Is it just me? Rant

Smoker's Lounge
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I do not think it is. In fact, I think I was invited here by a buddy after I was done ranting about this very thing.

Maybe a LOT of you feel this way?

The state of the strain/varietal world gives me anxiety.

Most basically, I’m frustrated that – with millions of seed vendors out there – I cannot go buy, say, 5 genuine seeds of a legit Acapulco Gold. Or a legit Blue Dream. Or GDP.

Instead, I’ll get a lot of versions. Which is fine, I guess. I appreciate that many of these things simply aren’t available anymore, and I appreciate any grower’s attempts to recreate a copy. Done.

Until I just want a legit version of the basic classic.

Here’s a similar kind of thing: I love Gary Payton, ok? Got some great help here a few weeks ago finding what look to be legit vendors. Great. But what’s odd? Finding a simple, legit Gary P. is HARDER than finding all sorts of random Gary crosses.

My brain says: okay, great. Happy we all continue to innovate. But can we NOT forget about the original, ffs? We don’t have to ONLY get caught up in this hysterical crossing frenzy – we could do that while at the same preserving some really great, basic, classic, undisturbed Garys.

That’s just one example. My point is, there needs to be a cannabis store – seeds AND flower, retail AND online – that will ALWAYS have 50 percent of its flower and seed offerings to be classic, undiluted, perfect varietals.

That way, people can try doing their own crosses – or not.

The other 50 percent? Go nuts with your crosses, man. I love them too. Sometimes.

It seems like a bunch of hyperactive, impatient kids who can’t focus were in charge of the industry for the last 10 years and, in their unbridled excitement, somebody fucking let some plants die. :frowning:

What I want are some great, basic, reliable, legitimate varietals that never go away. There is zero reason that we should have to collaborate like detectives to find something that should be READILY AVAILABLE.

Can you even imagine a big wall of beautiful options that include (on PERMANENT offer) Durban Poison, Jack Herer, GDP, Northern Lights, Acapulco Gold, Columbian Red, Sour Diesel, Kush, Skunk #1, Gelato and GSC. . .and another wall of the very best crosses out there?

Someday, I want to start that as a cannabis cafe.

Final edit: it’s not that I’m a Male Karen or Fist Shaking Old Man. It’s not the retail lack of selection that gives me anxiety. The anxiety stems from the thought that some genetics will be – or already have been – lost forever.

/rant

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I haven’t grown their beans YET, but i have several of breeder Alter Ego’s strains.
This place SoCal Seed Vault has many F2s of these classics you list.

https://www.socalseedvault.com/store/index.php?search_query=Alter+ego&orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=Alter+ego&submit_search=&controller=search&n=35

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A rose by any other name would smell as sweet… but yeah I get your point, where the hell did Orange Roughy and Corromandel Gold go? you cant get them even in NZ!

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You seem to want clones rather than seeds.

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That is why I’m happy to see the Landrace threads here with people doing exactly that, keeping the originals original. I think it is a noble effort.

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I’d agree with this.

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Yep, and there’s 100% nothing wrong with wanting that either imo. Would make for a nice collection of the classics.

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Yes, Gary Payton is a phenotype of Gelato. It’s not available as seed, at least not true “Gary Payton”. You should look into getting some good cuts.

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There is a lot to unpack with that.

  1. I agree I’d love some originals/untainted genes. But leap frogging cuts through time is a rough challenge. Also keeping a cut of something just lessens the health of it over long periods of time causing genetic drift.

  2. All those old school beloved genetics unless tested can also be culprits of HPLVD that have been traveling all over to people’s gardens.

It’s a sound idea in my eyes but crossing to like gene pools and refreshing a line seems more effective over the long haul OR someone/company very versed in tissue culture. It’s definitely going to be a more prevalent part of the future in my eyes.

With that said someone find me a legit Maui Wowie to work with would you? :laughing:

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Most popular strains are crosses.

GDP is a cross (purple urkle x big bud)

Gary Payton is a cross.

Blue dream is a cross.

Even old classics like NL5 or black dominant are crosses.

There are very few popular strains that are pure landraces AFAIK.

So it seems you love the crosses as much as we all do! lol

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((poly hybrid X poly hybrid) x (poly hybrid X poly hybrid)) x ((poly hybrid X poly hybrid) x (poly hybrid X poly hybrid)) for life

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Okay, fair! :slight_smile: lol Maybe I’m not using the correct terms or explaining myself well but maybe you still get my point! :slight_smile:

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great answer and all great points. thank you for the explanations

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Interesting, maybe so. What makes you say that? Just curious!

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This is golden, BW. Thank you!

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Because then you will get exactly what you are looking for, just use good sources.

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Pacific Seed Bank has a Mowi Wowie, Maui Wowie Seeds | Maui Wowie Strain Seeds
No idea how “pure” it is :slight_smile:
Cheers

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Not even that. All of these cuts are “Clone-Onlys”. There is no seed line for these. No male Gary Payton to cross to the Gary Payton cut to “keep it pure”. Same with Blue Dream. There is technically a seedline for GDP but gonna be hard pressed to find it. That’s why there are all these crosses of them and not pure lines.

The old old classics like Acapulco Gold and whatnot, are basically gone. There’s been a bit of resurgence but hard pressed to find what you may remember from way back then. The landrace area’s have been flooded with modern and/or dutch genetics, because they perform better.

You also have the fact that most of the major breeders are moving along with “what people want”, or the majority of people anyways, most of whom don’t know anything. Hence Cookies et al everywhere.

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There’s also the task of maintaining stable lines in seed form… either you have stock that will sit or you inbreed to the point you have to outcross to keep it stable and productive. Both can provide extra challenges but I’m sort of piggybacking on rhais answer

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I grew a “Columbian Gold” from them, 1 star. It is a really harsh smoke IMO and doesn’t have the beautiful fragrance of the original. I grew it outdoors and it produced well though.

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