Whether you're beginning pot cultivation or looking to improve your existing crop, following this complete guide will help you produce bountiful, high-quality yields right at home. With the right supplies, techniques, and care, growing marijuana indoors can be an extremely productive and cost-effective endeavor.
Choosing Cannabis Strains
The first step in planning your indoor crop is selecting the right pot cultivars to cultivate. The three main types of cannabis plants each have their own traits.
Energizing strains
Known for their energizing intellectual effects, sativas spread tall and slender with narrow leaves. They flourish in tropical tropical climates and have a longer blooming time between 2.5-3 months indoors. Top sativa strains include Sour Diesel, Durban Poison, and Jack Herer.
Relaxing strains
These strains provide calming body-focused effects and spread short and bushy with wide leaves. Accustomed to colder mountain climates, they bloom faster within 2-2.25 months. Popular relaxing varieties include Northern Lights, Bubba Kush, and Bubba Kush.
Hybrids
Mixed varieties mix traits from both energizing strains and indicas. They offer combined effects and have moderate flowering periods around 9-10 weeks. Well-known mixes are OG Kush, Girl Scout Cookies, and Blue Dream.
Setting Up Your Cultivation Space
Marijuana plants need the right controlled environment to thrive. Key factors for indoor grows are lighting, airflow, layout, and finding the ideal discreet area.
Location
Choose an empty space with quick access to water and power outlets. An empty extra bedroom, unused closet, corner of the basement, or grow tent locked away in a garage all make great discreet cultivation room spots.
Lighting
Cannabis requires powerful light for all vegetative stages. LEDs are energy-efficient and come in full spectrum options replicating real sunlight. Provide 250-400 watts per square foot for the vegetative stage and 400-600 watts per square foot for flowering.
Airflow
Proper airflow and exhaust systems maintain ideal temp, humidity, and fresh CO2 levels. Set up silent 4-6 inch fans or scrubbers to refresh stale air and reduce odors.
Layout
Optimize your space by positioning plants strategically under the lamps and leaving room to access and work around them. Set up distinct zones for vegetation, bloom, curing, and cloning.
Growing Mediums
Marijuana can be cultivated in different mediums, each with benefits and cons. Pick a suitable option for your particular setup and cultivation style.
Soil
The classic substrate, soil is affordable and simple for beginners. It provides great taste but requires more irrigation and fertilizing to nourish plants. Enrich soil with perlite or coir to improve drainage.
Coconut coir
Made from coconut husks, renewable coco coir holds water but still lets in air to the roots. It's cleaner and more consistent than soil. Use coco-specific nutrients to prevent calcium buildup.
Water systems
In water systems, plant roots grow right in fertilizer water solution. This enables quick growth but needs careful observation of water properties. DWC and drip systems are popular techniques.
Germinating Seeds
Sprouting activates your weed seeds to start sprouting taproots. This readies them for transplanting into their growing medium.
Paper Towel Method
Put seeds between damp paper towels and maintain them damp. Check Find Out More after 2-7 days for growing radicles indicating germination is complete.
Planting directly
Plant seeds right into wetted growing medium 1⁄4 inch deep. Gently water and wait 7-14 days until seedlings push through the surface.
Cubic rockwool
Soak rockwool cubes in balanced water. Place seeds 6mm deep into the cubes. Keep cubes wet until seedlings emerge within 1-14 days.
Repotting Young plants
Once sprouted, cannabis seedlings need to be repotted to prevent overcrowding. Move them into proper sized pots.
Preparing Containers
Fill final containers with cultivation medium enriched with time-released nutrients. Allow containers to soak up water for 8-12 hours before repotting.
Carefully Transplanting
Gently separate seedling roots from sprouting medium using a spade. Put into pre-soaked container at same depth as before and gently water in.
Growth Stage
The growth stage promotes leafy growth and Watch Now plant structure through 3/4 to full day of continual lighting intensity. This stage usually lasts 1-2 months.
Using 18-24 Hours of Light
Use grow lights on a 24 hour cycle or natural sunlight to initiate nonstop growth. Lamp output influences height and node distance.
Fertilizing
Use grow stage fertilizers richer in N. Make sure pH remains around 5.8-6.3 for full fertilizer uptake. Fertilize 25-50% concentration after Request More Info 14 days and strengthen slowly.
Training Techniques
Topping, low stress training, and scrogging manipulate growth patterns for even canopies. This increases yields.
Flowering Stage
The flowering stage develops buds as plants reveal their sex under a 12 hour cycle schedule. It lasts 8-12 weeks based on variety.
Switching to 12/12
Switch grow lights to 12 hours on, 12 hours off or place outside for outdoor 12/12 timing. This signals plants to start blooming.
Flushing
Flushing removes fertilizer residuals to enhance taste. Fertilize lightly the first period then just use pH'd water the last 2 weeks.
Flushing
Continue 12/12 light timing but leach using neutral pH water only. Resume plain watering if buds aren't yet ripe after two weeks.
Harvesting
Knowing when pot is completely mature ensures peak potency and aroma. Harvest plants at peak ripeness.
Signs of readiness
Look for fading pistils, swelling calyxes, and 5-15% amber trichomes. Check buds around the plant as they don't all ripen evenly.
Harvesting plants
Use sterilized, razor-sharp trimming scissors to carefully slice each plant at the base. Leave several inches of stalk attached.
Drying
Hang intact plants or branches upside down in a lightless room with average temp and RH around 50-60% for 1-2 weeks.
Curing
Curing keeps drying while improving the buds like aged spirits. This process mellows harshness and further develops terpene and terpene profiles.
Curing containers
Manicure dried buds from stems and store into glass jars, packing about 3⁄4 full. Use a hygrometer to monitor jar moisture.
Burping Daily
Unseal jars for a short time each day to slowly reduce humidity. Rehydrate buds if humidity goes under 55%.
Final Cure
After 14-21 days when humidity stabilizes around 55-60%, perform a last trim and keep long-term in sealed jars.
Troubleshooting
Even experienced cultivators run into various pot plant problems. Identify problems early and fix them properly to keep a strong garden.
Poor feeding
Yellowing leaves often signify insufficient nitrogen. Anthocyanins and leaves show low phosphorus. Check pH and boost nutrients slowly.
Pests
Thrips, aphids, fungus gnats, thrips, and nematodes are frequent weed pests. Use organic sprays, ladybugs, and yellow traps for organic control.
Mold
Excessive moisture encourages botrytis and bud rot. Increase airflow and circulation while reducing humidity under 50% during bloom.
Summary
With this complete indoor cannabis cultivation guide, you now have the info to cultivate bountiful potent buds for personal grows. Apply these techniques and techniques throughout the germination, growth, and bloom stages. Invest in quality equipment and closely monitor your plants. In time, you'll be rewarded with frosty fragrant buds you raised yourself under the loving care of your green thumbs. Happy growing