Summary

• There are three types of cannabis seeds: regular (male + female), feminized (female only), and autoflowering (flowers by age, not light).
• Feminized seeds are the best starting point for most home growers. Every plant produces buds, no males to remove.
• Autoflowering seeds finish in 60–75 days from seed and are ideal for short European summers or balcony grows.
• Regular seeds are for breeders and collectors who want to work with authentic, unmodified genetics.
• Choosing the wrong seed type for your setup (e.g. a long-flowering sativa outdoors in Belgium) can cost you an entire season.

The Question Every New Grower Asks

You open a seed shop for the first time. There are dozens of varieties, each with words like ‘feminized’, ‘autoflowering’, or ‘regular’ printed on the pack. Nobody explains what they mean. You pick something that sounds cool and hope for the best.

Sound familiar? You are not alone. This is one of the most common points of confusion for home growers and getting it wrong can cost you an entire season. Let’s fix that.

The Three Types of Cannabis Seeds

Regular Seeds — The Originals

Regular seeds are what cannabis has always produced: roughly 50% male, 50% female. No genetic modification, no chemical intervention. Just the plant doing what it has done for thousands of years.

Males produce pollen, females produce buds. If you grow regular seeds, you will need to identify and remove males before they pollinate your females unless you are actively breeding.

Who are regular seeds for? Breeders, collectors, and growers who want to work with authentic, unmodified genetics. If you want to create your own crosses or preserve a landrace, start here. Regular seeds also tend to produce the most vigorous and genetically diverse plants.

Feminized Seeds — One Plant, One Bud

Feminized seeds are bred to produce only female plants. The feminization process typically uses STS (silver thiosulfate) or colloidal silver to force a female plant to produce male pollen, which then pollinates another female. The resulting seeds carry only female genetics.

Who are feminized seeds for? Most home growers. You maximize your space because every seed becomes a productive female. No sorting, no surprise males, no risk of accidental pollination.

One thing to know: Because all feminized plants are genetically very similar, they can be slightly more susceptible to stress. A stressed plant may occasionally produce a hermaphrodite. This is rare with quality genetics — another reason why the breeder behind the seed matters.

Autoflowering Seeds — Growing on Their Own Clock

Autoflowering plants flower automatically based on age, not light cycle. This trait comes from Cannabis ruderalis, a subspecies that evolved in Central Asia and Eastern Europe and had to flower regardless of daylight hours to survive. Modern autos are the result of crossing ruderalis with high-quality indica and sativa lines over many generations.

Who are autos for? Beginners, growers with limited space or time, and anyone who wants a fast harvest. They are also ideal for outdoor growing in northern Europe, where summers are short.

Quick Comparison

So Which Should YOU Choose?

First grow? Go feminized or autoflowering.

Growing outdoors in Belgium, Luxembourg, or Germany? Autos shine here. The European summer is not always long enough for photoperiod sativas to fully mature outdoors.

Want to experiment with breeding? Start collecting regular seeds. They are your raw material.

The good news: there is no wrong answer. Each type has its moment. The more you grow, the more you will understand when to reach for each one.

Browse all three types at jonny-seeds.com , always from breeders we trust, with full transparent genetics.