Stamen

On male cannabis plants, the stamen refers to the small reproductive organ that actively produces and releases pollen grains necessary for fertilizing female flowers and reproduction. The stamen consists of a slender filament tipped with a sac-like anther containing the pollen grains. Being able to identify emerging stamens containing anthers in the early stages of the cannabis plant growth cycle is a key skill for cultivators, as it allows them to quickly eliminate any unwanted male plants and prevent unintended pollination of the desirable seedless, sensimilla female flowers. Professional breeders may intentionally isolate select male specimens with desirable genetics for the purpose of collecting viable pollen which can then be preserved and used later on for carefully controlled deliberate cross-pollination breeding projects if desired. But the vast majority of commercial growers remove male plants entirely early on in order to maximize the flowering potential of the female-only plants within their crops and avoid accidental pollination ruining harvests.