Marijuana Cultivation

39 Pages·2016·0.4 MB·English

Marijuana Cultivation
Contents
0.1 MarijuanaCultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.2 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3 MarijuanaCultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3.1 Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3.2 Disclaimer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3.3 HowtoUse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3.4 Copyright . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
0.3.5 TableofContents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1 Fundementals 3
1.1 OfMythsandMagic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 PartsofthePlant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2.1 PartsofthePlant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 InsidevsOutside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.4 DirtvsHydroponic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.5 OrganicvsInorganic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.6 NutrientSelectionandMaintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.7 Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.8 VentilationandOdorControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.9 TemperatureControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1.10 GrowMediums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2 Seedlings 12
2.1 Seedlings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.1.1 Seedlings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3 VegetativeGrowth 15
3.1 VegetativeGrowth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.1.1 VegetativeGrowth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4 Cloning 17
4.1 Cloning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.1.1 Cloning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5 Sexing 19
i
ii CONTENTS
5.1 Sexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
5.1.1 Sexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6 Flowering 21
6.1 Flowering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
6.1.1 Flowering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
7 Harvesting 23
7.1 Harvesting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7.1.1 Harvesting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
8 Curing 24
8.1 Curing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
8.1.1 DryingandCuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
9 ProducingSeeds 26
9.1 ProducingSeeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
9.1.1 ProducingSeeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
10 PestsandPestControl 29
10.1 PestsandPestControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
10.1.1 PestsandPestControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
11 CommonPlantProblems 31
11.1 CommonPlantProblems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
11.1.1 CommonPlantProblems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
12 Textandimagesources,contributors,andlicenses 35
12.1 Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
12.2 Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
12.3 Contentlicense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
0.3. MARIJUANACULTIVATION 1
0.1 Marijuana Cultivation
this book you will find all the information needed to go
fromseedtoafullyfunctioninggarden.
MarijuanaCultivation
Wikibooksversion
0.3.2 Disclaimer
PDFPre-Printed
Theinformationcontainedinthisbookisintendedforuse
onlyinjurisdictionswheretheactivitiescontainedtherein
arelegal. Noclaimoftheaccuracy,safety,orthelegal-
ityoffollowingtheinstructionscontainedinthisbookis
madeanditisnotrecommendedtofollowthem. Youare
responsible for your own actions if you do so. Nothing
containedinthisbookshouldbeconstruedtobelegalor
medicaladvice.
0.3.3 HowtoUse
Thisbookisnotdesignedtobereadstraightthrough. In-
formation is organized by topic, although you can cer-
tainlyreadeverythingthroughyoucanalsojumprightto
thetopicyouareinterestedin.
0.3.4 Copyright
Copyright
Copyright(C)2009MichaelFread
Thistextislicensedundertheopenlicens-
ingtermsoftheWikibooksprojectsolongas
thiscopyrightnoticeremainsintact. Ithasbeen
donated for free and collaborative use for the
benefit of all those who need, want, or enjoy
thisplantwhichiscapableofindustrialutility,
medical potency, recreational happiness, and
even supplying the complete nutritional needs
ofthehungry.
Notice Anypartofthismaybemodifiedaccording
The information contained in this book is tothetermsoftheaforementionedlicensebut
intendedforuseonlyinjurisdictionswherethe thissectionmustremainintact.
activitiescontainedthereinarelegal. Noclaim
of the accuracy, safety, or the legality of fol-
0.3.5 TableofContents
lowing the instructions contained in this book
is made and it is not recommended to follow
1. Fundamentals
them. You are responsible for your own ac-
tions if you do so. Nothing contained in this 2. Seedlings
bookshouldbeconstruedtobelegalormedi-
caladvice. 3. VegetativeGrowth
4. Cloning
0.2 Introduction 5. Sexing
6. Flowering
0.3 Marijuana Cultivation
7. Harvesting
0.3.1 Purpose 8. Curing
9. ProducingSeeds
Thisbookistoprovideinstructionontheuseandculti-
vationofmarijuana,alsoknownascannabisorhemp. In 10. PestsandPestControl
2 CONTENTS
11. CommonPlantProblems
Chapter 1
Fundementals
1.1 Of Myths and Magic
amounts of potent plant resin in order to try to catch
pollen. Marijuanaisoneofthefewplantstodaythatac-
tuallyissplitbygenderandhasdistinctseparatemaleand
OfMythsandMagic
femaleplants. Femaleplantsdonotpollinatethemselves
intheabsenceofmalesbutdocontainthegeneticcapabil-
There is certainly as much myth and folklore spreading
itytoproducemaleflowersandmaydosounderstress.
aroundaboutmarijuanausageandcultivationasanything
There are also hermaphrodite plants that produce both
else. Thisbookattemptstoslashthroughthosemythsto
male and female flowers. Male plants and male flowers
actualprovenandutilizedtechniquesthathavebeenput
arenotverypotentandarenotusedrecreationally
intopractice. Itishighlyrecommendedthatyouconsider
thetestedinformationinthisbookasaprimarysourceof
informationanddoubtconflictingthirdpartyinformation
Leaves
untilitisproventoyou.
Some common myths that are seen include the use of Leavesaregenerallynotusedrecreationallyandwillgen-
menstrual blood for flowering. The claim that baking erallygiveyouaheadacheratherthangetyouhigh. There
soda and vinegar will kill plants if used to adjust are however ways to extract the active ingredients from
PH. Some people claim that absolutely any light level leavesandthedifferenttypesofleaveshavedifferentpo-
whatsoever will destroy crops and others claim that a tencies.
couplehoursoflightinthemiddleofthedarkcyclewill
improvethesizeofflowers. Ifyouwanttoknowthetruth
about these claims just dive on in ahead. Everything Large Shade Leaves These are the large classically
youneedtogrowhighquality,potent,andhighyielding shapedleavesontheplantandaretheleastpotent. There
marijuanaplantsiscontainedinthesepages. are extraction methods that can be performed to get
somethingusefuloutofthesebuttheresultwon'tbevery
pureandmanygrowersjustthrowthemaway.
1.2 Parts of the Plant
Grow Tips These clusters of small tender leaves are
thepointontheplantwherenewgrowthsproutsfromdur-
1.2.1 PartsofthePlant ingvegetation. TheyaremorepotentthanShadeleaves
butlesspotentthantrimleavesorbud.
This section is added for the curious who don't know
much about marijuana and how it is used. The entire
plantcontainsthepsychoactiveingredientswhichinclude Trim Leaves These are the sugar coated leaves that
Delta-9THCandmanycannabinoidsthatgiveeachplant are trimmed from around the buds during harvest. The
itsownuniqueprofileofpropertiesandeffects. However, sugar coating of trichomes can make these quite potent
notallpartscontaintheminthesameconcentrations. andtheycanbeaspotentaslowqualityflower
Flowers Stems
TheflowersorBudsoftheplantcontainthehighestcon- Thestemsarenotreallyusefulforpsychoactivepurposes
centrationsofplantresinwhichinturncontainsthehigh- buttheyareagreatsourceofplantfiberforrope,paper,
estconcentrationofactiveingredients. Theunpollinated etc. Youcanalsogrindandmakehighcbdconcentrate. I
flowersofthefemaleplantsarethepartoftheplantthat recycleeverypartoftheplantandinsomewayconsume
isusedbyrecreationalusersbecausetheyproducecopius itorturnintoatopicallotion. Stemsaremoreusefulthan
3
4 CHAPTER1. FUNDEMENTALS
youwouldthink. Trytochewonenexttimeyoubreaka islikelytohaveathisdisposalanytimesoon. Makeno
budoffandenjoy. mistakethatlightdifferenceisimportant! Theairisfresh
andplentifulandwilldeliveralltheCO2thatyourplants
willeverneed. Organicnutrientscanbefoundinthesoil
Seeds
andiftheycan'tinyourlocationyoucanalwaysprepyour
soil. Finallytherootsofyourplantswillbeabletospread
The seeds generally contain only trace amounts of psy-
farandwide. Therearealsodownsidestobeconsidered.
choactiveingredientsbuttheyareoneofthemostnutri-
Youhavenocontroloverlightcyclesandmustgrowon
tiousfoodscurrentlyknowntoman. Theyareoneofonly
the natural annual harvest cycle, you have absolutely no
a handful of substances that man can sustain off indefi-
privacy and some areas require you to take privacy pre-
nitely with no other food and provide all known amino
cautionsinordertogrowformedicaluse. Outdoorsyou
acids.
haveopenventilationwhichmeansyourplantscouldbe
pollinated by wild pollen messing up your attempts to
Trichomes breedseedofacertainstrainoravoidseed. Youarealso
mostly limited to soil grows outdoors unless you have a
Despitetheirminutesize,it’shardtomisstheblanketof greenhouse whichis sort ofa hybridof indoorand out-
crystalresinonacannabisbud. Thisresin(or“kief”when doorgrowing.
dry) is secreted through translucent, mushroom-shaped
glandsontheleaves,stems,andcalyxes. Trichomeswere
originallydevelopedtoprotecttheplantagainstpredators Indoor Thebenefitsofanindoorgrowarenotneces-
and the elements. These clear bulbous globes ooze aro- sarily immediately realized. It is obvious that an indoor
maticoilscalledterpenesaswellastherapeuticcannabi- growaffordsmoreprivacybutthebiggestbenefitofanin-
noidslikeTHCandCBD.Thebasisofhashproduction doorgrowiscontrol. Youcancontrolwhattypeoflight
depends on these trichomes and their potent sugar-like is provided, how often its provided and the hours. You
resin. can control the temperature and humidity of your grow
environment to make them optimal for the plant. You
caneasilyswitchbetweenhydroponicandorganicgrow-
Roots
ing. Indoorsyouwillhaveasmallerharvest(plantssimply
aren'tgoingtogrowaslargewithoutalightaslargeasthe
Thepurposeoftherootsisservedwhentheplantishar-
sun)butyouwillbeabletouselightstohaveplantsinvar-
vested. They have no useful levels of psychoactive in-
iedstagesofgrowthatalltimessoyoucanharvestmore
gredientsandaren'ttypicallyeatenorsmoked. Thereis
plantsmoreoften. Indoorsyoumightbeabletoharvest
a rumor that roots have high CBD content but lab anal-
everytwomonthsinanestablishedgardenorevenmore
ysis has shown THC and CBD ratios similar to the rest
ofteninalargergrow.
of the plant but in dramatically lower concentrations.[1]
The source of the rumor appears to be an online news
article.[2]
1.4 Dirt vs Hydroponic
[1] http://www.micannalytics.com/login/edit.php?
sampleid=112302&dispensary=144
DirtvsHydroponic
[2] http://twicebakedinwashington.com/2013/05/09/
the-cbd-cannabis-root-experience/ Thisselectionisveryfundamentaltohowyouwillgrow
from here on in. That said, it is possible for a skilled
grower to achieve similar results using either method.
1.3 Inside vs Outside Themythssurroundingthischoicearemany. Thereare
those who claim that hydroponic (or hydro) bud has a
bad, chemically, metallic taste or that soil grown mari-
InsidevsOutside
juanaisn'tpotent. Althoughthereisplentyofbadtasting
hydro and weak soil grown marijuana these differences
Thisisprobablythesinglebiggestdividerofgrowersthat
are caused by poor practices elsewhere in the growing
thereis. Doyougrowoutdoorsunderthebigbrightsun
processandnotwhethersoilorhydroisusedasthegrow-
orindoorsinaroomorcloset? Therearedefinitelypros
ingmethod. Forinstance,hydrogrowersareoftencom-
andconstoeithermethod.
mercial growers who are trying to output as much mar-
ijuana in as short a time as possible. These growers do
Outdoor The benefits of an outdoor grow are obvi- nottakethetimetopurgeandcuretheirplantsattheend
ous, you don't need to worry about ventilation or light. ofthefloweringcycleandafterharvest. Thisisrumored
The sun provides 2000 watts per square foot of bright tocausethebadtaste. Itisentirelypossibletomakethis
light and that is certainly more than any indoor grower sameerrorwithasoilgrow.
1.4. DIRTVSHYDROPONIC 5
Dirt Dirtcarriesanumberofbenefitsandpitfalls. Dirt commonchoiceis15minonandoffcycles,or30minute
iseasytoacquireandeasytomaintainitisliterallyallover onandoffcycles.
theground. Dirtallowsyoutomixyournutrientsintothe
Beverycarefulwithasystemlikethis. Ifapumpfailure
pottingsoilratherthanhavingtocarefullymixupnutrient
isnotdetectedplantscandieinaveryshorttimeperiod.
solution with each watering. Dirt retains moisture for a
period of days so if you go on vacation no special steps PHandNutrientproblemscanbecorrectedinthereser-
will be needed. Dirt buffers the roots of a plant from voirwithouttheneedtofiddlewiththeplantsthemselves.
nutrientsandPHfluctuations. Thisisbothgoodandbad.
Whenyouaddnutrientstheyaredeliveredslowlyandit
DeepWaterCulture Deepwatercultureisaverypop-
maytakelongerbeforetheeffectsofdoingthisbecome
ular technique where one bucket is fitted into another.
apparent. Itisveryeasytooverwaterinasoilgrow. This
Inthebottombucketisplacedanairstone(limewoodor
isacommonbeginnermistake. Youshouldalwaysallow
porousstone)andinthetopbucketholeswillbedrilled
the soil to dry completely to the touch before watering
toallownutrientsolutiontofloodthebuckettoacertain
again. Thisisneededtoallowoxygentogettotheroots.
level. Theairstoneprovidesoxygentopreventtheroots
The ideal PH for soil grows is 6.5 and can be taken by
from rotting even though they are submerged. This is a
measuring the runoff when you water. The best way to
very simple system to build but requires a pot for each
maintainthePHonasoilgrowistomaintainthePHof
plant.
thewateryouareusing. Thisrangeallowstheuptakeof
Correcting PH and nutrient problems is a matter of
manganese. Theutilityofthisnutrientinplantgrowthis
changingthesolutionandrinsingtheplantmediumwith
debatedbutwhatisnotdebatedisthatmanganeseisnot
cleanwater.
availabletotheplantattheidealhydroPH.
If a PH or nutrient imbalance occurs in a soil grow it
may be corrected by flushing with lots of water or us- NutrientFilmTechnique(NFT) Nutrientfilmtech-
ingaflushingagentsuchasclearex. Inapotitshouldbe nique involves plants potted so their roots dangle down
atleastthreetimesthecapacityofthepot. Outdoorsin into a thin film of constantly running nutrient solution.
thegroundyoushouldflushwithwaterthoroughlywitha Thistechniquecanworkwellforlargescalehydroponic
hoseorbucket. growingoperationsbutifthenutrientfilmisinterrupted
itcanbedevastating. Aseparatereservoirismaintained
inthistechniqueanditisnotcommonlyusedinpractice.
Hydroponic Hydroponic systems range from very
simple to very complex. Essentially the only thing that
differentiatesahydrosystemfromadirtgrowisthatina
Aeroponic Aeroponicsisarelativelynewtechnique. A
hydroponic system a solution of nutrients and water de-
finemistofhighlyoxygenatednutrientsolutionissprayed
liversallnutrients to the plantand thephysical medium
onto the roots of the plant which are suspended in air
that the plant grows in is inert with no nutrient content.
ratherthanboundinsoiloranothermedium.
The advantage of hydroponic methods is that they pro-
videmorerapidnutrientavailabilitytotheplant. Thisal-
lowstheplanttodrinkasmuchnutrientasitlikesandpro- Wick/Hempy Bucket Wick systems and Hempy
duceslargerplantsinashorterperiodoftimeandsmaller buckets are very similar. In a wick system a pot with
space. Popularmethodsinclude: mediumhasawickplaceddownitthatextendsdowninto
areservoiranddrawsupnutrientsviacapillaryactionas
theyareneededorwaterevaporates. Thisismuchlikethe
EbbandFlow Anebbandflowsystemusesatimerto
wayalanternorwicklighterworks, drawingflammable
activate a pump that periodically floods the plants grow
fluidupthewicktobeburneduntilitisexhausted.
mediumwithnutrientsolutionandthendrainsthesolu-
tionout. Thehempybucketisnamedaftertheforumposterwho
claimstohavedevelopeditalthoughtheconceptmaydate
Often these system are designed using two plastic tubs,
backfurther. A simple2.5 to 5 gallonbuckethasa 3/4
onesittinginanother. Thebottomtubcontainsthenutri-
inch hole drilled about 2-2.5 inches above the bottom.
ent solution reservoir, the water pump, and an air stone
Dependingonthemediumandsizeofthemediumused
(more oxygen means healthier roots) and the top tub or
itmaynotbeneededbutitiscommontoglueapieceof
traycontainstheplants. Asingleholeinthetoptubal-
plasticscreeningovertheholeontheinsideofthebucket.
lowsthepumptubingintothetub,whenthepumpshuts
This bucket is then filled with a mixture of perlite and
offorintheeventofapumpfailurethewaterdrainsright
vermiculite (popular mixes are 3 parts perlite to 1 part
back down the hole it came out of. It is usually best to
vermiculiteand1partvermiculiteto1partperlite).
putanotherholewhereitwilldraindowntothebottom
tubatthehighestlevelyouwantthewatertoreach. This Thebucketisthenwateredwithfullstrengthnutrientso-
preventsflooding. Asystemlikethiscanrunatdifferent lutionevery3-4days,youwateruntilnutrientcomesout
intervals depending on the grow medium you use but a theholeinthebottom. Thisflushesoutanybuiltupnu-
6 CHAPTER1. FUNDEMENTALS
trient salts with every watering assuring that you have a areservoirornot. Inahempybucketthebestsolutionis
perfectbalance. to flood with nutrient that is corrected. This will push
outtheimbalancednutrient. WithareservoirpHcanbe
Ahempyisassimpleashydroponicsgetsandiscapable
adjusted in the same manner as the water with a pH up
ofproducingthesameyieldsandqualityoutputasother
andpHdownsolution.
more complex hydroponic systems. Because it allowed
to mostly dry between waterings and pulls nutrients up
via perlite wicking the roots are very well oxygenated.
Since fresh nutrient is added every 3-4 days there is no 1.5 Organic vs Inorganic
reservoir to become imbalanced. Although it looks like
dirt the perlite/vermiculite medium is completely inert,
OrganicvsInorganic
it contains no nutrients and provides no PH or nutrient
buffer. Plantscandrinkallthenutrienttheywantjustas
Theorganicvsinorganicchoiceisahottopic. Youdon't
inotherhydroponicsystems.
need a book to help you make any moral decisions so
The hempy system has the advantage that because it is its just the facts here. The plant material that the plant
simpletherearefewermistakestobemade. Alsoimpor- grows is identical in structure and content regardless of
tantisthefactthatthehempybuckethasnopumpsofany whichmethodyouuse. Theplantonlyusesbasicbuild-
kind that can fail without you noticing. Hempy buckets ing blocks, taking molecules from the air and the nutri-
canbeusedinagreenhouseoutdoorswithnopoweratall. entsandassemblingthemintotheplantmatter. Theby
Likeasoilgrowthemediumretainsmoisturesoyoucan productofthisprocessisoxygen.
leavethebucketforuptoaweekwithnoadverseaffects.
Thereal(practical)differencebetweenorganicandinor-
Thedownfallscomparedwithotherhydroponicsystems ganicgrowingishowtherawmaterialsareprovided. An
are that plants must be moved one by one in buckets if organicgrowerwilluselargerelementsthatwillbebro-
moved. Youalsomustwaterahempybucketbyhandev- kendownbyasystemoforganismslivinginthenutrient
ery3-4 daysandwitha largenumberofplantsthatcan solution/grow medium or the soil. An inorganic grower
becomeverylaborintensive. Forinstance, forsomeone uses nutrients that are already broken down into a form
whocouldnotcarryafivegallonbucketfilledwithwater that the plant can utilize. Non-organic nutrients might
ahempyinstallationofmorethan3-4plantswouldprob- containorganiccomponents. Forinstance,manyfertiliz-
ably be unmanageable unless the water source was very ersintendedforsoilwillincludeureanitrogen. Thisni-
closeby. Becauseyouflushoutthenutrientsolutionand trogenrequiresmicro-organismstobreakitdownbefore
anyunusednutrientsiniteveryfewdaysthehempbucket theplantcanuseit. Theseorganismswon'tthrivewith-
alsorequiresmorenutrientsthanotherhydroponicmeth- out soil so these fertilizers may not work in hydroponic
ods. systems.
Therearehydroponicmixturesthatareorganicandthere
arethosewhicharenot. Eitherway,youhavecontrolover
ContinuousDripSystem Anotherpopulartechnique
what you feed your plants and can insure that no harm-
is the continuous drip system. With a continuous drip
fulpesticidesorotherchemicalsareusedingrowingyour
areservoir(oftenlargeoutdoorgarbagecansor5gallon
ownmarijuana. Providedyouflushyourplantsproperly
buckets)areusedwithapumptopushnutrientsandwater
theywon'tcontainanyofthenutrientsolutionsotheac-
throughahose. Someguerrillagrowersdon'tuseapump
tualplantmaterialthatresultsshouldbethesame.
becausetheydon'thavethepressureofahosetoactuate
it. The hose will have holes or drip emitters placed at
thebaseofeachplantastogetthewaterrightwhereits
needed(theroots). 1.6 Nutrient Selection and Mainte-
nance
Consideration and Pitfalls It is important with any
hydroponic system to remember that there is no buffer. NutrientSelectionandMaintenance
Plantswillrespondveryquicklyiftherearenonutrients
and/orwaterorthepHofthenutrientsolutionisincor- Nutrientselectionisaveryimportantpartofyourgrowth
rect. Rootsneedhighoxygenlevelsortheywillrot. And plan. This book will not advocate any specific nutrient
of course remember that plants need space to grow and blend or mix but instead will cover nutrients in a more
shouldneverbeplantedwheretheirrootswillintermin- generalmanner.
gle.
Therearethreemacronutrientsthatmustbeconsidered
Ideal pH level with hydroponic systems is between 5.8 whengrowingmarijuana,(N)Nitrogen,(P)Phosphorus,
and6.3dependingonthenutrientsthatareused,however and(K)Potassium. Almosteveryplantadditiveyoulook
aconsistentpHof6.0isverycommon. Thebestwayto atwillspecifythesenumbersoftenintheformatN-P-K
handleapHadjustmentdependsonwhetheryouareusing withoutactuallylabelingwhichiswhich. Thesenumbers
1.6. NUTRIENTSELECTIONANDMAINTENANCE 7
really don't let you compare competing products effec- ance.
tivelybuttheydoshowyoutheratiosofonemacroingre-
dienttothenext. Duringthedifferentgrowthphasesyou
will want different concentrations of these macro nutri- MaintainingaReservoir Propermaintenanceofyour
ents. Duringvegetativegrowthyouwillwanthighnitro- reservoirisessentialtogrowinghealthymarijuanatoits
gen and low phosphorus and during flowering you will fullpotentialifyougrowusingahydroponicmethodthat
want high phosphorus and lower nitrogen. It is worth requires you to keep a res. The critical factors here are
bustinganothermythhere. Manypeoplebelievethatbe- nutrientlevelsandPH.Unfortunately,thereisnosimple
causethereareseparatevegetativeandfloweringformu- waytotrackthelevelofindividualnutrientsinyourreser-
lasthathavinghighPduringvegorhighNduringflower- voirbuttherearewaystokeepahealthyreservoirsystem
ingwillhurtthings. Thissimplyisn'ttrue. Itiswasteful goingjustthesame.
tothrowawaychemicalsthatarenotneededandthereis
To begin, you will want to mix your nutrients at full
a maximum nutrient concentration that plants can han-
strength according to the manufacturers recommenda-
dlewithoutburningroots. Thismeansthatyouwouldn't
tions. Youshoulduseeitherreverseosmosistreatedwa-
want to trade P for N during flowering. But most flow-
ter or if you must use tap water draw it from the cold
eringformulasactuallycontainenoughNthattheycould
water tap and let your water sit overnight to evaporate
beusedduringvegetativegrowth.
chlorine. Hot water will contain more dissolved impu-
There are also a number of micro-nutrients needed for rities than cold water. After adding your nutrients and
growththatmustbepresent. Manymajorfertilizersfor micro-nutrientsyoushouldadjustyourPHto5.8which
soildonotcontainthesemicro-nutrientsbecausetheyas- is ideal for hydroponic nutrient solution. Measure the
sume it will be provided in the soil. Always use hydro- TDS, or total dissolved solids with a TDS meter. With
ponicnutrientsforhydroponicgrowing. full strength nutrient solution this number will probably
bearound1100-1300TDS.Thiswillbewhereyouwant
Regardlessofwhatnutrientsyouuse,theywillbemixed
tokeepyournutrient(ifusinglowerstrengthnutrientfor
withwater. Thewateryouuseshouldideallybereverse
earlierstagesthenmixandmeasureTDSaccordingly).
osmosistreatedoriftapwaterisamustthenmakesure
toletitsitoutovernighttoletanychlorinecontainedinit Now all you need to do is top off your nutrient solution
evaporate. Thisisadeceptivethinginthatchlorinatedtap withcleanwaterdaily. IfyourTDSislowthenaddnu-
waterwillworkfinebutwillpreventyourplantfromever trients. IfyourPHisoffthenadjustit.
reachingitsfullpotential. Thisisagreatplacetosquash
Sincetheplantwillnotabsorbnutrientsinthesamepro-
therainwatermyth. Rainwaterisfullofminerals,dirt,
portionsyouareaddingthemimbalanceswillresultover
and living organisms it is neither the best nor the worst
time. Tocorrectthisyouwillperiodicallyneedtodrain
choiceforgrowingplants. Inparticularifyouareusing
and fill your reservoir with fresh nutrient solution. To
anindoorgroworhydroponicrigyouwillnotdesiretouse
beginwithdothisatleastonceamonthandjustbefore
rainwatersinceitwillcontainheavyamountsofminerals
you start flowering. During flowering change the reser-
thatyoudidnotintendtoaddtoyourcarefullycontrolled
voireverytwoweeks. Howoftenyouactuallyneedtodo
growthsystem.
this depends on the plants, the nutrients, the size of the
reservoir, etc. Luckilytheplantswillletyouknowhow
oftenyouneedtodothis. Theywillstartexhibitingsigns
Dry vs Liquid Liquid nutrients are very trendy and
ofnutrientdeficiencywhenthereisanimbalanceandyou
hip in the hydroponic world. There is nothing wrong
willknowthatyoucan'tgolongerthanthatbeforechang-
withaLiquidnutrient,youknowitwillmixwellbutthey
ingthereservoir. Especiallywithclonesyouwillbeable
aregenerallymoreexpensivebecausethebottlecontains
to get res changes down to a system of clockwork since
morewaterandlessnutrient. Thisalsomakesthemmore
thecloneswillgenerallyallhavethesamenutrientpref-
expensivetoshipandtransport. Whenitcomestimeto
erences.
mixthemandfeedyourplanteitherdryorLiquidworks
equallywell.
In both cases you should add to the water after filling PH Ideals and Adjustment The ideal PH for your
thecontainerratherthanaddingnutrientsandthenfilling. gardenisbasedonnutrientuptake. APHthatistoolow
Addingbeforefillingcanleadtonutrientimbalances. will be too acidic and burn the roots of your plant. A
PH that is too high will be too alkaline and cause your
plantsrootstobeunabletouptakenutrients. Manysup-
Flushing Soil Nutrient salts will build up in soil it is
posed nutrient deficiency problems are really caused by
highlyrecommendedthatyouflushyoursoilplantswith
improperPHlevels. PHcanbetestedwithadigitalmeter
clean water from time to time. If in a pot flush with 3
(ideal),orwithchemicaldroptestsorteststrips. Because
timesthevolumeofthepotwithwaterandforplantsin
PHoptimallyshouldbeadjustedtoatenthofapointac-
the ground flush until the ground is fully saturated and
curacyadigitalmeterishighlyrecommended.
possibly repeat the following day. This is also recom-
mendediftheplantsshowsignsofnutrientorphimbal- Dependingonyourmethodofgrowandwhetheryouare