What Happened to All the Seeds in Your Stash? How Feminization Changed Weed

A lot of us cannabis advocates here at Veriheal have been consuming cannabis in various forms for decades. Some folks started back in the era of $25 ounces of Panama Red and Acapulco Gold—rolling a number on top of the new Fleetwood Mac album. Others made do with blunts full of trichome-stripped Canadian Beasters or Mexican brick weed while spinning Wu-Tang Forever on a boombox with friends on the front porch. Despite their obvious differences in session music, both generations had one thing in common—sandwich bags of weed rife with seeds. 

Modern cannabis lovers enjoy more advantages than any previous generation of stoners—not only is weed legal in more places than ever, but growers also breed it for high-quality genetics, including seedless strains. Previous generations literally had to pick seeds out of the stash just to roll a blunt that won’t snap, crackle, and pop more than a bowl of Rice Krispies. Weed is now bigger and better than ever. A big part of that boom is because it’s all pretty much seedless now, but how did we get here?

Cannabis Plant Anatomy & Seeds

There was only one type of cannabis seed for thousands of years, up until a few short decades ago. Male cannabis plants pollinate females to produce what we now call “regular” seeds—just like it happens in the wild.

The thing, however, with regular seeds is that they have the potential to produce male or female cannabis plants, and there’s no way to tell which one they are until about 4-6 weeks in the vegetative stage. Male plants’ branch nodes begin to show small pollen sacs in the shapes of tiny balls around the 4-6 week time frame, while female plants show their typical white stigma filaments that emerge as pre-flowers in the same areas of plant branches. 

What’s Wrong with Growing Male & Female Cannabis Plants?

Anyone looking to grow dense, aromatic, and potent weed wants female plants—also known as sinsemilla. Male plants, by contrast, produce low-quality biomass filled with seeds that make the material barely smokable. When male plants release pollen, they pose a risk of pollinating any nearby female plants. According to some researchers, “a single male-induced plant can produce around 3.5 million pollen grains, which can fertilize millions of female flower plants in a single growing season.”

This phenomenon can turn any potentially high-quality flower-bearing female plants into hermaphrodites that are full of seeds and are of a much lower quality. Growers refer to the process of identifying and removing confirmed male plants from female plants in the grow room, greenhouse, or other grow areas as “sexing.”

Advanced Feminization Techniques of Cannabis Seeds Changed How Weed Is Grown

European breeders began experimenting with feminization techniques with cannabis plants during the 1980s and 90s. These experiments ultimately led to the development of feminized seeds, of which most breeders claim have a 99% chance of growing into female plants (this statistic has not been scientifically proven)—eliminating the need for sexing and the potential for male plants to pollinate females accidentally. Home growers today choose feminized seeds a majority of the time for those very reasons. 

The International Hub of Amsterdam & Advanced Cannabis Breeding

The folks at the world-famous Amsterdam-based Dutch Passion Seed Company are typically given credit as the first to experiment, develop, and sell feminized cannabis seeds alongside their regular seed counterparts. The legal framework of Amsterdam tolerated seed companies and breeders to grow cannabis, while coffee shops still let people buy and consume cannabis on-site. Amsterdam has also been a hub for a variety of high-quality cannabis seed genetics from all around the world since the 1970s, further advancing the genetic pool that formed the basis of feminized seeds.  

The Demands of Home Growers Evolved Into Seed Feminization

Home growing became more popularized in the 1980s and 90s with the availability of better genetics, cultivation techniques, and equipment. Breeders sought a way to ensure their cannabis seeds grew into female plants, also eliminating the process of sexing altogether for the home grower not looking to breed. 

Colloidal Silver Was the First Seed Reversal Technique

Breeders discovered that tiny silver particles within a solution of distilled water were found to have the ability to alter the ethylene hormone in cannabis, forcing the female plant to grow male pollen sacs and pollinate itself. Female plants still produce female genetics further along in the feminization process despite the pollen sacs. Breeders collect pollen from the reversed female’s pollen sacs and apply it to another female plant not treated with colloidal silver. The offspring of those two plants are female, creating the first efficient method of feminizing cannabis plants to breed feminized seeds. 

Silver Thiosulfate Solution (STS) Is the Best Seed Reversal Technique

Breeders eventually settled on another reversal technique that has become the standard. They also found that a solution of silver nitrate and sodium thiosulfate is more efficient than just colloidal silver. Silver thiosulfate solution (STS) allows breeders a stronger and more efficient method to block ethylene and create a female-to-male reversal. Breeders collect pollen from the STS-treated plant and use it to fertilize another female plant, creating feminized seeds in a similar way to colloidal silver. 

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READ: A Beginner’s Guide to Breeding Quality Cannabis Strains

Important Factors For Optimal Cannabis Seed Feminization

Cannabis growers stay well-informed by actively engaging in the same circles both online and in real life (IRL). Word gets around as to which breeders are using the best genetics while guaranteeing feminization and germination as much as possible. Breeders looking to maximize the quality, potency, and yield of their feminized seed production must prioritize several different factors to meet the standards and demands of the current cannabis seed market. 

Choosing the Most Optimal Mother Plant

The quality of the mother plant crossed with feminized pollen determines the quality of the feminized seeds it produces. Traits such as plant vigor, shape, and resin production will be passed down to the next generation of plants grown from its feminized seeds. It’s also crucial to ensure the mother plant will bear only female flowers before selecting it as the keeper. Cross-pollination from any rogue male pollen is always possible, so the mother plant must be kept isolated from any nearby male plants.

Using the Ideal Hormone Inhibitor Solution 

Studies show that STS and colloidal silver are the most effective hormone reversal solutions to induce male pollen sacs on female plants. Both solutions also produced more efficient and viable pollen. 

STS Demonstrates A Higher Reversal Success Rate

The hands-down best choice for sex reversal of cannabis plants, however, is STS. This solution’s study results were the most consistent in demonstrating success with high THC strains. The more concentrated the STS solution is, the higher the number of male flowers. Breeders spray STS onto the plant leaves until runoff is achieved for optimal results. They also find that spraying the entirety of each leaf is more efficient than just the shoot tips. 

Studies also show success with just one application of STS to induce male pollen sacs on female plants before flipping the light schedule to 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark to induce flowering. Other breeders find success with a schedule of 3 applications for 7 days during the vegetative stage.  

Post Seed Production Quality Checks

Newly harvested feminized seeds are checked for germination success rates, seedling vigor, and flower quality. These checks determine if the sex reversal is successful. Effects from this type of cannabis breeding can sometimes create abnormalities in plant height, mass, and yield. Breeders must rule them out before declaring a successful reversal that results in high-quality and viable feminized seeds. 

Legacy of Feminized Seeds

Home growers and other cannabis breeders now have a choice of regular seeds or feminized seeds. Feminized seeds remove the time-consuming sexing process from the cultivation equation. Large-scale breeders now use their time—and precious space— to exclusively grow all-female plants uniform in size. 

Specific traits like flavor, aroma, bag appeal, and potency have all contributed to the dominating presence of hybrid strains in the current cannabis marketplace. Cannabis culture has ultimately deemed any cannabis with seeds as inferior and gassy, seedless sinsemilla as the standard.

Phenohunting Led The Charge for Better Bud

Phenohunting became easier for breeders to focus on desirable traits without the added stress of sexing and removing male plants from their crops. This ease of phenohunting no doubt led to the appeal of hybrids and dessert strains—yields are bigger, flowers are prettier and more dank, while crosses include more complexity. Breeders also stabilize genetic lines during a phenohunting process by ensuring successful feminization and subsequent cloning from cuts from the mother plant that is retained. 

Grateful For Feminized Seeds & Seedless Weed

Breeders and some home growers still use regular seeds to grow cannabis, with full acceptance that they’ll have to sex their plants and separate them, usually in the name of breeding their own unique crosses. 

For all other cannabis cultivation projects, feminized seeds lead the way. Most people just want to grow seedless, dense, and potent buds without a male plant spreading its unwanted pollen all over the place. Cannabis consumers no longer find themselves scoffing at the unnecessary weight that seeds add to the bag, nor the unpleasant taste they bring to a smoke session. All that remains is a high-quality, scientifically engineered, seedless flower that pairs well with any playlist, old or new.