When growing cannabis, you have two paths to choose from: seeds or clones. One one hand, seeds are reliable, easy, and accessible. Clones, on the other, are fast, efficient, and carry the exact traits of the mother plant. However, both methods have their downsides. Let's compare seeds and clones so you can decide how to proceed with your grow.
There Are Two Ways To Start A Cannabis Garden—Using Either Seeds Or Clones
For most gardeners, it is faster and easier to work with clones than seeds. Just think of your home garden in a marijuana grow tent. You are much more likely to start with young plants rather than seeds. They are faster and easier to start than it is to germinate seeds. Also, plants of the same variety from seeds can vary in quality, but clones have already been selected and are uniform.
In many states where marijuana is legal or is allowed medical dispensaries sell clones. In Northern California at least, the clone companies produce infection and disease-free clones. If you have access to healthy clones start with them.
If you don’t have access to clones locally, look online where you will find many clone and seed sources that will ship to you. They provide a much wider choice of varieties including fabled strains not available locally. Although ordering seeds is not totally risk-free, the small package is unlikely to be detected because seeds have no odor and are shipped in “normal” envelopes that don’t raise suspicions.
WHAT ARE PLANT CLONES?
Clones are grown from a central plant and are genetically identical to their parent. They are created by taking a cutting from the parent plant. This is usually a piece about several inches long from a healthy branch. That piece of limb, or cutting, is then allowed to grow roots. This is often done by placing the cutting in water until sufficient roots are grown and the plant can be put into a pot with soil or placed in the ground.
The best clones are the ones created from a healthy mother plant. The plant should be fast growing with a strong, and robust root system. It should also generate abundant harvests that are known to produce high-quality buds.
GROWING CANNABIS FROM CLONES
Growing cannabis from clones instead of seeds is done for several reasons. It’s a quicker method of cultivation. The cannabis clone is already germinated and just needs to take root. Growing a plant fast also means economical. Less time spent waiting for the plant to mature means a quicker harvest, and if you are a seller this equates to the faster a product can be marketed.
With a clone, you also have an excellent idea of what the mature plant will turn out like. They are predictable in the quality of the buds they will produce. This is a good thing when it comes time to harvest. You know what kind of cannabis product you will be getting. Another benefit of growing cannabis from clones is if the parent plant has pest resistant qualities so will the clone. A plant resistant to bugs makes for a stronger plant and a better marijuana harvest.
On the other hand, cloning a plant does have a few drawbacks. Plants grown from seeds have the ability to adapt to changes in their environment, and so does each future generation of the plant. This adaptability helps the lineage of the plant be strong enough to grow in different environmental conditions. A cloned plant is exactly the same genetically as its parent and can’t change its own genetics to adapt to a changing environment.
Also, coned plants generally produce a smaller harvest than one grown from a seedling. The clone tends to be a much weaker plant, with a root system that doesn’t grow as strong and deep as the seedling’s does. Another issue may be the parent of the clone may not have had bug and pest resistant qualities in its genetic makeup. This can make the cloned plant susceptible to damaging infestations.
GROWING CANNABIS FROM SEEDS
There are two types of seed strains, stable and unstable. As the name states, a stable seed strain lineage always has the same qualities. The grower or breeder will start with both a male and female plant and breed them until the specific desired qualities are stabilized in the plant. The new plants in the breed’s lineage will have most of the same desired traits, along with a few genetic variations.
An unstable seed strain often produces plants more quickly, but there is no consistency in their traits and quality of their harvests. The plants that do grow are not a reputable strain. Most cannabis dispensaries won’t buy products from plants grown from unstable seed strains.
Cannabis plants grown from stable seed strains are a much healthier plant than ones grown from clones. The seedling has a much stronger root system, starting with a taproot. This is a root that grows vertically downward for a considerable distance away from the seed. It forms a strong anchor that is able to reach rich nutrients deep in the soil. A robust, healthy plant creates a more significant yield of the product. With cannabis seeds, you also have a much greater variety of plants to choose from.
The disadvantages of growing from a cannabis seed include not knowing the specific qualities of the plant until it reaches maturity. Growing a plant from seed takes more time to cultivate. Seeds are very delicate in their early stages of growth and need more skill to grow. When growing a plant from seed, you won’t know if it’s male or female until it’s fully grown.
A female plant grows the flowers or buds, and a male plant creates the seeds. The female is the plant you want for harvesting your marijuana product.
Starting With Cannabis Seeds
Pros:
If you buy your seeds from an established seed bank, than you have a great idea on how your plant will be like in terms of looks, yield, quality, and flowering time.
Cannabis seeds can be discreetly delivered to almost anywhere in the world – you don't need to know a cannabis grower in person or collect bagseed in order to start growing with seeds
You can purchase feminized seeds from a seed bank which means you will get 100% females and don't have to worry about male marijuana plants. Only female cannabis plants produce bud.
You can breed your own seeds by mating two cannabis plants, which gives you a basically unlimited supply of seeds
Seeds give you the best chance of a 'clean slate' which means you plants won't come with any sort of disease or pests
Cons:
Not all seeds will germinate
Old seeds or improperly stored seeds may be slow growing
If using non-feminized seeds, about half of the plants will end up being male, which do not produce buds.
Seeds can take a little more time than clones to get started growing and be ready for harvest, since clones are usually already "mature" and established when you start growing
Costs can add up if purchasing seeds for every grow, and famous strains can cost quite a bit of money per seed
Creating your own seeds will save you monetary cost, but there is still a cost in time (and effort) to cross together two plants to make seeds
Seeds are a good way for many people to start growing because they can be easily purchased off the internet. Where can I safely purchase cannabis seeds?
Sometimes you will find good seeds (bagseed) in marijuana that you have purchased which can definitely be used to start growing. The downside of using seeds that you find is you will have no idea what to expect as far as growth, yields, or size. The bud quality of bagseed is often different from the buds it came from, since it is not a stablized strain. It could be like the bud it was found it, or it could be completely different.
When using unknown seeds, you will need to determine the gender your plants as they are growing to prevent any males from pollinating your females.
Healthy seeds should be dark brown or light grey. If you find seeds which are small and white, they are likely immature and won't germinate properly.
Healthy seeds can be stored in a cool dark place, or your fridge until you're ready to use them(don't freeze them).
Seeds which are kept in a cool, dark place remain viable for years, though after a few years you will notice that they take a bit longer to germinate and you may get a few more duds than with fresh seeds. Seedlings from older seeds can also be really slow growing even if you're giving them perfect conditions. By the way, LED grow lights for seedlings is also important!
Starting With Cannabis Clones
Pros:
Guaranteed gender – if the mother plant was female, the clone will be female too
Clones usually have a head start compared to starting with a seed, since clones are usually already mature and established when you start growing with them. Compared to seeds, clones usually have an overall shorter grow period and therefore will be ready to harvest a bit more quickly.
Clones can be quickly grown into a 'mom' and recloned, for a constant source of new plants. You can clone any plant to create an unlimited amount of plants
Since clones are genetically identical to their mother plant, you know almost exactly what you're getting. Although there is some variance even between clones, they tend to grow much more alike than two random plants.
Rooted clones can be coaxed to flower almost immediately if time or space is an issue
Cons:
Clones can be harder to find compared to seeds – many people don't know a cannabis grower in real life, and seeds are really easy for almost anyone to get due to the availability of online seed banks
If the original grower had any problems with the mother plant (like pests or viruses) then it's possible that the new grower (you) can inherit the same problems from the clone
If you start with a clone that hasn't been well established, it's possible it might unexpectedly die on you, or remain in shock for a long time. When cloning is done incorrectly, it may take weeks of extra care in order for the plant to recover
Newly created clones are more sensitive/picky about lights and nutrients compared to young plants from seed
In order to get clones, you will need to know someone who already has marijuana plants, or you may be able to buy some from your local medical marijuana dispensary if you're in a suitable location and have a recommendation for marijuana from your doctor.
Starting with a clone can save you a couple of weeks compared to starting with seeds because they have a head-start on growth. Using clones also guarantees the gender of your plant because the clones have the exact same genetics as their parent plant including gender.
If you have a female plant that you like, you can just clone her indefinitely to make more plants without ever again having to worry about sexing your plants or creating seeds. Yet you will also end up with the same strain/genetics for every clone you take off the same plant.
If you're starting out with a clone, you want to treat it gently for the first day or two that you have it. If your clone hasn't established roots yet, then you want to make sure that it stays moist and gets gentle light (like from florescent tubes) until it develops some roots. A humidity dome will help the plant get moisture until she's established her roots.
If your clone has already established its roots, then put it in its new home with your lights a bit further away than normal until she's settled in and showing new growth.
Only give your clone just a little bit of water at first with a highly diluted cannabis-friendly "grow" nutrient solution.
It's tempting to want to put your lights close to the new baby and give it full-strength nutrients because you want to do everything you can to make sure it does okay.
However, in the very beginning, less is more for your clone. Your clone is more sensitive to heat and light than an established plant, and you're putting it in a completely new environment. What's more, if you are a beginner, a full spectrum LED grow light can be your great choice!
It's important to check on your clone frequently during it's first 24 hours to make sure there isn't any unforeseen problems such as it tipping over. Once the clone has started really growing (usually after a couple of days) then you can put your lights closer and start feeding it with full-strength nutrients.
CLONES OR SEEDS — WHICH IS BETTER FOR GROWING CANNABIS?
Honestly, the answer is entirely subjective. It all boils down to the personal preferences and skill of the grower. Beginners will have a much easier time—and see better results—using seeds. Clones are more tricky, and best reserved for slightly more experienced growers. However, veteran growers will also choose seeds for breeding purposes, or to see plants through from start to finish.
As with everything in the world of growing, experimenting will enable you to find your own way of doing things. Try both and see what works best for you and your growing style. Good luck!