It's time to really get this thing going

[SeanInVa]

Alright gang, this past year has been fairly slow going. We've sent some seeds out, we have had some people grow and report back - but there has not been a whole lot of momentum. Dan has been steadily working on his crosses, and I've been growing some out as well - albeit in a cold garage.

For my part, as an organizer, I've been encumbered by a few things over 2020. My job has certainly demanded much more than a typical 40 hour work week most weeks. COVID has not helped anyone - and having a child who is in elementary school has made it harder as he has been learning from home.

Having said that, and with my excuses out of the way - it's time to roll out of the driveway and hit the gas.

Over this weekend, there will be a series of posts I make as I try to settle back in and work towards some focused goals. These posts will cover a range of topics - and I invite you all to offer your thoughts.

Project Status
I think at the very least, those of you participating deserve a regular update on where we are and how progress is going, along with next objectives. The first of these statuses will be coming this weekend. I don't yet know at what cadence they will come, but I am planning for at least quarterly.

Projects
We have two listed projects, and they are very broad. I am going to start a few more that are more narrowly focused.

Inventory
An inventory of the seeds that "the project" has on hand. I think some level of transparency is important!

Releases
We're getting close now, with a few lines, to having stable selections that we can release. How do we do it? I have some thoughts, and will be soliciting feedback!

Breeders
When this project started it was just Dan, really. It still mostly is. We want to bring others in under the project officially.

[HL2601]

I like where you are going with all this Sean. Thanks for taking so much time to delineate the project more. I think it will propel the project.

[dfollett]

Thank you, Sean. I am glad you've taken the reins on this. I'll do whatever I can to help out. I got involved in a new business venture that has consumed most of my extra time. I'm still growing lots of micros - but I've lacked the time to share a lot of results. I have many more than I could ever possibly grow out - but I'd like to see someone grow them out.

I've played with these for quite a while and have given quite a bit of thought to it. One of the conclusions I've come to is that one of the main obstacles most people run into is that too many plants just outgrow expectations - especially when someone only has the ability to grow a few plants. I've emphasized that you need to start a lot more than you want to grow, but most people still don't start enough. People are easily frustrated and it gets frustrating to have three of the four or five plants you are growing get too large and outgrow your setup. With most of the initial crosses I've made, the true micros are few and far between - and difficult to stabilize.

However, I am reaching the point with crosses made the last few years that should help lessen or eliminate that problem. I'm crossing micro X micro. The F2s and F3s from those crosses are much more likely to stay small. Instead of everything having only Red Robin as the sole source of micro genes, I now have quite a few crosses that bring in micro genes from others - primarily Orange Hat and Pinocchio Orange - along with Red Robin.

There is still plenty of junk and poor plants in the early generations - like you get with any crosses, but you don't have to deal with the problem of lots outgrowing your lights. Instead of sticking with early crosses and finishing them out, I have just continued making new ones and crossing the micros with each other. (I've come to the conclusion that I am better at starting things than finishing them).

I am going to send you a bunch of F2 and F3 seed from these later micro X micro crosses - especially those with multiple micros in their pedigree. I will share with you the pedigrees and my best guess as to their potential. (Actually, I would be happy to share F1s if there is anyone who like to start with those).

If there is anyone who would like to work toward something specific, have them make a request. I would be happy to share any of the crosses I've made. I'll be sending something fairly soon. I'm finishing processing seed from my winter grow out. I'm embarrassed to admit how many I grew through the winter - and I won't be growing that many again. I do have a lot of seed I can send.

[HL2601]

Good to hear that you just keep crossing Dan!
I have a MMF yellow that is close to release
AnMMF r/y

If you have any bicolor or purples I would especially be interested in that seed. I have a 35x and a 70x that may end up purples but they are still fickle.

And good luck on your new business venture! Good things are coming to us all in 2021!
Heide