How to care for a marijuana plant

If you are one of the lucky cannabis users who have an established marijuana plant, then you'll want to make sure to take care of it properly so that it continues to thrive. In this blog post, you’ll discover how to water and fertilize your cannabis plant and how to deal with common problems like pests and mold. So, keep reading for tips on how to take care of a weed plant!

How to care for your marijuana plant

Cannabis plant care is simple. Nevertheless, you should still know these essential tips beforehand so you have a better grasp of what's ahead. The following are some basic requirements on how to take care of a marijuana plant:

Where to grow your marijuana plant

The first thing you need as a cannabis grower is an ideal place to grow a weed plant. What will your marijuana-growing method be? Will you grow marijuana indoors or outdoors, or perhaps both indoors and outdoors in a greenhouse?

Indoors

Growing pot indoors offers the benefit of being able to closely control and manipulate the growing conditions, including the lighting schedule. Therefore, the flowering process can be sped up, sometimes allowing the grower to potentially have two harvests per year. However, indoor growing is more expensive and requires more equipment. 

Outdoors

If you live in a warm climate, it can be advantageous to grow outside where there are plenty of sun rays. You will have to feed and water your plant regularly, but nature takes care of everything else. Despite being the easiest way to grow marijuana, this method can lead to crop losses in the event of bad weather or pest infestation. 

Growing weed inside a greenhouse is generally the best way to grow cannabis as you benefit from both natural lighting and outside temperatures while maintaining crop safety.

What growing medium is best for cannabis?

Another important element is choosing the right growing medium for your cannabis plant to thrive. Choosing fertile, well-draining soil is crucial if you decide to grow in soil. For soilless gardening, you can use hydroponics (coco coir, rock wool, perlite) or aeroponics, but pH levels will be harder to maintain because soilless gardening relies entirely on added nutrients. 

What is the best temperature to grow cannabis?

It is not enough for your cannabis plants to merely survive: your goal is to make them thrive. The growth of your plants can be stunted if they are exposed to very high temperatures or very low temperatures. This will inevitably affect their potency. Ideally, cannabis plants should be kept between 75°F and 86°F. Keep in mind that temperatures below 60°F and above 88°F can decrease the THC content.

How much light does my cannabis plant need?

Light is crucial for the health of your plants. Cannabis plants need specific hours of light and darkness, depending on their growth stage and whether they receive direct sunlight or light from grow lights.

Outdoors

In the outdoors, you are governed by nature's lighting schedule. If you have potted plants, you must position them so that they make the most of their environment. Outdoors, your plants require at least eight hours of direct sunlight, preferably between 10 AM and 4 PM, to achieve optimal growth. Your plants will get less sun as the seasons change until they are ready to flower.

Indoors

Taking care of your plant indoors requires a little more effort. You'll need to give your plants a 24-hour cycle of 16 to 24 hours of light and 0 to 8 hours of darkness during the germination and vegetative phases. 

During the flowering stage of the plants, it will be necessary to reduce the amount of light they receive slowly. The vegetative phase, however, requires 13 hours of light.

For plants to enter the flowering stage, they will need 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. Depending on the strain, you may need different amounts of darkness depending on the strain - for instance, some Indica strains need 8 hours of darkness, while some Sativa strains require 13 hours.

How much water do my cannabis plants need?

A healthy plant requires plenty of water. It is no trouble to grow outdoors if you live in a climate with ample rainfall. Aside from that, your plants need enough water as cannabis is a thirsty plant.

However, it is essential to remember that overwatering can cause as much damage as underwatering. Overwatering your plants leads to anaerobic bacteria growing on the roots and slowly killing them. This is caused by the roots not obtaining enough oxygen. Before adding more water, make sure the soil has soaked up everything.

How much humidity does my cannabis plant need?

Outdoors, you cannot control the humidity, but marijuana is a resilient plant that can quickly adapt to its environment. Inside, however, the conditions are much more controlled. For healthy growth, maintaining the proper humidity levels is essential. You risk mold development if the air is overly humid, while dry air impedes photosynthesis. In terms of relative humidity (RH), 40 to 60% is ideal.

You should ensure that your grow room has adequate airflow so that moisture does not build up. In addition, an adequately circulated air environment is necessary for your plants to exchange gasses as they grow. If they are outside, they will naturally receive fresh air, but you will likely need a dehumidifier and fans to move the air if they are indoors.

What nutrients does my cannabis plant need?

Your plants need nutrients to grow and thrive. Growers add fertilizers containing nutrients to the soil so that the roots may take up the nutrients. The primary nutrients in fertilizers are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, but they can also contain secondary nutrients (calcium, magnesium, sulfur) and micronutrients (copper, zinc, iron, manganese, boron, chlorine, and molybdenum).

Potting soil alone may not be able to sustain your cannabis plant through all stages of its life, but if the soil is very nutrient-rich and contains vitamins, minerals, compost, and living organisms, it will be able to sustain your cannabis plant.

If you're using a soilless medium, you may be able to use unique pre-formulated nutrient blends.

How to care for your cannabis plant at different growth stages

Here are a few maintenance tips for how to take care of a cannabis plant throughout its lifespan.

Seedling stage

As weed seedlings grow and acquire more leaves after germination, they become very delicate. Seedlings won't need to be watered that often or that much at this stage since too much water can drown them. Depending on your climate and setup, you may only need to water them once every 4 to 7 days.

With cannabis seedlings, you shouldn't add nutrients. The plants are too fragile at this point. Instead, give them plenty of light and water.   

Vegetative Stage

A weed plant's vegetative stage represents its "teen" years as it leaves the seedling stage. You will want to transplant your plants into a bigger container once they've "grown-up." The root network of a weed plant will expand when it is moved into a bigger container, and this will cause the plant to grow much healthier and stronger.

The marijuana plants will need more water as they grow, and you can start giving them nutrients once they reach the vegetative stage. However, nutrients are still optional during early growth. It is common for indoor growers to introduce a nutrient regimen at this point. Still, if you're growing your marijuana outside, it'll be easier to hold off on nutrient treatments until you've transplanted the plant into the ground, where you'll mix in fertilizer.

Make sure to feed your growing weed "grow" nutrients (high in nitrogen) during this period.

Also, you can prune to remove dead leaves and branches that shade your growing buds. As a result, your plant will be able to focus more of its energies on producing larger, higher-quality buds that will be exposed to more light, enabling it to produce more yields. 

If you want to support your expanding weed plants, you'll need to put up a screen called a trellis or scrog. Besides letting more light into the plant, this will also increase yields and allow more airflow to the plant, reducing mold and pest risks.

Flowering Stage

During the flowering stage, plants shouldn't be moved around at all. You will want to do three steps to your marijuana plants before the flowering stage:

●    Transfer to their final pots (or the ground)

●    Finish topping

●    Set up a trellis or scrog

You can prune marijuana plants for a couple of weeks into flowering, but not after that.

During flowering, cannabis plants will become thirsty as they gain weight and bud out. You'll need to water them more. Keep a schedule and water your cannabis plants every couple of days. 

If you grow indoors with "bloom" nutrients, which have a high concentration of phosphorus and potassium to produce buds, be sure to monitor your weed plants to make sure they are not suffering from nutritional deficiencies.  

It's a good idea to give your plants only water a week before harvesting them in order to flush them out.

Final thoughts on caring for your cannabis plants

Whether you're growing indoors or outdoors, in a warm climate or not, just remember that marijuana is a low-maintenance plant that will thrive if you give it what it needs. It's not as difficult as it may seem – as long as you provide your plants with the right conditions, they should thrive.

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