Size, shape and colour: three cannabis seed characteristics that can be deceiving

This article has been conceived to answer all the key questions that we often get asked by clients and growers regarding the physical characteristics of our main product: premium-quality cannabis seeds.

Our 15 years in the business have provided us with a great command as well as a wide perspective of this subject, so it is an honour for us to be able to share our knowledge with all of you in the cannabis community.

The size of cannabis seeds

As most of the cannabis varieties that are currently on the market are polyhybrids, the size of the seeds can vary depending on their genetic line.

Some customers, for instance, contact us to tell us that they have bought Critical + seeds and they believe they look too small. But this is a normal feature of this strain: we've seen millions of Critical + seeds and we can confirm that they are naturally smaller than others. It is therefore incorrect to think that this is a sign of poor quality.

If, on the contrary, the seeds seem too big, this may be caused by a lack of macronutrients during the plant's growth cycle. As any grower with certain experience will know, calcium deficiencies are corrected by adding calcium and magnesium, a combination that helps reestablish the perfect nutritional balance of plants.

So in this case, an increase in size could be a direct indicator of this addition of calcium and magnesium, which is carried out in order to alleviate that macronutrient deficiency during growth. This has no impact on the plant's potential for germination, growth, flowering, or yield, nor on the development of the organoleptic properties of the buds (aroma, flavour and effect).

So we can openly say that this difference is simply visual. If we take the example of a Moby Dick seed, its dimensions will most likely be bigger than those of Critical +, although you can also find slight variations between seeds from the same strain. Don't forget that, as with all living beings, cannabis seeds are also biologically different amongst themselves.

The shape of cannabis seeds

Cannabis seeds can also show slight changes at morphological level. It's perfectly normal to find minor differences in the oval shape of seeds from the same batch.

In some cases their shape is more linear; whereas in others one of the extremities can be rounded whilst the other is more pointy. But this is no reason for concern: as with size, these slight differences in the outline of the seeds are purely visual and have nothing to do with quality.

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The colour of cannabis seeds

Although it is true that ripe cannabis seeds tend to have a dark shell that can go from brown to black, with lines that look like tiger stripes, this cannot be regarded as a quality indicator by itself.

Yet again, this is a misleading physical attribute that does not guarantee the germination potential or overall characteristics of a seed. A high-quality strain can also be light or dark grey in colour.

Let's take the example of Critical + again, one of our permanent bestsellers that has had a resounding success across the world thanks to its outstanding scent, flavour, effect, and yielding capacity.

Critical + is a clear example that colour, contrary to what many growers believe, is not necessarily a quality indicator: these undeniably high-quality seeds exhibit a very light grey, almost whitish grey, to a medium grey colour.

However, a greenish colour is a clear sign of immaturity, which means that the seed hasn't developed fully or it hasn't received all the necessary resources to reach full maturity. In this particular case, if you purchase seeds with this colour you need to contact your supplier immediately and try to have them replaced.

If this happens to you with one of our seeds, don't hesitate to contact us directly. Send us a couple of pictures so we can check them out, and our customer service team will replace them as soon as possible.

Another aspect that can be misleading is the fact that a ripe, freshly-harvested cannabis seed has a brighter and darker colour than after it's been packaged for 1 to 2 months.

This could be compared to a newborn whose physical appearance quickly evolves during their first few days of life in order to adapt to the completely new outside environment.

The same thing happens with cannabis seeds: the packaging and the different stages before they're commercialised can entail lighting and humidity changes, as well as a bit of oxidation, which may slightly affect the colour of the shell but definitely has no impact on the final product. Once again, this is simply a visual effect.

We hope that this post has provided you with some useful information about the physical characteristics of your cannabis seeds to help you interpret them more objectively before starting their germination and cultivation.