If there’s one thing every grower wants, besides quality buds, it’s the harvest as soon as possible. And it’s not just a matter of impatience—although, let’s face it, no one likes to wait too long—but in many cases, rapid flowering may be an essential requirement for ensuring a successful crop.
Imagine growing in a rainy climate where autumn arrives with tons of mushrooms under its belt. Or you’re preparing a harvest for a cannabis cup, you’ve rested on your laurels when it comes to germination, and time is running out. Or you simply can’t afford to expose your crop for too long, because certain individuals have a penchant for taking what isn’t theirs. Having fast-flowering varieties is a real lifesaver in these and many other cases.
But this is where you might have doubts: which should you choose, an “Early” variety or a “Fast/F1” variety? Both promise speed, but you may not know exactly what differentiates them. So today we’re going to explain where these types of plants come from and the breeding methods behind them, so you can choose the one that best suits your growing, your needs, or, simply, your tastes. Let’s get to it!
Fast flowering: a highly desirable trait
Without a doubt, flowering time is one of the most important factors in cannabis cultivation. And given the advantages this trait brings, it’s no wonder:
- Unfavorable climate: In cold or humid areas, the sooner the flowering period ends, the better. A plant that finishes before the fall rains is more likely to avoid fungus and other problems. If you live in an area with very rainy or cold autumns (or late summers), keep these types of varieties in mind when choosing your next seeds!
- Crops in a hurry: If you need to harvest quickly for any reason (from traveling soon to discretion after certain dates), a plant that shortens its cycle by a few weeks will be a great advantage for you, don’t hesitate.
- Cannabis competitions and cups: Sometimes, deadlines for registration or sample submission are as tight as a bullfighter’s tights, and fast genetics can give you the time you need to dry and cure your buds perfectly, giving you the opportunity to present a product at its best.
- Getting the most out of multiple harvests: If you grow outdoors and live in a temperate climate, a fast-flowering variety can allow you to harvest two crops in a single season. This involves using techniques such as light deprivation for some plants or staggered germination, ensuring you harvest some plants before others. Because it flowers so quickly, you can schedule some plants to be harvested in late August and others when you normally would, in early October (in the Northern Hemisphere).
As you can see, it’s clear we’re not just talking about convenience here. It’s not just about getting the most out of the crop in the shortest amount of time; in many cases, growing fast-flowering genetics is the difference between a successful crop or a disaster filled with mold, pests, and a good dose of frustration.
But, as you already know and given the virtues of fast-flowering plants, not all fast varieties are the same, so let’s talk about the two main categories that you’ll normally find in the catalogs of different seed banks: “Early” varieties and “Fast or F1” genetics.
Fast natural flowering: Early varieties
The so-called “Early” varieties don’t have any unusual genetic tricks behind them. They aren’t hybrids with auto-flowering plants, nor have they undergone any special breeding process. They are simply the result of selecting the fastest-flowering phenotypes within a single variety or hybrid. Imagine, for example, Early Girl by Sensi Seeds; this variety has been bred, year after year and generation after generation, from the fastest-flowering specimens of each generation, so that this fast-flowering trait has become established in its genes.
In each generation of a cannabis strain, there are plants that flower earlier and others that take longer. So what do breeders do? They select and reproduce exclusively the plants that flower earlier, until they obtain genetic lines that, within their normal photoperiodic range, begin flowering earlier than usual and, therefore, also finish earlier.
Advantages of Early varieties:
- They do not have auto-flowering genetics, so they maintain the size and production of a normal photoperiodic plant.
- They are very easy to grow, with no special adjustments required.
- They adapt perfectly to outdoor light cycles without sudden changes.
- In most cases, they maintain this rapid flowering even when grown indoors.
Important points to consider:
- Although they flower earlier, they still depend on the photoperiod to do so, which is very important if you want to grow them indoors. They’re not automatic plants, remember!
- They are usually not as fast as Fast/F1 cars, although the difference is small and in some cases, they can even be just as fast or even faster.
- Because the flowering period is so short, you may need to adapt the nutrient intake by slightly changing the nutrition table of the fertilizers you use (for example, with these plants, the peak of flowering, when PK supplements are most often used, usually occurs one or two weeks earlier than normal).
The best early varieties
If you’re looking for reliable Early genetics that delivers good results, here are some of the highlights in our store:
- Early Skunk: A Sensi Seeds classic with Skunk genetics and early flowering, perfect for humid climates.
- Early Maroc: A resistant and extremely fast Philosopher Seeds genetic, ideal for guerrilla crops.
- Early Queen: A particularly fast-flowering, generous-yielding Mr. Nice variety.
Guerrilla growing cannabis
Cannabis guerrilla growing is the only option for many users to grow their own pot. In this article we tell you how to successfully harvest your guerrilla-grown plants with minimal risk by just following a few simple steps.
Breeding for fast flowering: Fast and F1 genetics
Here we enter into a slightly more technical area, but we’ll try to keep it simple: Fast/F1 varieties aren’t simply selections of fast phenotypes, but rather the result of a cross between a photoperiod plant and an auto-flowering plant. But wait, wouldn’t that produce auto-flowering plants?
No. For a plant to autoflower, it needs two copies of the autoflowering gene. But in a cross between a photoperiod and an auto-flowering plant, the first generation (F1) only inherits one copy, which means it will still depend on the photoperiod to flower, but it will do so faster than its photoperiod-dependent parent. For example, if we cross Lemon OG Candy with C. Banana Auto, we will end up with a photoperiod-dependent hybrid that is faster than Lemon OG Candy, while we would need to continue several more generations to get an auto-flowering hybrid between these two varieties.
This is because, during the process of creating auto-flowering varieties, breeders noticed that in the first generation (F1) of these crosses, the plants reduced their flowering time without losing control of the photoperiod. And thus, the Fast/F1 seed category was born.
Advantages of Fast/F1 varieties:
- Faster flowering than the original version, usually 1-2 weeks less.
- Perfect for areas with harsh climates, as they finish before the autumn rains arrive.
- They are still photoperiodic, so they maintain their size and production without becoming “dwarf” like some auto-flowering plants.
- Being photo-dependent, you can keep mother plants and make clones without any problem.
Points to consider:
- Although they are faster, they are not auto-flowering: they depend on light changes to flower.
- Being hybrids between two varieties, some may show slight differences from the original variety in terms of flavor, effect, or structure.
Best Fast/F1 varieties
If you want fast genetics with these characteristics, here are some of the stars in our catalog:
Conclusion: Early or Fast?
Now that we’ve dissected these two categories of fast-growing varieties, the million-dollar question arises: which is better?
The answer is not that simple, as it basically depends on what you are looking for in your crop:
- If you want fast flowering without introducing auto-flowering genetics, Early varieties are your best option. They are traditional photoperiod plants that have been selected to flower earlier, maintaining their original structure and characteristics.
- If you’re looking for maximum speed without sacrificing yield or potency, Fast/F1 varieties may be the perfect choice. Thanks to crossbreeding with auto-flowering plants, they reduce flowering time without losing photoperiod control, meaning they flower faster but still offer high yields.
In short, both types of seeds will offer you really fast photoperiod plants, although, in the case of F1 or Fast, it is thanks to the crossing with an auto-flowering plant, while Early are simply especially fast varieties to which this interesting trait has been fixed.
So, if you’re looking for fast-growing seeds for your next crop, now you have all the information to make an informed choice. Whether Early or Fast/F1, the important thing is that they fit your needs, tastes, and growing environment. You have dozens of options on our website!
And remember: a good grower isn’t the one in the biggest hurry, but the one who knows how to choose the best genetics for his situation and needs.
Happy harvest!
