If you’ve found yourself some really nice feminized cannabis seeds from a strain that you want to experiment growing with, then one of the first things you need to do is to start them, otherwise known as germination. Without germinating a weed seed, no plant will grow. This is an absolutely essential part of the process.
It’s all about getting the seed to crack open, sprout, and form into a healthy little seedling that will eventually produce a big and potent yield for you. Having feminized seeds that produce exclusively female plants is also very important. As you might know, male plants do not produce potent buds, only an abundance of seeds, whereas female plants are the ones that produce potent THC-laden flowers.
Not only will today’s article cover how to start feminized seeds, but will also cover the difference between feminized cannabis seeds and other types of seeds. We’ll then take a look at the number one most popular and commonly used germination method for feminized seeds, as well as others that you can choose if the primary method doesn’t suit your needs.
Key Takeaways
- There are four main types of cannabis seeds, including regular, feminized, autoflowering, and photoperiod.
- It is possible to feminize cannabis seeds if you are already growing plants at home.
- There are several germination methods available to start cannabis seeds, with the paper towel method being one of the most popular.
Sharpiez Seeds
Lost In Translation, Inc
The cross is Permanent Marker x Zoap. Each package contains 6 or 12 feminized seeds.
How to Feminize Cannabis Seeds
The reality here is that if you grow male plants, you’re more or less wasting your time. Male cannabis plants do not produce resin, cannabinoid, or terpene-rich buds that can be consumed. It is female plans that you need for this.
Unfortunately, if you already have regular cannabis seeds, then there is no way to feminize them. However, if you are growing your own cannabis plants that are female, there are ways to spur these plants on to create seeds that can then be used to grow more plants.
If you have a female cannabis plant, there are some substances that you can spray on them to force them to create male pollen sacs that contain seeds.
Some of these substances include gibberellic acid, silver thiosulfate, benzothiadiazole, colloidal silver, and silver nitrate. The easiest and most commonly used method here is the colloidal silver method, as it is non-caustic and non-toxic, plus it’s easy to find virtually anywhere.
Some people might take a clone of a female cannabis plant with desirable properties, whereas others might just grow a female plant from seed and then feminize it. Although it is possible to wait up to four weeks after flowering has started to feminize a plant, it is recommended to do so as soon as you sex it within the flowering stage.
If growing from a clone, you can start trying to feminize it up to one week before you start the flowering period.
Spray your cannabis plants with colloidal silver up to three times per day, making sure that it has a strength of at least 15 to 30 parts per million. If you’ve done this properly, you should see cannabis plants starting to produce male pollen sacks and seeds within about three to four weeks after starting the process.
Take a look at this video for more information about how to make feminized seeds.
4 Types of Weed Seeds
Now that you know how to feminize cannabis seeds, it might be a good idea to discuss what feminized seeds actually are, along with some of the other seed types.
Regular
First, we have regular cannabis seeds, which are just run-of-the-mill seeds that can result in either female or male plants, or hermaphrodites at times. This is by far one of the most common ways to grow cannabis, particularly because these types of seeds are fairly affordable.
If you don’t mind having to sex in your cannabis plants and weed out the males from the females, then this is a good option to consider. The issue is of course that you don’t know if you’ll get male or female plants, as there is about a 50/50 chance.
Feminized
Feminized cannabis seeds on the other hand are specially made to produce only female plants, which is of course what most growers go for. Again, it is female plants that contain all of the cannabinoids and terpenes.
This could therefore potentially increase your overall growth efficiency by 100%, because you’ll end up with all female plants as opposed to potentially half male and half female.
The issue with feminized cannabis seeds is that it is however much more expensive than regular seeds. They are becoming much more popular however because in the long run it ends up being both more time efficient and cost effective.
Photoperiod Seeds
We then also need to consider photoperiod seeds. Cannabis is an annual plant type, which means that the flowering is determined by the seasons.
Cannabis generally goes through its vegetative stage in the spring and summer time, and then when the season shortens, when there isn’t nearly as much sunlight, cannabis plants switch over to their flowering stage and start producing buds.
When growing cannabis indoors, growers have to switch from 24 hours of light per day to 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark. This mimics the natural season change, therefore spurring the cannabis plant on to start flowering. This is how all regular plants work.
Autoflower Seeds
Most recently, so-called autoflowering cannabis seeds have been developed, which are designed to produce all female plants that don’t need any seasonal or light condition changes to start flowering.
These cannabis plants go through their vegetative stage, which generally lasts for only up to 1.5 or 2 months, and then based on growth time, will automatically switch into the flowering stage regardless of light or season.
This type of seed is very beneficial for a variety of reasons, with the fact that they produce only female plants being right up there along with the fact that these plants take just a little bit over half the time of photoperiod to reach harvest.
The issue with autoflowering seeds however is that the plants grown from them are usually much smaller and produce lower yields.
Sex Panther Seeds
Lost In Translation, Inc
The cross is Fire Crotch x Zoap. Each package contains 6 or 12 feminized seeds.
How to Germinate Cannabis Seeds – The Paper Towel Method
One the most popular way to germinate cannabis seeds is by using the paper towel method. This method involves putting your cannabis seeds inside of a few layers of moist or wet paper towel, and then putting this inside of a plastic bag, and leaving it for around a week. Although it might not sound like a fantastic method, it generally produces amazing results with fantastic germination rates.
One of the reasons why this is a preferred method is because the paper towel allows for easy moisture control. Cannabis seeds require a relatively high moisture level of around 85% to germinate properly. If the paper towel is too dry, spray it with some more water, and if it’s too wet, replace it with a new one.
Germinating cannabis seeds also requires there to be absolutely no light, which works fine with a wet paper towel because it blocks the light out, and you can then put this in a dark area.
To germinate cannabis seeds effectively, the temperature needs to be between 70 degrees and 85 degrees Fahrenheit, or somewhere between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius, with somewhere right in the middle being best. Therefore, make sure that the area where you are germinating your seeds falls within that temperature range.
To germinate cannabis seeds using this method, get a piece of paper towel and moisten it with a bit of water, and then lay it on a flat surface. Put your seeds on the paper towel spaced roughly an inch apart, and then put another piece of wet paper towel on top of them.
You can also just fold the first one over on itself. Put this inside of a plastic bag, but only seal it about 90% of the way to let some air in. Place this in a dark area and then wait. The seeds should start to germinate within two to five days, but may take up to seven or ten depending on the exact seeds.
Sex On The Beach Seeds
Lost In Translation, Inc
The cross is Lemon Cherry Gelato x Zoap. Each package contains 6 or 12 feminized seeds.
Germinating Marijana Seeds – Other Methods
Although the wet paper towel method is by far the most popular for cannabis seed germination, there are still others to consider, so let’s take a quick look.
The Glass of Water Method
Although much less popular and successful than the white paper towel method, some people do use nothing more than a glass of water to germinate their cannabis seeds. For this method, take a bowl or glass, fill it with water, and place the seed right in the water, while making sure that the temperature is around 71 degrees Fahrenheit.
The seed should open within roughly three to five days, and the taproot will appear. Once the tap root is about 1 inch long, you can transfer the germinated seed into soil or your growing medium of choice.
Although this method would seem to be very easy, the issue is that too much moisture can be detrimental to your cannabis seeds. You might actually drown them or cause root rot before it can even get started. Controlling the temperature and lighting levels can also be difficult as well.
The Stone Wool Method
Stone wool is another good material to use to germinate cannabis seeds. Stone wool can be purchased from any gardening center or online. Many people like using this material for cannabis seed germination because it allows for easy temperature control, moisture control, and more. It also keeps the seed away from light.
Once you purchase your stone wool blocks, soak them in some water and place them in a plastic tray. You can then put the seeds right in the blocks of stone wool, and then preferably cover everything with a container that is opaque.
You want there to be a lid to help with temperature regulation and to keep moisture where it belongs. The seeds should germinate in just one or two days if done properly. You can let the seeds grow in the stone wool for up to three or four weeks until transferring them into their final growing medium.
The Soil Plug Method
You can also use what are known as soil plugs for cannabis seed germination. Although their name implies that they are made of soil, they’re actually usually made out of peat and coco coir.
This is a good combination of substances to use for cannabis seed germination because it allows for great aeration and water retention, it prevents diseases from occurring, and it keeps the seeds out of light. Many soil plugs designed for cannabis seed germination are also made with many active biological substances to help establish strong root systems.
They may also come with a variety of beneficial organisms to help keep diseases and pathogens at bay, and sometimes even micronutrients to start feeding the seedlings. Soil plugs are also beneficial because you never have to transplant from one area to another.
You can start the seed in the soil plug, and then once the seedling has sprouted out of it, just place the whole thing inside of your soil growing medium. Just place your cannabis seed inside of the soil plug, maintain optimal humidity, moisture, temperature, and light conditions, and you should see them germinate and sprout within just a few days.
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The Direct-to-Soil Method
Another popular choice for germinating cannabis seeds is to put the seed directly in the soil or growing medium of choice for germination.
The big advantage with this method is that you don’t have to transplant a very fragile cannabis seedling from its germination spot to a growing medium. A lot of seedlings get irreversibly damaged during transplantation, so this is a very big advantage. Many people end up killing their plans this way.
Another benefit here is that whereas the paper towel and glass of water methods were both very prone to temperature fluctuations, the temperature tends to remain much more constant within soil. It’s also relatively easy to control moisture levels here, and the soil keeps light away from the seed as well. It’s a rather perfect germination method.
Simply take a seed and plant it about 10 millimeters under the surface and then cover it loosely. Spray a bit of water on top, and then place it in a dark area. You should see sprouts popping out of the dirt within about 7 to 10 days.
This method might make it seem like it’s taking longer to germinate because with the other methods you can visually inspect the seeds to see if they cracked open, whereas planting in soil requires you to wait until the sprout breaches the surface of the soil to see success.
The Seedling Dome Method
Many people may also use what is known as a seedling dome to germinate their cannabis seeds. These are little trays that you can put soil or something like soil pellets inside of, and they usually hold anywhere between 4 and 48 seeds.
The high-end models generally come with some kind of heating mat to heat the seeds from the bottom, as well as a lid to retain moisture. These are usually quite expensive, but also provide you with fantastic chances of the best germination rates.
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Final Thoughts
You should now be a total expert on the different types of cannabis seeds as well as what the best ways of germinating them are. Personally, we recommend going for feminized seeds, although whether you want a full photoperiod or an autoflowering type is up to you. Once you’ve chosen your seed, use the germination method of choice, and start on one of the most exciting journeys of your life!
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Starting Feminized Seeds: Frequently Asked Questions
Before we call it a day, let’s quickly answer some of your most frequently asked questions about starting feminized seeds.
How long does it take for feminized seeds to grow?
Depending on the germination method of choice, it may take up to seven or ten days for germination to occur. Furthermore, if it is a full photoperiod plant, the entire growth cycle could take up to six months.
Can you clone feminized seeds?
It is possible to clone feminized seeds, or technically speaking, you would be cloning the plants that come from feminized seeds.
Do feminized plants produce feminized seeds?
Female plants generally only produce seeds if you feminize them. Therefore, to get a feminized plant to produce seeds, you must feminize it using the methods discussed above.
How to grow feminized seeds?
Grow feminized cannabis seeds just like you grow any others.
