How Do I Know If My Female Weed Plant Has Been Pollinated?

If you’re growing cannabis for smoking you should have a female weed plant. However, pollinated weed plants are not the same. Once it becomes pollinated you get seeds and a decrease in overall quality. If you realize early enough you can start another grow instead of completing a plant that won’t be as satisfying to smoke. We’ll go over all the ways you can tell that your female weed plant has been pollinated.

Why It Matters

Depending on what you’re trying to do pollinating a female can be bad. If you’re trying to grow some dank buds you’re going to want to keep males or hemp plants away from your ladies. Once they’re pollinated, a large portion of the plant’s energy goes towards seed production. On the other hand, an unpollinated female can focus on growing larger more resinous buds.

Most growers don’t have a need for male plants or pollination. In fact, male and hermaphroditic plants are killed off upon discovery to prevent a seed-filled harvest. As a customer, if you buy an eighth of weed and a quarter of the weight is in seeds you’re not going to be happy.

So as a grower, it’s important to look for signs of male plants or pollination early on. That way you can address the situation and remove any pollinated or male plants from your grow area sooner than later. Otherwise, you’ll put in the full amount of work but the weed you get won’t be as quality as if it was a completely unpollinated female grow.

How To Tell

If your goal is to pollinate the female you should do it early enough in the budding cycle or it may not develop seeds. You must introduce male pollen to the female plant for pollination and seed production to occur. You’ll also want to know if your pollination was successful. Fortunately, there are a few signs that will tell you if your female plant has been pollinated.

One of the first signs you’ll notice is the bracts swell extra large early on. Some people incorrectly refer to bracts as calyxes. If you’re unsure as to whether or not the bract is swollen grab a pair of tweezers. Split one of them open and see if there is an immature seed developing inside. If so, you’ve got a pollinated plant. When no seed develops and the calyx size stays about the same it’s safe to assume that no pollination occurred.

If you don’t want to cut the swollen bract open, keep an eye on the color of the stigmas which are commonly referred to as “pistils”. The white hair-like stigmas will shrivel up and turn darker in color shortly after the female plant has been pollinated.

Final Hit: Female Weed Plant Pollination

The quickest way to tell if your female weed plant has been pollinated is to check the bracts for swelling. You can also make a judgment based on the colors of the stigmas. Growing your own weed can be intimidating, but with time, you’ll be able to make these judgments with confidence and accuracy!