Month: May 2023

Feminized, autoflowering and photoperiod (regular) seeds all offer different cultivation options. But which one is the best for your grow?

The decision will depend on your growing experience, growing location, and goals. However, there are several reasons why you should choose regular seed over feminized or autoflowering seeds. Here are a few of them: They are cheaper, easier to weed out, and more genetically stable.

They are cheaper

Regular seeds are cheaper to produce than feminized seeds, which makes them a popular choice for growers. They are also more affordable for discerning cannabis consumers who prefer to cultivate their own strains. They are perfect for growers who do not mind culling male plants and want to breed their own marijuana.

SSSC regular cannabis seeds are a great option for old school growers who prefer the classics. These seeds are from a selection of original 1980s and before strains that were never feminized, so they will give rise to equal amounts of male and female plants.

These seeds can be bred to create new cultivars and provide superior clones. They work exactly how nature intended, with an equal chance of germinating as either a male or a female plant. This allows growers to remove male plants before they pollinate, which will allow them to focus all their time and energy on achieving ideal plant size and yields.

They are easier to weed out

Regular seeds are a popular choice for experienced growers who want to work with genetic diversity. Since they have a 50/50 chance of producing either a male or female plant, they make it easier to select the plants with the best traits and create unique strains. They also tend to be more cost-effective than feminized seeds.

Regular seedlings also provide a good starting point for breeders looking to duplicate specific plant characteristics, such as morphology and colour. The ability to clone is also an attractive feature of regular seeds, as it allows growers to produce an exact genetic copy of a preferred specimen without worrying about the sex.

In contrast, feminized seeds are less predictable, as they are susceptible to stress from techniques like topping, fimming, lollypopping, and defoliation. Feminized seeds may also be more likely to become hermaphrodites, which can decrease yields. For these reasons, it is best to grow regular seeds in large quantities.

They are more genetically stable

Many growers prefer working with regular seeds for a more natural experience. They can work with a ratio of male to female plants, and they do not have to cull 40% of their crop once it has been sexed. This saves time, space, and waste of nutrients and growing medium.

They are also a good choice for novice growers as they tend to be more sturdy and stress-resistant. This makes it easier for them to handle environmental conditions like sudden photoperiod changes or water shortages.

Many old-school strains never made it into the feminized market, so they can only be found in their original, regular form. This includes classics like Creamy Kees, Karel’s Haze, and Frosty Friday. The SSSC collection of regular marijuana seeds offers growers the opportunity to work with these heirloom genetics. They also provide the potential to create unique crossbreeds that will never have been seen before. This is an exciting prospect for many breeders, and it’s a great way to test new ideas in the lab.

They are more organic

Regular seeds provide a more natural experience when cultivating cannabis, as you are able to enjoy a proportion of male plants without the need for manual sexing. This saves a lot of time and effort, as well as reduces the amount of space required. However, this also means that the yield is lower than that produced by feminized seeds.

When feminized seeds are produced, a particular phenotype is chosen and its ‘reversed’ pollen is used to preserve the new generation of plants. By contrast, with regular seeds, you are likely to have a number of phenotypes in your garden that are worth keeping around. These phenotypes will vary in their growth pattern, leaf and stem development, scent, resistance to pests, THC/CBD ratio, and other traits. You can then choose which to keep in a vegetative state as mother plants and make crosses to produce your own unique phenotypes. This is a great way to create your own bespoke cannabis strains.

If you’re a grower interested in creating new strains, regular seed is an excellent choice. Regular seeds produce both male and female plants, and you’ll need to weed out the males in order to get the desired result.

Many growers and breeders prefer working with regular cannabis seeds. This article will explore why this is the case, and highlight some of the benefits that regular seeds offer.

Breeding

Regular seeds allow growers to develop their own unique strains, giving them more genetic diversity and the opportunity to experiment with genotypes and phenotypes. This may take a little more work and patience but it is worth the effort for many cultivators.

Feminized seeds are ideal for commercial growers that want to produce a specific ratio of female to male plants. They also perform in much the same way as regular seeds and can be grown to their full potential without having to worry about male plants contaminating the crop.

However, some growers prefer to work with regular seed as they are more likely to be hermaphrodite (have both male and female chromosomes) than feminized seeds. This means that a small proportion of the plants may be hermaphrodite and require the grower to cull them. This can lead to more wasted growing space, nutrients and light. However, a small number of hermaphrodites can be beneficial for the breeder as they can be used to create new strains.

Cloning

Cloning refers to taking a cutting or clipping of one plant and then growing it into its own new plant. This process is quick, easy, and cost-effective. However, it’s important to know that clones can also be more susceptible to disease and pests than seeds because they haven’t had as much time to grow up and adjust to their new environment.

For clones to successfully root, they must be placed immediately into some sort of medium after they’re cut. This can be soil or starter cubes, and should include a cloning hormone to help it take root. It is also a good idea to quarantine clones for a few days to a week before introducing them to the rest of your garden.

This is because diseases like powdery mildew or mold spores can easily transfer from one clone to other plants. These types of problems aren’t usually evident with a naked eye, but by quarantining clones, you can ensure that all of your plants have a clean start.

Organic

Organic seeds are grown in accordance with certified organic farming standards from seed to harvest. Organic seed must be treated with no pesticides or chemical fertilizers and must be allowed to grow naturally in the soil. There is a much greater selection of heirlooms and rare varieties available from seed companies that specialize in organic seed. They can be more expensive than traditional seed, but many offer a money back guarantee if you are dissatisfied with the product.

Some people buy organic seed to support the farmers and take a stand against pesticides. However, the seeds used to produce vegetable crops are usually sprayed more than those planted for direct consumption because there are fewer regulations over spraying non-food cropping areas. The chemicals used to treat the cropping area then wash down into the groundwater, causing upstream pollution. By using organic seed, you can reduce your use of these chemicals in your garden and in your community.

Pollination

The successful development of seeds requires that the male organs (stamens) be transferred to the female organs (stigma). This is called pollination. During fertilization one sperm cell enters the ovule and is fused with a polar cell, creating a fertilized egg. The ovule then develops into the seed. The resulting seeds contain the genetic information needed to produce more plants of the same species.

Pollen is dispersed from a plant’s stamens by wind, water or by animals such as bees, bats, birds, moths, butterflies and insects. When the pollen reaches the stigma on another flower of the same species, it causes fertilization and seed production.

Although feminized seeds have become increasingly popular many growers still use regular seed. This is often because they want to recreate the natural pollination process or because they are trying to re-introduce wild cannabis plants back into the wild. When using regular seed you must separate the male plants from the females and use a pollen brush to apply pollen to each plant.

Shut your eyes and picture a seed. It is a miniature undeveloped plant containing stored food and an embryo, enclosed in a protective coat.

Cecilia’s research focuses on key events in seed development and dormancy, and how they relate to genetic changes. She also investigates how gymnosperms have evolved a simpler ovule and seed structure than angiosperms.

Germination

Germination is the process that turns a seed into a plant. Seeds require water and oxygen for germination. When they have this, they start to grow a root and shoot. They then use photosynthesis to harness the sun’s energy for growth. Once a seed has gone through all of these processes it is considered to have completed germination.

During germination, the seed is hydrated and enzymes inside are activated. These enzymes help to break down the tough coating of the seed and also convert insoluble food to soluble form. After a seed is fully hydrated it starts to grow a small root called a radicle and then shoots or plumules.

Different seeds have different optimum temperatures for germination, so they will only germinate under the right conditions. In addition to temperature and water, a seed also needs oxygen in order for it to respire. In some cases, if the seed is buried too deep in the soil then it may not be able to access enough oxygen and will never germinate.

Dormancy

Dormancy is an adaptive strategy of higher plants to withstand adverse environmental conditions by pausing seed growth and development. It is controlled by both genetic and environmental factors but has a wide range of biological responses ranging from the germination promoting hormone abscisic acid to the gibberellins which promote seed vigour and germination in some species.

Physiological dormancy (PD) is the most widespread class of dormancy and is found throughout the phylogenetic tree, from gymnosperms and basal angiosperms through to core eudicot Rosids. It is a key feature of seasonal dormancy cycling in seed soil banks and is the most likely candidate for allowing seeds to delay germination until favourable germination conditions appear.

Despite its wide occurrence, the biological mechanisms that control PD remain unknown. Several molecular studies have shown that there is considerable variation in the response to different environmental cues, particularly those related to slow seasonal change (e.g. temperature) which are integrated by seeds over time and can significantly alter dormancy status.

Dispersal

Seed dispersal is the primary route by which plant seeds move across landscapes. Abiotic dispersal mechanisms (e.g. wind) can have significant impacts on distances seed moves but biotic dispersal also significantly influences landscape structure and patterns of species distributions and biodiversity.

Seeds have adapted to be dispersed by animal vectors such as birds and mammals, with some having fleshy appendages that entice animal dispersers to consume them; others are able to attach to fur or feathers or to pass through digestive systems. These adaptations enable the spread of some species across large areas whereas other species remain restricted to their local habitats.

Intraspecific variation in dispersal is common, regardless of the mechanism by which seeds are moved. For abiotically dispersed plants, phenotypic factors such as fruit size and the height at which fruits are released are important for how far seeds are moved. For biotically dispersed plants, the preference of frugivore assemblages for different canopy heights can influence how far seeds are moved (Zwolak 2018). Averaging over space or time essentially removes any rare or location-dependent events that might impact dispersal distances – e.g. steep hill inclines or specific weather conditions.

Growth

Seeds contain an embryo and a store of food reserves wrapped in a protective shell. When conditions are right, most seeds “wake up” and start growing roots and leaves to become a plant. This process is called germination and is one of the keys to plant biodiversity. Seeds can only grow if they have the correct amount of water and oxygen. To achieve this, they need to absorb these nutrients from their environment through the seed coat and an area in the middle of the seed known as a micropyle.

Phytohormones such as gibberellins (GA) and abscisic acid (ABA) help break seed dormancy and promote germination. However, the ratio of GA to ABA controls the process and determines whether a seed will grow or not.