This time, I’m entering in a concept built over a bunch of various failures. And it’s all about this : being able to isolate with pragmatism what belong to a tactical errors (breeding plan), what belong to a strategical errors (lead breeding) and what belong to the inherent chaos of life (jah). For the better, and the worse.
It’s a philosophical part of breeding that can have practical impacts, on your proper evolution at one point.
This section is all about my personal vision on how to integrate the chaos in your kung fu.
The concept
It’s not so a mystical point in fact but more the integration of the chaos falling in your dirty hands.
The banner of this section ally twos opposites concepts than become complementary in practice :
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The inherent randomization of the DNA, quite symbolized by the Chaos Theory formula. It’s almost the equation of evolution. The dynamic of the rise of the population (of factors) being interconnected with its randomization. It’s also used in music, genetic researches, ballistic … and all domains where “subject n+1 = factor n+1”.
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The balance of unlucky and lucky shots balance that mostly tend to “a purpose to decypher”. It’s where my use of “Jah” find its place, to never forget my part of responsability but also to best handle what can’t be controlled with accurate selections and mappings.
The utility of this is to keep a lighthouse’s beam inside the mist. It require some experience and some plant’s lessons, but the earlier you able to identify what belong to your duties and what belong to the battlefield, the better.
When I started to inbred the ST#3 a while ago, i was aware of the constraints to inbred a BX3 (duty). But I was under evaluating the number of parallel lines to maintain such accuracy in terps (Jah).
As well that a dominant “bubblegum” flavors on the late, popping from the selective pressure (duty->Jah). I finally traded the line when i was no longer able to work on it (humble lab).
It’s not selling determinism at this point, but the necessity to handle an ambivalent manner to manage the big picture. It is more the cascading consequences of any seed you’re germinating than Jah on your shoulder writing a personalized journey for your ugly face.
To romanticize it, i will say that Jah in this concept represent the avatar of your evolutive potential. It’s under your influence yes, but as the chaos agent you’re representing in the equation.
It helped me many times to “breed the breeder”, i hope it will help to find better concepts.
The practice
It will ask a bit of abstraction to understand the equation as a whole, but i will present it progessovely to higlight the critical dynamic.
For the introducing example, it’s quite an universal case study. A line bred for its good grow and the relative quality of the weed. Basic farming.
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It concern most of stoners growing their own, whatever it is. We are a majority to choose a dank weed that grow well, as the fundation of the standard.
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Unfortunately, today it concern also a bunch of little labels with a destructured offer. The lack of understanding also about “white labeling” something. Sometimes it’s just better for the cycle of sales to operate multiple labels specialized by pollen donor, as a seedbank (yes, even little and even one-man-army).
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It represent also the pivot point where you can fall definitively in breeding if you followed the right lanterns, those giving results.
So yeah, basically it’s a context of phenohunt that concern everyone. Motherplant to smoke or outcross of a cutm… doesn’t matter.
Among the rounds (in blue), the genotype will breathe. It inspire the ecosystem + its own genetic production, it expire phenotypes.
They are not equal in the chaotic ladder just because it’s impossible. Not flowered the same month, not the same season temps/rh (even indoor), not the same mood of the farmer … we have all our shamefull rounds and stellar ones engraved in mind lol Factors are infinites just like any ecosystem.
The white dots represent your true responsability as a breeder in term of will and operational decisions.
It take in count the case when the only one specimen saved from a 100+ germination is just fire and better than expected, in the last white dot at right.
It take also in count the case when the pairings extracted are antagonist. The round 1 & 2 boost the growth performances of the genotype. The round 3 drastically improve the flowers from R2 generation, where the R4 balance this.
It’s more close to the real evolution of a line trought a true breeding program, in our hobby. “Jah deciding what will be the journey/reward”.
This is the next step after the popular phenohunting.
On this example, a selection based on the final product only : aromas, floral mass and trichome coverage.
At first you’re hunting a shape prone to produce a given weed. By the dynamics of chaos and how Jah will push you to adapt, rounds will constantly generate new influences on the selection.
To get more grip on what is making the soul of the weed, ït’s necessary to define the phenotypes by an accurate and justified evolution directly, with the traits.
Trait 01 : Trichomes
Many ways that can have each its own influence, and that’s the concept : answering to the chaos with the chaos.
The line can be simply germinated massively, pushed directly in 12/12. Only the most crystalized female is pollinated with its closer brother in term of shape and timing.
If the will come a flaw of the line (lack of trichs), better to map the most powerfull limiting factor : nutes uptake, photosynthesis, root mass type, flowering time … to find the perfect antagonist to inject.
It can also be a simple hash making stat …
The quantitative screening will be powerfull to directly find a compromise or a reference. The chaos being more patterns and nuances to decypher at a time during all the growth. Jah watching when you launch it and in wich conditions.
The reverse-engineering isn’t anymore in the intensity of what make a good pheno. But more on the blueprint of the leverages of the pheno.
- Are the most crystallized pheno the more rich in lemonene ?
- Are the fattest pheno smelling lemon as well ?
Etc … it’s all about mapping the concern.
The hash maker way also have it’s on randomization. What are the densities of screens used ? Dry or wet process ? How the grade is decided ? Yield by the raw-wet-weight of trichomes, that push to mature a lot the plants, or Yield for a certain grade of screen, that ask a more fine date of harvest ?
Adapt this to any additional trait you want, but interconnected with each others.
Now, the more we look closely the more we see imperfections.
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This pheno smelling like a green lime just cut, totally lack of yield but is well covered (2/3).
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This pheno that shine like a disco ball isn’t very potent but taste citrus fruits, is covered and fat. (3/3 + compromise).
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It’s the first time this line is selected in winter, and generate the discover that the line was so herm rightly triggered by cold. (Jah 1 / You 0)
The more you’re settings complex breeding plans that are not based on previous rounds, the more you cry your mother that nothing happens like supposed.
It’s important to understand this duality fast and early. “Calm big picture” and “rushy magnifying”, in being used to travel between the both perspectives for the decisions.
But also to include the progressivity in the planning. You don’t reach the peak of trichomes production the same way on a WW and on a Sensi Star.
So over to hunt a kind of unicorn grouping a ton of compromises, why not hunting traits instead and to include a dose of breeding to handle this.
On an IBL you can choose what you work from one gen to another, nobody say that you have to work all at a time. You can have three inbred lines of the same strains dedicated to yield, lemon and trichomes. Or a line that you work alternatively on each trait. What will make the real difference in the grade of the genetic isn’t the way you handle it, but the level of the standards you set before choosing the approach.
Any way taken, it’s also important to understand that the goals and that the operator are sources of randomization. A progressive breeding plan that can be adapted will preserve the more competitive trait of your lab : the constancy.
Learning curve and breeder's evolution
It’s a true mystery in the kingdom of the padawans for me. They all want to know this hardly, but are never happy with the answer lol After 5 privates padawans (2 professionnalized) under the belt and many meetings in the game … i can insure it’s crazy regular, no matter how much the ego dislike it.
The diagram is showing an intermediary step happening after the first predictables results. Only to reach this step is a journey. But if you read this wiki, you have the compass to reach this step organically with a rational lead breeding.
In Green, the comfort zone.
It’s a competitive asset and a trap at a time. It concern the strains you’re really mastering (in you genpool or not).
Don’t search to identify this if you’re a fresh meat. Because it’s a no-brainer answer with a momentum dedicated to evolve. You will know it fast enough, generally it take only two seasons of breeding (full priority) to discover it.
You can’t grow them all. So you have to listen the hunger of your soul to find the best starting point.
Only think about what you have smoked in your entire life, even if you find it too restricted. There is weeds we never forget and that unconsciously build for good the “cannabreeder” we can become.
With mileage, zero comfort zone mean that someone fisted your opportunities. It’s a clear invitation to change the way you’re educating yourself on strains, but alsojhow you reward he farmer you are with your favorite plants.
With mileage and awareness, it’s a zone where you can fall again for different reasons. It’s way faster to leave, but one time you catch back the vibes only.
Let’s digress a bit. I talk often with nostalgia and respect about my industrial period, over the destructive leverage it was to piss fems night and day.
When you enter in the industry, there is no place for gas lighting lol It’s all about your reliability if you’re aiming a new social ladder financially. If not, sincerely join a collective. For yesterday.
When it’s all about how many decent catalogs you can generate per season, the success is more addictive than any popularity. Even if you’re a stray dog like me. It’s the direct valorization not of your work, you don’t give a shit it’s cheap pizzas, but of your methodism. And each time you get a niche-edge on the competition, it’s getting worse.
And it’s how you’re falling in looping status quos that cryogenize your evolution and make starve your soul.
It took me one germination to leave the zone (instead 2 years for a fresh meat in general), but to get back my soul feeded by the mileage, it took me over 5 years and many tries to process with objectivity what consumed the soul. Spoiler : ego. Always this shit when you have a limiting problem in breeding lol
In Yellow, the battlefield.
It’s where the battles happens. Victories and defeats, and their cycles. Repros of everything not yours can be counted here also, some defeats can take years too lol
The fresh meat should love by obligation this groovy space. But smartly, in sorting the bigger challenges like seedlings.
The dusty belts should keep a minimal “pain in the ass” works inbetween the inbred lines.
Both with some sense of chaos and a backward on how Jah can make it a joke lol
In Red, the exploits.
It’s exactly where you’re the most punished when you have a lack of methodism. And not lightly :
When you succeed, you don’t know why and how to do it again. When you fail, it’s the same problematic.
But it’s not only a punishing zone, it’s supposed to be the next comfort zone in the list. Each time you will hit this roof, the floor below your feets will elevate a bit more and give you more chances to evolve.
Typically it’s the damned COB i sourced last year. It was just a cheap white label line that don’t offered what was sold, a given expected weed, but just a solid growth and sexual stability. Enough qualities for today to test the roof in increasing drastically the potency.
The chances that i close a fixed parralel line this way are lows, but in being used and trained to differenciate the context from my flaws, it’s at worse a training session on a type of hybrid planned to be worked deeply. Even a neutral balance is enough justified to hit again the roof.
Now the thing that the fresh meat always miss is the manner to hit the roof. In mixing R&D and risky production.
You can’t expect an exploit if you don’t innovate somewhere in the process with a high delta of risk. Why doing the same thing that usual will harvest more that the comfort zone already do ?
R&D is there to feed the evolution, and to constitute refined tools for refined works. Not to make them easier, but sharper and specialized. And to sweat blood lol, don’t dream. Competitivity is mainly based on what can’t do the others on a regular basis.
With cannabis breeding, I’m now firmly convinced that strangely the best ballistic is this damned red line, the exploits. As the starting point when you don’t know shit but as the end game as well.
Inbetween, it’s the constitution of your methodology. Based on the exploits you’re hunting and have hunted. Never forget the ambivalence of a breeder : it’s a farmer and a stoner as well. Mastering a line as a farmer is not the same thing than mastering the line literally.