The Risks and Benefits of Growing Hermaphrodite Cannabis Weed: What You Need to Know

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Cannabis farming is a growing trend in the United States, with some people growing the plant for personal use while others embrace the practice as agribusiness.

Understanding hermaphroditism in marijuana plants is fundamental for growers focused on comprehending the plant and gaining from it. That is because hermaphroditism is something that cannabis cultivators will encounter at some point in the farming process.

Therefore, it pays to learn how to identify and deal with hermaphrodite weed plants so that they don't destroy your crop. This article majorly explores the risks and benefits of growing hermaphrodite cannabis. If you don't know what to do with hermaphrodite cannabis, read on to find out.

What Is a Hermaphrodite Cannabis Plant?

Like most plants on earth, cannabis produces male and female inflorescences on different plants. This feature is biologically referred to as dioecy. It means that cannabis requires a plant of the opposite sex to pollinate and reproduce. However, there are rare cases when a plant naturally has both male and female inflorescences forming on the same plant. Such plants are botanically defined as hermaphrodites.

How Does Hermaphroditism Occur?

Hermaphroditism, scientifically referred to as monoecism, may occur genetically or as a result of the environment in which the plant grows. A recently held study revealed several other types and causes of cannabis hermaphroditism. Let us delve deeper into those reasons.

Genetic Hermaphroditism

This is the most common cause of weed hermaphroditism. Research shows that cannabis was originally a monoecious plant which has evolved into a dioecious type as it tried to adapt to climatic changes and stabilize its gender. Most cannabis varieties contain hermaphrodite genes in a recessive state and may not display these signs. Nonetheless, they may pass the genes to their offspring. An example of a cannabis strain prone to hermaphroditism is Thai sativa.

Environmental Stress Hermaphroditism

Environmental stress-related hermaphroditism happens through natural adaptation when a female plant lacks male androgens in the environment and develops the male organs to self-pollinate. Such a plant's emergence in your grow room is negative since it can quickly ruin your crop, but it is actually weed's survival tactic.

Crop-Induced Stress

When a cannabis strain is used to particular climatic conditions and then moved to a different environment, it may experience stress. For example, pure Afghani strains require low amounts of water to thrive, so when this variety is grown in a rainy environment, they display hermaphroditic tendencies. Overusing fertilizers, pesticides, mechanical stress, photoperiod interruptions, excess heat, changes in soil PH, and lack of proper nutrition also induce crop stress, causing the plant to mutate.

Seed Manipulation

Plants can undergo stress naturally or when imposed by the grower. Certain compounds can reverse the plant's sex. When some ethylene is applied to the plant, it suppresses the production of male inflorescences and increases the growth of the female ones. The process is called seed feminization.

Hermaphroditism through Ripening

90% of commercially grown cannabis strains often experience this transition. When the plant is nearly dying and has not yet been fertilized, it creates male flowers to self-pollinate and extend its lifeline. Most sexually stable females endure stress throughout their lifetime but start exhibiting hermaphroditic signs as they age.

How to Identify a Hermaphrodite Cannabis Plant

A hermaphrodite cannabis plant can ruin an entire harvest of buds by releasing pollen and fertilizing the female flowers, thus producing seeds instead of resinous buds. Hence, hermaphrodite cannabis plant identification is a vital part of the farming process.

Some plants start revealing signs of hermaphroditism as soon as they enter the flowering stage by developing both male and female flowers on the same or different branches. These are called true hermaphrodites. Other plants develop hermaphroditism towards the end of their late-blooming cycle. It mainly occurs as the plant tries a final attempt at pollination before it dies. In the bloom phase, the female plant grows the male stamen and self-pollinates. These plants are referred to as bisexual rather than hermaphrodites.

The Benefits and Risks of Hermaphroditism

Cannabis farming research indicates that there are several advantages of dual-sex cannabis plants. Here are the benefits of growing hermaphrodite weed:

• Hermaphrodite hemp is remarkably resilient. Cannabis plants mostly evolve into hermaphrodites to survive harsh environmental conditions. They are also resistant to stress.
• Hermaphrodite variants produce more harvest since they have a richer and more intense flower production, making the variant more profitable. They have a better crop yield because a higher percentage of the pollen falls on the pistils, unlike with dioecious plants, where the wind carries away most of the pollen.
• The variant is environmentally friendly since the pollen, which is a common allergen, doesn't fill the air. Thus, pollen dispersion and reception are highly efficient.
• These plants are highly unlikely to crossbreed with other strains and variants, thus maintaining the genetic purity and fitness of the plant's lineage.

On the other hand, there are disadvantages to growing this type of weed. Data shows cannabis crops from feminized seeds are unstable and incredibly dangerous to a commercial weed farm. Industrial cannabis farmers are unwilling to incur such financial losses. Smokers also don't want to have hermaphrodite plants since they are suitable for producing seeds, not buds. Thus, growing hermaphrodites makes it a loss-making endeavor for farmers.

How to Deal With Hermaphroditism in Cannabis

As a cannabis farmer, you should now know the signs of hermaphrodite cannabis and understand what to do when you spot them. Don't be afraid of the hermaphrodite hemp because if you choose good quality cannabis seeds, the chances of encountering a true hermaphrodite are low. Avoiding bisexual plants is within the farmer's control, although sometimes things can go out of hand. If you end up with hermaphroditic crops and do not want to continue farming them, it is vital to act fast to prevent the rest of the plants from pollinating. However, if you choose to continue with the hermies, you can remove the pollen sacs, cut off the plant, or harvest weed early. You can also read more about cannabis hermaphrodite signs here for more insights and tips.

In Conclusion

Hermaphroditism allows cannabis to adapt to harsh conditions and changes in the environment. Even though it is a positive feature of wild-growing cannabis, farmers don't benefit from hermaphroditism. As long as you know what causes hermaphroditism, you can apply preventive measures early enough. On the bright side, hermaphroditism has saved a lot of hemp varieties from extinction through adaptation.

Tia Moskalenko, this article's author, is a seasoned writer at AskGrowers who has a long-term experience in the cannabis industry. She is an excellent interviewer who has worked closely with many weed brands and knows much about the best cultivation practices.

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