How Growers Can Avoid the Hop Latent Viroid | Verne Bioanalytics

Growers and breeders have conjectured for a long time as to why "dud plants" appear in various cannabis harvests.

Cannabis has undoubtedly experienced several viral diseases that can be detected by HLVD Testing. Some types of plants underwent genetic alterations throughout time as a result of viruses and viroids, changing the course of the plant's evolution.

But… How can HLVD be found?

Hop Latent Viroid is a single-stranded, circular infectious RNA that is also known as Dudding Disease. Not a virus, either.

Only plants can multiply viruses. Furthermore, viroids lack the complexity of viruses. While viruses are made of a protein capsule encasing their genetic material, viroids are simply made of RNA.

Only when a virus has entered and replicated on a host can it infect additional hosts. A healthy plant may get a virus by coming into close contact with an infected one. Additionally, it may spread via contaminated tools and devices (gloves, scissors, tweezers, even human hands).

When discussing HLVD Testing, it's important to keep in mind that because this virus is latent, there are many asymptomatic transmissions. It may spread without showing any signs, and you won't know until it's too late.

How does transmission fit in?

Please pay attention; this matter is crucial. Treat everything in your garden as though it is infected if you have any questions regarding the presence of the Hop Latent Viroid. Download our instructions to handling contaminated material here.

Infected plants in your garden or greenhouse may easily infect healthy ones with HLVD and other viroids. The main transmission factors are:

• Equipment that has been contaminated should be sterilized before being used on new plants to minimize the risk of contamination.

• Clones: To prevent contaminated clones, we advise doing a thorough pathogen test prior to cutting.

• HLVD has an 8% possibility of being present in the seeds of an infected mother plant, however this is still under investigation.

• Before moving from one plant to another, horticultural managers and personnel must sanitize their hands and gloves. HLVD may be transmitted with just a little touch.

• Bugs and pests: Bugs and pests are always present, and their bites may spread HLVD, quickly dispersing the infection over the whole garden.

How can HLVD be avoided?

Here are some crucial pointers:

• Keep your tools tidy. On our Instagram profile, you can learn more about how to sterilize your instruments.

• Ensure that pests are under control.

• Tissue culture: As plants grow, HLVD may be left behind in older tissues because it may migrate via the vascular system of the plant. By creating clones from the afflicted plant, it may overcome the issue. The likelihood of choosing a clean cutting increases with the number of cuttings a grower roots.

• When visitors arrive, pay close attention since HLVD might be hiding in their hands, gloves, or even shoes!

• HLVD Testing is also another factor to avoid the specific disease.

• Please do not accept any plants or leaves unless they have passed a DNA HLVD Testing with a negative result. The only way to be certain that it won't harm your garden is to do this.