Feminized cannabis seeds are an incredibly popular cultivation choice for growers of all experience levels. Although male and female cannabis plants look the same when they’re young, only female cannabis plants will make buds. A group of regular seeds typically produces 50% male plants, which could ruin a harvest
So, in these cases, what’s the alternative?
Why You Should Use Feminized Seeds
Using regular cannabis seeds means you’ll have to sex your plants to prevent male plants from growing, which is a time-consuming and challenging process. However, using feminized seeds ensures you produce female-only plants 99% of the time, which is far better than 50%. Also, feminized seeds are perfect if you’re inexperienced and want to save money, time, and stress.
In this article, we’ll show you how to feminize your cannabis seeds.
So How Do Seed Banks Feminize Their Cannabis Seeds?
Seed banks often push a female plant to create pollen sacks like a male plant. The flowers on a male plant create pollen, which you can use to pollinate another female cannabis plant. Therefore, all the plants end up being females during the harvest.
Seed banks typically use two options:
1. Induce Feminized Pollen Chemically
Inducing feminized pollen chemically is the most professional and popular way to force female flowers to create pollen; in fact, most seed banks use this method. The seed bank will involve substances that interact with the plant’s development — such as colloidal silver — to the bud sites of female plants when they begin flowering.
During the first month, seed banks will drench the bud sites with these substances. In turn, this causes female plants to produce pollen sacks, which in turn creates more female plants.
2. Rhodelization
Although some seed banks and private growers may use this method, it’s not the most recommended. A female cannabis plant may produce bananas or pollen sacs when seed banks stress the plant or allow the buds to die of old age. As a result, the plants will do everything to produce seeds for the next generation. These seeds naturally end up becoming females.
However, because chemicals are not used— such as colloidal silver — the process has a higher chance of creating hermaphrodite plants. Unfortunately, hermaphrodite plants can pollinate your entire garden and ruin your cannabis harvest.
How To Make Feminized Seeds at Home
Now that you’ve learned how seed banks feminize their seeds, you might wonder how you can create feminized seeds at home. With the following guide, you’ll be able to make your own in no time!
1. Purchase Colloidal Silver
There are three main options when it comes to using colloidal silver; buying ready-to-use colloidal silver, buying a colloidal silver generator, or making your own colloidal silver:
Buy ready-to-use colloidal silver
It’s easy to find colloidal silver because it can often be found through dietary supplements. If you buy colloidal silver, find a solution with at least 30 PPM.
Purchase a generator kit
If you’re going to feminize numerous seeds, purchase a colloidal silver generator kit to create an everlasting supply of colloidal silver.
Make your own colloidal silver
Making your own colloidal silver is the cheapest and easiest way, as it doesn’t require any special skills. You’ll need a power adapter with 9 to 12 volts, an electrical wire, distilled water, pure silver, small alligator or crocodile clips to hold the silver, and a PPM meter.
Here’s how you make your own colloidal silver:
- Ensure the adapter is at 9-12 volts.
- Strip both ends of the wire using wire strippers or scissors.
- Connect the alligator clips to one end of the wire to guarantee a good current flow.
- Fix the wires to the negative and positive terminals on the unplugged adaptor or onto the battery.
- Place a piece of silver in the jaws of each clip.
- Suspend each alligator clip in the water on opposite sides of the glass.
- Turn on the adapter.
- After approximately 20 minutes, remove the electrodes and test with the PPM meter. Your overall goal should be 15PPM.
- Store the colloidal silver in an amber-tinted bottle in a cold place. However, don’t place it in a fridge.
2. Spray the Bud Sites of Your Female Plants Daily Within the First 3–4 Weeks of the Flowering Stage
First, wait until your plant is at least five to six weeks old before starting the flowering stage. Many young plants have trouble going through the feminizing process. As a result, their pollen could be fertile, which is why you should begin with a mature plant that’s over a month old.
Once your plants are ready, switch to a 12/12 light schedule to start flower formation and begin the flowering stage of your cannabis plants. As soon as you change your light schedule, begin spraying your plants daily with colloidal silver at all bud sites that you want to form pollen sacs.
It’s important to keep spraying until your pollen sacs open up. If you stop spraying early, you may not produce enough pollen.
3. Harvest Your Feminized Pollen
When it looks like your pollen sacs are beginning to crack or even open up, your pollen is ready for harvest. The best way to harvest your pollen is to carefully remove all the pollen sacs from the plants and place them into a resealable bag.
The pollen will easily spill out if you shake it; if not, you’ll need to cut some open yourself.
4. Pollinate Your Other Female Plants
When your chosen plant is 3 weeks into its flowering stage, paint your feminized pollen on the newborn bud sites with a paintbrush. You can find the bud sites wherever the leaves meet the stem.
Important tip: You can pollinate your buds once they appear (they might look like little bunches of white hair).
5. Wait 6 Weeks, Then Harvest Your Seeds
It typically takes around six weeks for your feminized seeds to completely develop. Many plants are dying as the seeds become ready, so you’ll need to keep the plant alive as the seeds begin to drop. You can use these seeds instantly or store them in a dry, cool place for a few years.
Make sure you label your seeds with the date to ensure you know how long you’ve had them in storage.
Final Thoughts
We promise, creating your own feminized seeds isn’t complicated as it may seem at first. With some practice, you can master the process and continually grow the finest possible marijuana.
