Israel, and Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Picture of the IBLs growing in a shorter photoperiod in the greenhouse to induce flowering performed by RCK.
At our breeding station in Kibbutz Ruhama, Israel, we’re working hard to develop short-day cannabis F1 hybrids for the professional market. Utilising an advanced, climate-controlled greenhouse and the science-based expertise of RCK, we’re continuing the expansion of our F1 hybrid seeds range.
This programme focuses on seed-propagated varieties with specific traits, such as high cannabinoid content, greater flower yield, pathogen resistance, and unique terpene profiles.
Short-Day Breeding: Genetic Selection
Our current breeding cycle concentrates on genetic pools from two different sources. The first comprises advanced true Inbred lines with a high homozygosity level, which RCK has been developing for several years. Additionally, we’ve included several of last season’s S1 cultivars to increase genetic diversity. Splitting the genetic pools allows for a greater selection of desirable traits, which can then be passed to our F1 hybrid varieties.
However, professional breeding requires careful handling and meticulous planning. To ensure future development, we recently took cuttings from the mother plants. This step is crucial in our process, as it allows us to self-pollinate the best examples from each round of breeding. The harvested cuttings are currently rooted in trays, where they’ll remain until pollination and seed production.Short-Day Breeding: Collecting Data
In the meantime, we catalogue the IBLs at the end of their vegetative phase. During this stage, we collect phenotyping data, identifying which plants show a superior phenotype and which ones should be discarded. In addition, we move all of the mother plants to the next module of the greenhouse to induce flowering.
Once in the flowering stage, plants are grown using a shorter photoperiod, with larger growing tables and lower plant density. Using this configuration, we can see the full potential of each genotype during cannabis’ most crucial stage.
The Future of Our Short-Day-Bred F1 Cannabis Hybrids
Despite the challenges of developing F1 hybrid cannabis seeds, our breeding programme for short-day varieties is progressing successfully.
By partnering with RCK, we’re capturing the best examples of desirable phenotypes and carefully cataloguing them to ensure we meet the needs of the industry. With many more potential IBLs, we’ll continue selecting and developing new F1 hybrid varieties throughout the coming seasons.
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