Original Haze

1. Summary

Original Haze ("Haze", "O Haze") is a long-flowering pure-sativa seed line from the Santa Cruz area of California, dated to about 1969. Sam the Skunkman preserved it and introduced it to the Netherlands in the mid-1980s. It is the ancestor of the Dutch "Haze" family: NL5 × Haze, Haze × Skunk, Super Silver Haze, Amnesia and others.¹²³ Contemporary print is thin. In 1987 High Times called it "a legendary strain developed by Cultivators Choice" (Sam's Amsterdam company).³ In 1989 Ed Rosenthal relayed hearsay that its originators were "the Haze Brothers" of the central California coast.⁴ The identity of the originator is disputed. Sam, quoted from ICMag, says the main Haze Brother "R" "was the one that created O Haze".⁵ A 2011 THCFarmer history credits a surfer called "G" and his partner "R.L.", and says the "Haze Brothers" were three New Jersey brothers who brokered it east.⁶ Todd McCormick, relaying Sam in 2025, calls the 1969 breeder "Sam's neighbor 'G'".¹ Parentage is also disputed: a "3 way Colombian" with no Afghan (Sam via McCormick), a Mexican/Colombian × South Indian × Thai four-way (widely repeated lore), or Santa Marta Gold × "Chocolate Colombian" (Seedfinder tree).

2. Identity

• Aliases: Haze, O Haze, Haze Brothers Original Haze, 3-Way Colombian Haze; reported colour phenotypes Purple/Magenta ("Rootbeer"), Gold, Silver, Blue.⁶⁵⁷
• Type: pure sativa.⁵¹⁸
• Era/region: Santa Cruz Mountains/Corralitos, c.1969–1981; Netherlands from c.1985.⁶⁷
• Breeder: disputed (see §3); preserved by Sam the Skunkman (Cultivator's Choice), then by Nevil (Seed Bank), Positronics and Flying Dutchmen. Since c.2018 Todd McCormick's Authentic Genetics sells reproductions.⁵¹⁹
• Propagation: seed (open-pollinated; IBL kept by Sam).¹⁹

3. Genetics & lineage claims

3a. Who made it — Sam's account: "R", the main Haze Brother

Confidence: disputed. Seedfinder quotes Sam's ICMag posts: "Both the Haze Bros were close friends of mine"; "The main Haze Brother, R was gone, retired in Mexico by 82…"; "He was the one that created O Haze". The second brother stopped growing O Haze around 1980, the brothers fell out in the late 1970s, and neither sold seed.⁵ Sensi's blog quotes Sam: "Haze was a variety given to me by the Haze Brothers", with permission to reproduce and sell.¹⁰

3b. Who made it — "G" and R.L. (BigHerb 2011)

Confidence: disputed. BigHerb relays a Santa Cruz source "DJ" and "G". In 1969 a surfer "G" let Colombian punto rojo bag seed be pollinated in an accidental "pollen chuck". G and partner R.L. grew up to 150 lb a year and never called themselves the Haze Brothers. That name came from three New Jersey brothers who brokered Haze east. R.L.'s 1976 "Cosmic Boogie" grow poster dates from the same period; the pair split in 1976; the line failed commercially around 1981. G says he did not give Sam haze stock but that Sam lived on the block and did some trimming.⁶ McCormick (2025, relaying Sam) also says Haze was first bred in 1969 "by a gentleman named G", Sam's neighbour.¹ R.L. may be Sam's "R", but this is not established. Rosenthal (1989) placed the "Haze Brothers" on the central coast "possibly near Monterey".⁴ One 2011 THCFarmer reply claims to have met "the Haze Brothers" at a late-1960s Santa Cruz party.⁶

3c. Parentage: three Colombian sativas, no Afghan

Confidence: disputed. McCormick (from Sam): "original 3 way Colombian Haze", which "contains no Afghan/Indica".¹⁹ Leafly: three pure Colombian landraces.¹¹

3d. Parentage: Mexican × Colombian, then South Indian, then Thai

Confidence: folklore. Seed-bank copy and CannaGenie (which labels it lore) describe a year-by-year build-up. Prime Cuts credits Robert Lund, with a South Indian male from Sam.⁷¹² No primary source was found.

3e. Parentage: Santa Marta Gold × Wacky Weed ("Chocolate Colombian") × Colombia

Confidence: reported (Seedfinder family tree only).⁵

4. Timeline

• 1969 — Accidental pollination and first Haze seed (G/R.L. account; McCormick/Sam).⁶¹
• c.1975–1976 — The name "Original Haze" is in use; R.L.'s grow poster appears; G and R.L. split.⁶⁷
• Late 1970s — The Haze Brothers fall out (Sam).⁵ Over-hybridization loses the original by the late 70s (Sam via McCormick).¹ New Jersey brothers bring Haze to the tri-state area (BigHerb).⁶
• c.1980–1982 — Second brother stops growing it; R in Mexico by 1982 (Sam).⁵ G's project ends c.1981 and he switches to Skunk seed from Sam (BigHerb).⁶
• c.1985 — Sam brings Haze to the Netherlands and to Mellow Yellow.¹³ Nevil gets Haze stock from Sam in 1985 (BigHerb) or "a couple of Haze males" in 1987 (McCormick 2023).⁶² (disputed)
• 1987-09 — High Times: Haze "a legendary strain developed by Cultivators Choice"; SSSC experimenting with it.³
• January 1988 — First Cup judges had heard of "the famed Polyanna and Haze strains" but none were entered.¹⁴ Haze clones advertised at $30.¹⁵
• 1988 — Haze hybrids appear in the Seed Bank catalogue (McCormick); by 1989 the Seed Bank advertises Haze × NL5.²¹⁶
• 1989 — Cup pure-sativa entries Haze × South African and Haze × Pakisat; a judge predicts "the Haze's" will dominate.¹⁶ Rosenthal answers "The Haze" letter.⁴
• 2012 — Sam gives McCormick IBL Haze seed; reproductions sold from c.2018–19 via AG Seed Co. (with Mel Frank).⁹

5. Notable cuts / phenotypes / remakes

• The "four sisters" — Magenta/Purple ("Rootbeer"), Gold (musky sandalwood/pine, catpiss late), Silver (strongest), Blue (spicy-sweet). Described as unstable from year to year. Origin of the description: BigHerb, who says it came from "Sams".⁶⁷
• Sam's IBL / Authentic Genetics Original Haze — open-pollinated reproduction with many males and females.¹⁹
• Other "pure Haze" sold — Flying Dutchmen, Seedsman, Tom Hill (per BigHerb); Positronics (per Seedfinder).⁶⁵
• NYC haze — Washington Heights selections ("Frankies", "Uptowns", "Piff"), claimed to descend from Santa Cruz seed. This is unverified.⁶
• Descendants — see nl5-haze, super-silver-haze, nevilles-haze, amnesia-haze.

6. Historical descriptions by era

1970s. Effect remembered as acid-like and clear, with laughter and "no ceiling". Nine months in the ground, harvested around December, thin wispy buds.⁶ Harvest in November/December versus late August for Skunk #1; about 70 seeds per gram.² 1988–1989. Rosenthal: "a mid-to late season sativa with a strong spacey high".⁴ Cup judges were enthusiastic about Haze hybrids.¹⁶ 2021–2025. Reproduction line: 10–14 weeks, big stretch, wispy flowers; lemon, spice and cedarwood; electric "buzz".⁹

7. Cannabinoid & terpene profile

There is no lab data for authenticated Original Haze. The bare retail label "Haze" is generic.

Strain names are not reliable chemotype identifiers. These rows almost certainly do not represent the Santa Cruz line.

8. Community sentiment

The sample is small and qualitative: about 25 THCFarmer posts (2011), High Times editors and judges (1987–1989), and two magazine features. The Leafly page returned 403, and Reddit could not be sampled (Pullpush blocked agents; site:reddit.com searches returned no threads).

• Legendary clear, euphoric, "no ceiling" high — common, positive.⁶⁹¹⁶
• Very long flowering, stretchy, airy, impractical — common, negative (it is also why the original was abandoned).⁶⁹
• Spice/incense/cedar/lemon aroma, "catpiss" late in flower — occasional, positive.⁶⁹
• Credit disputes — occasional, negative. One 2011 THCFarmer poster calls Sam and Clarke opportunists who took undue credit and denies that Sam was Sacred Seeds.⁶

Paraphrases: a 1989 judge "especially liked the Haze";¹⁶ a New York poster says the best haze came "uptown" around 2000 and that NYC haze is spicy and incense-like, "nothing sweet";⁶ Leaf (2021) calls the long, airy grow rewarding.⁹

Era shift. Santa Cruz outdoor crop with guarded seed (1969–81); Dutch introduction and Haze-hybrid dominance of the Cups (1985–1990s); NYC street-haze culture (1998–2011); preservation and reproduction lines (2012+).

Overall score: 85/100 (reputation-weighted; very small sample, low confidence).

Conflicts with lab data. None can be assessed; no authenticated samples exist.

9. Open questions / could not verify

• Who originated it ("R" vs "G"/R.L.), and whether R.L. is "R".
• Parentage (three Colombian lines vs four-way vs Santa Marta Gold × Chocolate Colombian).
• Dates of Sam's ICMag posts.
• Whether Nevil received seeds c.1985 or males in 1987.
• The 1976 poster.
• Whether the four-colour description originates with Sam.

10. Sources

Lab: src-chem-smith2022-data, src-chem-wa-i502-jikomes2018 (key x-haze).