Before feminized seeds came along, growers experimented with regular seed varieties by crossing them and producing their own unique strains. For many cannabis lovers, the experience of working with regular genetics is extremely gratifying.
They are also ideal for cloning, allowing you to duplicate a specific specimen with all its desirable traits, such as potency, flavour profile, or colour.
Breeding
Regular seeds allow growers to select plants with the best traits, which can create unique strains that are better suited to specific growing conditions. They also provide a more diverse gene pool than feminized seeds, making them the preferred choice of experienced breeders.
However, breeding with regular seeds requires identifying and removing male plants to avoid pollination of the females. This is a process that requires time, effort, and expertise. However, the process is a good option for gardeners who want to experiment with new crossbreeds.
Another benefit of regular seeds is that they preserve genetic stability, meaning that the plant’s genetic traits will be passed down to its offspring. This is an important factor in preserving the quality of cannabis. It can also improve the yield of a crop and increase the potency of the buds. This is especially true if the seeds are grown in an environment with stable conditions. This can help to avoid any surprises during harvesting.
Cloning
When growing cannabis, cloning is a convenient way to produce more plants with the same genetics. It can also help reduce the risk of infection during the cultivation process. Clones should be treated as delicate specimens and handled carefully to ensure their survival. Washing hands, sterilising tools and ensuring that the mother plant is healthy are essential for successful cloning.
Clones are exact genetic copies of the parent plant, and this can be a blessing or a curse. While clones can skip the tedious seedling stage, they can be susceptible to diseases, pests, and other issues that can affect the health of a garden.
When selecting a clone, look for one with a strong, sturdy stem and at least two nodes. Clones should be planted in a cloning tray or propagator and placed in a humidity dome. Use a thermometer and hygrometer to monitor temperatures and humidity levels. This will help the clones absorb water and grow quickly.
Organic growing
There are many reasons why some seasoned growers prefer to work with regular seeds. For starters, they are better for beginners since they can make mistakes and learn the full growing cycle from start to finish. Additionally, they offer a much greater variety of strains as well as a chance to create your own unique crossbreeds. This is important to many growers because it gives them the opportunity to test out different genetics and find new strains they may want to bring back to their gardens.
Most of the time, regular seeds will give you 50% male plants and 50% female plants. This is just the way that nature intended it because cannabis is a dioecious plant. The female flowers provide the desired potent buds and the male plants develop pollen sacs, which can be used for breeding purposes. Prior to the advent of feminized seeds, growers had to identify the sex of their plants early on and remove all the males before they produced seedy, male-only buds.
Genetic stability
Genetic stability is a major reason why growers prefer regular seeds. They can use them to create new strains by crossing them with other plants. This process offers growers the potential to cultivate phenotypes with unique aromas, flavors, and effects that cater to their personal preferences.
Regular seeds also preserve the genetics of the parent plant, making them more stable than feminized seeds. This is important for breeders who want to ensure that the desired traits are passed on to future generations of marijuana plants.
To assess the effect of storage and subsequent ageing on genetic and epigenetic changes, Secale cereale seeds were stored at 35 degC and 15% wc for 13, 29 and 36 days in air or vacuum (Audion Elektro) conditions. DNA was isolated from two replicates of 50 seeds or of 10 seedlings per storage condition. Changes in methylation were detected even at early asymptomatic stages of the viability loss curve (P75, 13 days), and the effects of storage time or atmosphere on the methylation state did not differ significantly.