Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about cannabis tissue culture consulting, lab design, HLVd remediation, and working with Collective Herb.
What makes Collective Herb Consulting different from other cannabis consultants?
Collective Herb works hand in hand with cultivators through every step of the process, specializing in how tissue culture integrates into your overall cultivation strategy.
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Our background in both cultivation and lab science allows us to deliver practical, scalable solutions that actually work in real-world facilities. We understand mother replacement, clone production, long-term genetic storage, and the operational constraints that determine success. We don't just design labs in isolation—we design labs that fit your workflow, your space, your budget, and your growth trajectory.
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This dual expertise means we anticipate real-world complications before they happen and can advise on trade-offs that matter operationally. Most consultants know labs or cultivation, but not both. That gap is where projects go sideways.
Who leads Collective Herb Consulting?
Collective Herb Consulting is led by David Stormzand, a commercial cannabis cultivator turned tissue culture specialist with over 15 years of hands-on experience in large-scale cultivation and 5 years specializing in cannabis tissue culture.
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David combines deep operational insight with technical expertise to help cultivators build clean Gen-0 tissue culture programs, optimize their genetic management, and streamline overall production systems. His background bridges cultivation, facility design, and lab implementation, ensuring every tissue culture program integrates seamlessly into a client's broader cultivation strategy.
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This background matters because it means every recommendation comes from someone who has run cultivations at scale, understands cash flow and production cycles, and knows what actually works in commercial settings rather than just in theory.
How long has your team been working in cannabis tissue culture?
We have over five years of experience in cannabis tissue culture, built on more than a decade of commercial cultivation.
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This combination of experience helps us translate lab science into systems that improve yield, quality, and consistency across your operation. We've solved tissue culture problems across different scales, climates, regulatory environments, and genetic libraries. That accumulated experience is what allows us to move quickly on new projects and avoid the mistakes that slow down first-time builders.
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Experience matters because tissue culture is still relatively new to cannabis cultivation. We've logged the hours and seen the patterns that consultants without this track record haven't encountered yet.
Where is Collective Herb Consulting based?
We are based in Sacramento, California and work with clients across the United States.
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Our Sacramento location gives us deep roots in the California cannabis market, which is still the largest and most mature in the country. Being California-based also means we understand the regulatory landscape here in detail and can advise other operators on how California best practices apply to their own jurisdictions. We regularly travel for on-site consulting and can work remotely for planning, training, and support.
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Your location shouldn't limit access to the best expertise. We've designed that into our engagement model so that whether you're in California, another regulated state, or multiple states, we can help you build and scale your tissue culture program.
Do you work with multi-state operators (MSOs)?
Yes. We've helped MSOs manage and clean genetic libraries of over 150 cultivars, implement cold storage systems, and standardize Gen-0 propagation across multiple facilities.
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MSO support includes designing labs that can be replicated across different states and facilities, creating standardized SOPs that work at scale, training teams across multiple locations, and managing cold storage of critical genetics at a centralized hub. This ensures consistent quality and genetic authenticity across all operations, which is essential for brand integrity and regulatory compliance.
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MSOs face unique challenges around genetic consistency, state-by-state regulatory variation, and logistics. Our experience scaling tissue culture across multiple jurisdictions and facilities makes us a natural partner for portfolio-wide genetic management and optimization.
OUR SERVICES
What services does Collective Herb Consulting offer?
We design and launch cannabis tissue culture labs, develop clean genetic programs, and optimize cultivation workflows.
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Services include lab design, equipment sourcing, SOP documentation, team training, and ongoing advisory support. Whether you're retrofitting a small space or building from the ground up, our team handles every phase of implementation to ensure your lab integrates seamlessly into your existing cultivation operation.
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Having a full-service partner removes the burden of sourcing expertise from multiple vendors and ensures every component works together as a cohesive system. This integration is essential for achieving the consistency, quality, and speed to market that modern cultivators demand.
Do you design complete cannabis tissue culture labs?
Yes. We handle every stage of lab design, from layout and airflow planning to lighting and contamination control.
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Every lab is customized for your space, workflow, and production targets. We assess your available square footage, existing utilities, staffing capacity, and genetic goals, then create a design that maximizes efficiency and minimizes contamination risk. The design process includes 3D layout, equipment placement, workflow diagrams, and utility requirements.
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A well-designed layout is the foundation of long-term success. Poor airflow, inadequate lighting, or inefficient workflow can undermine even the best team and equipment. Design done right reduces contamination, accelerates production cycles, and makes training easier for new staff.
Can you retrofit an existing grow room into a tissue culture lab?
Absolutely. Many clients start by converting a small veg or clone room into a sterile, high-performance tissue culture space.
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We help you design the layout, choose equipment, and maintain clean-room standards. Retrofitting is often faster and more affordable than building from scratch because you're reusing existing utilities, walls, and environmental controls. The main work is partitioning the space, upgrading HVAC for particle control, installing containment barriers, and equipping it with the right lab infrastructure.
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Retrofit projects are attractive for established cultivators because they allow you to launch a tissue culture program without disrupting your current production. You can keep running flower and veg rooms while the retrofit happens in parallel, then transition to Gen-0 propagation once the lab is certified clean.
Do you help with HLVd-free Gen-0 clone programs?
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Yes. We develop tissue culture workflows that remove pathogens like Hop Latent Viroid and restore your cultivars to clean, vigorous Gen-0 stock ready for consistent cloning and production.
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Our remediation process combines meristem dissection with thermotherapy to regenerate healthy, uninfected plant material from your original genetics. Once you have verified clean Gen-0 stock, we help you establish propagation protocols and cold storage systems to maintain that clean status indefinitely.
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This service is essential for cultivators whose genetic library has been compromised by HLVd. Instead of replacing valuable cultivars, you reclaim them. The result is faster, more vigorous growth, higher yields, and better quality across all downstream clones.
Do you offer SOPs and staff training?
Every project includes custom SOPs and hands-on training for your team, covering aseptic technique, media preparation, and contamination prevention.
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We develop written protocols specific to your lab layout, equipment, and production targets. Training is tailored to your team's background, from complete tissue culture newcomers to experienced cultivators transitioning into the lab. Hands-on training covers everything from hood work to media recipes to troubleshooting common contamination patterns.
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Your staff is the most critical variable in long-term success. Great SOPs and thorough training are what transform a clean lab into a consistently profitable one. Without them, even the best-designed facility struggles with contamination and operator error.
Do you assist with equipment procurement and setup?
Yes. We help source, install, and calibrate equipment, ensuring your lab runs smoothly from day one.
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Our guidance helps you avoid unnecessary costs and select tools that match your exact production goals. We have relationships with vendors and can negotiate pricing, we manage installation coordination, and we conduct calibration and acceptance testing once equipment arrives. This includes laminar flow hoods, autoclaves, microscopes, grow chambers, media prep tools, and all supporting equipment.
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Equipment is a major budget line item and one where it's easy to make expensive mistakes. Buying the wrong hood size, undersizing your autoclave, or choosing equipment that doesn't integrate with your workflow all undermine profitability. Our experience helps you right-size every component.
PLANT SCIENCE AND GENETICS
What is Gen-0 cannabis material?
Gen-0 is disease-free cannabis material regenerated through tissue culture that serves as the genetic foundation for all future propagation.
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It ensures every clone begins from a verified clean source. Instead of rooting cuttings from conventional mother plants (which accumulate pathogens like HLVd over time), you root from tissue-cultured Gen-0 plants that are confirmed to be clean. Each new generation derived from Gen-0 starts fresh, without the baggage of accumulated viral load, somaclonal drift, or genetic degradation that conventional mother rooms experience.
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This is transformational for commercial operations because it extends the reliable lifespan of your genetics, improves consistency between batches, and reduces the total number of mother plants you need to maintain. Gen-0 programs are the backbone of repeatable, high-quality production.
How does tissue culture remove Hop Latent Viroid (HLVd)?
HLVd is removed through a combination of meristem dissection and thermotherapy, which regenerates healthy, uninfected cells from the original plant material.
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Meristem dissection targets the growing tip of the plant where the virus has not yet colonized. Thermotherapy applies controlled heat stress to suppress viral replication while the new tissue is regenerating. Together, these techniques produce disease-free Gen-0 material from infected mother plants, allowing you to reclaim valuable genetics that would otherwise be lost or spread throughout your operation.
This capability transforms cultivators who thought their genetics were compromised. HLVd-infected plants show reduced vigor, slower growth, and lower potency. Remediation restores these plants to their true genetic potential, which means faster flowering cycles, better yields, and improved quality across every clone derived from the Gen-0 stock.
Can I store genetics long-term using cold storage?
Yes. Cold storage allows you to preserve valuable genetics in vitro for years, reducing space requirements and the need for large mother rooms.
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Cold storage works by slowing metabolic activity in cultured plant tissue, preserving the genetic and phenotypic integrity of your cultivars indefinitely. You can store dozens of cultivars in a refrigerator-sized cabinet instead of maintaining dozens of living mother plants across your facility. When you need fresh clones, you retrieve tissue from cold storage, regenerate it in the lab, and produce cuttings.
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This is operationally valuable for MSOs managing large genetic libraries, cultivators facing limited mother plant space, and anyone wanting genetic insurance against loss or contamination. Cold storage decouples genetic preservation from daily production operations, which simplifies facility planning and reduces cultivation overhead.
GETTING STARTED
How does the consultation process work?
We start with a discovery call to understand your genetics, workflow, and production goals, then create a step-by-step plan for your facility.
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The plan includes lab design, equipment selection, SOPs, and staff training. After the initial proposal, we move into implementation—either on-site, remotely, or a hybrid approach. Our team stays involved until your program is running smoothly and independently. We also offer phased programs that allow you to start with early planning and scale into full implementation as your facility develops, so you can spread costs and timeline to match your budget.
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This hands-on continuity is critical because tissue culture adoption rarely goes smoothly on the first try. Having a partner who has seen the obstacles and knows the solutions dramatically accelerates your path to profitability and reduces the cost of false starts.
How long does it take to set up a tissue culture lab?
Most projects take six to twelve months from planning to full production, depending on scope and permitting.
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Smaller in-house retrofits can often be completed in a few weeks. The timeline accounts for design refinement, equipment procurement and installation, SOP development, staff training, contamination debugging, and the first successful propagation cycles. Some of this work overlaps, so not every month is spent waiting.
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Understanding the real timeline helps you plan cash flow and staffing. Many cultivators underestimate how long it takes to go from a clean room to consistent, contamination-free production. Our timeline estimates are grounded in real project experience, not best-case scenarios.
Do you provide on-site or remote support?
Yes. We provide both in-person and remote consulting options, including virtual audits, training, and ongoing technical support.
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In-person visits are essential for the initial design, installation, and hands-on training phases. Remote support complements this with troubleshooting, protocol refinement, and follow-up training via video call, email, and phone. For some clients, remote support is sufficient for the planning and advisory phases, then we transition to on-site for implementation.
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Flexibility in delivery model matters because cultivators operate across different geographies and time zones. We adapt our engagement to your operational reality, whether that's a single facility in Sacramento or multiple sites spread across the country.
How do I schedule a consultation?
You can request a free consultation directly at collectiveherb.com to discuss your goals and project needs.
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The consultation form captures your facility details, genetic targets, timeline, and current cultivation setup. This helps us prepare for the call and make sure we understand your specific situation. We'll contact you within one business day to schedule a time that works for you.
The discovery call is your opportunity to ask questions, hear how we approach your specific challenges, and get a sense of whether we're a good fit for your operation. There's no pressure or obligation, and we don't bill for the initial consultation.
LAB SETUP AND EQUIPMENT
What equipment do I need for a cannabis tissue culture lab?
Core equipment includes a laminar flow hood, autoclave, microscope, grow chamber, and media prep tools.
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When you work with Collective Herb, we provide a customized equipment and supply list based on your facility size, workflow, and budget to ensure your lab operates efficiently and meets clean-room standards. The specific models and quantities depend on your target production volume, available space, and production schedule. A micro-lab needs different equipment than a high-throughput facility.
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Having the right equipment list before you start sourcing prevents costly over-buying, undersizing, and incompatibility. It also ensures your team knows what they're working with before they arrive for training.
How much space is required to start?
A micro-lab can operate in as little as 8x11 feet, supporting media prep, incubation, and cold storage.
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We design compact layouts that maximize efficiency within your available space. For most cultivators, a space of this size can support a tissue culture program sufficient to supply a multi-room grow operation with clean clones, reduce mother plant inventory, and run HLVd remediation projects. Larger operations or higher throughput may require more square footage, but many successful programs operate at this footprint.
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Space efficiency is a key advantage of tissue culture for cultivators with limited real estate. You're not replacing mother rooms, you're eliminating most of them. This frees up valuable grow space for revenue-generating flower or veg production.
PRICING AND PAYMENT
How much does it cost to build a tissue culture lab?
Most small to mid-scale projects range from $25,000 to $150,000 turnkey, depending on design, size, and equipment.
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Each proposal is tailored to your budget and needs. A micro-lab in a retrofit space will be at the lower end, while a dedicated facility with redundant systems and high throughput will be at the upper end. The price includes lab design, equipment sourcing and installation, SOP development, training, and initial advisory support.
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Transparency on cost is important because you can then evaluate tissue culture as a capital investment against other genetic management strategies. The ROI comes from reduced contamination losses, faster cycle times, improved clone consistency, and the ability to preserve genetics long-term without maintaining large mother rooms.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept ACH transfers, bank wire, and all major credit cards for consulting retainers and equipment invoices.
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Payment terms are arranged during the contract negotiation phase and typically align with project milestones. For large equipment orders, we can often arrange vendor financing or phased payment schedules that match your cash flow.
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Understanding payment flexibility upfront helps you budget and forecast project costs accurately. We work with you to structure payments in a way that makes sense for your operation.
Do you offer payment plans or phased consulting packages?
Yes. We offer phased programs that align with your project timeline, allowing you to start with early planning and scale into full implementation as your facility develops.
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A typical phased approach might begin with design and planning (Phase 1), move into equipment sourcing and installation (Phase 2), then transition to training and launch support (Phase 3). Each phase is billed separately, so you only pay for the work being done. This approach also allows you to pause between phases if needed or adjust scope based on early results.
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Phased programs are popular with cultivators who want to manage capital expenditure carefully or who need time to secure permitting, prepare facilities, or train staff before moving to the next stage. They reduce financial risk and allow you to learn as you go rather than committing to a full build-out upfront.