Project 7: Third Grow: Dr Seedsman CBD, Tatanka

Introduction

Quality reliable seed is an essential part of any operation, part of HN’s research gathering project is to work with as many seeds as possible in order to understand more, know what works and over time evaluate performance and outcomes of various seed varieties from different sources, on a modest budget. 

Seed research was launched and 2 seed types were selected for an initial experiment. Basic selection criteria used were; must be of EU standard, reputable source with good reviews and high CBD content.

Aims and Objectives

To further the experiment by growing seeds bought for top dollar in Europe and see how they grow in our corner of Africa.

We do not know how seeds from other environments, effectively from unknown sources, would perform in Eswatini hence a decision was made to grow a small amount of seeds and see how they perform. 

These seeds have performance data from the breeders, the hope is to eventually test the content of the material we have grown against the breeders data. Seeds were sourced with the idea that any harvest that comes from them would be theoretically legal in the EU, as such they meet the criteria of less than 0.2% THC content.

Conclusion

The European seeds did grow in our environment, with only organic fertilizer and a relatively bad growing season i.e. a lot of rain and relatively low light conditions. 

Harvest dates were influenced by heavy humidity and the beginning of mold and rot on the flowers. 

Some losses due to mold and rot in harvest. Mold was removed from flowers during trim and drying and caused a loss of approximately 30% of each plant. This is unfortunate but could not be helped due to the grow season. Farmers have had seasonal issues with mold and rot due to excessive humidity, even on outdoor plants.

There were some seeds collected from the flowers which indicate some cross pollination from other plants in the area. We have collected a new generation of seeds which will contain genes from the local varieties. Our hope is that the new seeds will retain the low THC and high CBD content of the mother plant and gain some adaptation to the local environment from the pollinator.