Get new weed strains | LOOKAH

How do we get new weed varieties?

Dozens of new cannabis strains are created every year, each combining the taste, aroma and other characteristics of two or more strains into a new cannabis strain. Tastes and trends are constantly changing, and cannabis breeders are constantly developing new strains to meet the interests of cannabis consumers.

Cannabis is one of the most widely cultivated plants, and there is evidence that cultivation has been going on for over 500 years. Breeders can control the breeding and growing process to select and improve plants to meet a variety of needs.

To explain how new weed species emerge, we must start with plant propagation.

Weed breeding 101

Cannabis plants can be female or male – a trait called dioecious, which is rare in the plant world.

Only female cannabis plants produce the flowers we all know and love. Whenever you see cannabis plants with buds, they are female.

Male plants form pollen sacs while female cannabis plants form seeds.

When males reach maturity, their pollen sacs open and release pollen into the air, which lands on nearby female plants and pollinates them.

As the pollinating female matures, she forms seeds with buds that carry genes from both the female and the pollinating male. As a pollinated female plant matures, it will devote its effort to producing seeds rather than buds. These seeds then fall to the ground or can be harvested and grown into a new type of plant.

How to Grow Hybrid Weeds

Breeding can occur artificially and intentionally in commercial or domestic environments. First, cannabis breeders select two strains to combine based on characteristics such as taste, aroma, potency, potency, yield, ease of cultivation, and other factors. They chose females of one species and males of another.

Weed growers typically place one male plant and several female plants in an enclosed space. This helps contain the pollen and ensure successful pollination.

Pollination can also occur outdoors by growing plants next to each other.

Once the female has pollinated and matured, the seeds can be harvested.

These seeds are used to create new plants that contain genes from both female and male plants, called hybrids.

What is a Phenotype?

Simply put, the new seeds of the female plant are called phenotypes – they are like the children of two parent plants. A single pollinated female plant produces dozens of seeds or phenotypes.

Two things affect the structure of a cannabis plant: genetics and environment. A plant's genetic makeup – also called its genotype – acts as a blueprint for growth. It allows for a range of physical possibilities. But genes can turn their expression on and off based on environmental influences.

The interaction between a plant's genotype or blueprint and its environment influences its phenotype. This is the physical expression of his genetic code. The observable characteristics of cannabis plants such as shape, smell, color, and resin production are all influenced by the environment.

Let's make a comparison using dogs as an example.

When a Labrador and a Poodle mate and produce a litter of puppies, they become Labradoodle puppies.

They will have both maternal and paternal characteristics. Some puppies will look more like poodles (maybe they are taller and thinner and have more curly hair), others will look more like labradors (maybe they have straight hair and are smaller in stature), but they will all be a mix of the different characteristics every parent.

The same applies when varieties are crossed.

For example, if you cross Lemon Skunk and Super Silver Haze, you will get Super Lemon Haze seeds.

All resulting Super Lemon Haze seeds will be different when they grow into plants: some will be smelly and tall and skinny like lemon skunks, others will be small and have more trichomes like Super Silver Haze, and others will be a more equal mix of characteristics of both Parent varieties.

Just as a Labradoodle litter produces puppies that have different characteristics from each of their parents, hemp seeds or phenotypes have different characteristics depending on the strain of their parents.

These characteristics may include size and structure,

(Small, tall, thin, dense), color (light green, dark green, purple, orange), smell (fruity, smelly, sweet), effect (energetic, calming, cerebral, giggly) and so on.

All traits were derived from the parent strain and each phenotype will be a unique combination of these inherited traits.

What is Phenol Capture?

When developing new cannabis strains, breeders often pollinate multiple female plants. The result is dozens, if not hundreds, of seeds. Each of these seeds exhibits a different phenotype. So which phenotype ends up on the shelf at your local pharmacy?

Cannabis breeders work to develop plants from new seeds and select the best strains for market – a method called “phenohunting.” Breeders look for the best combination of traits in plants.

Some phenotypes may smell good but not look good; Some may taste good and look good, but may not have much impact; Some may be low yielding or prone to blisters; And so forth. Breeders want to find specific phenotypes that combine all of the best characteristics of the new strain.

The search for phenotypes usually takes generations to select the best version of a strain. For example, a grower might initially plant ten seeds and then select the top five; Then these five are enlarged again and reduced to three; They are then bred and the final phenotype is determined. It can take months for each generation to grow, so finding and breeding new varieties often takes months or even years.

Once breeders have selected the phenotype with the best characteristics, they produce it, and this version of the new strain will enter the market and eventually appear on shelves.

Bring other phenotypes to market

Sometimes a variety becomes very popular and this encourages breeders

to exploit this popularity to sell a different version of the strain. They achieve this by breeding new phenotypes of this strain and selecting those that complement the original. For example, more potency or a milder high, etc.

This is why you will see two versions of the same variety. A version is usually followed by a number.

An example of this could be Bruce Banner and Bruce Banner #3 or Northern Lights and Northern Lights #5. The variety with the number after it is only used to distinguish the different phenotypes.

They have the same parent variety and are similar. However, they have a unique combination of traits that they inherit from the parent strains.