Recently, “F1 Hybrids” has become a buzz phrase in the world of cannabis genetics. The term is confusing to some, misused by many, and largely misunderstood.
F1, of course, simply refers to the first generation cross between two distinct genotypes. Cannabis is an obligate outcrosser — it naturally hybridizes itself readily. So, on a strictly pedantic level, all cannabis seeds available are hybrids. But F1 hybrid in the agricultural seed industry is referring to something entirely different. It describes the first-generation cross between two inbred parent lines. What is the purpose of that? Let’s begin with some history.
Prior to the development of F1 hybrids in the 1920s, all seed in agriculture was open pollinated. Sophisticated breeding techniques were used and seed was improved, naturalized and stabilized by many farmers all over the country. What this meant was that farmers would simply plant from judicious selections made from the previous year’s crops and trade genetics with each other, and many unique variations existed even between neighboring farms. This, of course, meant that seed companies were not viable (pun intended), as farmers could simply replant from seed purchased and would not need to work with the company year over year.
During the New Deal, Secretary of Agriculture Henry A. Wallace pushed a scientific breeding agenda forward through the land grant universities and agricultural research schools. In the words of author and agriculture professor Jack Ralph Kloppenburg, “scientific research had been channeled toward the elimination of the biological barrier that the seed posed to capital.” (“First the Seed: The Political Economy of Plant Biotechnology” by Jack Ralph Kloppenburg, 2005.)
While many researchers at the land grant colleges believed farmers would produce their own inbred hybrid lines using the technology developed, Mr. Wallace clearly felt differently, and in 1926 started the Pioneer Hi-Bred company, appropriated the publicly funded research and released the first F1 hybrid corn as we know it today.
To quote Kloppenburg again, “the unique relationships these companies were able to establish with public research agencies gave them what was effectively preferential access to the techniques and breeding lines developed in many of the experiment stations and colleges.” His seed offered big gains in yield to farmers. Additionally, and most importantly, it could not be replanted and produce the same results. So farmers had to purchase seed anew each spring. By making a cross of two highly inbred parent lines, that first generation is extremely vigorous and uniform. But plant the seed it produces and you get a smorgasbord of genetic expression. Thus capital wiggled its way into the biology of seed itself — the living beginning and end of the agricultural crop cycle.
Although proponents will claim the advances made in hybrid seed are far beyond anything people could have achieved with other methods, there are those who feel differently. Cannabis itself is a shining example of an open pollinated breeding culture which has taken the plant very far from its landrace progenitors and has produced all the genetics available today. Finally, the mechanics of business prohibit seed research and development — a company in today’s economy cannot devote resources to research and development if the product can be self-replicated.
Despite the corrupt and colonial roots of hybrid technology, and the constraining economic policy that promotes it as the best option for genetics companies, the seed does offer some definite advantages to growers. Obviously, we wouldn’t still have them as the standard in annual agriculture if they weren’t awesome. The cannabis seed industry has to date been dominated by clones, which are used for their uniformity and reliability of results. These qualities are exactly what hybrid seed produces when done correctly.
In our vegetable production system, we have relied on hybrids for most crops many years in a row. In a crop plan with high turnover where bed space is at a premium, consistent harvest timetables are very important. In any medium- to large-scale production system, this may be the top advantage of using F1 hybrid seed. Different plants in the same bed that finish two-plus weeks apart make for very difficult harvest, missed maturity windows — which can lead to mold issues — and more waste. Hybrids also offer more uniform product results; rather than varying size, vigor, color and performance, well-made hybrids are mostly the same across the entire seed lot, which is why we still rely so heavily on clones in the industry. Atlas Seed was started with the express purpose of creating true F1 hybrid cannabis seed to meet the specific need in our row crop production system.
How are true F1 hybrids created to ensure these results?
In modern plant breeding, a true F1 hybrid is the cross between two parents inbred for a minimum of seven generations. During the inbreeding/backcrossing process, desired traits are selected continuously. The inbred lines may have “inbreeding depression,” lacking vigor and showing stunted growth. They may even reach the point of sterility. But that first cross made amazing results. Suffice it to say, inbreeding a line seven times takes years. It is not only time that is involved in this process, but scale as well. Indeed, a grower could potentially inbreed a single plant, grow one seed from the offspring, inbred it, rinse and repeat seven times.
Without a proper sample size of individuals, however, the final result will not be anywhere near what it could be. There must be large trials of each succeeding generation so the breeders can make proper selections. What’s more, the process is not so clear as inbreed, select, repeat. Sometimes, a backcross must be made to “bottleneck” the desired traits before inbreeding another generation. This backcross could be a single generation back, or more. Keeping the breeding stock active over many years and making the critical decisions is very complicated and time consuming.
F1 hybrid seed will eventually become the standard in commercial cannabis production, as it is in most annual crops worldwide. The consistency, reliability, vigor and uniformity will meet the needs of growers and the demands of the marketplace. But for now, in this nascent industry, beware when purchasing the new F1 hybrid cannabis seed available. Look for transparency from the seed companies to understand just what went into it. It is very likely that most F1 seed out there right now is either not what is advertised or the result of a rush to market. The facilities and expertise required to produce true agricultural F1 hybrids is rare in today’s game. F1 seed has few benefits for the small home grower or connoisseur, who often desire some variation and diversity, and offers nothing to those who want to pheno hunt and do breeding of their own. It is tailored specifically for scaled up production systems.