Why is crossing genetics on a breeder level such a big thing and crossing genetics after harvest (let's say like cocktails-receips) almost no thing at

GoodWeedBerlinstarted grow question 2mo ago

Why is crossing genetics on a breeder level such a big thing and crossing genetics after harvest (let's say like cocktails-receips) almost no thing at all? The mixture of effects and tastes would be much easier to test, the desired goal easier to reach. Or am I wrong?

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Antifameanswered grow question 2mo ago

Honestly, you’re thinking along the right lines here - a lot of people just never question it. If I had to put it grower-to-grower, I’d say this: Breeding isn’t just about mixing flavors or effects, it’s about building a plant that naturally produces a certain profile every time. When you cross two plants, you’re messing with the whole internal chemistry - cannabinoids, terpenes, how they’re expressed together. That’s where stuff like the entourage effect comes in - it’s not just what’s there, it’s how it all works together inside the plant. When you mix after harvest, you’re basically just blending the end results. That can work, but it’s not quite the same as a plant that grew that way from the start. The big reason breeders care so much is consistency. If you dial in a cross properly, you’ve got a plant that: -grows the same way each run -hits the same potency and terp profile -can be reproduced without guessing With mixing, you’ve gotta recreate that blend every time, and it’s never 100% identical. Also, don’t forget - we’re not just breeding for the smoke. Yield, mold resistance, structure, flowering time… all that matters just as much. Mixing buds won’t help you there. That said - your “cocktail” idea isn’t wrong at all. People actually do it more than you think, especially with extracts and carts. And for personal use, blending flower can be a really solid way to dial in effects without running a whole pheno hunt. Only catch is, it can be a bit inconsistent: -some terps overpower others -burn/vape isn’t always even -effects can feel less “unified” But still - if you’re experimenting for yourself, it’s a totally valid approach. Honestly, it’s kind of an underrated way to learn what profiles you actually like before committing to a cross. If anything, I’d say: Use mixing to explore… and breeding to lock it in.

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HandsomeTerpzanswered grow question 2mo ago

That’s actually a really interesting question, and you’re not completely wrong but you’re comparing two very different things. When breeders cross genetics, they are not just mixing effects or flavors, they are combining **DNA**. This means they are shaping how the plant grows, how it yields, how resistant it is, how it smells, how cannabinoids are produced, and how stable all of that is over generations. The goal is to create a **new, stable variety** that will consistently express those traits every time it’s grown. Mixing after harvest, on the other hand, is more like blending ingredients in a recipe. You can definitely combine flavors and effects that way, and people do it sometimes, but it’s not the same thing. You’re not creating something new on a genetic level, you’re just combining finished products. That means: * The effects don’t always “merge” in a predictable way * You can’t reproduce the exact same result consistently * You’re not improving traits like yield, structure, or resistance Also, cannabinoids and terpenes can interact differently when combined after the fact compared to how they develop naturally together in a plant. A well-bred strain has a kind of internal balance that’s hard to replicate by mixing. So yes, blending can be fun and useful, especially for experimenting with effects or flavors. But breeding is about **building something from the ground up**, not just combining finished pieces. Hope I can help. 🙏

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Organomananswered grow question 2mo ago

Because genetics is random. It takes many generations to breed a STABLE new strain with many, many plants grown to find the best phenotypes of the new Wonder Strain. It can not be achieved in one generation.

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ATLien415answered grow question 2mo ago

The two things you mentioned are not linear in that way. Blending two strains into a joint is not equivalent to crossing those strains then blending them into a joint. It just isnt, on a math level. To get my 50km swimming time do you take my mother and father's and average them? no.... people really get confused when genetics math comes into play Cocktail style mixtures have always been a thing. A fun anecdote is the first two years of a program being available here some of my friends and I had an annual cup. Whatever we'd see that was crazy that year we'd save some and compare with these scorecards. Both years the 'house blend' of the scraps from each won. By a lot. Given some discrete distribution of secondary metabolites from the plant, aka a strain, and then adding in a distinct distribution of secondary metabolites is going to do multiple things. We have a much broader spectrum of secondaries and an increase in magnitude for the big ones in the cocktail, and given that these two things are where the medicinal effect happens...you get more of an effect. Even the bobo/clown market has those switches and 5 flavor disposables to get this type of impact. Most programs you can easily find people mixing oils and flower blends for products.

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00110001001001111Oanswered grow question 2mo ago

Meh. what these breeders currently do is from the 1800s. They don't make use of existing knowledge, equipment, and sophistication. They rely on stem rubs and other things that are resolved by human senses, which are garbage by comparison. The barrier to entry may be high, but the cost savings in the long run by avoiding months of breeding and cross breeding and comparing offspring would pay off that high initial cost. Another significant barrier is the need to compete instead of calloborate. Sharing data would speed the process up and make it less daunting as a whole. Genetics is a matter of probability. It's mathematical certainty - even if the certainty is a ratio of variations of a particular trait. You could work backward from what you describe, then figure out what alleles would be necesary to create an offspring with the predisposition to generate the terpenes and whatever else in the proportions you get from smoking a 'cocktail' ,,, or skip that effort, because if you can do that you already know the cause and effect of what flavors come from what ratio of various relevant molecules being produced. Genetically mapping propsective parents would allow you to know which pairing will produce the greatest proportion of offspring that will dsiplay those traits and behaviours... gentics isn't mystical at all. it's math and probability. Heck, crispr could skip the need to find complimentary parents.. just design the gametes and gaurantee the offspring results. It's not as clear-cut as the typical 2x2 punnet square example. That's just an over-simplified example to communicate the gist of it,. Some stuff is a spectrum, like height - in a plant or a human. Not only that, environment is a huge factor on outcomes, too. what we get now is a the result of low-resolution selective breeding. That's caveman sophistication.

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JUNGLE_B4RNSanswered grow question 2mo ago

Because it doesn’t works like making a cocktail… Think about using the same ingredients for your cocktail but having 4 different drinks most of all the time… Why ? Because this is how works genetics laws of inheritance : MIT fundamentals of Biology | Mendel’s laws : https://youtu.be/9dHBTckFvME?si=dMuBC6sTklf_td3O

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PurpleHazeSoldiersanswered grow question 2mo ago

If that was the short version I would not be able to find the time to read the full version 😅

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TheCalyxLaboratoryanswered grow question 2mo ago

Why Breeding Beats Mixing (The Short Version) The difference between a genetic cross and a post-harvest "cocktail" is the difference between baking a cake and stacking two slices of bread. 1. Synergy vs. Addition (1+1=3) • Mixing (Cocktail): You are just putting Strain A and Strain B in the same bowl. It's a 50/50 split of effects. • Breeding (Genetics): Genetic recombination creates a unique "Third Profile." Breeders look for Transgressive Segregation—where the offspring displays traits (potency, flavor, or resilience) that neither parent possessed. 2. Chemical Integration In a genetic cross, every single trichome on the plant contains the integrated terpene and cannabinoid profile. When you smoke a "mix," your body processes two separate chemical signatures simultaneously. When you smoke a "cross," your body interacts with a singular, bio-optimized compound. 3. Hybrid Vigor (Heterosis) You can't "mix" your way to a better plant. Breeding allows for Hybrid Vigor, making the plant grow faster, yield more, and resist pests better than the parents. A cocktail is just a recipe; a genetic cross is a biological upgrade. 4. The "Third Flavor" Mixing tastes like "Lemon AND Earth." Breeding creates "Creamy Fuel." It unlocks recessive aromatic genes that only appear when specific DNA strands meet, creating flavors that don't exist in a simple mixture. The Verdict: Mixing is great for prototyping flavors, but Breeding is about Evolution. It’s the difference between a mashup song and a brand-new composition.

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PurpleHazeSoldiersanswered grow question 2mo ago

Haha, try now the Zkittles Girls Scout Gorilla Cookies Haze by mixing only 4 strains together 😅 The breeding is also finding the strongest and easiest to grow phenotypes to make the genetics better 😋 Why do you think that we went from 20 to 30 to now almost 40% thc for the strongest genetics. This is done by keeping selecting the best genetics generation after generation.

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