Websites: Grow Weed Easy
Books/References on Growing Cannabis:
Details of existing Cannabis plants varieties and breeding methods are described in Potter et al. (2011, World Wide Weed: Global Trends in Cannabis Cultivation and Its Control), Holland (2010, The Pot Book: A Complete Guide to Cannabis, Inner Traditions/Bear & Co, ISBN1594778981, 9781594778988), Green I (2009, The Cannabis Grow Bible: The Definitive Guide to Growing Marijuana for Recreational and Medical Use, Green Candy Press, 2009, ISBN 1931160589, 9781931160582), Green II (2005, The Cannabis Breeder’s Bible: The Definitive Guide to Marijuana Genetics, Cannabis Botany and Creating Strains for the Seed Market, Green Candy Press, 1931160279, 9781931160278), Starks (1990, Marijuana Chemistry: Genetics, Processing & Potency, ISBN 0914171399, 9780914171393), Clarke (1981, Marijuana Botany, an Advanced Study: The Propagation and Breeding of Distinctive Cannabis, Ronin Publishing, ISBN 091417178X, 9780914171782), Short (2004, Cultivating Exceptional Cannabis: An Expert Breeder Shares His Secrets, ISBN 1936807122, 9781936807123), Cervantes (2004, Marijuana Horticulture: The Indoor/Outdoor Medical Grower’s Bible, Van Patten Publishing, ISBN 187882323X, 9781878823236), Franck et al. (1990, Marijuana Grower’s Guide, Red Eye Press, ISBN 0929349016, 9780929349015), Grotenhermen and Russo (2002, Cannabis and Cannabinoids: Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutic Potential, Psychology Press, ISBN 0789015080, 9780789015082), Rosenthal (2007, The Big Book of Buds: More Marijuana Varieties from the World’s Great Seed Breeders, ISBN 1936807068, 9781936807062), Clarke, R C ( Cannabis: Evolution and Ethnobotany 2013 (In press)), King, J (Cannabible Vols 1-3, 2001-2006), and four volumes of Rosenthal’s Big Book of Buds series (2001, 2004, 2007, and 2011),
Introduction/Definitions:
Cannabis is the genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae, which includes three primary species: Cannabis stiva L., Cannabis indica, and Cannabid ruderalis. These plants are native to Central Asia and India but their cultivation has spread worldwide due to theri widespread use for medicinal, recreational and industrial purposes. Cannabis plants are typicaly dioecious, meaning they ahve male and female individual orgaisms, but monoecious variteis also exist. Cannabis plants are highly adaptive and can be grwon in a wide cariety of claimates and soils, which ahs contributed to therir global distribution. For cultivation, they prefer a humid climate and well drained, rich soils. They are typically grown from seeds, but cloning from cuttings is also common, expecially in commerical oeprations. The plants have a short annual lifecycle, usually flowering in late summer and early fall. A key aspect of Cannabis culturation is the separation of male and female plants, as female plants produce the buds rich in cannabinoids, the psychoactive compounds, particularly in the absence of male plants. The cultivation of Cannabis has evolved isgnificanlty over the centuries. In modern times, it is often grown indoors under controlled conditions to optimize yield and potency. This invovles carefully manging variables such as light exposure, temeprature humidity, and nutrient supply. Different strains of Cannabis have been selectively bred to product plants with desired traits such as higher THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) or CBD (cannabidiol) content. Maminakis (US 2024/0105278)
Typically, sun-grown Cannabis is planted in spring, flowers when night periods exceed about 10-12 hours, and is ready to harvest in late autum.
Cannabis is a very rapidly growing plant, attaining a usual height of three to twenty feet at maturity. Cannabis is dioecious, which means that there are sexually distinct male and female plants. The known species are Cannabis sai/Va, Cannabis indica and Cannabis ruderatis with multiple strains in cultivation.
Photoperiod refers to a plant’s response to the amount of light and darkness, to which it is exposed. Short-day or long-night plants, as obligate photoperiodic plants, will only begin flowering once the sunlight hours are reduced to a certain number, based on the seasonal changes of the earth’s orbit or artificial replication thereof. Typically, short-day plants will flower when the day is less than 12 hours (i.e., the night is longer than 12 hours) regardless of plant age or size. In indoor growing operations, this photosensitivity allows for a precisely tailored plant cycle for continuous growing seasons with the stages of development being artificially controlled. Additionally, when outdoors, short-day plants can be fooled into flowering early (i.e., outside of the natural seasonal schedule) by being covered for at least 12 hours in a 24-hour period. Similarly, if exposed to more than 12 hours of light in a 24-hour period, short-day plants will not flower, so flowering may be delayed and/or a plant may be kept in a perpetual vegetative state (e.g., as a mother plant for clones and/or seeds). (US 20230242932)
In general, a Cannabis plant has a vegetative stage and a flower stage. The latter may be initiated by substantially increasing the time the Cannabis plant essentially does not receive light (dark period). During the phase of life known as the vegetative stage (the first stage of life for marijuana), a cannabis plant grows like a weed. In the vegetative stage a cannabis plant essentially only grows new stems and leaves, and can grow several inches a day. When growing Cannabis indoors, the flowering stage begins when the lighting schedule is reduced to a 12/12 light cycle (12 hours light, 12 hours darkness each day). During the vegetative stage, the Cannabis plant should get horticulture light during at least about 16 hours a day. Getting those 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness each day may give the plant the signal that it is time to start flowering. The plant may receive a kind of winter trigger, because the days are getting short. On the internet, it is amongst others found that “if the plant gets any light during the dark period, even for just a minute, it will not make buds! A flowering plant may even revert back or express hermaphroditism if it gets any light at night”. During the first few weeks after being switched to a 12/12 schedule, the Cannabis plant will be growing relatively fast and may rapidly gain height. In fact, a Cannabis plant can almost double in height after the switch to 12/12. This period of super-fast and often stretchy growth is sometimes referred to as the “flowering stretch”. The female plants will start sprouting lots of white pistils, though they usually will not start growing “real” buds with substance quite yet. (US 20220295712)
With regard to some plants, as an example, such as cannabis, there are two key growth stages, a vegetative stage and flowing stage. To maintain the plant in the vegetative cycle, the lights may be kept ‘on’ eighteen (18) hours a day and turned ‘off’ six (6) hours a day. When the grower wants to flip the plant into the flowing stage or flower producing stage, light times may be changed to twelve (12) hours ‘on’ and twelve (12) hours ‘off’ in a 24-hour period. The change in light times activates the plant into what it perceives as a season change, thereby moving the plant into the flowing stage. US 10842082
Seed Propagation:
The life cycle of a cannabis plant begins with seed propagation, where the seeds germinate and develop into seedlings within 0-14 days. The seedlings then progress into the vegetative stage, lasting 3-16 weeks, characterized by vigorous growth and the development of leaves and branches. Following the vegetative stage, the plant enters the pre-flowering stage for 1-2 weeks, displaying pre-flowers that indicate its sex. The flowering stage, lasting 6-12 weeks, is initiated by adjusting the light cycle and resutls in the production of female flowers or male pollen. Harvesting can occur within 8-12 weeks form the start of the flowering stage, depending on the desired potency, cheotype/chemical profile (e.g., cannbinoid, terpene, volatile sulfure compounds (VSCs), flavonoids,e tc) characteristics,a nd /or effects. Alternatively, if seed ahrvesting is the goal, polination occurs druing the flowering stage, and mature seeds can be collecte within 4-6 weeks after pollination. The lenght of each stage of Cannabis plant is what makes the seed and/or seedling selection process so important for resource management and crop success. Maminakis (US 2024/0105278)
Traditional methods of seed and/or seedling selection rely on visual inspections and trial and error methods, which are time-consuming and can lead to significant losses and/or delays if the wrong plants are selected for cultivation. Traditionally, it takes 60-100 days to grow seedlings and to be able to distinguish between drug-type Cannabis plants and fiber type Cannabis. A seedling that grows into a mature male Cannabis plant has unknown traits to the cultivator until 200-250 days after initial germination. This requires pollination of a subsequent female plant and a second generation to be germinated to determine the properties of a male. To address this challenge Maminakis (US 2024/0105278) discloses methods and systems of using genetic and potency data of at least one of a Cannabis plant seed or Cannabis seedling (such as through genetic sequencing, fingerprinting) to make predictions of the potency and other characteristics of a mature Cannabis plant. Potency data may include information about elvesl of vairous cannabinoids, such as THC, CBD (Cannabidiol) and CBN (Cannabinol) as well as the elvels of terpeens, which are responsbile for the plant’s aroma and flavor profile. The seedlings may be at any stage in their lifecycle when samples for predictive purposes. The methods enable distinguishing plants of various types and possessing various characteristics just days after germination, such as between 5-100 days.
In vitro Propagation:
In vitro propagation techniques offer efficient multiplication yields of disease free C. sativa L. plants at a commercial scale. Generally, such techniques eliminate cultivation space and reduce production costs and time. The products of these processes display genetic and phenotypic univformity. in terms of theri morphological trails, which include some of the majjor commerically important trails. Moreover, the method has tremendous potential for genetic transformation by modifying both the genetic information and the regulation of tose gene responsible for the production of valuable biolgoical active substances. (Mitsis, “An Alternative in vitro Propagation Protocol of Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) presenting efficient rooting, for commerical production” Plants, 2022, 11(10): 1333).
Traditionally, the conventional in vitro micropropagation procedure contains four stages, i.e., culture establishment, proliferation, rooting of shoots and acclimatization. In vitro rooting reported costs represent 35-75% of the total process. Gradually labor costs relating to conventional micropropagation, with the exception of culture extablishment, have reached about 60%. Cuttings, in the first three ppases, are enclosed in vessels with passive gas exchange, udner aseptic conditions, An upturn in tissue culture led to the onset of the photooautotrophic micropropagation technique, in which chlorophyllous explants were grown under CO2-rich condtions. Moreover, culturing explants in vessels with gas-permeable film as enclosures, combined with the use of rockwool multi-blocks as a substrate were found to be suitable for the development of some plant species. Photautotrophic micropropagation on rockwool blocks as a substrate was efficient for C. sativa L. cultivation as well. An alternative that has further improved on the perfromance of the vitro process is the use of a double-phase culture system (semi-solid medium with a layer of liquid medium on the top), in which shooting and rooting are performed simultaneously. Other approaches include the use of bioreactors, which improve the physiological state of the explants. Such systems are commercailly available, such as automated tmporary immersion (RITA® and Plantform ™ bioractors, the rocker system as well as others. (Mitsis, “An Alternative in vitro Propagation Protocol of Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) presenting efficient rooting, for commerical production” Plants, 2022, 11(10): 1333).
(Mitsis, “An Alternative in vitro Propagation Protocol of Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) presenting efficient rooting, for commerical production” Plants, 2022, 11(10): 1333) discloses an in vitro propagation protocol in vitro cutting disinfecstation, culture establishment, and root induction, as well as acclimimatization of the in vitro-propagated plantlets using pet-based sponges as a substrate, impregnated in liquid medium. Root initiation of in vitro-propagated cuttings was commenced during the third week fo culture, depending on the rooting treatment. Cuttings were excised from selected healthy young medical C. sativa L. plants at the vegetative grwoth stage. Two varieties, a high-cannabidiol plant variety (H_CBD) and a high-cannabigerol plant variety (H_CBG), of C. sativa L. (Cannabaceae) were included in the study. The cuttings’ donor plants were grown in a green house. Elite (based on chemical profile) female plants were used in the xperiments. Motehr plants were selected ruing a previous research study and maintained at the vegetative stage for a photoperiod of 18 h. All plants were kept indoors, under controlled envornmental conditions at 27C ± 2 C.
Flowing Stage:
Watering:
Unlike the seeding stage where the cannabis plants consume less water, the plant needs more water for bud formation in the flowering stage. The plant is also bigger, hence consumes more water than at the vegetative stage. (Agak, “How often should I water my cannabis plants during flowering? November 23, 2020).
The frequency of watering cannabis plants at flowering depends on such factors as the strain, the size of the grow bucket, and the grow medium. There is no golden rule. Simply use the “soak and dry” method –water the plant until the excess water leaves through the drain holes, then wait until it is dry to water again. (Agak, “How often should I water my cannabis plants during flowering? November 23, 2020).
Most experienced growers use an alternating watering schedule during the flowering phase to prevent waterlogging. On the first day, fertilized water or water with nutrients and skip the second day. On the third day, use purifed water to hydrate the plants, skip the fourth day and water again with nutrient rich water on the fith day, then repeat. (Agak, “How often should I water my cannabis plants during flowering? November 23, 2020).
If growing in soil note its water retention capacity. Some soild retain water better than others. If the soil drains quickly, one needs to water more frequently. Grow mediums that hold water will require less watering. Also consider groundwater that is close to the surface. If the plants’ roots find the groundwater, they will get enough hydration, and additional watering may cause waterlogging. (Agak, “How often should I water my cannabis plants during flowering? November 23, 2020).
Also consider the weather, one will need to water more in dry areas which experience more evaporation and hotter climates. In rainy weather, one needs to water less frequently. (Agak, “How often should I water my cannabis plants during flowering? November 23, 2020).
Mother Cannabis Plants:
One of the main benefits of haing a mother plant is that one will theoretically never fun out of cannabis. As planted clones are ready to harvest, the mother plant is ready to produce new clones. Another advantage is consistent results. The clones will be genetically identical to the mother plant. Mother plants are essentially cannabis plants that are constantly kep in the vegetative stage in order to obtain clones. These clones are planted to grow plants that are identical to the mother plant. Growing and maintaining a mother plant can often require a lot of time and space. The mother plants must be rown indoors in a room with lighting specifically dedicated to the mother plants’ needs. As a result, clones and other plants cannot be grown to full term in the mother plant’s room.
Hydrophoic Marijuana growing indoors:
Hydrophonics systems for marijuana growers have been around for a long time. Numerous kinds of systems have evolved. Hydrophonics will offer the highest potential yeild out of any method. One maximizes a marijuana plant’s growth by growing in water. First, it is much easier to control the addition of various nutrients and one only needs enough substrate ot allow the plant to remain upright. Because of the open nature of the roo system in hydropnics, nutrients and oxygen also ciruclate easily, which further improves the efficiency of the plant. Hydroponics offers the ihgest potential yeild when the process is followed properly. The biggest downside is cose; Initial investment for hydroponics systems can be very high.
Substrate:
In a hydroponics system, one does not require any soil. Instead, a substrate or some sort of material which has the ability to retain water and minerals as well as allow a roote system to take hold is used. (Bergan, “Hydroponic marijuana growing indoors” August 2021)
–Rockwool: is a light weight and cheap mineral which does an excellent job of retaining water. It is made up of basalt and a silica compound. It can be purchased shredded up, as a small block or in large 1 meter plaques. Not very much water rockwool is needed due to how well it retain mosture. Be careful about dry rockwool becasue it can irritate the skin and disntegrate into tiny pieces which can damage the lungs. Rockwool is naturally akaline and growers need to be sure that they neutralize it in a solution of ph 4-5 before using it, which can take up to a day. Becasue of its excellent retention make sure it is getting fresh water adn not building up to many minerals and impurities. (Bergan, “Hydroponic marijuana growing indoors” August 2021)
–Clay pellets: are probably the simplest of the substrates. They are tiny little spheres of clay. (Bergan, “Hydroponic marijuana growing indoors” August 2021)
–Coconut fiber: is a great natural choice for a substrate. It basically consists of the hust of the coconut, which is the substrate used by coconut seeds so that they can germinate in something which retains water and minerals. Make sure it is clean but it is naturally resistant to fungal and bacterial growth. (Bergan, “Hydroponic marijuana growing indoors” August 2021)
Supply/Type of Light Used:
MH/HPS (metal halid/high pressure sodium) grow lights:
Light builds will be either MH/HPS light builbs, depending on the stage of growth the marijuana plants are in, or esle they will only be HPS lights for the entire life cycle of the plants. A ballast that connects the HID lights with a regular light build socket is necessary because these lights are not compatible with normal sockets. A hood that serves as a reflector is located above or around the light bulbs for efficient sue of the light energy. A grow tent that incldues relfective and waterproof wals also helps. An exhaust is used to get rid of the hot air in teh growing area. A timer is also used to switch the bulbs on and off automatically. (Bergamn, “MH and HPS grow lights for marijuana” June 2021)
One needs to buy MH and HPS lights or only HPS lights. MH bulbs are bright and blueish in color (because they emit light that is mostly in the blue spectrum) to act like the spring sun, making it promote photosyntehsis better. Thus, these lights work best for the vegetative growing period. For the flowering stage, the plants need a light schedule that is more similar to the fall sun –the HPS lights, colored yellow or gold (since they are in the orange and red spectrum) are best for this stage. Thus many growers opt to use MH lights at first and HPS lights at the end. Buy a ballasts that works with both lamps. Change from MH to HPS lights at the same time that you begin the flowering phase. Bergamn, “MH and HPS grow lights for marijuana” June 2021)
To determine the appropriate lighting (and the best lamp to use), the specific needs of the plant must be considered, as well as the room size and ventilation. To arrange optimal lighting, the lighting present in the plant’s natural environment needs to be imitated. For example vegetables grow best in full sunlight, which means in practice that as much light as possible must be supplied to grow cannabis indoors (high intensity discharge (HID) lights such as high pressure sodium (HPS) and metal halide (MH) are preferred. Fluorescent lamps can also be used). Incandescence and mercury vapor lighting are not used in cannabis cultivation. (US 20120311744)
In addition, plants also require both dark and light (“photo”-) periods. As such, lights need to be timed to switch them on and off at set intervals. The optimum photo/dark-periods is specific depending on each plant (some prefer long days and short nights and others preferring the opposite, or something in between). Most plants will grow under most light spectra, yet always prefer a full spectrum light (HPS). However, certain plants (as cannabis) can be grown successfully under both types of light. MH is used for vegetative phase of growth, as it encourages short inter nodes (distance between sets of leaves), and inhibits cell elongation, creating a shorter, stockier plant. Metal halide lamps produce more ultraviolet radiation than high pressure sodium lamps, which may play a role in increasing the flowering (and for certain plants as cannabis the amount of working substances as THC) produced by the plant. High pressure sodium lamps trigger a greater flowering response in the plant and are thus used for the second (or reproductive) phase of the growth. If high pressure sodium lamps are used for the vegetative phase, plants will usually grow slightly more quickly, but will also have longer inter nodes, and may be taller. (US 20120311744)
According to the inverse square law, the intensity of light radiating from a point source (in this case a bulb) is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source. So if an object is twice as far away, it receives only 1/4 the light. This is a serious hurdle for indoor marijuana growers, and many techniques are employed to use light as efficiently as possible. (US 20120311744)
Reflectors: are often used in the lamps to maximize light efficiency. Plants or lights are moved as close together as possible so that they receive equal lighting and that all light coming from the lamps wind up on the plants (rather than partly besides it). Often, the distance between lamp and plant is in the range of 0.6 m (2 ft) with incandescent lamps, to 10 cm (4 in) with other lamps, such as compact, large and high-output fluorescent lamps. Some marijuana cultivators cover the walls of their grow-room with some type of reflective material (often Mylar), or alternatively, white paint to maximize efficiency. (US 20120311744)
One commonly used covering is 6 millimeter (150 .mu.m) PVC plastic sheeting that is white on one side and black on the other. The plastic is installed with the white side facing in to the room to reflect light, and the black facing the wall, to reduce fungus and mold growth. Another common covering is flat white paint, with a high titanium dioxide content to maximize reflectivity. Mylar sheeting from a grow store is very effective when it lines grow room walls, along with Astrofoil (which also reflects heat), and Foylon (a foil-laminated, reinforced fabric). (US 20120311744)
LED: Recent advancements in LED technology have allowed for diodes that emit enough energy for cannabis cultivation. One major short coming of LED’s in the past has been a lack of intensity. Higher wattage chips are required to produce enough luminous efficiency to produce larger, denser yields. As with using a 400 w HPS vs. a 1000 w HPS, intensity has everything to do with yield. The same applies to LEDs however, it is not as simple as measuring watts because better quality chips can produce more light with less watts than cheap chips running at lower watts.LED grow lights are still considered an experimental technology in cannabis cultivation. The market remains flooded with cheap quality LED lights that do not produce yields comparable to what growers are accustomed to. Many companies are using single watt LED chips, which have notoriously produced low yields and wispy results. Growers should look for lights with 6 watt chips. When considering purchasing LED grow lights, one should carefully examine both the spectrum and the intensity of the light. The advantages of LEDs, low heat output, long life span, and simpler environmental control, coupled with the ever increasing quality of the technology ensure that they can potentially mark a significant transformation in the cultivation of cannabis. NASA has experimented with LED panel light sources on plant growth.(US 20120311744)
HPS bulb: has most of the light spectrum in the “orange” range, with almost no `blue` and very little `red.` For this reason, it is poor in the 430-460 nm, and poor in the 680-700 nm. Luckily, the light is so powerful that the spill-over at these frequencies is still sufficient to do a good job. The principal shortcoming of the HPS lamp turned it into an advantage for LEDs. LED lights allow one to focus intensity in the high PAR absorption range of the light spectrum. New models of LED grow lights incorporate multiple types of chips that cover the whole range of red light, blue light, and now full spectrum light. (US 20120311744)
Light Schedules:
Cannabis is a photoperiod plant. For growers that are inclined not to concentrate on light timetables, there are auto-sprouting strains of cannabis.
Some outdoor growers start plants inside to give them a headstart. If growing cannabis outside with seeds, hold up until a large portion of a month after the spring equinox. In the nother this means seeds go outsdie in or after April. In the south, seeds go outside in or after October. For frowers starting with cannabis clones, hold up a large protion of a month longer than with seeds. Cannabis clones are more disposed to blossoming ahead of scheule outside than seeds, so one needs to put the clones out in pre-summer. If one lives in a cool climate, hold up until after the last ice. Feezing temperatures will kill cannabis plants. Strain choice is important. A few strains spout sooner than ouers.
Vegatative Stage: The vegatative stage is the growing period of the plant. Breif nights keeps cannabis plants in the vegatative stage. One can keep a cannabis plant in the vegetative stage for basically never ending as long as the plant continues getting brief nightimes (shorter than 1-12 hours) dependent upon the strain. Cannabid will remain in the vegetative stage as longas the plant gets bfief nightimes (under 11-12 hours of dimness consistently). Thus insure the plants get something close to 13 hours of light each day to stay in the vegetative stage. Seedling or clone prompts vegatative stage.
Various indoor growers allow 18-24 hours of the light multi-day (known as 18-6 or 24-0 light timetables) in the midst of the vegetative stage to simulate faster vegetative advancement. Permit 18-24 hours of light multi-day.
Flowering (Budding) Stage: Cannabis starts growing when plants consistently get under 12 hours of nonstop dimness. After plants start growing, they should continue getting long, dull nights until they gather or they may come back to the vegetative stage. Inside, most growers put their plants on a 12-12 timetabel to begin blooming. Outside, the plant will regularly start growing in pre-fall when nightimes are growing longer and longer as winter approaches. Give 12 hours light and 12 hours diminish each day.
–time to swtich to Flowering Indoors:
Indoor growers have a hcoice to bloom their plants. What is the best time to start sprouting cannabis inside? There are two vital considerations when picking the fortunate time to change to 12/12; the plants age and height. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
—Plant’s Age:
For age, some growers feel that a marijuana plant that a plant which has been growing from seed will not make a similar number of buds or have enough gum age if the plant is not given any time under 60 days in the vegetative stage to grow before it is changed over to the blossoming stage. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
Various cultivators begin blossoming not long after the wake of building up a seed in order to keep plants pretty much nothing and short. This is sometimes called a “12-12 form seed” However, a young cannabis plant will not start blossoming until it is 2-3 weeks old. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
When growing from clones, age is not an issue and growers can change explicitly to blossoming once the clone has set up roots. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
–Plant’s Height:
If stature and rea are not an issue, one would certainly need to vegetate the cannabis plant for 60 days or mroe before transforming it to bloom. This give the plant a lot of time to wind up immense (so one gets more prominent yeilds) and empowers new growers to dial in their improvement before plants enter the senstivie blooming tage. Giving cannabis plants extra time in the vegetative stage, and putting aside exertion to set them up to suit your space, will give you the best last yields. In the case where space is gith, it is mroe astute to switch when the plant is a vast segment of the last needed stature or even just to udnertake to bloom cannabis plant straight from seed. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
Contorting, known as “LST” or “losw-stress planning” can be used to control colas that get unnecessarily tall. Contort too-tall colas down adn a long way from the point of convergence of the plant. Soe growers will even, to some degree, break or “supercrop” brances to get them to contort at a 90 degree point. (Christopher, “Cannabis light scheduels: vegetative stage vs. flowering stage” October 11, 2022)
Light Intensity:
Lowe (US 2016/0184237) discloses a method of cultivating cannabis where the exposure of the plant(s) to light of different intesities as the plant(s) mature serve to acclimate the plant(s) to a light intesity necessary for optimal growth and potential. Specifically, incremental increases in lighting intesity acclimate the plant to the stress which comes form teh large amount of metabolic work the plant will do in the vegetative stage adn first 20 days of the flowering stage of development. Disclosed are the upper bounds of the light intesity under which optimal vegetative growth at given points during the plant lifecycle will produce the most cannabinoid yeild. Further, the method promotes reproducivity among the identity and relative ratio of cannabinoids and/or terpenes produced. For example, if a given strain of cannabis plants has been propogated to produce a very low content of THC, the lighting technique is observed to encourage the lowest amount of THC that the particular strain is genetially programmed to produce. Moreover, this amount of THC is very consistent from plant to plant and from batch to batch of cannabis plants grown in the same room or under the same cultivation conditions. In one embodiment, the method includes exposing the plant to artificial light at different intesity level for plant growth pahges of vegetative and flower growth and providing the artificial light from one or mroe different directions which are the topc, the sides and bottom of the plant.
Cultivation process of mother plants:
First, you need to find seeds of a strain that you want to grow continously. Second, plant your seeds such as at least 10 plants. Third, germinate your plants. germinating seeds indoors is the only way to control factors such as humidity, temperature and light. To germinate, get a paper towel and run it under water until it is saoed, place seeds onto the paper towel, fold or rol the paper towel clsoed, place the paper towel into a ziplock bag and keep the bag in a warm area (75-85F). Wait 3-10 days utnil the seeds start to terminate. At any point the paper towel looks dry, sprinkle it with water to remoisten the seeds. Fourth, plant your seeds: Once the roots are 1/4-1/2 inches long, they are ready to plant. Get enough pots for each seed and fill each one 3/4 of the way with a substrate (e.g., soil or coc coir) Make a 1/4 deep hold then plop the terminated seed into the hold, cover the top of the hold with mroe substrate. Be srue the plants are getting light 18 hours a day with the use of a grow light but keep them out of direct usnlight in a moist area that maintains a temperature of 75-85F. (Cato, “Cannabis mother plant guide for beginners” May 10, 2023)
When taking cuttings, be sure to cut at a 45 degree angle jsut below the node of the bud you want to clone. Transfer it into a pot of substrate and be sure the bottom is fully covered. Keep this clone int he same conditions as the mother plant until it has rooted. Once the plant is rooted which can take up to 2 weeks, move it into a seaprate grow room. (Cato, “Cannabis mother plant guide for beginners” May 10, 2023)
Maintaining mother plant: By maintaining an environment that is moist, ekpt at 75-85F, and receiveds 18 hours of light from a growing bulb, one can keep the mother plan healthy. While motehr plants can product a virtually unlimited number of clones, allow the mother plant time tor est of at elast 2 weeks between cloning sessions so as not to stress it out. Many growers also choose not to sue one mother plant idenfinitely, and instead swap it out with a clone very 6-12 months. (Cato, “Cannabis mother plant guide for beginners” May 10, 2023)
Topping Cannabis: High Stress Training Technique (HST):
Topping is the process of removing (pruning) the growing tip from teh main stem on the cannabis plant. It is referred to as a high stress trianing technique (HST) and is one of the more common grwoth techniques used by both indoor and outdoor cannabis growers. The dominant central bloom is replaced by a somewhat flatter canopy and dominance. The principle behind topping a cannabis plant is to change the growth shape/structure to boost final harvest quantities. (Dutch Joe, “Topping cannabis: how to do it, when and why? 2024)
Cannabis topping is often done once the cannabis plants has developed between 3-5 nodes. At this stage, the plant has gained sufficient strenght, stature and root size to survive the high stress of cannabis topping. Often the plant will be aorund 4-5 weeks old at tis stage but be aware that different cannabis strains grow at different rates in the frist few weeks. (Dutch Joe, “Topping cannabis: how to do it, when and why? 2024)
Using a sharp blade, the growing tip is removed between the 3rd and th nodes. Aim to cut a few mm above the side branches to avoid damaging the small shoots that are positioned between the main stem and the side branches. These small side shoots will eventually take over from teh main bloom and grow with increased vigour. (Dutch Joe, “Topping cannabis: how to do it, when and why? 2024)
AI Prediction Models of mature plants:
Maminakis (US 2024/0105278) disclose prediction models of mature Cannabis plants based on seedling genetics. The computer-implemented methods include obtaining a training dataset including genetic data for at lease one mature Cannabis plant and corresponding chemotype information for the mature Cannabis plant such as a cannabinoid profile or a terpene profile and generating a chemotype prediction model based on the training dataset, the chemotype prediction mobel being able to predict the chemotype of a Cannabis seedling upon maturation.