Do you have a male or female cannabis plant growing?

To be able to consume tasty weed, you prefer not to grow male plants. Sometimes it is interesting to grow a seed you find in your weed or to grow with regular seed that has not been feminized. Then it is important to know what a male or female cannabis plant is and how to recognize it. It is often difficult for novice growers to distinguish a female plant from a male plant. There are several pictures and videos on the internet and on our website, where you can see the specific characteristics of male and female plants. I will also do my best to explain it to you.

Female cannabis plant

Only the female cannabis plant produces flowers that we know as a weed bud or a nug. The flower top of the plant has the function of making seeds. A top of a female cannabis plant is made up of seed sacs, the calyxes. If you only grow female cannabis plants and they are not pollinated with pollen from male cannabis plants, they will not produce seeds.

The plant's mechanism is to take up the pollen with its sticky trichomes, also known as resin glands. It is not for nothing that the truss with seed bags, our beloved buds, contain the highest concentration of trichomes. The amount will only increase because she wants to do everything, she can collect pollen. Since the female weed plant is not pollinated, it is possible to grow large thick flower buds.

Her survival instinct is so great that she makes her flowers swell as much as possible and start producing trichomes. She is even able to make seed without being pollinated, the Bag seed.

The later you harvest her, the more likely she is to make a seed. The trichomes of the female cannabis plant contain most of the active substances such as THC, THCV, CBD, CBN, CNC, etc., the cannabinoids. They also contain the most terpenes, which produce the fragrance and aroma of flower buds. The male plant produces hardly any or no trichomes and therefore much less terpenes and cannabinoids.

How can you recognize a female cannabis plant?

Until the plant starts flowering, it is very difficult to determine the sex based on its appearance. It is best to look at the leaf axils at the branches on the stem and trunk. As the days shorten and flowering begins, two white hairs grow in the leaf axils. Then you know that you have a female cannabis plant. These can be seen earlier than the flower hairs at the ends of the branches where the tops are eventually formed.

Male cannabis plant

The male cannabis plant does not produce flowers but is essential for the survival of cannabis plants. When a female plant begins her flowering process, the male plant will produce clusters with small balls. This is where pollen develops. When the balls burst open, the pollen is released as a cloud of dust. It is carried by the wind to pollinate the female plant. The pollen influences bud formation and resin production in female plants.

After pollination she will put all her energy into making the seeds and will produce small less potent buds. A male cannabis plant does produce terpenes, but few cannabinoids. It is not suitable for consumption.

How can you recognize a male cannabis plant?

Just like a female plant, you recognize a male cannabis plant in the pre-growth. Small spheres form here in the leaf axils. These will also start to form at the ends later. If you don't see white flowering hairs on a cannabis plant and bubbles are formed, you are dealing with a male cannabis plant.

Suzy's tip: If you grow with regular seeds, you can make a cutting from the plant. If you put it on a 12/12 light schedule, you'll see the gender after a few weeks.

Removing male plants

When growing cannabis for consumption, you will need to remove the male weed plants. This prevents fertilization with the female flowers. When a female plant is fertilized, you don't get cannabis, but seeds. So, buy feminized seeds as a beginner. Then you have a >99% chance of female plants. That saves you a lot of work. In the unlikely event that there is a male among them, you can now recognize him. 

Hermaphrodites

Cannabis plants can be hermaphroditic, called hermaphrodites. The plant then has both female and male sex organs. It is a plant survival mechanism caused by stress. This can be obvious from the start but can also only become visible during flowering. You should remove a hermaphrodite immediately. He can fertilize himself and other female cannabis plants. So always keep a close eye on your plants!