How are new weed varieties created?
Dozens of new cannabis strains are created every year, each combining the taste, aroma and effects of two or more strains into a new one. Cannabis tastes and trends are constantly changing, and cannabis breeders are constantly creating new strains to satisfy the interests of cannabis users.
Weed is arguably one of the most commonly grown crops (we’ve been growing it for at least 5,000 years), and breeders can control the breeding and growing processes to select and refine the crop to suit different wants and needs.
To explain how new weed strains are created, we have to start with plant sex.
Weed farming 101
The cannabis plant can be either male or female – this trait is called dioecious and is rare in the plant world. Only female cannabis plants produce the buds we all know and love. Whenever you see a field of cannabis plants covered in bud, they are all females.
Female cannabis plants also produce seeds, while male plants produce pollen sacs. When males are fully grown, their pollen sacs open and release pollen into the air, which can fall onto a nearby female plant and pollinate her.
As a pollinated female grows to maturity, she forms seed with the buds carrying the genetics of both the female and the pollinating male. When these seeds grow into new plants, they will be a new strain that combines male and female characteristics.
In the wild, cannabis plants reproduce naturally. A male cannabis plant may happen to be growing near a female plant and when it releases pollen, the wind will carry the pollen to a female plant. If a female plant matures and then dies, her seeds will fall to the ground and grow as plants of the new strain the following year.
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Cannabis breeding: How are new strains created?
How do I create a hybrid weed strain?
Breeding can be artificial and intentional in a commercial or self-growing environment. Initially, cannabis breeders select two strains to combine based on characteristics such as taste, aroma, potency, effects, yield, ease of cultivation, and other factors. They select a female of one strain and a male of another.
A weed grower will typically place one male and several female plants together in an enclosed space called a grow chamber to contain pollen and ensure successful pollination. Pollination can also be done outdoors by keeping plants close together as long as multiple stems are not releasing pollen.
Once a female plant is pollinated and grows to maturity, her seeds are collected and these seeds are then grown into plants. These new plants contain the genes of both the female and male plants and are called a cross (from crossing) or a hybrid of the parent plants.
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What is a phenotype?
Put simply, the new seeds of the female plant are referred to as phenotypes – they are like the children of the two parent plants and like siblings to each other. A pollinated female plant can produce dozens of seeds or phenotypes.
Two things influence the structure formation of a cannabis plant: genetics and environment. The genetic make-up of the plant – also known as the genotype – serves as a blueprint for growth. It enables a spectrum of physical possibilities. But genes can switch their expression on and off in response to environmental stimuli.
The interplay between the plant’s genotype, or blueprint, and its environment affects its phenotype, which is the physical expression of its genetic code. Observable characteristics of cannabis plants such as color, shape, smell and resin production are shaped by the environment.
Here is a comparison example using dogs to illustrate phenotypes.
If a Golden Retriever and a Poodle mate and have a litter of puppies, they will be Golden Doodle puppies that share traits from both the mother and father. Some of the puppies will look more like a Poodle (maybe more curly haired and tall and lanky), some more like a Golden Retriever (maybe shaggy hair and a bit shorter) and some will have a mix of traits from both parents.
The same goes for crossing weed varieties. For example, if you cross Lemon Skunk and Super Silver Haze, you will get Super Lemon Haze seeds. Any resulting Super Lemon Haze seeds will be different when they grow into plants: some will be smelly, tall and lanky like Lemon Skunk, some will be shorter and full of trichomes like Super Silver Haze, and some will have a mix of traits both parent strains.
Just as a litter of Golden Doodles will produce puppies that display the different traits of both their parents, cannabis seeds or phenotypes will express the different traits of their parent strains. These traits can include plant size and structure (tall, small, bushy, thin), color (purple, orange, light green, dark green), smell (fruity, skunky, sweet, gassy), effects (energetic, calming, cerebral, giggle), and more.
All traits are derived from the parent strains and each phenotype will be unique in the combination of traits it inherits from the parents.
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What is Phenohunting?
When breeders create a new weed strain, they often pollinate multiple females, resulting in dozens if not hundreds of different seeds or phenotypes. So which phenotype ends up on the pharmacy shelf that you buy?
The job of a cannabis breeder now is to grow the seeds of the new strain into plants and select the best one to put on the market – this is called pheno hunting. The breeder is looking for the best version or expression of the new strain.
Some of the phenotypes might smell good but not look good; some taste and look great but aren’t very strong; some may be error-prone or underperform; etc. The breeder wants to find that particular phenotype that combines the best traits of the new strain.
Pheno-hunting often takes a few generations to select the best version of a strain. For example, a grower might start by growing ten seeds into plants and select the top five; then these five are grown again and reduced to three; and then these are bred and reduced to the final phenotype. Each generation of cultivation can take months, so phenohunting and breeding a new strain generally takes several months – or even years.
Once a breeder has selected the phenotype with the best traits, it is mass produced and that version of the new strain is released and ends up on pharmacy shelves.
Bring other phenotypes to market
Sometimes a strain becomes so popular that breeders sell a “spin-off” version to capitalize on that strain’s popularity, if only to release another version of the strain.
This explains why you might find two versions of a strain, usually one with a number after it, like Gelato and Gelato #33, Bruce Banner and Bruce Banner #3, and Northern Lights and Northern Lights #5. The numbered strain is a different phenotype.
For example, Gelato originally went on the market and became popular, and then a breeder liked a different phenotype of Gelato, in this case #33, and later mass-produced that version and sent it to market as well. (In pheno hunting, breeders usually number each phenotype, and in this case, the 33rd version of Gelato also happened to be a winner.)
These two versions are different flavors of gelato, if you will. They share the same parent strains and are similar, but they are also unique in the combination of traits inherited from their parent strains.
Pat Goggins
Pat Goggins is a senior content editor at Leafly, specializing in cannabis cultivation after working for a commercial grower in Oregon. When you’re not correcting typos, chances are you’ll find him on a boat or in the mountains.
Check out Pat Goggins’ articles
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