Few things are more worrying for a grower during flowering than finding a hermie cannabis plant. When a female plant starts producing male flowers or pollen-producing structures alongside buds, there is a risk of self-pollination and pollen spreading to nearby plants, potentially resulting in seeded flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cannabis hermaphroditism can be influenced by genetics, environmental conditions, and different forms of plant stress. In this guide, I\u2019ll explain what causes cannabis plants to turn hermie, the early signs to look for, what to do if you find one, and the practical steps you can take to reduce the risk of hermaphroditism in future grows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Key Takeaways<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A hermie autoflower is a cannabis plant that develops both female flowers and male reproductive structures, such as pollen sacs or nanners. When you are growing beginner autoflower seeds<\/a>, finding pollen sacs or nanners during flowering is the last thing you want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If pollen is released, the plant can pollinate itself or nearby female autoflowers. Once pollination occurs, autoflower plants can produce seeds<\/a> inside the buds as the plant directs more energy toward reproduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During my lifetime as a grower, I have come across plenty of hermies. Sometimes the problem appears to be linked to genetics, while other plants have been pushed too hard by heat, feeding, training, or other environmental stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The important thing is spotting the signs early and working out what may have triggered them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hermaphroditism can be difficult to spot, especially once your autoflowers have developed dense buds. Some plants produce obvious pollen sacs around the nodes, while others may only show one or two yellow nanners hidden inside the flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once my autoflowers begin producing pistils, I make a habit of checking the flowering sites regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pollen sacs and nanners both indicate male reproductive growth, but they look very different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nanners are exposed anthers rather than unopened pollen sacs, which means they may already be capable of releasing pollen when you find them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Grower tip: Use a jeweler’s loupe or take close-up photographs with your phone if you are unsure. Zooming in is often much easier than trying to identify tiny structures by eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is rarely one simple answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During my years of growing, I have seen hermies appear after environmental stress, excessive feeding, heat problems, heavy-handed training, and poor genetics. However, I would never say that one particular mistake automatically causes an autoflower to become hermaphroditic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Genetics play a major role in how a plant responds to stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Autoflowers also have a limited life cycle. Once flowering starts, you cannot extend the vegetative stage to give a stressed plant another couple of weeks to recover. This is why I prefer keeping the environment as consistent as possible from seed to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everything starts with genetics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some autoflower plants are naturally more sensitive to stress than others. If a breeding line has not been properly selected and tested, unwanted male flowers may be more likely to appear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If I grow the same autoflower strain several times under good conditions and repeatedly see hermaphroditic traits, genetics would be one of the first things I would question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the other hand, if one plant develops nanners after suffering severe heat stress, overfeeding, and aggressive training while the rest of the crop remains healthy, I would look closely at the growing conditions before blaming the strain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I would never choose an autoflower that repeatedly produces unwanted male flowers for breeding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Autoflowers do not require a 12\/12 light cycle or uninterrupted darkness to begin flowering, so light leaks are not the concern they are commonly made out to be with photoperiod plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With autoflowers, I pay much more attention to excessive light intensity and heat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A grow light positioned too close to the canopy can contribute to heat stress in autoflowers<\/a>, particularly when high light intensity is combined with hot, dry conditions<\/p>\n\n\n\n Watch for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
What is a hermie autoflower?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What does a hermie autoflower look like?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Pollen sacs vs nanners<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Sign<\/strong><\/td> What it looks like<\/strong><\/td> Where you may find it<\/strong><\/td><\/tr> Pollen sacs<\/td> Small, smooth, round or oval green structures without white pistils<\/td> Nodes, lower branches, and around flower sites<\/td><\/tr> Nanners<\/td> Thin yellow or pale-green structures shaped like tiny bananas<\/td> Growing directly from inside the buds<\/td><\/tr> Female bracts<\/td> Pointed or teardrop-shaped growth with pistils emerging<\/td> Throughout healthy female flowers<\/td><\/tr> Developing seeds<\/td> Firm swelling inside previously unseeded flowers<\/td> Inside pollinated buds<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n What causes autoflowers to turn hermie?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Genetics and breeding stability<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Lighting and heat stress<\/h3>\n\n\n\n