Introduction to Cannabis Seeds
Today we’re going to be talking about cannabis seeds and we’ll attempt to explain everything to you in basic terms so that you can understand exactly how to use them. Cannabis seeds are fascinating by itself and contain one of the highest sources of protein in nature within the plant kingdom.
We understand that for first time cannabis users, seeds might seem like something standard and which does not require a lot of information around it. After all, add water and dirt and a seed becomes a plant…right?
Well, when it comes to cannabis it is a bit more complex. We’ll be going over the general information surrounding cannabis seeds from sprouting, to how to produce feminized seeds.
Sprouting Cannabis Seeds
It’s true, you could simply put your seed in the dirt, add some water and a cannabis plant will most probably sprout. Most growers however pre-sprout their seeds to ensure that every seed used will produce a plant. To do this, you simply take the cannabis seed and put it in some cotton. Then douse the cotton with some water and place it in a zip-locked bag.
Keep the seeds in a cool dark place for about 2-3 days. You’ll quickly notice the seeds sprout. Identify the sprouts with the longest tails and use those as your primary plants as they will be able to form roots quicker than the other ones.
Most expert growers would plant all the sprouts and as they develop, start killing off the weaker plants. This will allow you more diversity when coming to growing your cannabis plants and you’ll be selecting the strongest plants to undergo the entire harvesting process. For more info you can always refer to this simple growing guide.
Feminized Seeds
Feminized Seeds mean that you’ll be getting a female plant almost assuredly when planting these seeds. Why do people want feminized seeds? Because within the growing community, female plants are what you want to get. It’s the gender we use to make medicine and for recreational consumption.
Feminized seeds come from female plants that produced seeds. This occurs when a female plant becomes a hermaphrodite through sudden changes within the environment that prompts the plant to start producing seeds without being pollinized by a male plant. Thus, the only genetics that is being transferred from the plant to the seeds is that of the female gender.
In door vs Outdoor seeds
There really isn’t a distinction between which “seed” you’ll use indoors or outdoors. However, if you know ‘what the seed is’, or in other words, what phenotype the plant was that produced the seed, you’ll have a good indication on ‘where to use it’.
Typically, people like to grow Indica strains indoors as they are bushier and shorter than Sativa strains that if left outside can reach up to 20 ft in height. Regardless of which pheno you’ll be growing, both can be done indoors or outdoors. Some plants perform better indoors while others performs better outdoors. Depending on the strain, you’ll have to make an educated decision on the location of your grow.
Storing your Seeds
Let’s say you have collected seeds from different stashes over the years, how do you store them to keep them viable for planting later? The best advice I can give you is to store it in a dark-dry place. You can keep them in appropriate containers and they should last you up to 10 years. Just don’t let them get wet.
Seeds in a Stash?
Most smokers like to get seedless stashes because that indicates that the plant was 100% female and it means that the plant spent most of its time producing THC and Resin. Whenever a plant starts producing seeds, it lowers the THC count as it focuses on producing seeds and spreading its genetics to the ‘lil’ one’.
However, there were many times had stashes that still packed a punch and had a bunch of seeds in it. I saved those seeds for growing because I knew that if I were to grow a new stash from those seeds, and ensure that no males ever came in contact with it, that the THC count would be high. So if you ever find a stash with seeds that still pack a punch…SAVE THOSE SEEDS!
How to know if your seeds will produce male or female plants?
Let’s say you don’t have feminized seeds, how will you know which seeds are male or female. Well, the short answer is you can’t. Those seeds have a 50-50 chance of being either male or female. The way you go about it then is to grow a bunch of them at the same time, then prior to flowering, create a clone from each of the plants and flower them separately from your mother plants.
Be sure to label the plants prior to making the clones. When you flower, the plants will reveal their sex and thus you can eliminate the males before even putting the mother plants in the flowering process.
Eating Seeds
Now cannabis seeds aren’t just for growing. On the contrary, you can use cannabis seeds to make food. As mentioned, it’s packed with Protein, Omega-3, and contains many more nutritional elements. Also, cannabis seeds can be ground down and added to food to boost its nutritional value even more.
Additionally, it helps with weight loss which is never bad as well as help clears up arteries. Of course, don’t rely solely on hemp seeds for better health, but adding this to your diet will definitely give you that extra “umph”.
Buying Seeds
There are plenty of online vendors that sell legitimate cannabis seeds. I always encourage people to search for “negative reviews” prior to making a purchase at any place and to ensure that you are working with a reputable source. Once you know that you can trust the seed bank, go ahead and spend your money.
And that’s the basic breakdown of everything you need to know about cannabis seeds, you can always get in touch with us for more information on the subject if there still are areas that you want more clarification on.
Anthony Jack works as a marketing manager at Dutch seeds shop. With several years of experience in the marijuana industry, he never misses a chance to share his input on the matter with the world.
