Month: July 2023

Before feminized seeds came onto the market, regular seed was a popular choice. This is because growing regular seeds gives you a natural ratio of female and male plants. However, you will have to dispose of any male plants and isolate the ones that produce pollen sacks.

You can also experiment with regular seeds and create your own strains. For instance, you could cross a variety of specimens that have different terpenes and colours to create your ideal strain.

Genetics

In contrast to feminized seeds, regular seeds are not genetically modified. They contain both male and female chromosomes, so they will produce both male and female plants. However, the ratio of male to female plants can vary depending on growing conditions. As a result, it is important to identify and remove the males as soon as possible.

This study utilized a QTL mapping approach to estimate genetic (Vg) and environmental variances (Ve). These variances are then used to compare the effects of different alleles on the trait of interest. This method allows for comparisons between phenotypes across individuals in a heterogeneous genetic background.

In addition, this technique identifies genes that influence the natural continuous variation in seed traits. Previously, the only way to characterize these gene effects was through mutant screens. The results from this study demonstrate the importance of evaluating the effect of multiple alleles on traits such as seed size and number. They also support the notion that seed size and number trade-offs are determined by genetic pleiotropy.

Yield

The main benefit of growing regular seed is a higher yield than feminized seeds. This is because they produce male and female plants, which can be used to create new strains. Feminized seeds, on the other hand, only produce female plants. This means that growers must remove the male plants early on and be careful not to pollinate their female plants. This can be a difficult task, especially for experienced breeders.

Growers also prefer growing regular seeds because they have a less-risky growing process than feminized seeds. Feminized seeds can become hermaphrodite plants when stressed, which can result in a lower harvest. However, regular seeds do not have this problem because they only produce hermaphrodite plants about 50% of the time.

Tropic Thunder is a perfect example of a high-yielding, regular marijuana strain. It offers fruity tones and mellow vibes that are ideal for a nighttime chillout session. It flowers within ten weeks and can be harvested in October for yields up to 35 oz. This strain is recommended for intermediate to veteran cultivators.

Stability

As we all know, regular seeds produce both male and female plants. The ratio of male to female depends on a variety of factors such as the germination conditions and environmental conditions. However, it is safe to say that the chances of getting 10 males out of 10 seeds are very low.

Another advantage of regular seed is their genetic stability. They do not undergo the stress of feminization and are less susceptible to DNA damage during the vegetative phase. This makes them better suited for making mother plants (clones) than feminized seeds.

This can lead to a higher yield, as growers can focus on the most promising plants. It is also easier to make cuttings from regular seeds. Cloning a plant produced by feminized seed is often difficult, as the plants can turn hermaphrodite under stress. However, when using regular seeds, this is rarely a problem. The only problem is that a few seeds may not germinate at all.

Cost

Compared to feminized seeds, regular cannabis seeds are cheaper. They also provide a higher yield and have a wider genetic diversity. This makes them the better option for growers who want to create their own strains.

Feminized seeds are better for beginner growers, but there are still advantages to growing regular seeds. For instance, they offer a greater variety of terpenes and high-quality smoke. These are important factors for many consumers.

In addition, regular seeds produce male plants that can pollinate your female crop. To prevent this, you must identify and isolate males from your crop. You can do this by checking for minuscule sprouts that look like hairs. You should also separate your plants from each other early in the flowering phase. This will prevent your male plants from pollinating the rest of your harvest. Moreover, it will help you produce seedless buds. This is especially important if you want to use your weed for cultivation.

Inside the brown husk of a cannabis seed is a plant embryo. This embryo contains the radicle, hypocotyl and cotyledons, four parts of the seed that together are responsible for growing your new plant.

ILGM offers free shipping on orders over $200 and a 100% germination guarantee, if your seeds fail to sprout you get replacements. They also offer great customer support by email and on their grower’s forum.

1. Soil

Once a seed germinates and breaks out of its shell, it can be planted in soil or a potting mix. A good potting soil will provide the plant with essential nutrients so it can grow well. It will also help the plant retain water and oxygen.

Cannabis grows best in loam soil, a combination of sand, silt and clay. It has ideal water retention and drainage, and it’s rich in nutrients. However, it’s heavy and not easy to work with.

Many growers use a potting soil made of organic material, such as peat moss or coco coir. These mixes also contain humus, which is nature’s compost, and worm castings, which provide vital microorganisms. These microorganisms break down the minerals in the soil and make them available for plants to absorb. In addition, they add a bit of acidity to the soil. It’s a great way to avoid using synthetic fertilizers. However, it is important to keep in mind that these types of soils are only suitable for growing cannabis during the vegetative stage.

2. Water

Depending on the method, cannabis seeds should start sprouting within two to seven days of being soaked in water. The most important factors are moisture and temperature, so make sure to check your seedlings’ progress regularly.

Soaking a seed in water is an easy, inexpensive way to germinate cannabis seeds. Just put a couple of seeds in a glass of water at room temperature, and let them soak for up to 48 hours. The seed will absorb the water, causing hormones to promote growth and germination.

If the seed is too dry, it will stop growing in search of water. On the other hand, if it’s too wet, it will begin to rot and may damage the young seedling. The key is to find the right balance. Ideally, your seeds should be misted with water every hour, or every day. It’s also a good idea to use a hygrometer to monitor the temperature and humidity of your propagation medium, which should be between 50% and 70%.

3. Stone Wool Blocks

Rock wool, also known as mineral wool, has been a tried-and-true hydroponic substrate for decades. It’s inert, sterilized of pathogens and offers excellent water retention properties.

Growers use stone wool grow plugs, blocks, cubes and slabs for starting seeds or rooting cuttings. They are available in various sizes and support a range of cultivation methodologies. For example, Grodan’s Starter Plugs and Grow-Cubes are ideal for germinating seeds or clones and transplanting into the larger Grodan Gro-Slabs for growth to harvest.

Like other substrates, such as coco coir, peat and soil, stone wool must be soaked before planting. This helps reduce the alkaline pH and prepares the medium for roots to penetrate and uptake nutrient solution. Once the soaking process is complete, growers can plant directly into the Rockwool cubes or transplant seedlings and clones from tissue culture.

4. Clones

The first thing that most growers do is purchase clones, which are rootless stems cut from a mother plant. Then, they can be planted in soil or hydroponics and grown into a full-fledged plant. Clones have the advantage of bypassing the germination and seedling stages and being ready to flower right away.

However, growing from clones requires a specialized environment. If the clones aren’t properly handled and given the right conditions, they can die before they develop roots. Plus, clones are extremely fragile and can be infected by pests like spider mites and fungus gnats.

Another disadvantage of clones is that they lack diversity. Even if you have healthy mothers, your selection will never come close to the thousands of strains available with seeds. Plus, clones can pass on undesired traits from their mothers, such as nutrient deficiencies or disease. This is known as pheno variance. Also, clones are expensive to buy, and their lifespan is shorter than seeds’.

Cultivators make the decision to plant regular or feminized seed based on cultivation experience, where they live and the purposes of their harvest. For those who want to keep mother plants for taking cuttings/clones, regular seeds are the best choice.

Feminized seeds produce a higher percentage of female plants, but growers often lose out on unique phenotypes in the process.

Stable Genetics

A plant’s genetics are its DNA—the hereditary materials that determine how it will grow and what phenotypes it may display. When growing cannabis, stable seeds are essential for producing consistent crops that contain high-quality cannabinoids and mature into healthy plants.

Stabilising a strain typically requires generations of crossing and back-crossing siblings to select desirable traits for breeding. This process aims to create hybrid offspring that produce predictable Mendelian ratios of desirable traits, while eliminating any unwanted ones.

With feminized seeds, you don’t have to worry about male plants, but this is just one of the reasons why they can be more unstable than their regular counterparts. Because they undergo a significant amount of genetic modification, it’s more likely that a feminized seed will not grow properly, and that it will have difficulty reproducing itself after the fact. Regular seeds, on the other hand, are more reliable, and they make for healthier plants that are easy to breed.

Stable Phenotypes

Genetically, cannabis varieties differ very little between specimens, displaying a highly uniform growth and flowering pattern. However, these differences are due to the presence of alleles – variant forms of a gene that code for specific traits – in each parent plant. Just like the children of a couple have different eye colours despite having the same parents, different alleles can manifest themselves in distinct phenotypes.

Breeders take their time to find strains that display the specific properties they’re after, ensuring that these characteristics will resurface in future generations. Then they take cuttings from these plants and cross them with a stable male, replicating the desired phenotype in each offspring plant.

The selection of genotypes based on mean performance and stability selected simultaneously across multi-environment trials, is called MTSI (multi-trait Stability Index). A low MTSI indicates that the genotype is closer to its ideotype and that it will perform consistently under diverse environmental conditions. MTSI was used to identify 135 soybean genotypes with high stability for seven seed composition traits, including protein content and five fatty acid contents: palmitic, stearic, oleic, and linolenic acids.

Easier to Breed

Regular seed is a better choice for growers who want to experiment with breeding. Male plants produce pollen that can be used to fertilize female plants, creating new strains of marijuana. This allows for the preservation of old-school genetics that would otherwise be lost in feminized seeds.

The process of growing regular weed isn’t much different from the cultivation of other varieties. It’s easy to get started, and the germination rates are consistent with photoperiod, feminized or autoflowering seeds. It also provides more flexibility for cultivators looking to create their own marijuana strains, allowing them to find specimens that produce terpenes and highs they enjoy. SSSC offers a variety of top-tier cultivars in regular seed format, including Chemdawg, Frosty Friday, Creamy Kees and Prima Holandica. Explore the full collection and choose the best one for you!

More Vigorous Plants

There are a few key reasons growers choose regular seeds. One of the main ones is that they can easily eliminate male plants and spend more time focusing on making flowers than seeds, especially early into flowering. This is because pollinated buds produce minimal cannabinoids and harsh smoke.

Another reason is that many old-school cultivars never made the transition to feminized seeds, and some of these are pure gold in their own right. Grapefruit regular, for example, tastes just like its name, with biting citrus notes underpinning the sweetness and a refreshing aroma that cleanses the mind and energizes the body.

Finally, growers who prefer to create their own hybrids also find that regular seed offers more options for crossing. As mentioned, if you select a female plant and a male plant from the same batch of regular seed, they will naturally become hermaphrodites and give you an equal percentage of male and female plants.