HOP LATENT VIROID (AKA ‘DUDDING DISEASE’)

A SIGNIFICANT RISK TO THE CANNABIS MARKET

Headlines about the very real threat of Hop Latent Viroid (HLVd or HLV), or “dudding disease,” have been making their way across the cannabis industry over the past couple of years. This plant pathogen is a single-stranded, circular form of infectious RNA. When a plant becomes infected by this viroid, an incredibly small virus, it spreads systemically throughout the plant, replicating at an incredibly fast rate.

Some data suggests that the 70% of California farms are tainted with HLVd. A cultivation facility’s mother room is one of the main culprits of the rapid spread of HLVd across the U.S. and the U.K., due to the concentrated stress levels in that one room.

HLVd reduces the THC level in cannabis plants by as much as 50%.

Example of “yellow head,” a symptom of HLVd.

HLVd SYMPTOMS

HLVd can go undetected for a long time and often mimics symptoms of a stressed plant. Symptoms include:

- Dudding or yellow head
- Stunted growth
- Lack of resin production
- Lack of bud development
- Brittle stems and overall plant structure
- Decreased cannabinoid content
- Faster ripening

HOW IS HLVd TRANSMITTED?

Hop Latent Viroid is most often transmitted through contaminated equipment and tools, employees touching plants without changing gloves, or a lack of adequate hygiene. HLVd can also be found in seeds, creating a whole other problem for the cannabis market. By keeping your garden, equipment, and hygiene clean, the chance of spreading viroids or disease decreases dramatically. Always be sure to clean equipment thoroughly in between plant maintenance. Soaking equipment for a minimum of five minutes in a 10% bleach solution is best practice for sanitizing tools and equipment.

VERTIKAL TECH’s REMEDIATION SERVICES

When it comes to HLVd, traditional treatment such as fungicides and insecticides are often toxic and futile.

So, what are your options?

VertiKal Tech screens all cultivars that come into our lab, using a 3^rd party testing lab to test each cultivar for a full panel of diseases and viruses. If a cultivar comes into our lab and is infected, through our tissue culture practices we can remediate that cultivar back to its original GEN 0 state, disease-free and virus-free, or remove it completely. Remediation can take upwards of 12 months depending on the viral load but can save prized genetics of cultivators worldwide.

Why not restart your grow with disease-free and virus-free GEN 0 tissue culture clones?

While your prized genetics are being remediated, you have access to VertiKal Tech’s full genetic library.

207-420-1934 / 234 First Flight Drive, Auburn, Maine 04210