Regular seeds are a favorite for old-school growers, as they offer an untampered growing experience. These seedlings have pure genetics, formed through breeding both male & female parents.
Despite their popularity, they require more work and attention from the grower. However, they do offer several advantages over feminized seeds.
Breeding
Breeding is the process of producing offspring (usually animals or plants). Unlike cloning, breeding is a sexual reproduction that occurs between a male and a female.
There are several types of breeding, including cross-breeding, pure breeding, and inbreeding. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Regular seed production is based on the selection of plants with desirable traits, then inserting these genes into new lines of seeds. It takes some of the guesswork out of breeding, and is a major step in improving breeding programs.
Feminized seeds, on the other hand, are bred specifically to produce only female plants. This method is a popular choice for commercial growers, as it increases yields and quality crops.
However, feminized seeds also have a few issues that make them less ideal for breeding purposes. The first is genetic instability. These seeds must undergo a lot of genetic modification, making them less likely to produce robust descendants.
Cloning
Cloning is the process of creating new plants from a parent plant. It is used for a variety of reasons, including the propagation of high-producing plants and trees or to build populations of endangered species.
The most common method of cloning is through cuttings, called “budding.” This is commonly used to cultivate fruit trees. The bud is cut off the mother tree and inserted into a notch in the stem. It’s then placed into a pot and allowed to grow until it can be removed from the parent.
During the growing stage, the clone will need water to help it grow strong and healthy. It will also need a good rooting medium to grow a solid, robust root system.
Buying clones from a nursery, rather than conducting a scaled pheno-hunt, can save growers time and money. This is because the clone will have already undergone a rigorous selection process. This will allow the grower to incorporate a new phenotype into production much faster.
Genetic Stability
Genetic stability is a crucial factor to consider when producing regular seed. Various factors can affect this, such as genetic contamination, self-fertilization, and the synchronization of gamete formation.
Cloning is a process that allows for the multiplication of nucleic acid sequences by using extra-chromosomal plasmids (DNA). This technique can be applied to produce plant varieties with desired traits.
Generally, cloning produces populations that are homozygous, meaning they carry identical genotypes. This can help ensure that the offspring of the cloned line are genetically stable.
However, cloning can also produce segregating populations that are not genetically stable, due to mutations, isolation, and other environmental factors. The emergence of these types of populations is often seen in nature, but can also be produced in breeders’ labs via genetic manipulation.
For example, recombinant CHO cell lines are genetically unstable and are often maintained under selection pressure by transfection or the exposure to gene amplifying drugs. These selective agents can promote apoptosis and reduce genetic diversity of the cell population, making it more difficult to manufacture biologics that require specific protein coding transgenes within their chromosomal DNA.
Cost
Regular seed production is an important aspect of a grower’s breeding process. It’s a great way to test out the genetics of new strains.
It also allows a grower to develop a large selection of both male and female plants. This gives a grower a better understanding of the differences between plants of different sexes, allowing for more successful pheno hunting in future breeding efforts.
However, despite the many advantages of regular seed production, it’s not always the most cost-effective option. The amount of space, nutrients, and light used during sexing can be a significant factor.
Another important consideration is the cost of developing and testing high-quality genetics. This often involves extensive research and development that requires a high level of capital. These costs can significantly influence seed prices, especially for new strains that haven’t been widely tested.
