History’s Greatest Breeders

 

Cannabis breeding has been an art form for thousands of years. Over time breeding changed, hybrids became more popular, and some of the most influential and notable strains began to spark into existence. Despite the incredible nature of those that came before, breeders have brought together genetics to create something other. Strains that take all of the best parts from these iconic original strains to provide a completely new plant. This is also how breeders have removed negative aspects from otherwise fantastic strains. Does a strain give you a perky, euphoric high but also can cause anxiety? There is a way to fix that. These are just a few of the best seed companies and breeders from both past and present. 

 

DJ Short

 

You will likely have heard of DJ Short as this breeder also created the popular seed company. DJ Short was the genius behind Blueberry, a strain that is not only enormously popular on its own but has been used as a base for countless hybrid strains. He inherited his talents as his great-grandmother also grew a variety of interesting and mind-altering plants. As a teenager, he saved any seeds that turned up in the cannabis he was buying. He kept them well organised and made notes about the effects of each strain. Eventually, the universe intervened and he received a seed sprouter as a prize in a box of cereal. This gave him the push he needed to start experimenting and growing the seeds he had collected. The rest, as they say, is history. DJ Short is also responsible for strains such as Azure Haze, Flo, Blue Velvet, and Vallinula along with many others. 

 

TGA – Subcool

 

Subcool is a breeder working with TGA who got into breeding because they weren’t happy with the range of cannabis available in North America. Even when marijuana prohibition came into full effect Subcool continued his tireless work. This was at a time when many of his contemporaries disappeared in order to avoid the law. Subcool’s strains have constantly evolved and improved over the many decades they have been breeding. He also bred seeds with his long term partner, MzJill, and the strains that were created took the U.S. by storm. In 2017 Subcool was presented with a lifetime achievement award by High Times for his breeding work. He is responsible for strains such as Jack The Ripper, Chernobyl, Vortex, Ace of Spaced, Agent Orange, Querkle and many more. 

 

DNA Genetics 

 

This breeding company is run by Don and Aaron, hence the name. The pair initially began their relationship as dealer and customer. However, this purely professional relationship quickly became a close friendship, and then took a turn back to the professional. The two decided to go into business together as breeders. They began work in 2004 when the medicinal aspect of the U.S. market was just beginning to blossom. Instead of competing as relatively new breeders in this competitive market, they decided to move the operation to the Netherlands. This not only allowed them to blossom as horticulturalists but gave them a wide network of other fantastic Dutch companies. They had one thing that few others had, Californian seeds. They went on to create strains such as Kosher Kush, Tangie, LA Confidential, and Chocolope amongst others. 

 

Ben Dronkers

 

We cannot talk about cannabis breeding without talking about Mr Dronkers. Ben Dronkers began with a clothing company that led him all over the world in search of fabrics. However, after a little while, Ben became increasingly interested in the many varieties of cannabis he found in these exotic places. He started to collect the seeds which he would then take back to the Netherlands. As a result, he had a collection of seeds like no other person in the cannabis breeding game. Later, Ben formed the famous Sensi Seed bank using his wide variety of strains and his amazing breeding talent. Likely his most famous contribution to the cannabis annals is Jack Herer, thought to be one of the best strains ever to have existed. 

 

Lawrence Ringo

 

Ringo began growing in the early 70s but did not come out into the public eye until creating his seed company in 2010. He is best known for Sour Tsunami, the first fully stable CBD rich strain in California. This strain was a revolution in medicinal cannabis and paved the way for many of the medicinal strains we rely on today. Lawrence went on to create a number of incredible medicinal strains, many of which were based on the revolutionary Tsunami strain. He was responsible for Canna-Tsu, Harle-Tsu, ACDC and Swiss-Tsu. 

 

Top Dawg

 

This very popular seed company began life with the Chemdawg strain. An extremely popular plant that came from the underground New York scene. Their strains first emerged in the early 2000s when they began to play with Dawg and Haze genetics. It wasn’t long before the strains exploded and everyone wanted a taste of the original underground flavour. They are responsible for incredible strains such as Star Dawg, Tres Dawg, and JJ’s Nigerian Haze along with a wide variety of others. 

 

Greenhouse Seeds

 

Arjan Roskam, sometimes called the King of Cannabis, began this company with the hope of protecting the all-important landrace strains. This company has taken home more High Times Cannabis Cups than any other, likely due to some of the iconic strains that were born there. Greenhouse Seeds is noted as creating Super Lemon Haze, Master Kush, White Widow, Super Silver Haze and Flowerbomb Kush. This seed company is not only very popular but carries some pretty serious controversy. Since Greenhouse has been around since the mid-80s they are considered one of the staple breeders. However, they decided that they would begin dabbling in feminised and auto-flowering seeds long before they became a norm. Breeders were terrified of these varieties and had more than a little disdain for them. At the time these seed types were controversial but now it is seen more as innovation than improper breeding.

 

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Photo by Jeff W on Unsplash