Choosing Marijuana Seeds: Feminized or Autoflowering?

Choosing Marijuana Seeds: Feminized Or AutoFlowering

A successful harvest means considering several important factors before you even plant cannabis. Failure to do that will have you searching for “weed delivery near me” in no time at all. Choosing the right strain for you is but one of them, albeit a crucial one, but choosing the right seeds makes all the difference too. However, seeds can be confusing, certainly challenging, for newbies to growing. 

Not knowing what type of seeds you are dealing with can cause all sorts of problems later and quickly turn your growing experience sour if you end up with the wrong ones. There are big differences between feminized cannabis seeds and autoflowering ones. You should know them and know them well if you intend growing your own marijuana at home. 

Feminized Seeds vs. Autoflowering Seeds: The Difference

Before spending any money, familiarize yourself with the primary differences between feminized and autoflowering seeds. Feminized seeds only produce female plants, no males. This immediately eliminates the main issue that growers face, which is males pollinating your crop. No males mean no pollination. Ultimately, this means that your plants will not make any seeds during flowering. 

Autoflowering seeds are different. They require no photoperiod since they have a fixed growth cycle and will start flowering when their genes tell them to, not light. Autoflowering seeds are fast, requiring just eight or nine weeks. For those looking to harvest quickly, these seeds offer an advantage. They are also ideal for those wanting to grow discreetly, and be as quick about it as they can. 

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Feminized Seeds vs. Autoflowering Seeds: The Pros and Cons

As with everything in life, both seed types come with their own set of pros and cons. When choosing between feminized and autoflowering seeds, you should weigh these against each other before making your decision. Do you want to harvest several crops in one season? Autoflowering seeds usually start flowering in about 70 days, allowing you to grow three crops a growing season, even outdoors. 

Autoflowering seeds, as their name implies, flower automatically, regardless of the light cycle. Because of their short lifespans, it is inadvisable to prune autoflowering plants, since they do not have sufficient time to recover enough to produce big buds. You can also control their size better if you grow them indoors, which naturally depends on the pot size you use. 

Bigger pots make space for bigger plants and bigger buds. Remember this always, no matter the seeds you choose to plant. Autoflowering plants also produce lower levels of THC, since they derive from the Ruderalis cannabis family. For this reason, they often do not appeal to growers wanting potency from their plants, most of whom prefer to wait the longer season for plants with a bigger kick. 

On the other hand, feminized seeds rely heavily on photoperiods to develop into strong, healthy plants that start flowering when the light cycle grows smaller. This allows you to manipulate and manage the light your plants receive, extending their vegetative state indefinitely. You can prune feminized plants without damaging your crop, and logistically, since none is male, you can plant half as many seeds. 

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Feminized Seeds vs. Autoflowering Seeds: The Final Choice

Choosing your seeds will depend on your preference. If you want to grow enormous crops that will not disappoint when it comes to producing large yields, then feminized seeds are ideal if grown properly. Having no males around from the outset can save you an abundance of time, stress, and unhappiness. Missing just one male in your crop can pollinate the whole lot, turning them to seed instead of resin. 

Furthermore, male seeds require space to grow until they display their sexual characteristics. This takes literal space in your grow room or garden, unproductive space that could be better utilized by certified females. Feminized seeds can also boost your profits, assuming you reside in California, since they guarantee that no males will contaminate your crop, and certainly produce no new male seeds. 

Regardless of which seeds you choose, avoid purchasing poor quality. Buy from a licensed seed bank compliant with consumer safety laws. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, autoflowering strains not only flower faster and make multiple grow possible, but they are typically high in CBD, cannabidiol, and other medicinally valuable cannabinoids, flavonoids, and terpenes, just low in THC. 

Additionally, autoflowering seeds also have a tendency to grow denser foliage, which means that their buds are typically leafier. This often means more leaf than bud. However, this is not true if you grow autoflowering seeds the right way, in optimal conditions, without ever pruning them, and with sufficient time to complete their automatic flowering cycle with hastiness or other interference. 

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Santa Monica Dispensary Recreational Cannabis

Before you purchase any seeds, from anywhere, and no matter if they are autoflowering or feminized, always ensure that you know the laws in your area first. You do not want to violate local laws inadvertently, or you will find yourself searching “weed delivery near me” from a possible jail cell. This is unlikely in most cities and counties but make sure to know the growing laws of your jurisdiction in case. 

 

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Comments (5)

  1. Avatar for Huey Huey July 12, 2019 / 8:53 am / Reply

    Pre germinated and feminized please

  2. Avatar for Dwain Dwain July 13, 2019 / 8:28 am / Reply

    Feminized all the way

  3. Avatar for Isaias Isaias July 14, 2019 / 10:04 pm / Reply

    Feminized Seeds are good!

  4. Avatar for Valentine Valentine July 16, 2019 / 10:18 am / Reply

    Nice discussion, you learn something new every day

  5. Avatar for Mckinley Mckinley July 18, 2019 / 1:41 pm / Reply

    I had no clue about any of this, thx

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