If you plan on taking on growing marijuana as a career or for hobby purposes too then you must have a clear idea about what you are getting into. Understanding the genetic lines, for instance, is the first step in order to grow the feminized seeds. There are two known methods for the same, which we will be discussing here today.
Gibberellic Acid-3 or GA-3 is a naturally occurring plant growth regulator which helps in various functions and steps during the growth phase including the simulation of the germination of the seed in certain cases. To know how to make use of this particular acidic regulator, one needs to have a thorough chemical background. It occurs naturally in various species and can also be cultured on a strain of Gibberella fujikurai fungus from which it can then be purified. This method of feminizing crops is popular in the orange industry. Particular care has to be taken to measure the exact concentration required.
Another method of feminizing the seeds is the STS (silver thiosulfate) method. This method actually focuses on the cultivation of superior genetics and the desired gene pool that one would want to particularly cultivate on a large scale. This method proved to be a revolution as it allowed everybody to try their hands at farming in a benefiting way.
Here, first, the plants are cultured for about 5-6 generations in order to get the best ‘male’ and ‘female’ plant seeds which will then be used for further processes. Selecting the female plants that will then be sprayed with GA-3 or STS during the flowering period is a critical process.
A step by step procedure looks something like this:
-Selecting regular seeds and growing them to create clones
-Selecting desired clone female parts during the first 2 weeks of the flowering period
-The various factors for selecting the plants are root, strength, plant health, uniformity, and the stability in the flowering process of the plants under consideration.
-The 5th or 6th generation clones show prime and stable genetics
Feminizing marijuana seeds takes time and effort. Not every culture can be feminized with GA-3 and hence having apt knowledge of STS usage is essential too. Weeding out the male parts from the hermaphrodite plant during the initial flowering process helps in converting the plant to a female one. And, this is how seed feminization of Cannabis takes place.
