If cannabis is legal to grow in your state or country, you might want to try your hand at growing your own, but it can be challenging. Sometimes you need a few pointers before venturing out into the world of cannabis cultivation. This is a great guide for beginners with basic information on how to get started when growing cannabis indoors and what elements to include in your grow room.
There are many things to consider when deciding to design and build a cannabis grow room. It may be easier to speak to cannabis vendors to get expert advice to ensure your room is structurally sound and will not cause any damage to your home.
Getting Started
A cannabis vendor is an educated cultivator who grows, produces, analyzes, or otherwise handles cannabis for sale in a market. This individual is knowledgeable in the methods of cultivation techniques that increase the yield and potency of their product. Building and designing a grow room is meant to replace an existing room in your home. Building a completely new structure or buying land for farming may prove more expensive than necessary and would require you to hire a framing contractor. If you think investing in land will yield better results, you could look into agriculture land loans.
Agriculture land loans for cannabis are a type of farm loan that allows individuals to acquire farmland specifically intended for the cultivation of marijuana plants. These loans are available from a whole host of financial institutions and can be used by any entrepreneur or business entity that has an interest in obtaining a piece of land on which they intend to cultivate marijuana crops. This type of funding is also available to individuals who want to make their land commercially viable for marijuana cultivation and who can afford repayments on the loan.
At present, laws in most of the United States do not permit the sale of medical or recreational cannabis, which means that such loans may be hard to acquire. However, as more states move towards legalizing cannabis, this type of funding is expected to increase in popularity. Many states are likely to legalize medical marijuana before recreational cannabis, which means that the demand for these loans will be driven mostly by entrepreneurs who want to use their farmland or existing properties to grow medical cannabis.
Cannabis vs Hemp
Despite its association with marijuana, what is commonly referred to as cannabis is actually more of a catch-all term for the plant which includes hemp. This means that while most lenders are likely to refuse funding requests for farmland intended specifically for marijuana, they may be willing to consider loans for land on which an individual wishes to cultivate hemp.
Hemp is a plant in the cannabis genus with lower trace amounts of THC. Marijuana contains higher amounts of THC, but most hemp products on the market today can still have trace amounts. Hemp is usually used for industrial purposes, while marijuana is usually ingested or applied topically. To get technical, both are strains of cannabis sativa, but generally speaking, marijuana can be considered a subspecies of cannabis sativa that contains a higher amount of THC. Marijuana is specifically cultivated for personal psychoactive use due to its high THC content.
Hemp is typically grown for industrial purposes such as clothing, paper, and rope. It is not suitable for growing in home gardens, but it can be purchased from organic gardening centers or specialty stores. Marijuana, on the other hand, is cultivated for medicinal or recreational use. It can be used to make clothing, paper, ropes, and several other things, but the main purpose is to grow for personal human consumption.
Just like with all plants, there are different subspecies of cannabis sativa; indica and ruderalis are two examples of subspecies that are commonly known to have reduced amounts of THC. These strains are used for medical or recreational purposes but they grow differently than cannabis sativa.
Prepping the Area
Before building your room, you may want to consider hiring a HVAC contractor and electrician to handle the wiring for your lights and fans. These tradespeople can help you with a lot of different aspects, from ventilation to a sprinkler irrigation system.
However, if you want to save some money, you can purchase your own building supplies, tools, and equipment.
Consider the size of your grow room before starting to grow. Your plants need space to stretch its leaves, so you will have to remember that the bigger the space you have, the more light and air circulation they are going to require.
The requirements for growing medicinal cannabis are not too difficult to achieve. Keep in mind that the initial setup can be expensive, depending on how much equipment you purchase and the size of your space, so do your research before looking into any products. For example, you will need a grow light system, fans to circulate air, carbon filters for ventilation and nutrients. One other thing that you might need is an irrigation system if this isn’t already included with the rest of the equipment that you have purchased. It is important to understand all aspects of growing indoors from start to finish.
Growing Conditions
Light is one of the most important aspects of growing cannabis. You will need an artificial grow light that has a high lumen output. If you live in areas where it gets colder at night, consider purchasing lights with LED technology as they are more energy-efficient and produce less heat. This can be beneficial for your plants because too much heat can stress them out which means fewer yields. Also, make sure not to let your light shine directly on your plants, but rather point it towards the wall behind them instead as this makes it easier for your grow room to dissipate excess heat.
Cannabis needs good air circulation, otherwise, you risk the chance of mold developing. You can achieve this by using either an air purifier with carbon filters or a fan and filter combo. The more the better and be sure to turn them on at least 20 minutes before lights out to help circulate any residual heat that might still be lingering in your grow room.
Always keep your plants clean and remove dead leaves or stems as these tend to attract pests such as aphids which will inevitably lead to mold problems later on down the line if they aren’t dealt with immediately. Also, use pesticides when needed, but remember that it is illegal in some places so always do thorough research beforehand.
Another important aspect of growing cannabis indoors is keeping things as stable as possible. You want to avoid fluctuations in temperature and humidity, which is why you should invest in a hygrometer and thermometer. This will allow you to monitor the conditions of your grow room at all times so that problems can be caught before they become too big to deal with.
Using the right nutrients for growing cannabis indoors is very important. Researching different brands and products can help you find something that works well for your plants, otherwise, it might have negative effects such as stunting their growth, slowing down their metabolism, or preventing them from flowering altogether.
If there isn’t one already, consider purchasing a sprinkler irrigation system if you plan on growing more than a few plants. Growing on soil can be difficult as you have to be sure to water it regularly, otherwise, your plants will slowly dry out and eventually die if not properly tended to. If you use hydroponics, then this isn’t as big of a problem since the irrigation system does most of the work for you, but rather just monitor the nutrient levels of your reservoir from time to time so that they don’t get too low or high.
Making Decisions
Another element that you should consider is choosing the right strain. Some strains are better for beginners while others are better for seasoned veterans in the indoor growing scene, so depending on your skill level you will have to choose accordingly. Also, remember those sativa dominant hybrids usually take longer to flower than indicas so if time isn’t on your side then you might want to consider going with an indica or indica-sativa mix instead.
Determine how much electricity you need and invest in an energy-efficient light bulb. Several bulbs on the market claim to use less electricity but still produce the same output, so do your research and you will be sure to find one suitable for your growing area. If you’re using a generator for your power supply, make sure to get a generator service to stay on top of maintenance and repair.
If cloud cover is in your forecast, then avoid using fluorescent or LED lighting since they can get damaged by moisture. HPS and MH lamps on the other hand work well with high humidity levels making them perfect for during those spring showers when it’s too cold to go out there and water manually by hosepipe.
Maintaining Growth
Don’t wait until mid-October to prepare your grow room for winter. If possible, start early, which means thinking about what needs to be done before summer starts winding down. Of course, if you’re a beginner, then this is easier said than done, but just try your best to organize everything before the leaves start falling.
Place fans around the grow space to keep air circulating and prevent mold from growing. There are several types of fans that you can choose from, but the one thing to keep in mind is that they have to be resistant to humidity. If water manages to get into a fan and starts rusting it, then you’re going to have a much bigger problem on your hands so make sure it’s protected with either rubber or metal casing.
Having a proper drainage system for your cannabis plants is one of the most important things. If you have water standing outside your grow area, or flooding it when the drains are blocked, then either buy some drainage mats and get them under your pots or cells. Get yourself a pump that will pump the water out of the grow room and into another bucket that will empty into the drain.
If you want to feed water into your pots and cells, you could get a holding tank that can pump water to the grow room to avoid carrying buckets of water every time you need to water your plants. Stagnant water will attract bugs which could lead to pollution. Finding a company that provides drain servicing may help to build a system for you. Also, having floors that can easily clean up spills, like an epoxy floor, can help keep the conditions of your grow room in an ideal shape.
In order for your plants to blossom properly, the amount of light they produce needs regulating because right now during this time of year there is no sunlight present in your grow room at all. In fact, by mid-October, the only light available will come from artificial sources such as fluorescent tubes and LED lamps.
During this time of year, you don’t need to worry about your hydro bill, because your electricity usage will stay the same throughout the month. However, looking after your garden won’t be as easy as it was over the summer. It’ll take more than just water and light for your plants to blossom properly because there isn’t much sunlight present in your grow room at all, which is why artificial lighting plays such an important role. For example, right now during autumn, there is no natural light available so growers use fluorescent tubes and LED lights instead.
There has been a steady number of cannabis companies springing up everywhere these days. The money to be made is tremendous, and the number of consumers is growing at a staggering rate. If you’re ready to get started with your cannabis grow room, be sure to keep these tips in mind.