picking males

scoby · Nov 25, 2013

hello
I apologize I looked for a breeding section to post this question but I am having trouble finding it.
I currently have a 38 plants that came from regular seed. I dont plan on doing any pollen spreading at this time but would like to freeze some of the branches from the best looking male for possible future interests in pixie dust. I understand some of the criteria for picking moms but did not know what is a good standard base for picking a male. Seeing that Im not going to have anything analyzed for cannaboid levels, I was going to pick the one that seemed to generate the most pollen sacs and the quickest, and then I would ofcourse keep back branches from the most vigorous male regardless if it made the most and fastest pollen than the others.

In short, my question, is there something else I should be looking for when selecting males?
:thank you:

scoby · Nov 25, 2013

right on, let the nose decide, makes sense, pass down the desirable trait in odor

thanks for the quick response,
ill try to come back with pics of the one I decide to keep as it sacs out and opens

Cool Moe · Nov 26, 2013

for me they've been the ones I woulda sworn were gonna be female but instead turned male. you can tell who is the badass, and they get the hottest ladies. life imitates art imitates botany.

dank.frank · Nov 26, 2013

hollow stems, double serrations, over-lapping petioles, a specific curvature of the leaves directly next to the center fan blade, how quickly they use an measured amount of water vs their siblings, general root health, how fast they are able to clone...do they tolerate stress, smell is huge, is the stem tacky when touched, resin production, vertical branching, internode spacing, general vigor or lack there of, how they behave when root bound / when in drought / low light / over and under feeding / other various stress factors, the amount of pollen they produce given the size of the balls, the shape and location of the clusters and prevalence of them, how quickly they actually begin to flower, how fast do they actually release pollen and for how long,...and more...

Most importantly...how they actually BREED. How do they affect the next filial generation - and for this to really be relevant, you need to be working them to a test mother, that you also understand EXACTLY how she breeds - so that you can actually ascertain what is coming from the male or not...

The list is endless...actually...and that is only if you are selecting randomly and not for a given set of known attributes that are possessed by a specific genetic line, etc...

dank.Frank

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

I'm not really wanting to get into the seed scene, just want to keep some pollen on ice for myself just in-case the laws change. What you say sounds astute to an individual who really knows what is important to breeding. I will keep these things you mention at the forefront of my decision factors
thank u

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

Cool Moe said:
for me they've been the ones I woulda sworn were gonna be female but instead turned male. you can tell who is the badass, and they get the hottest ladies. life imitates art imitates botany.

the one that is the most vigorous...... oh please be a girl

Cool Moe · Nov 26, 2013

scoby said:
the one that is the most vigorous...... oh please be a girl

exactly, dude (looks like a lady). she's your man.

redneck shogun · Nov 26, 2013

For my personal backups I use only one criteria. How strong and pleasant the smell is on a stem rubbing. I know all those other things are useful when you are trying to make a seed line for others but I have found them to be a waste of time unless your numbers are large enough to be able segregate plants to focus on more detail. I like to have diversity even knowing I will have to smoke all the weak plants.

dank.frank · Nov 26, 2013

I will say that even for those looking to make a few personal beans, it doesn't hurt to seek a FEW of these traits in a plant you desire to keep. One or two, doesn't always make a winner. But when you see several of these traits / behaviors stack up, you should really pay attention. The question wasn't name the most important...but rather, generically, what to seek out...I say, if you are going to chuck around some pollen, why not pick the best of what you've got available. Listed a bunch so there is a better concept of how varied what people generally consider indicators or things to seek...

The reality is, your selection is going to be MOST geared towards what your goal is with breeding...and I'll call it that...pollen chucking, whatever...you make seeds, your breeding, by definition...

But, you have to have a goal...a desired outcome you seek - and everyone will select plants they feel will most aptly get them to that outcome. For example, seeking a more sativa dominant high, you are more likely to select for thin leaves, more stretch, longer periods of pollen release, etc. You may have a stinky short stout fat leafed male, but if that is opposite your desired direction / goal, even if he might have been the "better" plant to pick, you are not going to do so, because it is taking the next filial generation a different direction than you desire.

You kind of have to have a bit of a vision of what you want next and what your desired outcome is...that is the first step to ANY selection...and what I'd consider MOST important.

I wasn't trying to be overly technical, as much as I was trying to give a FULL answer.

dank.Frank

chazz michaels · Nov 26, 2013

If you have 38 plants, pick your favourite 2 or 3 males rather than just one.

Elmer Bud · Nov 26, 2013

G`day Scoby

Making seeds is good .
Growing them , then smoking your own creation priceless .

You might want to look into pollen collection and storage . Just sticking a branch in a bag prolly won`t cut it . Pollen is killed by water . So any moisture coming out of male flowers , leaves or stems are all enemies of your pollen .

Thanks for sharin

EB .

chazz michaels · Nov 26, 2013

I was going to say the same thing, but thought he must of known better......

Elmer Bud is correct.

pappy masonjar · Nov 26, 2013

Yeah the pollen must be collected, all flower parts removed, and thouroughly dried before storage.

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

redneck shogun said:
For my personal backups I use only one criteria. How strong and pleasant the smell is on a stem rubbing. I know all those other things are useful when you are trying to make a seed line for others but I have found them to be a waste of time unless your numbers are large enough to be able segregate plants to focus on more detail. I like to have diversity even knowing I will have to smoke all the weak plants.

one thing that has been reoccurring in feedback.... odor
thanks for the input

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

dank.frank said:
The reality is, your selection is going to be MOST geared towards what your goal is with breeding...and I'll call it that...pollen chucking, whatever...you make seeds, your breeding, by definition...
dank.Frank

With all of the ruderlaris and laws floating around I just want to keep some pollen on hand from an advertised 100% indica from a seasoned farm (sensi). I believe genetic lines are becoming more and more crossed everyday, I havent shopped for seeds for over two years and even in that small amount of time Im beginning to see less and less pure landrace strains available on the menu sheets of the biggest distributors of beans, while at the same time seeing more and more new breeders and strains of autos that are available. Photoperiod genetics (clones on market) in my area often times present themselves with duckfeet leaf patterns even well into maturity and I dont care for that as I think the siberian circle species of cannabis is not desireable in my humble opinion, so I just want that pure dust on hand
thank you for y

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

...oppps, hit enter
thank you for the correct and concise information

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

chazz michaels said:
If you have 38 plants, pick your favourite 2 or 3 males rather than just one.

for sure, kinda sux just throwing away one much less a lot of them, especially after spending time with them and seeing how stable they are for the most across pheno, (atleast in veg)

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

Elmer Bud said:
G`day Scoby

Making seeds is good .
Growing them , then smoking your own creation priceless .

You might want to look into pollen collection and storage . Just sticking a branch in a bag prolly won`t cut it . Pollen is killed by water . So any moisture coming out of male flowers , leaves or stems are all enemies of your pollen .

Thanks for sharin

EB .

hello elmer!
I have collected and chucked once before, I let a male go early in a two gal pot under a 400w, the plant finished about 26 inchs tall, as the sacs openend I left a paper skirt around the base of the plant and shaked it every once in awhile to watch the dust fall and cleanly collect on the skirt. The skirt then got folded and the pollen dust slid into a film canister and then in the freezer. That pollen was then successfully used to fertilize a healthy mom at a later date, those seeds were then used for a gorilla, with limited success

Easy7 · Nov 26, 2013

Freezing whole male branches is notthe best way. Too much moisture, and pollen can be damaged in a slow drying. Knocking some pollen into a vial with dry rice, picking out any bannana's that fall in. Then refigerate for a few day too a week (to thoroughly dry the pollen)....then freeze. One dry grain of rice can pollinate many pistals.

Smell is a nice factor in males, if you desire stinky genotypes. Crystal production, yeild of male parts, male part density, coloring, vigor, and nutrient tolerances are all highlighted features.

scoby · Nov 26, 2013

the best i did was use a pair of twizers to easily remove open nanner skins leaving mainly just dust, the film canister did have rice in it. Stuff did what i needed it to do when i needed it, but I will for sure be mindful to strip and preserve the pollen as sterile as can be as to allow the quantity to go farther. Thank you everyone who pointed out not freezing branches, as Ia was going to do lazy man jones pollen preservation, and surely some good ole sensi hindu kush needs to be treated not as such.
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picking males

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chazz michaels

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