edge). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was still a significant squat scene in the early 1990s and, after moving to Amsterdam, Luc began living in squats. The creative, tolerant and anarchic atmosphere \u2013 not to mention huge spaces at his disposal in various city centre squats \u2013 focused Luc on furthering his passion to grow weed.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time of this chapter in weed history the Netherlands, and Amsterdam in particular, was an enigma. A Western world capital city where cannabis was tolerated and could be openly bought and consumed consumed on city streets, in parks, on the city\u2019s Dam Square and of course in coffeeshops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This made it a magnet for cannabis travellers, many returning from landrace genetics<\/a> hotspots in the Himalayan Kush, southeast Asia and  South America. Amsterdam was also home to an American pot diaspora, escaping persecution from the authorities who were targeting cannabis as part of the War on Drugs<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Paradise Seeds Breeding Experiments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It was in this mix that Luc started collecting and exchanging seeds and building up a formidable collection for his breeding experiments. The holy grail was to breed strains which could be grown outdoors in a northern European summer. Back then he was also experimenting with indoor growing, which was in its real infancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Luc remembers, \u201cI was growing in squats. In one place I had a whole floor devoted to indoor plants and experimenting with different lights. I used fluorescent tubes, which weren\u2019t so strong, but street light bulbs were better. I used to swap them for weed! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the summertime, the rooftop would be converted into a cannabis garden, with many plants growing in pots. It was a time of real experimentation, making our own soils and fertilizers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One Amsterdam coffeeshop in particular was a popular meeting spot for cannabis travelers, named Lucky Mothers, a coffesshop with a legendary reputation in Amsterdam weed history. To help fund his breeding habit, Luc sold some of the weed he grew.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAmongst the strains was one I named I called it Mother\u2019s Milk, which was particularly popular. As the reputation of the weed grew, people started asking to buy seeds, particularly Americans who were taking them back to distribute amongst underground growing networks, particularly in California and on the West Coast.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Amserdam
From the book The Autonomous Life? by Nazima Kadir <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Paradise Seeds born from a police bust!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By 1994 Luc had a collection of strains he\u2019d created, but disaster struck when his growing operation was busted by the police. However, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The lawyer for his defence, recommended that he set up legitimately as a company providing cannabis seeds, which was legal under Dutch law. That year Paradise Seeds was born!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luc launched Paradise Seeds with five official varieties, which included a strain called Amsterdam Flame, Nebula<\/a>, Sheherazade and the original Dutch Dragon<\/a>. For the next couple of years he intensified his breeding process, all the time gaining a reputation for growing great weed, while building a mail order business as one of just a handful of Dutch cannabis seed companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was one strain in particular, which was creating ripples of excitement on the scene. It was a highly potent indica with a unique flavor of mint, fuel, pepper and perfume all rolled into one mouthwatering bundle. The thick carpet of trichomes created a plant which was resinous which defied belief. That strain was Sensi Star<\/a> which would create its own bit of weed history (with 65+ descendent strains over the years). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Luc
Luc Krol with the 199 High Times Cup for Sensi Star.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

High Times for Paradise Seeds <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Back in the 1990s, the way to making a name for your weed was pretty limited. A reputation beyond Amsterdam depended on winning a cannabis cup. In those days the Champion\u2019s League final of cannabis was Amsterdam\u2019s High Times<\/a> Cup, run by the prominent US based cannabis magazine.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luc and his Paradise Seeds crew launched a guerrilla marketing offensive at the 1998 edition of the cup.  This included a \u2018Dutch’Santa (Sinsterklass) distributing Sensi Star buds out of his sack and Luc walking around the cup venue with two bushy plants under his arms displaying their amazing aesthetic charms. Luc remembers being mobbed by the crowd who couldn\u2019t believe the quality of the Sensi Star.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One year later, Paradise announced itself on the scene with a bang! Sensi Star was recognized. It won the High Times Cup (with Nebula taking 2nd place), and then won the Highlife Cup too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the world celebrated the arrival of the Millenium, and the passing from the 20th<\/sup> to the 21st<\/sup> century, Paradise Seeds greeted the new century as one of the hottest seed companies on the scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the first article in a mini series of articles to celebrate 30 years of Paradise Seeds history. Keep an eye out for more Paradise history on our blog and on our social media channels over the coming months!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We begin our series about the Paradise Seeds history with the 1990s, the decade of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28870,"featured_media":127418,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5268,5273],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127343"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28870"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127343"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127343\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":125586,"date":"2023-12-04T00:01:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-03T23:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/?p=125586"},"modified":"2024-03-23T00:25:23","modified_gmt":"2024-03-22T23:25:23","slug":"cannabis-terpenes-entourage-effect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paradise-seeds.com\/blog\/cannabis-terpenes-entourage-effect\/","title":{"rendered":"Cannabis terpenes entourage effect"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the world of cannabis, the THC to CBD ratio has long been in the spotlight, but in recent years, a paradigm shift has taken place. Attention has begun to focus on terpenes and other cannabinoids, such as CBG<\/a> and CBN<\/a>, revealing a complex world of compounds that offer much more than intoxicating and relaxing effects.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recent studies suggest that terpenes may play a more significant role in both medicinal and recreational effects than previously believed. Dutch seed banks and breeders are now placing a strong emphasis on understanding the terpene profiles of their strains, paving the way for informed choices in cannabis consumption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contents<\/h2>