For the breeders out there, regular seeds are essential. They can be used to create the perfect cultivar by crossing two specimens that have exactly the morphology and flavour profile you want.
Regular seeds operate as nature intended, with a 50% chance of emerging as either male or female plants. This can be a problem for beginners and it will also reduce the yield of your crop.
Breeding
Whether you’re cultivating cannabis for recreational or medicinal purposes, it’s important to understand the difference between regular and feminized seeds. The latter contain seeds that are guaranteed to produce only female plants, which means you can expect a higher yield with less effort.
Feminized seeds are produced through a process that stresses female plants, causing them to release pollen containing only the female chromosomes. This pollen is then used to fertilize other female plants, resulting in feminized seeds.
However, breeding regular seeds can offer a greater genetic diversity than feminized seeds. This is because you have a 50/50 chance of producing male or female plants, which allows you to select the best traits for your next generation. This can lead to a more diverse gene pool and the ability to create new strains. It also saves you time and money by eliminating the need to sex your plants or waste valuable growing medium and nutrients.
Cloning
Clones will take a little longer to root than seeds, but that’s because the process can be a bit of a learning curve. They also need a certain amount of time to develop robust roots before being transplanted. Ideally, the clone should be removed from the mother plant when it is in the vegetative stage.
Cloning from regular seeds can be less reliable than feminized plants, which are more predictable. This is because the ratio of male to female sex in a batch of regular seeds can swing from one extreme to another.
This can be problematic if you are trying to breed your own seed stock. You will have to be able to identify and cull the male plants before they pollinate other females or produce seeds. That can be a bit of a pain, but it is essential for creating new strains. Male plants can also be used to produce crosses that improve the potency of existing strains.
Genetic Stability
Genetic stability allows the breeder to establish desired traits in their strains over time, with these desired genes becoming dominant over the undesired ones. This is a complicated process that requires a lot of work and patience, but it can result in the creation of unique and stable strains for growers.
Regular seeds have a small chance of producing hermaphroditic plants, which possess both male and female reproductive organs. This is an undesirable condition that can lead to unwanted pollination and a decrease in overall flower quality. To prevent hermaphroditic plants from developing, growers must regularly inspect their cultivation space and remove any that develop.
Feminized seeds do not suffer from this problem, but they also have their own issues. Feminized seeds are prone to genetic instability, which makes breeding them much more difficult. They also require sexing to ensure that only female plants are produced. The combination of these factors results in a less reliable plant and a lower yield than regular seeds.
Variety
Before feminized seeds took over the cannabis world, regular seeds operated exactly how nature intended. They carry both male and female genetics which means they have a 50% chance of becoming flowering female or pollen-producing male plants. If left unattended they will also pollinate each other and produce more offspring (male or female).
For breeders this offers a great opportunity to create new cultivars with desirable traits such as potency, flavour profiles and colours. In addition, growers who like the morphology or colour of a particular plant can duplicate it by cloning.
Dutch Passion has a wide selection of high-quality regular seeds that offer classic, authentic flavours and deeply enjoyable effects. Choose from strains such as God Bud regular whose earth and chocolate aromas will take you on an epic hallucinogenic journey. Or go for the uplifting citrusy goodness of Jilly Bean regular that refreshes your brain and body with an energising mix of mango, tangerine, and grapefruit.