Month: September 2023

Regular seeds are cannabis seeds that grow into both male and female plants. They require sexing to eliminate male plants and ensure that only the desired plants are bred.

They provide more genetic variation for breeding purposes, offering phenotypes with unique growth patterns, leaf and stem development, aroma, yield, insect resistance, and terpene profile. Growers can take clones from these plants to preserve the desirable traits.

They are cheaper

When it comes to buying cannabis seeds, you want to make sure you get the best ones for your needs. This means researching your options and finding the right breeder for you. ILGM offers competitive prices, and their catalog includes some of the world’s best cultivars.

Regular seeds are less expensive than feminized seeds because they don’t require any chemical spraying to create female plants. Feminized seeds must be sprayed with an unpleasant-sounding compound to encourage the production of pollen. This can reduce yields and decrease the potency of the resulting flowers.

Another advantage of regular seeds is that they are more resistant to stressors such as sudden changes in photoperiod, lack of water, and over-fertilization. This makes them ideal for novice growers. Unlike feminized seeds, they also have a 50/50 chance of producing male or female plants. This can be frustrating for growers who are seeking a particular phenotype and can lead to lower yields.

They are easier to grow

Buying regular seeds allows you to weed out all of the male plants without the extra effort and time that feminized seed growers have to put in. Moreover, regular seeds are less likely to become hermaphrodites when stressed by techniques like topping, fimming, lollypopping, and defoliation. This makes them a good choice for growers who are new to the game or those that have an interest in creating their own cultivars.

When breeders feminize seeds, they pick out one of the phenotypes and use that pheno’s “reversed” pollen to preserve the next generation of plants. This process takes away some of the magic, but it also saves growers a lot of time and money. However, this does come at a cost of reduced genetic stability. Using regular seeds will allow you to find a variety of phenotypes worth keeping in your grow room, such as different growth patterns, stem and leaf development, aroma, yield, resistance to pests, and terpene profiles.

They are easier to breed

Regular seeds are preferred by breeders because they allow them to create a wide variety of strains. They also produce a natural proportion of male and female plants, which can be beneficial for growers. While sexing and isolating plants early into flowering can be a time-consuming process, it is usually worth it in the end.

Since feminized seeds can only produce female plants, they are less useful for breeding. Growers using feminized seeds should plant a few regular seeds alongside them to ensure that their crop produces the right number of female plants.

Regular cannabis seeds contain both male and female chromosomes, whereas feminized seeds only contain female chromosomes. This difference makes it easier to breed cannabis plants using regular seeds, resulting in new strains with unique characteristics. Moreover, many old-school cultivars that stood the test of time were never feminized. Therefore, growing regular seeds can help you discover rare strain phenotypes that may be worth preserving in your grow space.

They are more genetically stable

Regular cannabis seeds are prized by growers because they produce more male plants than feminized ones. When sexing the plants before they flower, it can take some time, but most breeders agree that the extra effort is worth it to discover an untouched phenotype.

This makes them a popular choice for growers who want to cross their own strains to create new ones. This process is called breeding, and it’s essential to achieving the desired phenotype for the next crop. Whether you’re looking for high potency, specific flavour profiles, or resistance to pests and disease, it takes the right genetic lineage to make your dreams come true.

Regular seeds also offer more stability than feminized seeds. A typical pack of regular seeds will yield a theoretical proportion of 50% female plants, as opposed to only 40% in a pack of feminized seeds. This means that you’ll have twice as many bud-capable plants in your harvest.

Before feminized seeds came along, regular cannabis seeds operated just as nature intended. This meant that each seed has a 50% chance of sprouting into either male or female plants.

Growers and breeders enjoy working with regular seed for its genetic stability, breeding potential and phenotype exploration. Choosing this option often comes down to cultivation experience, grow location and harvest goals.

Breeding

While feminized seeds are the preferred option of most growers, there are some who still enjoy the process of selecting and breeding their own cultivars. Regular seeds operate as nature intended, with an even chance that each seed will germinate as a male or female plant. This allows breeders to create new strains and provide high-quality clones for growers.

These traits make regular seed a popular choice for experienced cultivators, who often use them to develop their own unique strains and phenotypes. They also offer more genetic stability and variety for those seeking to preserve and enhance desirable characteristics. Though they require sexing and have a higher risk of hermaphroditism than feminized seeds, they can yield incredibly high-quality buds. They are also much less prone to environmental stress, pests and inclement weather than feminized seeds.

Cloning

If you’re interested in breeding and want to produce your own strains, regular seeds may be the choice for you. They preserve genetic stability and offer the possibility of phenotype variation. This type of variation can produce a range of effects, aromas, and flavors that will appeal to experienced cultivators and consumers alike.

Remember that cloning can be challenging and requires patience. There is always a chance that you will end up with male plants, even with careful selection of a good mother plant. As with seedlings, clones also require a lot of care, including proper nutrition and nutrient burn protection (not to mention the fact that clones are not as hardy as seedlings). However, cloning allows you to simplify your grow by taking cuttings from the same female plant. This can be a great way to maximize yield and flowering times as well as to control odors. Clones can be hitchhikers for pests and disease, so it’s important to sanitize your equipment and grow room before using it with clones.

Genetic Stability

Genetic stability allows for breeders to experiment with different strains and create new varieties. In addition, stable genetics are often more robust and better able to withstand environmental stresses.

Regular seeds also provide growers with the possibility of phenotype variation, which means that each plant may display a slightly different expression of the parent strain. This variety adds interest and excitement to the cultivation experience.

With their high genetic stability, regular seeds can be grown successfully under a wide range of conditions. However, growers must be careful to select the right seeds and maintain optimal growing conditions. This is particularly important in the case of hermaphroditic plants, which possess both male and female reproductive organs and may pollinate nearby plants. This can be prevented by properly sexing plants and removing hermaphroditic buds. It is also crucial to maintain proper temperature, humidity, and light cycles during the flowering period. This will help ensure that the plants are healthy and free of toxins.

Genetic Diversity

A high level of genetic diversity in produced seed is important, as it helps to promote a range of adaptive traits (e.g. resistance to habitat disturbances, drought or pathogens) and avoid negative inbreeding depression effects such as higher levels of empty seeds or lower vitality. However, it is not always possible to achieve a high level of genetic diversity in seed collected under different mating systems, due to differences in parental population size and selfing rates.

Wojacki et al. [2019] compared the genotypes of parents and offspring using COLONY, which allows for marker-based pedigree reconstruction and provides information on the potential relatedness between individuals. They found that, on average, the observed and expected heterozygosity in offspring generations were at a similar level to the parent generation. However, allelic richness tended to be slightly lower in offspring generations of the three seed orchards with low clone numbers (SO GREEN1, GREEN2 and GREY), most likely due to the lower number and higher relatedness of parent clones.

For growers looking to clone their favourite strains, regular seed is the only option. Regular seeds produce hermaphrodite plants far less frequently than feminized ones, allowing for robust clones that are easy to root and grow.

They also preserve genetic stability, which is important for breeders who want to develop and maintain specific characteristics in their strains. Regular seeds also offer phenotype variation, which is exciting for discerning growers.

Breeding

Regular seeds produce both male and female plants, making them an excellent choice for breeders who want to create their own cannabis strains. They preserve genetic stability, ensuring that desirable traits are passed on to the offspring. This can lead to the creation of unique and diverse cultivars.

The cultivation of regular seed is more natural and sustainable than feminized seed, as the seeds don’t contain any artificially created female chromosomes (XX). However, this also means that growers need to pay close attention to their crop and carefully identify and remove male plants.

This is an ideal option for growers who are looking for a more organic experience or are legally capped at a specific number of plants. It requires a significant amount of time and effort to manage, but with careful observation it is possible to grow a fully hermaphrodite crop that is delectable and potent. Ultimately, it’s up to each individual grower and breeder to decide whether or not this is the right choice for them.

Cloning

Using a rooting hormone and the appropriate growing conditions, it is possible to take cuttings from your favorite plants to grow as clones. This method will speed up the growing process because clones don’t have to go through the germination and seedling stage that seeds require.

With a pack of regular seeds, there’s an even chance that some will become male marijuana plants and produce pollen, but feminized seeds eliminate this issue. This is important to some growers who want to cultivate a specific strain without the risk of males interfering with their desired phenotypes.

Clones tend to have a shorter lifespan than seeds, because they don’t grow a taproot like plants grown from seeds. A taproot is a root that grows down with lateral branches along its length, which allows it to penetrate deeper into the soil to access water that isn’t available closer to the surface. Clones also need more attention than seeds, as they must be fed and hydrated.

Seeds for sale

There are many companies that offer regular seeds for sale, but some may not have the experience and history you want to feel confident in. Look for a company that offers a safe, secure and discreet buying process and also provides support before, during and after the purchase.

Growers who choose to work with regular seeds are usually experienced breeders who are looking to explore new genetics by crossing different strains. This can result in phenotype variation that produces unique and diverse cannabis varieties with different aroma, flavor, effect, and appearance.

Like all cannabis plants, regular seeds have a chance of producing hermaphrodites (plants that possess both male and female reproductive organs). To avoid unwanted pollination, growers must carefully monitor their crop to cull any hermaphroditic plants that develop. Unlike feminized seeds, hermaphrodites can be difficult to identify and remove from the growing area. This can lead to reduced yields and a less desirable overall flower quality.

FAQ

With such a strong focus on feminized seeds, it is easy to forget that regular seeds are essential for cultivating great cannabis. Here we will explore the advantages of growing regular weed seeds, and compare them to feminized varieties.

When growing plants from regular seed, the grower must ensure that they separate male and female plants well before flowering. This can be a difficult process that requires a lot of time and resources, but it is very rewarding if the grower successfully sexes their plants.

Some growers enjoy crossing different regular genetics to create new strains. This was common practice in the days before feminized seeds came onto the market, and can still be an exciting and educational experience for gardeners. Here at Amsterdam Genetics, we offer a range of classic strains like Zkittles Fast and Amnesia Haze in regular seed form. We are proud to offer such a wide selection of original 1980’s varieties in regular seed format.