Northern Lights Showdown: Good Day Farm vs. Osage Creek March 16, 2022 By Dr. Yes This is the next in a new weekly series of reviews of Arkansas medical marijuana strains. Northern Lights is a longtime celebrity strain in the cannabis world. Believed to be originally developed from Afghan indicas during the 1970s in the Pacific Northwest, it quickly made its way to the first Dutch cannabis seed catalogs and became a basic building block of modern cannabis production. Famous for its pungent pine smell and euphoric indica stone, this strain has been in high demand for decades. As patients have called for more old-school strains in Arkansas, cultivators have responded by making several available. You can now purchase vintage favorites such as Acapulco Gold, Panama Red and Hash Plant, and now Northern Lights is being offered by two different cultivators. I decided to pick both versions up from Good Day Farm in Little Rock to see how they compare. Strain: Northern Lights Indica Cultivator: Good Day Farm THC: 19.7% Price: $35 per 1/8 ounce before tax My GDF jar had several tight, compact, well trimmed and cured nugs that were covered in dark orange hairs and lightly dusted with trichomes. The smell was a sharp pine mixed with pungent citrus, while the flavor was somewhat sweeter. The effects were relaxing, clear headed, and wonderfully euphoric. It pleasantly uplifted my mood while I was doing chores and listening to music, but then transitioned into a relaxing full body stone that made me want to sit in the yard and watch the clouds. It also took away all of my anxiety for the duration of the effects, which was between 1-2 hours. Overall it was a great experience. Strain: Northern Lights Indica Cultivator: Osage Creek Cultivation THC: 25% Price: $40 per 1/8 ounce before tax Osage’s nugs didn’t look considerably different, but that’s where the similarities end. The smell and flavor were extremely light, and I could barely pick up a slight skunky sweetness. The effects were also light, and can best be described as an introspective head high that wasn’t particularly relaxing or enjoyable. It lasted 30-45 minutes and made me a bit anxious so I was happy when it was over. This was a complete waste of $40.   The winner of the Northern Lights showdown was easily Good Day Farm. Not only did it more closely resemble the traits of the classic Northern Lights strain, it beat Osage in basically every category. Smell, flavor, overall effect, and price were all better for GDF. I’ll definitely be avoiding Osage’s version in the future, but I highly recommend GDF’s Northern Lights if you want to experience the joys of a true old-school cannabis classic. Dr. Yes is not an actual medical doctor, so take his prescriptions for what they are, insight from a longtime stoner who lives and thrives in the straight 9-5 world.
