Great work keep going bro 
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Thoughts? This is something that has fascinated me since first reading about it YEARS ago in a study on dust bowl survivors. With topics like SATIVA and INDICA are genetically identical I’ve wondered about it more and more.
We now have case studies of mice passing along immunity but without changing the DNA of the pups. 
I’m just wondering … if OLIVE is pampered and coached will her offspring be more attuned to what I visually would call a healthy vigorous version of herself yet still retain her specific genetics?
Strange thing about epigenetics is that often the notable changes are first recognized not in the generation immediately following - but in the grandchildren. Genes are the same - but which ones are turned on or off are different.
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Very interesting to say the least.
I suppose only time will tell, right?
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Genetics or Epigenetics, or both? That’s the right question old Friend.
I’ll probably get some part of this wrong, but…
I don’t think Olive is an epigenetic phenomenon. My guess is that Olive is a unique phenotype with a DNA significantly different than her Hilda pheno sister.
As seedling sisters, both plants share a substantial genetic background, however because the seeds they came from were created via Sexual reproduction, there has been some mixing of genes during the meiosis process and mixing of the sex cells, gametes, from separate parent plants. If you want a real brain twister, Goog “Chiasma!”
Because we know that only XX chromosomes come from both female parents, the seeds will be female, but pretty much everything else is up for grabs.
From the unfathomable genetic scrambles in the Frankenstein polyhybrid, two dominant plant types, phenotypes, have appeared. There may be others that appear as more of these seeds are grown out.
More to the point, Olive is not the slightest bit sickly as a plant. She just grows that way. Olive may prefer one growing environment over another, but she is going to be a tiny wrinkled spinster runt regardless of how she is grown. So far in my “Lab” Olive has grown in dirt, hydro, plain water and nutes, high and low VPD and temps. She doesn’t seem to notice any of those variables.
I am convinced that Olive is a legitimate dwarf pheno and her size and character are genetically determined rather than epigenetics.
If this entire generation of Feminized Frankenstein S1 seeds, from us and others, shows the same ratio of Hilda & Olive we’ll be seeing more of both over time.
Hilda is a big robust plant that is fun and rewarding to grow. Perhaps Olive will find a following among those who seek oddities among the cannabis spectrum. I’m hoping for some beautiful one inch buds and a quarter ounce total yield!
Or… I could be completely wrong! LoL 
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OLIVE is a challenge for me. I know how she grows - I’m just really not a fan and want to do SOMETHING to help her out. I know she’s healthy I can see her roots but her above ground shenanigans drive me right up the wall and I want her to LOOK better. For me it it really is how exactly can you pretty up Shelley Duvall? 
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Made me laugh @BU2B! I know how you like em, big and juicy. 
I think Shelley hit her height in American Graffiti as Carol, the archetypal bratty sister! I guess Olive is sort of a bratty sis…
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A Tale of Three Buds
I’m working daily towards a complicated sequential pollination involving multiple pollen donors and individual branches of female buds as the intended seed mommas.
This is not the time to belabor the schedule and techniques I’ll attempt in that process, but I think it is interesting to compare the flowering Mom plants and the budsites I’ll be dosing with magic dust in a week or two.
First up, is our primary pollen recipient: Frankie’s Eldest Daughter, Hilda-A.
Ten days into flower and waving her tendrils in the wind,
For comparison is our younger Hilda-D, another Feminized Frankestein S-1 seedling, two weeks younger and with a very different bud expression.
To round out the lineup is our Olive phenotype, about the same age as the Hildas but barely a foot tall. Frankenstein’s Runt daughter is forming yet another bud structure. Her first tiny pistils are just appearing.
All these phenotypic variations out of a self-pollinated clone-only hyper poly hybrid strain.
Feminized Frankie pollen collection is going well. I plucked two dozen newly opening male flowers and deposited them into the pollen shaker. The cool thing was that tapping the tool to drop them released a little cloud of pollen down to the sieve for collection. Neat to watch, I’m going to try and take a pic.
This is a slow but interesting way to collect pollen, hat tip to @ReikoX for the original idea.
-Grouchy
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Managing a sequential selective pollination
The stars must be in some fortuitous alignment because all the elements necessary have come together to allow me a shot at hitting every goal we have envisioned for wrapping up this project.
Que Milagro Este!
All the component parts (Tools, Pollen & Flowering Plants) are all here in a big pile, and if my luck prevails we will soon have (Mom x Dad):
- Frankenstein clone x Fem Frankie pollen (selfed Fem S1 seeds)
- Frankie’s Daughter Hilda x Fem Frankie pollen, (BC1 Backcross, Fem seeds)
- Frankie’s Daughter Olive x Fem Frankie pollen (BC1 Backcross, Fem seeds)
- Frankie’s Daughter Hilda x Oger Kush Pollen (Regular F1 seeds)
- Frankie’s Daughter Olive x Oger Kush Pollen (Regular F1 seeds)
- Frankenstein clone x Oger Kush Pollen (Regular F1 seeds)
There’s just the little matter of coordinating all of those nuptials at the right time and in such a way as to avoid any potential cross contamination of pollen hitting the wrong plant. So, yeah.
The “Sequential” part of this involves picking pollination dates for each plant after the buds are ripe & receptive, but soon enough to allow for a full six week seed maturation. At this moment, only one of the three recipient girls is ready.
The “Selective” technique is to put a protective cover over most of the plant during pollination and only expose a branch or two to the magic dust. It also involves color coding the selected branches to keep track of which pollen they have received.
Preventing contamination is the hardest part by far, but I have a plan to handle that.
Today was my first trial run and it went pretty well.
Here’s my first victim, an unsuspecting female Frankenstein clone mother plant. She has been living in the squalid Mom-Plant dungeon since last summer so it’s time for this lonely spinster to achieve multi-motherhood. The two branches with tags at the bottom of the pic are up at bat first.
Her amorous male partner consists of a dose of the reversed Frankie pollen I have been collecting. This dust was gathered over the last few days so it is as fresh as it will ever be. Should be potent!
Here’s my selective pollination tool kit.
- Waterproof tarp to collect stray pollen and washdown water
- Drip tray and rotating platter for the plant to allow dusting from every angle.
- Misc. tape, hand sprayer and various brushes for dabbing pollen.
- Two “Raincoat” bags with slots for a selected branch or two to poke out of for dusting while the rest of the plant is protected from pollen. The black bag spread out is for medium sized plants. The two bamboo sticks go into the soil pot to keep the bag off the plant as much as possible. The large bag on the left rolled up is for Big plants. It has two long bamboo poles inside. Not shown is the small plant bag I’ll be using today.
Here is the reversed pollen-bearing Frankie male plant that I have been collecting pollen from on a daily basis. This whole event is being hosted in my adult Son’s bedroom. I have a “temporary Lease” on the space from my Saintly Spouse.
The blushing CannaBride in her demure wedding apparel. The three week old buds on these two exposed branches were dusted twice, about 20 minutes apart.
I have tried various brushes and the one shown here seems to work best. Just touch the tip gently to the pile to pick up a bit of pollen, then tap and rub gently over the pistils of a single bud. The pollen pile is what was left over, I reckon I used about half. (Hat tip @Bobgrows, for the bitchin rolling tray!)
I attempted to take a trophy shot of pollen actually wafting down onto the wiggly harem of virgin pistils but it failed miserably. I’ll have a bunch more chances over the next few weeks.
DECON
Once the deed was done, I poured myself a glass of jug merlot and retired to the hot tub as a light snow gently performed its own silent powdery dusting of my yard.
My claim is that this outdoor bathing step is an essential decontamination procedure to deactivate any stray pollen on my aging bod. My Saintly Spouse calls it “Just F*ing Off,” which I think is kinda mean spirited! After 40 years with this woman, I’m still misunderstood!
After a couple hours of tipsy decontamination, I re-entered the bridal chamber armed with a spray bottle of tap water to dose every surface in the area with a solid misting. You probably know this already, but moisture is the Deadly Enemy of cannabis pollen. The newly dusted branches and protective bag got special attention to ensure that any remaining pollen was thoroughly soaked.
And then, I started over and did it all again. This plant is going back into the flower room and I want to minimize the chance of accidental pollinations.
When I was satisfied I immediately moved the bagged plant downstairs to dry completely in front of a fan. The final step after Decon, is to remove the bag and take our, hopefully pregnant, but pollen-free, bride back to the flower room to celebrate with the other girls.
Here are before-and-after shots of the same bud. The first was taken right before pollination, the second was the next morning. You can see that the crinkly discolored pistils are already sending those boy-bits down the pipe to waiting ovum. Each pollinated pistil makes a seed.
Virgin Flower
The Morning After An Incestuous Fling)
A little rough and rumpled.
So, all that remains is to do all those steps, perfectly, again, another half dozen times. Stay tuned…
Peace Out,
-Grouchy
[Edit, added: the “Frankie’s Daughter Hilda x Oger Kush” cross. The most likely to achieve stardom IMHO!]
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What an extensive project!
Great work @GrouchyOldMan !
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Coming from a Master Grower like you Bobbi, that is a real compliment!
Gracias Amiga Mia,
-Grouchy 
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Hell yeah. Great write up!
I’m following this closely, as I will be attempting my own first pollination project soon. Accidental pollination is a major concern.
Merlot and the hot tub…yeah, definitely essential decontamination. No f*ing off going on, lol.
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Well, thank you for that!!! Ima gonna tell HER and let you take the flack!
Actually, I don’t call her the Saintly Spouse for nothing. I was smitten the first time I saw her and have never recovered fully.
-Grouchy
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This is so useful, thank you @GrouchyOldMan Do you mean after your extremely important decon, you dusted the two branches again or just the plain water spray down?
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Looks like the walk of shame back home.
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Good question!
I dusted all the buds with pollen and then plucked pollen flowers for awhile before dusting them again and departing to DeCon.
After communing with the snowflakes, I began spraying everything down.
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Beautiful work! Working like a pro! This is something else, indeed.
Pz 
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Thanks, coming from you that is a valued compliment!
-Grouchy
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I especially love the back crosses you made. I found ALOT of awesome plants that way! You are really thinking about this project as a breeder and it’s awesome that you look for alternative opportunities of wonder.
Pz
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Thank you again, but that’s unearned. I’m listening to actual breeders and taking advice that fits what I observe.
Thank you for checking in @LonelyOC, you are one of the frequencies I tune into. 
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I would call these a BC1 (Backcross) not a F1 (Filial).
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