The Official Cannabis Independent strain guides
Northern Lights Shop

Comparison

Northern Lights vs Jack Herer

Jack Herer is family: Sensi Seeds bred it from a Haze hybrid and a Northern Lights #5 × Shiva Skunk cross, and Shiva Skunk is itself Skunk #1 × Northern Lights #5.1,2 The effects point the other way: Leafly users call Jack Herer focused, energetic and creative, and Northern Lights sleepy and relaxed.1,3 Their lab-tested THC is close: 20.03% median for Northern Lights and 19.59% for Jack Herer.4

Side by side

Northern LightsJack Herer
TypeIndica3Sativa-dominant (55% sativa)1
LineageAfghani × Thai3A Haze hybrid × (Northern Lights #5 × Shiva Skunk), Sensi Seeds1
Median THC (state lab tests)20.03% (406 tests)19.59% (910 tests)
Middle half of THC results17.28%–22.05%17.13%–22.00%
Top terpenes (median)β-Caryophyllene, Limonene, β-Myrcene (only 15 tests)Terpinolene, β-Caryophyllene, α-Humulene (413 tests)
Most-reported effectsSleepy, relaxed, hungry3Focused, energetic, creative1
FlavorPine, earthy, woody3Pine, woody, earthy1
Flowering7–9 weeks350–70 days1

Lab rows come from the same state lab dataset and matching rules for both strains.4

Lab-tested THC: Northern Lights vs Jack Herer

16% 18% 20% 22% 24% Northern Lights Northern Lights: median 20.03%, middle half 17.28%–22.05%, 406 tests 20.0% n=406 Jack Herer Jack Herer: median 19.59%, middle half 17.13%–22.00%, 910 tests 19.6% n=910 Median total THC (dot) and middle half of tests (bar)
Median and middle half of total THC in state lab tests.4

Both won in Amsterdam

Wikipedia’s list of Cannabis Cup winners credits Northern Lights #5 in 1990 and Jack Herer, from Sensi Seeds, in 1994.5

More comparisons

Sources

  1. Leafly, Jack Herer strain information. Accessed Oct 3, 2026.
  2. Leafly, Shiva Skunk strain information. Accessed Oct 3, 2026.
  3. Leafly, Northern Lights strain information. Accessed Oct 3, 2026.
  4. Cannlytics (CC BY 4.0), cannabis_results: public state lab results (filtered and aggregated by Official Cannabis). Accessed Oct 3, 2026.
  5. Wikipedia, Cannabis Cup. Accessed Oct 3, 2026.