I was told by a fellow cutiivator that if you start your plant from a seed it will have a better defense against bugs. I wanted to know if anyone can elaborate on this. Is anyone out there has a good one sided opinion when it comes to seeds vs clones? Thank you Frank
the only reason it seems plausible is because the seed starts out in the grow environment and can build natural resistance to whatever the pest are. but, i dont buy it. and what happens if you take clones of a plant you are growing from seed? it should have the same resistance as the mother. i think its just somebodys opinion that has no basis on facts.
well, say you have a clone somebody gave you, that is not pest resistant, and a seed that the strain is pest resistant but you dont know that. it will make you think that growing from seed is better. but i dont know. your best off finding a mold/bug resistant strain and trying that. do your own experiment and let us know what happens. what works for some doesnt work for others. and if its not broke, dont fix it. perhaps your friend had bad luck with clones and therefore thinks they are inferior. who can say?
I agree with resistance being more related to genetics. On the other hand when using clones pest spread easier which may lead people to believe that seeds tend to handle pests better when in fact your clone may be carrying the pest. Clones are also not chosen always for resistance. Most the time in fact they are chosen for potency. So that is something else to keep in mind. Starting from seed you will receive different pheno's. Can very from pretty damn good to why the hell did I grow this. Starting from clone you know exactly what you are getting into. And that can be extremely important and you can tell in the final product. I am not sure I have grown anything from seed that will match up in potency to a lot of 10/10 (IMO) CLONE ONLY strains (i.e. - pre 98 bubba, og kush (abusive cut), orginal trainwreck (yes I have tried some from seed).
Now I didn't have a big problem last year. Yeah I did have some bugs on my clone but nothing that the soap couldn't handle. Also, I never thought about the outcome of the clones being more potent than the seed. So are you saying its not worth it growing from seed? Or atleast the strains you tried?
Well you have to realize I live in a medical state. High quality clones are easy to find here in California. In states where you may be able to find clones but not the very top of the lines clones it may not be worth it. Seeds have the ability to be stable and potent (depending on the genetics). I just haven't had any match up to my better clones (not saying some couldn't be better just hasn't been my experience). And even with them being stable they are not genetically the same like clones (I still would label a seed as Blue dream #1 or #2 or so on. While a clone would get all bagged together named Blue dream for example). It could be a small difference like in taste or smell or density but that is more difference then I care to risk myself (at least anymore since I have already 2 years now outdoors with seeds and clones and made the decision clones were better for me). And the fact that you can get a dud here and there. Okay now to talk about the problems with clones. People TEND to yield less off clones and this is my theory (pros still grow massive plants from clones and yield 10+ lb off quality genetics). Clones can be hard to get to adjust properly without stunting outdoors. This can totally set you back. Certain genetics are harder to get to adjust. Younger clones tend to adjust better. I am still getting the hang of it myself. Next year I plan on taking advantage of the full 12 immature and 6 mature to hopefully get 6 unstunted studs to get max yield. And maybe even supplemental lighting. In conclusion I am not saying seeds are not worth growing. Not even close. If you live somewhere where you can't find legendary genetics then a seed could be your best bet. There are still quality potent strains out there and for a beginner a seed should be easier to yield more from. You just need to do the research to find them and not be cheap and spend what it takes for quality genetics. Research is the most important though.
I too live in California and plan on spending at least $12 a seed. I might even pickup another clone, last year I bought a clone from the local dispensary and that shit wasn't even rooted like they told me, long story short it grew but did not yield more than a quarter lol the clones in the Bay seem to be better IMO. Thanks for the help man!
Just because the seed is expensive doesn't mean its good. Like I said you should research the strains before hand. Also no on forced you to buy an unrooted clone. A set of eyes can figure out whether something is rooted or not. And even then you don't get much growth out of a clone at first. Not until it gets a decent root system does it blow up nicely. Next time I would recommend buying it earlier and putting it inside if possible under a 18/6 schedule (I work my clones from 18/6 to 16/8 for outdoors and still had problems. Younger clones much much less problems.).
if you want some good seeds, try some jack herer. its a good potent strain. i used GHS and the finished product was nice. other than that, i would say go with a good clone.
Thanks for all the help. I'm already pumped up for next grow season. When is the best time to buy seeds? I know they come and go at my local shop. If I bought them now and started in May, that would be okay right?
well, if you go online, the attitude has some sales every now and then. usually around 420 though. lol. speaking of 420, if you use it as a promo code you get a discount at the attitude. otherwise, whenever you want to buy them. if you see something interesting at the time then get them. lol.
I live in California too and grow seed and clones and make seed. Loss of yield on clones is usually because of where it was cut from not just roots. Lower branches cut for clones usually yield less then growing tops cut for clones. As far as resistance to problems that is mainly due to growing environment. How we contaminate the plant.