Preserving genetics ... the easy way?

What’s up IC?

Life and work has brought me to Chicago, and we are currently in a 2 bed condo without much space (cost of living here is insane). I’ve got a TON of genetics from ACE and other breeders that are getting old but I only have a small grow cab 18”Lx16”Dx36” h with a HLG-100 LED.

I really need to do some seed runs before these genetics lose viability as some of these were purchased from ACE probably 7-10 years ago (kept dry in cold storage).

We are talking Golden tiger, Zamaldelica, Malawi, OTH, PCK, benghi haze, Nepal jam and others too.

I’m seriously considering just putting 6 beans in 6 solo cups and flipping them to 12/12 and let them just pollinate each other freely.... a full blown seed run.

Think this is even pheasible? I can just chop them and tie them back , cut the crap out of them to keep them low enough. Not sure how well it will work out, it might end up being a nightmare of a mess lol

Then the other concern is cross contamination from one seed run with one strain to the next, the walls are lined with Mylar, Would I need to rip all that down between runs and wipe everything down?

Just trying to figure out my best course of action on how to handle this.

TIA!

I flower seedlings very early in 20oz cups all the time. It's the best way to get the most seedlings into whatever amount of space you have, I totally recommend it.

Whether you can open pollinate each and every seed batch you have is another question. Some may be suitable, others might not. If I was you, I'd start every single seed I have from each batch. Not all your seeds at once, just all of the ones from each batch, and go through the batches one by one. I'd rather look at all the seedlings than just 6. It's important to see all the plants in order to see what kind of variation(s) are possible within that batch. Also, it's common for there to be 'needy' or weak plants. In that case, you really want to 'rogue' or remove them from the pool as opposed to letting them open pollinate. Having enough seedlings to recognize and eliminate needy plants will really make a difference in later generations.

Also, I'd consider moving the males to a windless room with a window and using the paintbrush method instead of letting the fans do the work. You'll still get plenty of seeds from even a few lower buds, and with the paintbrush you can leave some top flowers sensi so you can sample and test.

Great input, thanks for that. So you are saying pop all ten (if I have packs of ten) of one type, then pick the best six?

Also, I have done the paintbrush method with males so I understand that, but how am I supposed to spread the male pollen evenly? I don’t have the space to get into selecting phenotypes right now and I won’t be able to pre-sex many of these because they are tall sativas and I have limited height to work with so I need to go 12/12 from seed. I get what your saying about picking the best six plants (maybe four females and best two males.?) ... but that requires vegging them until they show preflowers... which can be up to a month. These Sativas will be monsters in that time and completely overrun the cab....

On that note, if I have two males, would I simply mix the pollen then dust every female with the pollen mix?

pop all ten (if I have packs of ten) of one type, then pick the best six?

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Yeah, but some might have more than six good ones, others might have less. Just saying I'd want to see all of each together and decide.

that requires vegging them until they show preflowers

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I think you can just put most plants under 12/12 soon after they go into the 20oz cups and never mind waiting for pre flowers. It's true that some tropical sativas are more likely to have hermie flowers if you try to flower them early, but I'd still try.

would I simply mix the pollen then dust every female with the pollen mix?

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Yeah, that's exactly what I do. It's kind of like progeny testing the males in a sense. You won't know which male was the father of the most select plants, but it really doesn't matter as long as you get some!

Welcome OZZ

Glad to hear you are thinking to germinate your old ACE packs before they start to lose their viability.
Honestly, considering your small indoor space i don't think it's worth to breed there unless producing seeds from them is a must.

All the strains you comment are still available and some have been greatly improved in the last years, Golden Tiger (2013,2014), Malawi (2014), Nepal Jam (2014, 2017 and 2019), Bangi Haze (2015,2016), etc .... so i don't think is a must to sacrifice a cycle to produce seeds from these strains when you can get fresh improved stock from us for a fraction of time and cost that will take you make a whole seeded indoor cycle.

If i were you, i would do a sinsemilla grow with the smaller strains, like PCK, Nepal Jam or even Bangi Haze.
Try to keep clones of the ones you like the most, that would the best and easiest way to preserve the best genotypes you have found in your old seeds.