When you browse a seed bank’s catalog, almost every variety falls into one of three families: feminized, autoflowering and fast version. The names sound similar, but they describe different things. This guide explains what each one means and how to interpret the data shown on the product pages.
Feminized seeds
“Feminized” refers to the sex of the plant, not its speed or its size. A feminized seed comes from a cross prepared so that practically all the resulting plants are female. At Trikoma Seeds our seeds are 99.9% feminized.
Classic feminized strains are also photoperiod-dependent: their flowering depends on the hours of light they receive. In the northern hemisphere this means they flower as the days get shorter, from late summer onwards, and in the southern hemisphere the cycle shifts by half a year.
On the product pages you’ll see two figures that shouldn’t be confused:
- Indoor flowering: the number of days the flowering phase lasts. For example, Critical Plus is listed at 56–63 days and Jack Herer at 77–85.
- Outdoor flowering: the approximate time of year when the variety completes that phase.
You can see this whole family in our collection of feminized seeds.
Autoflowering seeds
Autoflowering strains incorporate Cannabis ruderalis genetics, a subspecies native to cold regions with very short summers. Its distinctive trait is that it flowers according to age, not light.
Practical consequences:
- Fixed, short cycle: between 70 and 85 days from seed, depending on the variety. On the product page you won’t see “outdoor flowering in September”, but a total cycle length.
- Smaller size: they usually stay under one metre. Critical Plus Auto, for example, rarely exceeds 90 cm.
- Slightly lower declared THC than the photoperiod version of the same genetics, although the gap has narrowed a lot in recent generations.
All of ours are in the autoflowering seeds collection.
Fast version
A fast version is the middle ground. It is still photoperiod-dependent and feminized, like a classic strain, but its flowering cycle is shorter because a fast-flowering variety has been introduced into its lineage.
The difference is clear when you compare the same genetics in its two versions:
- White Widow: 47–56 days of flowering.
- White Widow Fast: 40–49 days.
A fast version is not an autoflowering strain: it still needs the change in photoperiod to flower. You can see them all in Fast Versions.
Summary table
| Feminized | Autoflowering | Fast version | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flowers according to | Hours of light | Age of the plant | Hours of light |
| Duration | Longer cycle | 70–85 days in total | Shorter flowering |
| Size | Medium-large | Small-medium | Medium-large |
| Added genetics | — | Ruderalis | Fast-flowering line |
How to read a product page with judgement
THC percentages, flowering days and the indica/sativa ratio are catalog data: they help identify and compare genetics with one another, but they are not guarantees. Two seeds of the same variety can express themselves differently depending on conditions.
What is stable is the parent genetics. That’s why our product pages always state the cross: knowing that Malquerida comes from Critical Bilbo × Northern Lights tells you much more about the variety than any round number.
Legal information
Trikoma Seeds’ seeds are sold exclusively for collecting and genetic conservation purposes. This article is catalog information and does not encourage germination or any unauthorized activity. Check and comply with your country’s regulations.
