Outdoor Breeding in northern U.S.

Well yea like the title states I am searching for those who do a little breeding out in the sun, that reside to the north. I am looking to read tactics and some personal thoughts!

I wanna start out by asking afew questins that I personally have ..Do I need to harvest the seeds before the first frost? or first freeze?.

How long does a seed usually take to fully develope outdoors?

What method is preferred if I only wanna pollinate a few branches outdoors?

I am sure a I will have a couple more questions as the end of summer gets closer, as it sits right know I have a few males, couple sweet tooth , critical mass, and mandala1

Here in Michigan I plan on doing my breeding around 3rd week of august, is that about right? I have grown some seeds indoor but never outdoor and am indeed green in this area, lol

I can answer your pollination question. once your males are mature, put newspaper under them. Ever hour or 2 go and give them a gentle shake. after collecting desired amount, put it in a clean plastic bag. put the bag over the desired female seed branch and elastic it around the stem ( sealing the polline inside) and give it a shake. wait an hour and shake it again. wait another hour to let it settle then take it off. you should be able to produce hundreds of seed this way.

Thanks so much for the good advise, will very much consider that idea!

StinkyDuck said:

I can answer your pollination question. once your males are mature, put newspaper under them. Ever hour or 2 go and give them a gentle shake. after collecting desired amount, put it in a clean plastic bag. put the bag over the desired female seed branch and elastic it around the stem ( sealing the polline inside) and give it a shake. wait an hour and shake it again. wait another hour to let it settle then take it off. you should be able to produce hundreds of seed this way.

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I will collect some pollen in a small film canister and pollinate with a Q-Tip early in flower.

The first week I see hairs on the females I will mark a couple low branches and rub each budsite on them with the Q-tip that has been dipped in pollen.


The seeded plant will be the last one I bring in at harvest, giving it plenty of time for the seed to mature and grow a nice dark hard shell.

If you don't mind all the reading, I've documented my breeding methods in my grow thread.

A few thoughts:

Pollinate a plant when each bud tip is a dime sized cluster of pistils. This limits the number of seeds in each bud, but insures plump, healthy seeds.

Seeds need a minimum of five weeks to mature, but longer is better.

Label everything with names and dates.

Record your crosses in a separate book. Sometimes labels get hidden.

Breeding Cannabis is its own reward. Fascinating!

I thank the both of you guys great info, no doubt about it! I am mostly concerned with the cold temps we start getting in the middle of October, can and will this first frost damage my seeds in any way?. And yes veggiegardener I will read your post I have tuned in for bits and peices.. but I am the type of guy that cannot stand to be teased, I wont even go to a strip club cause I just can't take it. I will begin reading your grow thoughly, a few weeks before harvest!. good luck with everything boys and girls

I try to pollinate as soon as possible. ALWAYS by the third week of August. Usually I'm done by the 10th. This insures the seeds will be ripe before October 1st, but are probably ready a week or two sooner.

If your plants get a frost, that's the best time to harvest, unless it is just a few leaf tips, and the forecast calls for warmer temps.

Once frosted, I think harvesting is best, because that sort of damage might induce the plant to begin repairing itself, instead of building buds.

If your grow is near home, you can put a 40 watt incandescent bulb under an inverted coffee can under each plant.

On cold still nights, this can produce enough heat to prevent frost damage.

I forgot to answer the question. Once seeds are mature a frost shouldn't damage them.

BUT

Once a seeded branch is killed by frost, it dies and dries very quickly which can cause seeds to drop.

i think your biggest concern is that the seeds wont fully develop before the frost. and once it frosts you are pretty much done. so I guess its just a gamble. try this.....

put them in the dark for 24 hours, do this when you want to start your flowering cycle.

this will induce a flowering stage. good luck

Well a new day a new question! I am reading an awfull lot that the production of seeds on a plant drastically slows down making bud and uses its energy to make the seeds. My question is if I am only going to pollinate a couple of branches on each plant, will this reduce the size of the buds on the whole plant or will the size and quality of the bud be effected only on those branches?

Will the overall plant production be compromised if I only pollinate a couple branches?

Will it slow down the entire plant to make a couple sticks of seeds? Will the top buds still be cronic if pollinating on a middle branch? Will overall yield be affected drastically for 2 branches?

will this reduce the size of the buds on the whole plant or will the size and quality of the bud be effected only on those branches?



i think the un- pollinated buds will be balm and the pollinated buds will just come out balm but seedy

I thank you guys for your inputs so far, I also came across another question today. What might some of the pros and cons of pollinating a female with two diffrent strains? Say I use this fruity smelling mandala#1 as the female and I pollinate two diffrent branches with diffrent males.. is this o.k.? can seeds be affected?

hic said:

I thank you guys for your inputs so far, I also came across another question today. What might some of the pros and cons of pollinating a female with two diffrent strains? Say I use this fruity smelling mandala#1 as the female and I pollinate two diffrent branches with diffrent males.. is this o.k.? can seeds be affected?

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The reason I pollinate when the buds are dime sized is to reduce the effects of seed production and improve the health of individual seeds. This also figures into timing when seeds are mature, a couple weeks before the buds are otherwise ready to harvest.

Last year's White Widow was crossed with eight different males, in my garden.

That plant produced about 800 grams, not counting seeded buds. I've yet to find a seed in an unpollinated bud from that plant.

I figure you lose as much weight in bud as you gain in seeds. I don't need a pound of seeds. 50 beans from each cross is sufficient for my needs.

When using a variety of father strains, choose the lowest flowering branches, and take great care to avoid letting the pollen get air borne. After 24 hours, mist down the entire mother plant to kill vagrant pollen.

how long will stored pollen last?

Well a new question has arose today,let's see what ya all think. If I feed my seeded female with typical miracle grow bloom, Will that in any way affect my seedlings taste? What about foliar feeding them when seeds have begun and thoughout budding, will the seeds be altered or damaged?
And yea I know all about organics but out here ... Organics inside/Chemical outside.

dababydroman said:

how long will stored pollen last?

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A week or two, unprotected. I've had success after freezing it for six months,

BUT

Some strains of pollen didn't hold up for six months.

hic said:

Well a new question has arose today,let's see what ya all think. If I feed my seeded female with typical miracle grow bloom, Will that in any way affect my seedlings taste? What about foliar feeding them when seeds have begun and thoughout budding, will the seeds be altered or damaged?
And yea I know all about organics but out here ... Organics inside/Chemical outside.

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I foliar feed lightly until the buds begin to tighten.

The effect on flavor should be minor.

If you're worried about it, stop feeding about two weeks before harvest, and water heavily, but infrequently.

There are a lot of ways to flush. I think that is the easiest in soil grows.

Again thank you all for the info. any one else making seeds this year outside? if so what ya got going?

One of my friends has a male black domina we were thinking of crossing with one of my white rhino bitches

chronic coinoisseur said:

One of my friends has a male black domina we were thinking of crossing with one of my white rhino bitches

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Sounds good, is this your first outdoor breeding? How far north are ya

good thread. I'm growing Man 1's and Sweet Tooth as well as Himilaya Gold's, LSD's and a few Flash Super Autos.