With the legalization movement picking up momentum countrywide, many people have started growing their own supply of medical marijuana. Growing your own medical marijuana is exciting. There is something special about sowing the seeds yourself and harvesting the buds you’ve grown with love and care.
If you are planning to become a cannabis grower to grow MMJ, it is important to remember that this is not as easy as you might think. Growing medical marijuana requires certain expertise and knowledge that you need to understand before you begin so you can get the best results when harvest season comes.
We’re going to give you a few tips to help you get the ball rolling.
7 Things to Know Before Growing Medical Marijuana
Here are some of the things to know before growing medical marijuana. We strongly suggest that you read through the list and do further research based on what you learn before you start taking any steps.
1. Understand the basics
Before you can grow any plant, you must understand your crop. It is a vital aspect of successfully growing medical marijuana. The cannabis plant does not require you to have a green thumb, but you should at least know the basics of a plant’s life cycle, the nutrients it needs, and what the structure is like.
You can read through our articles to get a better understanding of the plant, but here are a few points to remember:
- There are three main varieties of the plant: Indica, Sativa, and Ruderalis. Your interest will be with the first two.
- There are three main stages of the cannabis plant’s life: seedling, vegetative, and flowering phase.
- You can grow the plant outdoors and indoors, provided you can achieve the right growing conditions.
- The life cycle of a cannabis plant can vary greatly depending on the particular strain you’re growing.
2. Understand the power requirements
If you are planning to grow your medical cannabis indoors, you need to be aware of the power requirements. You need to know how much power you will need to create the right conditions for your marijuana plant. Cannabis plants require a lot of light to grow successfully indoors. You will require high-quality grow lights for that.
Besides the light, you might require other electrical equipment like extractors, fans, and others. With everything in full flow, some residential houses might experience a power overload. Make sure you have the right power arrangements to grow your cannabis, based on how much you’re growing.
3. Estimate the costs
Whether you’re growing medical marijuana for personal use or to sell it, we’re not going to be the judge of that. You should know that growing the plant requires investment. Depending on how professional you want to keep your growing operation, you may need to invest in expensive equipment.
The exact equipment you might need can vary depending on your skills as a grower and the size of your crop. Most indoor growers require items like:
- Grow light
- Grow tent
- Air filter
- Light reflectors
- Small ventilator
- Fan
- Timer
- pH meter
Buying and running this equipment will cost you. Be mindful of the cost and plan your grow op accordingly.
4. Different growing methods
There are several ways to grow cannabis. Before you begin your growing operation, you should try and read up on the different methods. Each cannabis growing method requires a different set of skills, investment budget, and time. Here’s a brief look at the different growing methods:
-
- Soil: the most basic method of growing medical cannabis is in soil. The traditional method requires good soil that you need to water regularly. It is typically more affordable than other methods, but it might not provide you with the best possible yield compared to any of the other methods.
- Coco Fiber: The method resembles traditional soil growing. The difference is in the medium you use to hold the roots. Instead of soil, you can use an inert medium like rock wool or coco fiber. The method is almost as easy as growing in soil, and the quality of soil never becomes a problem, but it requires special nutrients.
- Hydroponics: Hydroponics requires growing the plant with the roots immersed in a specialized water and nutrients mixture to provide the cannabis plant with nutrients. Hydroponics is a professional method with greater complexity, but it results in much better yields.
- Aeroponics: Aeroponics consists of growing the plant with the roots growing in air. You might use a mesh basket to hold the plant. Water and nutrients are sprayed over the roots. It is the fastest growing method but costs a lot more. It is sensitive to mistakes and requires constant monitoring. Otherwise, you can have very bad results.
- Aquaponics: Aquaponics is an alternative method becoming increasingly popular these days. It is a combination of hydroponics with aquaculture. It is based on the idea of raising fish and growing plants in an integrated soil-less system. The fish form a relation with the plants in which they provide the plant with food through their droppings. The roots act as a natural filter to clean the water that the fish live in. In a controlled setting, it can provide you with premium-quality yields and fish.
5. Pick the right space
Picking the right growing space is crucial for your grow op. You need to think about where you can grow it before you begin planning your budget and buying equipment. You can grow medical marijuana indoors or outdoors. Each of these methods comes with its advantages and drawbacks.
Growing indoors requires more investment, but it can get you better yields and be safer for the plants. The cost of indoor growing and maintenance requirements might not be too friendly on your pockets, and there may be restrictions in terms of space.
7. Understand the plant nutrients
Like any other plant, cannabis plants require nutrients to survive and grow. You should have a basic idea of what to add to your plants’ soil before you begin your grow op. Cannabis plants require three main nutrients: phosphorus, nitrogen, and potassium. Most nutrient solutions you buy will contain these in various concentrations.
However, your medical marijuana plant can also benefit from the following nutrients:
- Copper
- Zinc
- Molybdenum
- Sulfur
- Manganese
- Boron
- Iron
- Calcium
Knowing the right proportions and how to administer them is vital for growing healthy plants. You can better understand how to manipulate these in the right way once you have a few harvests going.
Looking to Purchase Medical Marijuana?
If you are tired of buying prescription drugs and over the counter medicine for your chronic pain problems and cannot invest the time and effort to grow your own medical marijuana, you can always buy it yourself. If you are a Missouri user looking to purchase medical marijuana, you require a valid medical marijuana license to buy the product legally.
You can get in touch with us at Green Hope Wellness so we can guide you on the right path.
