Why bother growing your cannabis when so many unique brands are on the market?
One reason for growing cannabis is to save money and give you a fun hobby.
You will also have more cannabis to share on our platform (Just click “Start Sharing” to become a member) to diversify your supply by collaborating with other growers and consumers who purchase strains from dispensaries. Using the Grow and Share platform will prevent you from being restricted to the strain you grow. You will save the most while receiving a variety of strains at the same time.
It would take quite a bit of time to grow your cannabis to satisfy your smoking needs entirely, especially if you like to mix and match strains. Companies can charge such a high rate for their work because they take so much time to look after a small growth operation.
By putting in the time, you can cultivate high-quality marijuana and sharpen your cultivation skills, enabling you to become an independent pro-grower.
Organizations like ours, Grow and Share, are here to ensure you have much information to help you along your journey if you’re passionate about learning how to grow.
This article includes step-by-step instructions on how to grow cannabis plants.
Cannabis Harvesting: A 10-Step Guide
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of growing, we want to make sure your plant has all the ingredients it needs:
- Seeds
- Light
- Fresh Air
- Growing Medium
- Perfect Temperature
- Clean Water
- Correct Nutrients
Each ingredient must be used in just the right amount, just as in a good recipe. In the following sections, we’ll address the specific ingredients and amounts that should be used in your cannabis recipe.
You can find detailed information on cannabis growing in other articles we have written below, so you don’t have to worry about where to obtain your marijuana seeds and materials.
1. Why you should grow cannabis at home
2. Professional ways to dry and cure cannabis
3. What is the best scrog technique
4. Beginner advice about growing cannabis
5. Introducing Troubleshooting your cannabis plants
6. Top Soils and Nutrients for Growing the Best Cannabis
7. The Best Indoor Hydroponic Setup
8. Discover the Best Ways to Grow Cannabis
9. Complete Overview of Schwazzing Benefits
10. Colours of Cannabis Explained
Things To Know About Indoor Growing
Indoor growing comes with surprisingly few costs. An initial investment is a must, but it is less expensive than you might think. Air should be able to circulate freely, and temperatures and humidity should not be excessive.
An indoor grow allows you to control the amount of ‘ingredients’ or access to other variables that your plants receive. Harvesting outdoors is much more difficult.
Growing indoors is more consistent in terms of buds, but they will also consume more of your time.
The following are the average temperatures:
- Young plants: 60-86F (20-30 C)
- Flowering Stage: 75-90F (23-32 C)w
A fan and exhaust system are necessary for enclosed areas, and the ability to control the temperature given off by your lights.
Things To Know About Outdoor Growing
A perfect climate does not exist, but you can still achieve this by adjusting watering quantities. The challenge is to find the right balance between humidity, dryness, coldness, and heat.
There is no initial investment in lighting accessories or a higher energy bill with outdoor growing, as the sun does the heavy lifting for you. The downside to outdoor growing is that it is less reliable, less private, and more dangerous for your plants.
Synthetic vs. Natural Lighting
The type of lighting you’ll use by default depends on the location of your grow. Indoor growth operations, however, require different types of lighting.
You have the following options:
- You could use CFLs instead of LEDs, but LEDs provide better results.
- Other fluorescent lighting: Can be used if the temperature is adequately controlled, but is not recommended for cannabis.
- A great option is LEDs because their design is perfect for your needs.
- A Metal Halide bulb is the best option for the vegetative stage, and a High-Pressure Sodium bulb (a gas-discharge light) is the best option for the flowering stage. These lights will produce an abundant yield.
The best option may only sometimes be the best option for your pocket, even though you’ll always want to go with the best. It’s therefore essential to decide what you can afford and compare it with the cost of the lighting you require.
What is the best-growing medium (soil)
Innovations and technological advancements have made it possible to have alternatives to good old-fashioned soil.
‘Medium’ is an interesting word to use in this context, but that’s what you’re looking for here: a medium where your plants will grow.
You have the following 4 different options:
- Soil
- coco-coir (coconut Fibre)
- Hydroponics (directly in water)
- Aquaponic
An alternative medium or potting mix is a good option. But the best option will always be homemade compost & natural soil.
Nutritional Needs
A growing medium can be boosted and enhanced with nutrients. Still, you will need the proper soil amendments, potting mixes, water for hydroponics, and fish for aquaponics to reach incredible results.
Depending on what nutrients you purchase and the strain you’re growing, you’ll need different quantities. In this article, we’ve detailed information about top nutrients if you want detailed information.
Get seeds or clones of your favorite strain.
Purchasing your seeds from a reputable source like Seedbank or a clone from Sun-Clone “sun grown” is highly advisable if you don’t have a friend who can help you. Luckily, we are building out a new version of Grow and Share, where you will soon be able to find weed and seeds, and clones from other cannabis enthusiasts.
How to Germinate Cannabis Seeds
With clones, seed germination has already been done for you, so you don’t need to do anything.
When a seed germinates for the first time, a seedling emerges from the seed. Once the seed has germinated, the seed is ready to transfer to a growing medium.
The two methods of germination you can use if you are starting from scratch are:
Germination Trays
These plastic trays have small openings, fill them with your choice of soil and 1-2 seeds. Their heating systems enhance the versatility and simplicity of some trays.
You can use lights to provide heat in other cases. Once you have sprouted your first seeds, plant them in their grow trays, then transplant the cube of soil later to where you will plant mature flowers.
Paper Towel Method
You might have already done the paper towel method in fifth grade.
Things You Will Need:
- Damp paper towel
- A plate
- Second Plate
Put the seeds on the wet paper towel, close it, and place it on the plate. When the seedlings have sprouted, place them 0.5 to 1.5 inches deep in your chosen growing medium. We recommend coco coir.
Vegetative State
You’re looking at a young plant by this stage, the leaves are starting to grow but you don’t yet have any flowers to trim.
You are responsible for analyzing how your plant appears, whether it is gloomy or healthy. Your plant may want more or less water, a change in nutrient dose, or a temperature change.
Flowering Stage
It takes much effort and care to produce high-yielding plants, but the reward is worth it. During this time, you should keep your temperatures between 75 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit (23 and 32 degrees Celsius).
As the flowering stage progresses, the following two tasks must be completed:
1. Changing the Schedule of Your Lights
You should adjust your light schedule if you’re growing cannabis indoors to 12 hours of total darkness and 12 hours of light.
It will take a while for you to be able to do this if you’re growing outdoors. Your plants will flower when the days get shorter, which will happen during the fall or autumn. To plan, start planning your growth cycles as soon as they germinate.
2. Identifying Your Plant’s Gender
You should pay attention to plant gender because it will determine whether you are growing cannabis plants to smoke or just for the sake of growing them.
It is only female cannabis plants that produce smokable flowers, while male cannabis plants do not.
THESE PISTILS DEMONSTRATE A FEMALE PLANT
Pistils begin to grow on the joints of the top branches of female plants, allowing them to be easily identifiable. A pistil or calyx is a small, white, hair-like structure that grows into a bushy flower over time.
It is easy to identify males because their pollen sacs (small green balls) remain ‘unsprouted’ instead of growing pistils.
Removing male plants is up to you, but professionals usually dispose of them because they can pollinate your female plants.
Furthermore, you’ll invest money and time in a plant that doesn’t produce any smokable flowers.
Harvesting time (picking and trimming)
Harvesting flower buds at the right time is the key to success. You can harvest your flowers when their white hairs stop growing.
After that, you will have three options for cutting down your flower buds:
- Estimated that approximately half of the white hairs have darkened with low potencies.
- The THC potency is at its peak when about half of the hairs have changed.
- Hair should have turned darker to obtain potent, relaxing effects and lower levels of THC.
The theory behind picking and trimming is simple. The flower should be cut from the plant with scissors, and the buds should be trimmed from the stems.
Flowers should be dried and cured
It is the final step in creating your flower that you can smoke after you have cured and dried your buds.
A closet with enough ventilation and low humidity could work as a place to hang your trimmed and picked buds. Please avoid kitchens and bathrooms since they tend to have higher humidity levels.
The buds are dry enough when the thin stems snap and the thick branches bend.
Please put them in glass mason jars after trimming the stems. The Grow and Share team recommends sealing the jars tightly and filling them to 75% of their capacity.
Open the jars (Also called burping) daily for a few seconds every day for the first three weeks of the curing process. Test the moisture retention of your buds by touching them. It is also possible to use moisture packs if you cannot get rid of moisture. We recommend Boveda humidity packs.
After buds have felt dry for a whole week, the curating process can begin. Curating can take up to 30 days, but this will depend on your taste and how long you want to dedicate to it.
For your initial attempts at growing, here are some extra tools:
Alternatively, you can invest in one of these machines if you do not want to learn how to grow cannabis yourself. Despite being more expensive, you will see significant ROI after growing a few cannabis plants.
Conclusion
Whether you manually grow your cannabis plants or use an automated hydroponic system, we’ve provided you with everything you need to know about growing great cannabis.