What is polyploid cannabis?
Regular cannabis strains are “diploid” which means they have 2 sets of matching chromosomes. These strains are referred to as 2n.
Polyploid cannabis (polyploid weed) is any cannabis plant with more then 2 sets of matching chromosomes. These plants are referred to as 3n, 4n, 5n… etc depending on the number of matching chromosomes.
Diploid
2n
(Regular Cannabis)
Triploid
3n
(Seedless Cannabis)
Tetraploid
4n
What is NOT a polyploid
This is a picture of fasciation in cannabis. This can be caused by many factors however this is not a phenotype of polyploid cannabis.
This is a picture of regular cannabis. It has three leaves per node and is commonly misdiagnosed as triploid cannabis. Triploid cannabis produces two leaves per node like normal cannabis strains.
The only way to know for sure that you have a polyploid is to perform flow cytometry on leaf material to determine the amount of genetic material in the cells. Alternatively, you can use a microscope to look at the stomata and count the density. Polyploids generally have fewer but larger cells leading to decreased density of stomates.
What are the benefits of polyploidy?
Various independent research papers have explored the effects of polyploidy on cannabis. These papers concluded that polyploidy can lead to the following phenotypic changes;
-Increased cannabinoid concentration
-Increased Yields
-Seedless Strains
-Quicker Finishing
We have conducted research on polyploidy and found that tetraploid cannabis can finish up to 20 days earlier then similar diploids. The tetraploid “Higher Education” was ready to harvest at day 48 compared to the slower finishing diploid that was harvested at day 68.
Total Tetraploid Life Cycle
62 Days
includes veg
5.88 cycles/year
Total Diploid Life Cycle
82 Days
includes veg
4.45 cycles/year
More cycles per year with the same yield in terms of gram/day, creates less time between cleaning cycles leading to increased cultural controls.
Shortened cycle times also decreases the time pathogens and pests have to reach critical levels.
How do we make polyploid cannabis?
We exploit the natural mechanism of cell division.
In normal cell division the plant doubles it chromosomes to then create two new cells with identical chromosomes. For the production of polyploids we exploit this doubling of chromosomes to create two cells, one cell with twice the normal number of chromosomes and one cell with no chromosomes.
Creating Seedless Triploids
To create triploids we take an elite tetraploid and an elite diploid strain and cross them to generate new triploid strains. Triploid strains produce 99% less seeds compared to diploids saving growers from losses due to unintentional pollination.
