The Bay is back
In 2009 we built a place where growers traded genetics directly with each other. We kept the records. Here's what we're building next, and why.
In 2009, before most of today's seed sites existed, GenetixBay opened one of the first peer-to-peer seed exchanges, a place where growers could trade genetics directly with each other. No warehouse, no middleman, just growers who cared about where their seeds came from.
The beta years
From 2016 to 2020 we ran alpha and beta versions of the Bay. They were rough around the edges. Some features worked beautifully, some broke in ways we're still a little proud of, and a few were held together with tape and good intentions. That was our beta time: a bit sloppy, but we learned a lot on all fronts.
We learned how a community actually forms, and how fast trust goes when records are sloppy. We learned what makes a trade feel safe, which tech holds up and which falls over at 2 a.m., and, most of all, what growers really need instead of what we assumed they needed. The world wasn't quite ready either. Laws weren't ready, payments weren't ready, and honestly, neither were we.
We kept the records. And the lessons.
The rebuild
From 2023 to 2026 we rebuilt, mostly out of sight: years of hardware testing and real grows, an 18-pump dosing rig with one pump per compound, and a stage-by-stage nutrient recipe that grew some of the best plants we have ever had. Now the archive, the journal and Jardin, our grow system, are being built in public, with lab notes every step. Full launch is targeted for 20 April 2027.
What's different this time
Strain names get copied, crossed and renamed until nobody knows what anything is. Grow diaries live on one site, seed listings on another, and every harvest's worth of hard-won knowledge disappears when the season ends.
GenetixBay is being rebuilt as the permanent home for genetics and their history:
- A permanent record for every seed. Every genetic line, batch, plant, grow and harvest gets an ID that never changes. Lineage links show how strong the evidence is: breeder's word, community reports, or lab genotype on file.
- A grow journal that fills itself in. Photos, readings and feed charts in one timeline. Private by default, shareable when you want.
- A grow system that runs the room. We're building Jardin, an aeroponic and deep-water-culture controller that mixes nutrients by weight, watches the roots, and adjusts when you tell it what you're seeing. More on that in our first lab notes.
- The exchange, where the law allows it, with breeders and provenance front and centre.
And yes, the Professor is back too. Meet him here.
Building it in public
We're not going to disappear for a year and come back with a press release. Every week we'll post what we built, what broke and what we learned: hardware, software, genetics history, all of it.
Took you long enough. Pull up a chair, I kept the records.
How to get involved
- Join the waitlist. Founding Members get first access, a permanent badge, and the lowest numbers in the archive.
- Bring someone. Every friend who joins with your link moves you up the list. If you traded with us in 2009, we especially want to hear from you.
- Tell us what to preserve. The sign-up form asks which genetics deserve a permanent record. Old lines, lost cuts, breeders we should call: we're reading every answer.
Full launch is planned for 20 April 2027. See you on the Bay.
