In areas where cultivation is permitted, you’ll likely be
able to get your cuttings or clones readily. However, the selection
often offers a narrow range of choice in their medicinal effects. For
example, they are all different types of “Kush” that have extremely
similar effects, with perhaps a few Sativa strains to choose from.
Nonetheless, there are a number of benefits to growing from clones that are healthy and free of insects. These include:
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Known sex (female) – this will make buds with lots of resin, not pollen. It also means less potential for accidental seeding in your garden.
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They are often available after harvest if you want to start another crop; no need to keep separate growing areas as a nursery for producing transplants.
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The source of your clone should be able to provide very valuable growing information. Of course, this is also true when working with a reputable seed source.
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Growth habits and finishing times will be even for each plant from the same clone – this allows for a uniform grow cycle throughout your garden.
Starting from seed gives you a much wider spectrum of
possibilities to choose from. Seed selections can be vast with an
ever-growing number of cannabis seed breeders, seed banks, and
collectives.
You will want to add an extra ten days or more to the
cropping calendar for germination and establishment of seeds into young
plants, but there are some important advantages in starting from seed.
Some of these include:
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Starting problem free with lots of vigor – no insects or diseases are carried over from seed. Experienced growers know how important this is for success.
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F1 Hybrids (first generation crosses) can demonstrate a natural phenomenon known as “hybrid vigor”. Offspring show the best of both parental selections in proven hybrid crosses.
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Cannabis plants started from seed develop a tap root, clones do not. A tap root anchors the plants more firmly, and can help prevent a medium-to-large cannabis plant with lots of weight from topping over in the wind.
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You can start new plants as needed, because seeds can be stored.
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Using stable, ‘feminized’ seeds over regular seeds can ensure 100% females plants that grow and finish nearly the same, time after time.
Note: Regular seeds allow you to select for particular
traits through slight to significant variations exhibited from the cross
of parental plants. However, you will have to pull out a few males from
the garden to produce seedless buds.
