Our grow team has tested Humboldt Seed Company’s feminized photoperiod Hella Jelly strain seven times, starting years ago when it was named Jelly Rancher.

The strain genetics are primarily based on other Humboldt Seed Company (HSC) strains: Notorious THC and Very Cherry.

Notorious THC is one of the highest-THC strains HSC sells and it’s a pure Indica cross of Humboldt OG and Caramel Cream that takes a long time in bloom phase, yields well, and has a crushingly sedative high.

Very Cherry appears to have been discontinued. It was listed as mostly Sativa, but its lineage was Lemon Kush and a rare Northern California strain.

HSC describes Hella Jelly as a Sativa-dominant hybrid (70% Sativa, 30% Indica) with an average THC content between 26-20%, but as you’ll see later, we feel it’s less Sativa than that.

Our first two test seasons were with the Jelly Rancher version, which were marginally different than Hella Jelly in phenotype expression and high.

The strain is vigorous indoors and outdoors, and can turn into quite a high-yielding beast if repeatedly topped and trained in a 6-8 week grow phase outdoors in strong sun or indoors in a high-PPFD lighting regimen and sufficient root space.

Hella Jelly tolerates high-density feed programs. I’m talking about both light intensity and root nutrients. If you underprovide either or both, expect slow growth and small buds.

In ideal conditions, the strain lives up to HSC’s stipulation of a 45-day bloom phase. What you really want to focus on is that the difference in psychoactive effects and potency shifts dramatically in the last week or two of bloom phase.

Harvesting at days 38-44, you get a high that’s slightly more Sativa than Indica: more stimulating than sedating. Harvesting from days 44 and onward, and especially past day 50, and the high is a heavy Indica.

One of the main reasons to grow this strain are to enjoy the loud terp scents you get starting about two weeks into bloom phase. In some ways similar to other luscious HSC strains, such as Raspberry Parfait, but not at all like citrus bomb Orange Cream Pop, the scent includes cherries, grape, strawberry, and cotton candy. This translates into dried, cured buds with delicious smell and taste, making them easy to retail.

The loud terps also make it easy to do extractions for terp sauce, ice water hashish, dry sift and other concentrates that taste like a fruity dessert. Extraction ratios are high because Hella Jelly buds are loaded with dense, large resin glands.

We’ve never seen gray mold in the buds, which is not a surprise, as they are not huge, thick monsters, but we have seen that this strain, along with many sweet-smelling strains, is susceptible to spider mites and does not do well when sprayed with Azamax or herbal-extract miticides.

During one season, we fought mites using a mild dose of Azamax that was way below the recommended dosage, but leaves were damaged and the plants went into suspended animation for about two weeks before finally recovering and delivering a decent yield. This doesn’t happen with Azamax on other strains.

You’re not going to automatically get massive harvests growing this strain because buds are moderate in size and girth, perhaps even thin, but if you’ve topped and trained properly, you will get massive harvests because you have a couple dozen or more sturdy bud stalks per plant.

One reason HSC is our favorite seed company is that its phenotype consistency and quality control are nearly perfect.

The Jelly Ranchers we grew nearly five years ago didn’t look or smell exactly the same as the renamed Hella Jelly seeds, but close enough. In recent generations of the strain, phenotype consistency is at the clone level. All plants look, grow, smell, and finish the same.

Here are some quick cultivation notes:

  • Give Hella Jelly a larger-than-average root zone size. For example, if you usually grow in 5-gallon pots, do seven or ten gallon instead.
  • Give the plants a little longer in grow phase than usual, but be sure to manage height: the strain will gain double or more in height in first 2-3 weeks of bloom phase.
  • Use beneficial root zone microbes such as Mykos and Versity. Of all the microbe products sold to cannabis growers, the company the makes these two is the only one using professional science.
  • Inspect for spider mites at least once daily, if not more, starting in the first week of bloom phase. First try manual removal of mites; avoid spraying Azamax or natural herbal miticides if possible. Definitely do not spray thick substances like Neem oil.
  • Pay close attention to feeding, vapor pressure deficit, PPFD, and all other cultivation parameters, because the 45-day bloom duration doesn’t leave much room for error.
  • Resin glands start developing by the end of week two in bloom phase and may go cloudy early, before buds are ready to harvest.
  • Hella Jelly tends to add the bulk of its bud size from bloom phase days 23-43.
  • Strain structure is relatively sturdy, but you might need to support branches in late bloom.
  • Buds sometimes develop attractively red/purple coloration in the last days before harvest.
  • Average yield per indoor plant is 3-5 ounces of dried bud. Outdoors, we’ve seen monster plants eight feet tall yield a kilo of more of dried buds.

Most of us on the grow team prefer Sativa-dominant strains with stimulating highs appropriate for hiking, sports, making music, creativity, dancing, etc. In our testing, Hella Jelly doesn’t provide mostly energizing effects unless you harvest around days 37-40.

Fully-matured buds (day 43 or later) give you effects that start like a Sativa. This includes groovy visuals, audio fun, abstract thinking, a buzzy glow.

After about an hour, effects become more sedating Indica. Not paralyzing couchlock that derails activities, but you definitely feel the Kush lineage coming through—most people would call this an “evening strain.”

The foundational fact about Jelly Rancher’s long-lasting high was revealed when a retailer tested buds as high as 35% THC. That much THC, all at once, is almost like an inhaled dab, lol. So definitely be aware that as with Notorious THC, this HSC strain is a powerhouse.

We are happy to have well-justified faith in HSC. Based on our extensive testing of their strains and comparing them with a significant portion of other marijuana seeds companies, we’ve discovered that out of hundreds of people and companies selling marijuana seeds worldwide, HSC is alone at the top due to their vast menu, proprietary genetics, reliable phenotypes, honest customer service, and strains nobody else has—ones that can’t be pirate-bred.

Hella Jelly is fire, potent, tasty, and especially beloved by people who prefer a strong, relaxing high and dessert taste and scent. Check out this professional Hella Jelly grower video: