Cannabis is easy to grow just like other grassy plants. However, beginner cannabis growers have lots of thing to consider before starting to grow cannabis. Here are the top 10 mistakes you need to avoid when you want to try your hand at growing cannabis.
1. Using Unknown Seeds
Always start with a premium seed. Although it’s fun experimenting growing seeds from a very tasty bud, keep in mind that using unknown seeds will definitely bring you indefinite results. Regardless of what your growing skill is, you are just wasting your time, energy and money in growing cannabis. Make sure to do your research before buying seeds to grow.
2. Using Soil from Your Backyard
Although choosing soil for beginner cannabis growers maybe complicated, choosing soil to grow cannabis is actually pretty simple and straightforward. Texture, water retention, and drainage ability are things you need to consider before starting to grow. Signs of good cannabis soil include loose texture, appears to be dark and rich, hold moisture without getting muddy, and most importantly drains well. Examples of good cannabis soil are but not limited to sandy loam, compost forest humus, and coco fiber.
3. Not Enough Light
It is imperative you position your lights not too low or not too high if you want your buds to grow healthy. Not enough light will produce weak plants that cannot support their own height. Keep in mind that the more amount of light, the more your cannabis will grow. The three main classes of light in cultivating marijuana are HID (High-Intensity Discharge) grow light, fluorescent grow light, and LED grow lights. Whichever you use, make sure to position your light correctly for your plants not to low. This will cause the plant to overheat forcing the buds to pop out early to sustain damage from heat.
4. Under Feeding/ Over Feeding Your Plants
Underfeeding and using too many nutrients is a mistake common to beginner cannabis growers do without them realizing it. Since just starting, growers follow nutrient systems with feeding schedules with way too high nutrient dosages. Although this may sound complicated, it is avoidable for a novice cannabis grower not to overfeed/underfeed them. Follow the feeding schedule recommended by your nutrient company. However, just use a quarter of the dosage recommended by your nutrient system. In the event that your plants show signs of nutrient deficiency, slowly increase your dosage to ½ half strength or one as needed.
5. Not At All Flushing Your Cannabis Plants
Many beginner cannabis growers, if not all, think flushing is an emergency measure in dealing with the nutrient lockout. This is not wrong since doing is essential sometimes. However, flushing should be performed not only when dealing with overfeeding nutrient.
Flushing your cannabis plant before harvest can improve its taste and aroma. Plants that are flushed before harvest are smoother than those which are not flushed at all. Buds from plants not flushed smell completely a potent weed and this will cause you to cough when smoking. Before you do, make sure that your cannabis plants are ready to harvest to make sure your weeds have better taste and aroma.
6. Harvesting Your Cannabis Plants Too Early
Harvesting your marijuana plants too early can be very tempting especially if you wanted to be sure you are not collecting them too late. As a beginner grower, you need to understand that getting the correct timing in harvesting your marijuana crop is critical in the quality of your produce marijuana.
The best time to harvest is when 70% of the buds hair has darkened. If you are not yet sure if your marijuana plants are ready to harvest, you can talk to experienced growers. You can definitely get more details on when is the right time to harvest your crop.
7. Ignoring Electrical Safety Rules
Safety is extremely important for growing marijuana. You would require heat, water, and light so make sure that you have an excellent electrical plan in the room. Here are some electrical safety tips for growing cannabis indoors.
- Always wear safety glasses when using power tools.
- Always work in a dry area. You would not want to work on a wet surface when using power tools.
- Never splice wires and conceal on walls.
- Always use the proper tools for striping them. Using a knife can cut the wires and cause a hazard.
Don’t worry about money or even rush while you’re working with your electrical plan. Take all necessary precautions. After all, you would not want your entire room or building to burn down just because of ignoring safety.
8. Wrong pH Levels
Correct pH is critical when growing cannabis for beginners. Whenever you start seeing signs in your plants, it only means that they are not getting all the nutrients. Check the water’s pH. pH of 6-7 is the recommended amount of pH in the soil to grow your plants healthier. Always use a natural source when adjusting the pH in the soil lie lemon, lime, baking soda, and vinegar.
9. Not Doing Enough Research Before Beginning Growing Cannabis
Growing cannabis is pretty straightforward, but every plant still presents its own unique challenges. Light cycles, ideal grow temperatures, different nutrient requirements, growing weed indoors or outdoors… all these things and more can change from strain to strain. Knowledge is power so make sure to equip yourself with enough knowledge before starting cultivating a cannabis plant. Start your research online. The internet is filled with information on how to grow marijuana safe and easy. You can join forums to meet seasoned growers who can give you tips on how to grow get good quality produce from your cannabis plant.
10. Bragging
Regardless of how good you are at growing marijuana, you end up in jail when you got caught. You will be in a place where your skills are waste. Too much talking is definitely a huge mistake when growing marijuana. You might be so proud of your beautifully grown plants and would want to brag about it. Remember that cultivating marijuana is still illegal in most states.
