When starting a cannabis business you will want to choose the right seeds first. Depending on the effects you want to achieve, you will choose different strains. This major choice (medical vs recreational) will largely determine the market you will be operating in.
After deciding on the results you are hoping for, you will then research the right plants for you and purchase seeds. With the seeds starts the lifecycle of your plants. From now on you will do everything you can to optimize water, airflow, nutrients and light.
10 Easy Steps to Grow Weed
Step 1: Choose Your Place to Grow
Choosing the place you want to grow your cannabis is the first most important factor. Though people grow cannabis both outdoors and indoors, many people today are opting for indoor growing because of the privacy and better crop control. Growing the crop indoors is also less expensive and easier to start even for those growing weed for the first time. Growing the crop indoors also means better maintenance and you can easily monitor the growth.
You can control all the necessary requirements the crop needs such as water usage, humidity, temperatures and light better indoors than you can when growing the crop outdoors. The crops rely on your total input for growth. When growing the crop outdoors, the crops will largely depend on nature, which sometimes can get bad socially when temperatures fall or the sun becomes too hot. If you are a beginner, A marijuana grow tent kit is recommended.
Step 2: Choose Your Light
LED grow lights work great for growing cannabis and some companies have been refining their models for years (the combination of parts is almost like a company’s recipe). Each LED model is different and needs to be kept a different distance away from your plants. It can sometimes be hard to find any “standard” advice about growing with LEDs, yet these days there are quite a few brands which are well-tested and trusted by cannabis growers and these brands tend to have good support for questions. When in doubt, it’s always a good idea to just ask the manufacturer about how far away the lights should be kept, as that’s where new growers are most likely to mess up. You need a full spectrum LED grow light to make a nice harvest!
Step 3: Choose Your Growing Medium
As we said earlier, cannabis needs several things in order to grow. Irrespective of the space you choose to grow your crops, you must make sure that your choice of medium is the best one for them. The most common grow mediums that many cannabis growers use are soil, and hydroponics.
Soil
Knowing the best soil to use for you crops is very important. Cannabis growers use different kinds of soil for their growing. Some compost their own soil while others buy their compost soil. Others prefer to use potting soil. For those that compost their own growing soil, also known as super soil, have the advantage of harvesting some of the healthiest cannabis in the market. The soil makes the weed grow fast and healthy as it contains organic ingredients broken down naturally to mimic rich and good soil.
The soil is ideal for both indoor and outdoor cannabis growth. Using super soil also does not require too much monitoring apart from watering and harvesting. Many of the growers that use super soil say the crop has better and smoother buds than those planted using other mediums. the only disadvantages of using compost soil is that you cannot just up and start growing as the soil needs 30 to 60 days of composting. You therefore need to plan and remember that the mixing process is not as easy as it sounds. Crops growing using compost soil take longer to mature than those growing hydroponically.
Step 4: Get Cannabis-Friendly Nutrients
Ensuring your plants get the right nutrients is probably second only to lighting in terms of importance. Proper nutrient selection and application are among the most critical factors in growing premium-grade cannabis. While weed is resilient, growing it in sub-optimal conditions means you will miss out on yield and potency.
Whether you’re using an organic soil mix or growing hydroponically, your cannabis plants need the “super seven” macronutrients. In no particular order, these are:
Nitrogen (N)
Potassium (P)
Calcium (Ca)
Phosphorus (Ph)
Magnesium (Mg)
Iron (Fe)
Copper (Cu)
You can get these macronutrients pre-packaged in liquid or powder form (if you’re using an un-supplemented soil mix). However, a lot of organic “super soils” already contain them in sufficient amounts.
Step 5: Where to Get Cannabis Plants
For those growers lucky enough to know other cannabis growers in real life, getting plants is usually pretty simple. Many cannabis collectives and dispensaries will happily sell you clones though they tend to be a little less liberal when it comes to selling seeds. A great advantage of purchasing clones or seeds from a trusted source is that you know you can trust the genetics you are receiving.
Step 6: Germinate Your Seeds / Start Your Clones
When it comes to germinating clones, it gets even easier. Cloning involves cutting a part of your existing cannabis plant to create clone cannabis. If you are new in the growing business, you can get clones from existing weed farmers. Cloning, also referred to as vegetative propagation develops roots when exposed to the right conditions leading to the growth of new crops. One of the major advantages of using clones is that you already know the traits of the mother plant so you will know the quality of harvest to expect.
If you are cutting your clubs from your older crops, what you will need is a sharp razor for cutting off the part, a container with your growing medium, a water spray bottle to keep the clone moist and rubbing alcohol. The rubbing alcohol is to ensure that everything you use is clean and sterilized including your hands as you handle the clone from the mother plant to the medium.
Step 7: Vegetative Stage – Only Stems and Leaves
The vegetative phase is the first stage of growth. When considering your lighting options you must understand that if the position of your light is wrong it can cause your plant to either dry out and turn brown if the lights too close, or grow too tall to stretch to the light source if it’s too far away.
If you plan to use LED, metal halide or high pressure sodium from the very start then you must start with it being around 20 inches or more above the top of the plant (although this is less for LED). You should lower the light around an inch daily until you believe it’s in the right position and your plants are receiving the correct amount of lighting.
During this first stage of growth you should keep the light on for a minimum of 18 hours a day, even better if you can stretch to 24 hours a day to begin with. The longer you can keep the light on, the faster your plants will grow, but of course you’ve got to consider the cost of this.
Step 8: Flowering Stage – Buds Start Growing!
This is the stage where your plants start making buds. This stage will last until harvest!
During this stage, you will need to…
Change to 12-12 Light Schedule
Identify Gender of Cannabis Plants
Get Rid of any Males
We’re getting to the exciting part!
Most strains of cannabis begin this stage once they’re getting at least 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness a night. Autoflowering cannabis plants will start the flowering stage without needing a lighting change.
Step 9: Harvest Your Cannabis
First you’ll notice that your buds will stop developing white hairs. Your plants should also be very fragrant, and their buds should look very plump.
Next, you’ll notice the white pistils slowly darkening, usually turning slightly red or orange. These hairs will also begin curling inwards as the buds mature.
You’ll want to wait until at least 40% of the pistils on your buds have started darkening. This marks the beginning of the harvest window. Buds harvested at this time will usually produce a more uplifting effect and will be slightly less potent.
Some growers may wait out the harvest period a little longer until 50%-70% of the pistils have darkened. This is said to be time when THC levels in the buds are at their highest. Buds harvested after this time will produce more relaxing effects.
Once you’ve harvested your buds, it's time to trim and dry them. This can take up to 2 weeks. You’ll want to dry your buds slowly by hanging them upside down and store them in quality, sealed glass jars once they’re done.
Then, once you’ve harvested and cured your buds, it's time to kick back, light up, and enjoy the fruit of your labour!
Remember, the info here is generalized and is designed to serve as a basic introduction to the different necessary steps of growing weed. Make sure to regularly check out our blog for more detailed articles about the various aspects of growing weed indoors.
Step 10: Dry & Cure Your Buds Like a Professional
After you have cut off and trimmed all of your glittery, beautiful fat buds, you will want to hang them upside down in a cool, dark place with plenty of ventilation so that they can dry out.
After your cannabis buds have dried (thin stems snap, but the thicker stems are still a bit bendy), it’s time to start curing them so they’re smooth, taste good, smell good, and have the best effects.
To cure your buds, put them in tightly-closed quart-sized mason jars in a cool dark place. Fill each jar loosely about 3/4 of the way full.
For the first 2 weeks of curing, open the jars once a day for several seconds to get fresh air in your jars and release any moisture.
If your buds feel moist when you check on them, leave the tops of the jars off until the outsides of the buds feel dry to the touch. Too-moist bud is what causes mold!
Special products like “Boveda 62% Humidipaks” will make curing a lot easier, as they will naturally regulate the humidity in your jars.
After your cannabis has been curing for at least 2 weeks, and they haven’t felt wet every time you’ve checked the jars for at least a week, you can start opening the lid once a week instead of once a day.
Some people only cure their bud for 1-2 weeks total while other cure their bud for 30 days or more. Because you need to open the jar regularly, you can always sample some as it’s curing to get a feel for whether it’s done or not.
I personally think that cannabis tends to be more potent if you cure it for at least a month.
Curing for longer than 6 months doesn’t do anything, and cannabis can become less potent over time as THC turns to CBN. Keep your harvest in a cool, dry, airtight space for long-term storage.
What You’ll Need to Monitor During Growing Weed?
Growing marijuana indoors allows you to keep an eye on the entire growth process. Marijuana is a plant that requires lots of attention if you want it to yield powerful, potent results, though the overall process is fairly simple once you get the swing of things. Checking in on your plants three or four times per day can help yield the best results, especially for the beginning grower.
It is important to monitor the amount of air and light that the plant receives when growing marijuana indoors. Marijuana is a native outdoor plant and thrives when pristine conditions are noted. Thus, proper air flow in which you need Inline Duct Fun, proper light, and the right amount of moisture are key ingredients to a successful grow.
Flowering plants like marijuana produce fruits only once per year during the fall season. They’re fruitful during this cooler period after receiving sunlight and nutrients during the warmer months. It’s called a photosynthesis period and is a process that you’ll need to reproduce when growing marijuana indoors. To do this, the plants need up to 16-hours of light during the seedling stage and approximately 12-hours during the flowering process.
The photosynthesis also requires proper air be delivered to the plant. All plants need air to survive, including the cannabis plant. A steady stream of airflow in the marijuana grow tent is essential to a healthy marijuana plant. Marijuana plants thrive in temperatures ranging from 70 F to 85 F; an exhaust fan can help you maintain these temperatures. Since some strains of the marijuana plant prefer lower temperatures while others thrive when temperatures are closer to the highest temperature point, it is important to properly educate yourself on the preferences of the seedling before you begin.
Final Thoughts on Growing Cannabis Indoors
Harvesting hemp and cannabis is a lovely experience. It is one we recommend to any weed lover who has a passion for all aspects of the plant. You learn so much about cannabis and botany/biology in general. Most growers believe they learn something new with every harvest.
There’s no doubt a bit of a learning curve involved. You’ll make your fair share of mistakes. However, trust us when we say it’s all worth it in the end.