Ostara revitalizes cultivation with launch of prized genetics

Ostara Cannabis is a brand recognized by many for its Missouri sun-grown marijuana flower. While Ostara has been producing flower, concentrates , and edibles for the better part of two years, now the company reaches the culmination of a mission to hunt some of the most prestigious and popular genetics that the market has to offer while maintaining those Missouri-grown roots. The search for the right phenotype can be likened to the search for gold, find the right one and it can be culture-changing for a company. 

Since its founding, Ostara has been a brand heavily focused on fulfilling its promise to bring low-cost, sun-grown medicine to patients. Consistent with the brand’s identity of rebirth, reinvention, and innovation, Ostara is excited to launch a whole host of brand-new genetics into the Missouri market as the program prepares to convert over to adult use.  

While Ostara has a catalogue of over 300 cultivars, over the last several months, they have been quietly conducting a large-scale pheno hunt from 65 hand-picked strains. The company is in the process of selecting winning phenotypes and re-hybridizing the winners to isolate the desired characteristics like potency, density, and bag appeal. 

Dan Welsh, the driving force behind Ostara, further explained, “Once we introduce the remaining 200+ strains into what I think can be fairly characterized as an ambitious culling and breeding process, we will settle on about 40 hybridized strains that we think will be not just in high demand, but will also be competitive in any arena.”

Some of Ostara’s newest genetics to be released include Oreoz BX F2 (Oreoz 1.0 X Pure Michigan) released last week, and French Royale (Brownie Scout S1 X Oreoz 1.0)  right behind it.  Ostara plans to release new strains on a near-weekly basis moving forward.  While many of the strains have come from prior Cannabis Cup-winning genetics, they also have a series of new cultivars that have been crossed with strains that will resonate with Missourians. Ostara is operating an in-house breeding program where they continually develop new genetics for both quality and yield, specifically for the climate of the Huzzah Valley.  

When asked why Ostara decided to work over their genetics Welsh said, “I have always had a passion for plant science, dating back well before the arrival of the cannabis industry in Missouri. There is no question that genetic diversity is vital to the success of a cultivation operation. We set out on this journey to fulfill our mission to provide the best strains for whatever particular ailment might confront any one of our loyal patients. I think consumers in the recreational market will also appreciate the vast variety of strains that we will bring to the marketplace.”

He continued, “It was important to us to fulfill our mission to provide low-cost medicine to our loyal patients, first and foremost.  That said, we have always planned for Ostara to evolve into a brand with high-quality flower offerings as the market opens up to adult use.  That is part of the Ostara mission of always evolving, refreshing and innovating.  We believe that in order to remain competitive within a recreational marketplace, we will have to carve out our own niche within it.   The genetics that we will be introducing will be brand new to Missouri, but on par with the strains that perform well in California and Colorado.  The bottom line is that we will never stop innovating our genetics.  It is not just our mission, it is also our passion.”

The next wave of the new strain catalogue will be released in the coming weeks with many exciting additions. “Keep an eye out for Wake N’ Bake (Pancake Stomper + Wavy Gravy), Amber Rays (Sugar Cane X Third Coast), Fireside Smores (Wifi 43 X Oreoz BX F2), Blue Note Cookies (Mandarin Cookies V3 X Blueberry Cookies X Oreoz BX F2), Root 66 Runtz (Mega Runtz X Wowzers), Grape Marvel (Grape Fritter X End Game R2), and Cuban Chem (3 Chems 2.0 x Chemmy Jones). We have many others behind those. After that the sky is the limit!” Welsh exclaimed.

This sort of transition is common in the cannabis industry due to its trend-driven nature. Long-standing companies learn to adapt to market demands and the high-end flower market is still one of the fastest growing in the industry. As Missouri moves to adult use marijuana, more and more patients and consumers are seeking something special and unique.

Ostara continues to set itself apart from the competition by providing the same consumer-priced products that people love while also providing a bevy of options and premium genetics for the connoisseur market.

You can find more about Ostara at ostaracannabis.com or on social media @ostaracanna.