Cherry Limetta is a Lost Leaf in-house selection from Archive Seed Bank’s Moonbow 112 IX — a Zkittlez × Do-Si-Dos line — that leads with lime, carries cherry underneath, and finishes on gas. The buzz is heavy smoke with a cerebral edge, and it is one of the few Lost Leaf cultivars to see a repeat harvest.
If you came looking for the widely-sold Michigan Cherries cultivar, that is a different plant entirely, from different breeders and different genetics. This one is ours, hunted from seed in our own room beside the Manistee National Forest.
Cherry Limetta at a Glance
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Genetics | Moonbow 112 IX — (Z × Dosido) × (Z × Dosido) |
| Breeder | Archive Seed Bank |
| Selection | Hunted from seed in-house by Lost Leaf |
| Terpene profile | Lime forward, cherries, hints of gas on the backend |
| Buzz | Heavy smoke, cerebral |
| Harvest dates | 17 Nov 2024 and 23 Dec 2024 |
| Grow method | Hydro-organic hybrid, custom nutrient program |
| Pesticides / sterilizers | None |
| Remediation | Never |
The Moonbow Line Explained
Moonbow is Archive Seed Bank’s cross of Zkittlez with a Do-Si-Dos phenotype. The pairing was built to keep the exotic candy-fruit terpenes Zkittlez is known for while fixing its notoriously difficult growth habit and light yields.
The #112 designation marks a selected phenotype from an extensive hunt, chosen for resin density and candy-leaning aromatics. Archive has continued refining the line, and Moonbow #112 IX is a later intercross of that selection. You can read the parent line’s background on the Strainpedia entry for Moonbow (Zkittlez × Do-Si-Dos).
| Parent | Contribution | What shows in Cherry Limetta |
|---|---|---|
| Zkittlez | Tropical candy-fruit terpenes, dense resinous flower | The bright citrus lead |
| Do-Si-Dos | OG-bred potency, structure, heavy body | The weight behind the smoke |
| Moonbow #112 selection | Resin density, candy aromatics | Trichome coverage and nose |
| Lost Leaf pheno hunt | Flavour-first selection | Lime forward rather than generic sweet |
Why Lime Instead of Cherry?
Most Moonbow expressions land somewhere on the berry-candy spectrum. Ours did not.
The pheno we kept pushes citrus to the front — closer to fresh lime zest than to the sweet fruit you would expect from the name. Cherry sits underneath it as a rounder, darker note, and the gas arrives last on the exhale.
That layering is the whole reason we selected it. A cultivar that changes across a single inhale is more interesting than one that hits the same note the whole way through.
Pheno hunting is largely an exercise in patience and disposal. You germinate a pack, grow everything out, and accept that most of it will be unremarkable. The keeper is the plant that does something the others do not.
In this case the tell was the jar at week four of cure. Most of the siblings had settled into a pleasant but familiar candy profile. This one had sharpened into citrus instead, and it kept sharpening.
| Stage | What you notice |
|---|---|
| Jar | Lime zest and a sweet-sour brightness |
| Grind | Cherry emerges, deeper and rounder |
| Inhale | Citrus forward, smooth |
| Exhale | Gas on the backend |
| Effect | Heavy smoke with a cerebral lift |
How It Compares to Michigan Cherries
These get confused constantly on menus, so here is the distinction in plain terms.
| Michigan Cherries | Cherry Limetta (Lost Leaf) | |
|---|---|---|
| Breeder | FLWRpot / The Craft Seed Company | Archive, hunted in-house by Lost Leaf |
| Genetics | Modified Mints × Tropicana Cherry | Moonbow 112 IX (Zkittlez × Do-Si-Dos) |
| Lead note | Sweet cherry | Lime |
| Finish | Earthy, pine | Gas |
| Buzz | Happy, uplifted | Heavy smoke, cerebral |
Our full breakdown of Michigan cherry cannabis cultivars and how they differ covers the wider regional picture, including the two unrelated crosses both sold as Michigan Cherries.
Growing a Zkittlez-Line Cultivar
Moonbow crosses inherit Zkittlez structure, which means dense flower and a real need for airflow. They also reward restraint on the feed.
- Do not overfeed nitrogen late. It blunts the citrus top notes that make this cultivar worth growing.
- Keep late-flower humidity down. Dense colas plus moisture is how you lose a run.
- Defoliate for light, not for looks. Open the canopy without stripping the engine.
- Cure slowly. The lime sharpens and the gas settles over several weeks in glass.
Our environmental targets are laid out in the guide to ideal LED grow room temperature, humidity and VPD by stage, and the feeding side is covered in our cannabis nutrients and deficiency guide. For the finish, see harvesting, drying and curing cannabis.
Where Cherry Limetta Has Dropped
Cherry Limetta is one of the few cultivars we have run twice, which means it has had wider distribution than most of our releases.
| Harvest | Stocked at |
|---|---|
| 17 Nov 2024 | Olswell — Grand Rapids |
| 23 Dec 2024 | Butter — Ann Arbor; Olswell — Adrian; Dunegrass — Beulah, Cadillac, Traverse City West, Traverse City Downtown |
Availability rotates with each harvest. Follow the Lost Leaf cultivation journal for drop updates or contact us about wholesale and stockist enquiries.
Running a cultivar twice is not our default. Most releases are single batches, hunted, grown and sold through before moving on to the next selection. Cherry Limetta earned its repeat by performing consistently across two very different runs, which not every keeper manages.
The Rest of the Lineup
| Cultivar | Genetics | Terps |
|---|---|---|
| Cherry Limetta | Moonbow 112 IX (Archive) | Lime, cherry, gas backend |
| Lou Bega | Moonbow 112 IX (Archive) | Complex Z, doughy candy, hints of gas |
| Kiwano | Zbx2 Z × (Z × Strawberry Zkillato) | Tropical sweet melon zest |
| Pandemonium | Z × Sherbanger | Candy and gas |
| Sake Bomb | Gelato 33 × Sherbanger | Sherbanger-dominant, creamy gelato |
Lou Bega comes from the same Moonbow 112 IX line and expresses very differently. For the fruit-forward end, see the Kiwano tropical melon profile; for candy and gas, Pandemonium, our Candy Fumez selection.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Cherry Limetta genetics?
Cherry Limetta is a Lost Leaf in-house selection from Archive Seed Bank’s Moonbow 112 IX, which is a Zkittlez × Do-Si-Dos intercross.
Does Cherry Limetta taste like cherry?
Cherry is present but it is not the lead. Lime comes first, cherry sits underneath, and there is a distinct gas note on the exhale.
Is Cherry Limetta the same as Michigan Cherries?
No. Michigan Cherries is a Modified Mints × Tropicana Cherry cross from FLWRpot. Cherry Limetta comes from the Archive Moonbow line and has a different profile entirely.
How strong is Cherry Limetta?
We describe the buzz as heavy smoke with a cerebral edge. It is potent, and it suits evening use better than daytime for most people.
Where can I buy Cherry Limetta?
Through licensed Michigan provisioning centres. Past drops were stocked at Olswell, Butter and Dunegrass locations. Availability rotates by harvest.
Educational content for adults 21+ in legal jurisdictions. Lost Leaf flower is available only through licensed Michigan provisioning centres.
Related reading: Lou Bega, the other Moonbow 112 IX selection.