Regardless of your reason for consuming cannabis, the content of the herb plays an important role and this depends a great deal on whether the plant is male or female.

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In rare instances, hermaphrodite cannabis plants are also found. However, in general, cannabis plants have just one gender.

In this discussion, we will try to find out the difference between male and female cannabis, and how this information can be helpful to all of us while purchasing, consuming, or growing cannabis in the future.

Identification of Cannabis Plants while Growing:

It is important to identify whether the plant is female or male while growing cannabis. There are many differences between the two types. The most important difference is that the female plants are capable of producing useable cannabis, but the male plants are not. When a female plant gets pollinated, flowers stop growing and the plant starts producing seeds. In order to prevent the production of seeds by the cannabis plant, it is important to separate the males and females before pollination is initiated by the male.

The vegetative stage and the flowering stage are the two stages of life in the growing process of cannabis plants. In the vegetative stage, the plant only gets bigger and taller. During this stage, it is impossible to identify the gender of the plant. Pre-flowers start appearing at around six weeks, and this allows us to differentiate between male and female cannabis plants before the start of flowering and potential pollination.

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In general, after six weeks, male plants are tall with thick stems and have branches with very few leaves. Also, at the inner joints of their branches, male plants look like a clump of bananas. On the other hand, female plants grow tiny white hairs at the base and joints of the plant’s branches. These white hairs grow larger and turn reddish in color as the plant matures.

Identification of Cannabis Plants in the Mature Stage:

It is also possible to differentiate between male and female cannabis plants by identifying their sex organs. The white tiny hairs on the cannabis plant are the plant’s primary female sex organs, commonly known as pistils. It is often noticed that female plants have an extremely thick layer of resin coating that helps capture pollens produced by male plants.

More potent flowers are the ones that are kept away from the pollen, compared to the ones that are fertilized. This is because the unfertilized female plants are capable of producing trichomes, a frosty layer holding the most THC.

Male and female cannabis plants have significantly different appearances in the mature stage. Firstly, the male plants have no flowering buds. Typically, male cannabis plants produce numerous pollen sacks instead of frosty trichomes. These pollen sacks resemble hanging tulip bulbs when they are closed. Though male plants of cannabis are less potent compared to their female counterpart, they still contain cannabinoids.

Please note that in rare instances, cannabis plants are neither male nor female. These plants are classified as a hermaphrodite, and they contain male as well as female parts.

Uses of Male and Female Plants:

Female plants are extremely sought after amongst the cannabis growers because they are capable of producing the flowering buds as well as potent trichomes that have high demand in the market for medical and recreational cannabis. However, it is important to remember that cannabinoids are also found in male plants and hence, they are also important. Even though male plants can’t produce usable cannabis, leaves from the male plant are often used for manufacturing cannabis oil or butter.

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If you are an aspiring cannabis grower in need of any kind of support, you can get help by going to i49.

   Vanguard