Despite the recent rise in more highly developed, specifically bred male plants, the popularity of regular marijuana seeds hasn’t waned much. Many enthusiasts continue to search for the purest, strongest genetics available on the market. Some even go as far as breeding their very own marijuana plants from seed. Others simply love the thought of growing their very own buds at home. And still others are lured by the prospect of saving a lot of money off the high cost of buying expensive marijuana buds at specialty shops.
Most reputable breeders, though, discourage the cultivation of feminized seeds. The reason is simple: The pure feminized seeds that are used to create feminized marijuana buds are difficult, sometimes impossible to find. In fact, some growers struggle just to find regular marijuana seeds from which to grow feminized plants. With marijuana becoming so heavily regulated by state governments – some requiring seed certification – some growers are simply unable to locate them. In this highly taxed and controlled industry, entrepreneurs who try to use seed feminization methods run the risk of getting into trouble with their government.
One solution to the problem of finding un-sexed marijuana seeds, however, is to take advantage of one of two different solutions. Most reputable breeders have, for a reasonable price, developed hybrid strains that are more closely related to each other than to cannabis itself. The resulting hybrid seeds are extremely hard to tell apart from their parent strains, which makes them highly desirable for breeding. Some of these hybrid strains have become so closely related to each other that they are considered legal in some jurisdictions. But be careful: Legal weed is also highly potent, and users can easily become addicted to late-stage marijuana, causing serious health problems.
Another solution for the problem of irregularly-shaped marijuana plants is to take advantage of what science has to offer regarding marijuana genetics. Specifically, researchers have identified specific genetic differences between marijuana plants that allow them to grow female plants that are more delicate than normal. Although marijuana itself is not feminized, these genes have been found to make it more likely that plants will grow as females. The feminized seeds, therefore, should be able to make it through the growing process just as well as regular marijuana seeds. When you buy marijuana seeds, look carefully at the packaging. Often you’ll find “genetic females,” or plants that have been specially bred to be small, thin and compact.
There are also several types of feminized marijuana seeds available on the market today. Autoflower seeds, for example, are designed to be feminized by inducing female growth with the help of chemicals. Autoflower seeds are usually used for starting indoor herb gardens, although they may be accidentally left behind when the owners abandon their outdoor gardens to go on vacation. Female autoflower seeds don’t normally survive outdoors, making them extremely popular with gardening enthusiasts who want to start growing herb crops indoors. Autoflower seeds can be started in the same place as regular marijuana seeds, just placed in a different container.
Indica and hybrid marijuana strains are another source for feminized marijuana seeds. These traits make the plants especially good for people who do not care for the subtlety of feminization, but still desire small, highly-hybrid plants. Hybrid cannabis plants are a cross between regular marijuana seeds and highly-hybrid varieties. The resulting plants have many desirable traits, including large flowers and strong fruit yields. You can get these hybrid varieties from your local nursery or grow shop.
If you are trying to produce feminized plants, it is important that you know which marijuana plants actually produce female flowers. All forms of cannabis plant naturally contain male and female chromosomes. But because some strains of plants are able to produce both male and female flowers, others are only able to produce one sex. These plants include Indicas, Sativa and hybrids. This only means that you need to identify which marijuana strains produce feminized flowers in order to select which ones to start with. Some feminized flowers come true despite being the result of crossing a male with a female; therefore, you should make sure that you are not breeding an actual opposite sex plant.
Marijuana buds are one of the easiest plants to grow; however, they require special attention when starting out. Some people mistakenly believe that any two female plants will grow into a regular marijuana plant, but this is not the case. You must ensure that the plants are not only male and female plants, but that they also are in separate pots. After ensuring that the plants are truly two plants and not one, you must make sure that you have potted each plant in its own potting soil. To prevent an accidental cross, make sure that you remove the soil from each plant before putting them into the ground.