Growing Your Own in Hawaii (Part 2)

Today's blog is a brief introduction for beginning marijuana growers. There are many issues when attempting to grow your own. In this blog I will be going over only the major issues. Please be aware that you must have a 329 card to legally grow in Hawaii. You can obtain a 329 card from Dr. Mandris at 329MJRX.com with telemedicine.

Germinating your seeds

Your finished product starts with good seeds. As explained in part 1 of this series, you will want feminized seeds. If growing outdoors in Hawaii without outdoor lights you will need Autoflowering seeds. You can grow both Autoflowering or regular feminized plants indoors. You will harvest faster but less bud with Autoflowering seeds. Your seeds should be stored in a dark, cool (even refrigerated) place until ready to germinate.

The most popular method to germinate is the paper towel method. You place the seeds in between layers of paper towel and keep them constantly wet with water. Within 2-7 days, your seeds will "pop" and a tap root will start to emerge. When the tap root is over a half an inch long, it is time to plant your seeds. I prefer 4 inch Peat Pots filled with "starter soil" which has been well soaked with water. These can be found at Walmart or Home Depot, or any store that sells gardening supplies. The root is placed in a small hole in the starter soil with the seed shell at the surface of the soil. This must be kept moist at all times but you can "over water" them if you are not careful. If growing outdoors, this is the time to place them in the sunshine, or indoors, under your lights for at least 12 but preferably 18 hours a day. On occasion, the shell will have a hard time falling off and may require your assistance but be very careful not to injure the plant while trying to remove the shell. When the seed shell falls off, there will be two leaves, called cotyledons, that will open up and you are on your way. The next set of leaves will look more like marijuana leaves. It is a little too early to fertilize the seeds at this point. Keep the plants in the peat pots until you see roots starting to penetrate the peat pot. This is then the time to transplant your plants into their final growing pots.

Early Seedlings in Peat Pots

Planting in pots

For Autoflowering plants 10-12 inch planter pots are sufficient, 12-14 inch pots work best for non-Autoflowering seeds. There are many opinions as to the best soil to use, just make sure it is potting soil. The peat pots can be planted into the planter pots or you can choose to remove the peat pot when you transplant your seedlings. Good drainage is important, so I fill the bottom 2-3 inches of the planter pots with small rocks so that water can easily drain through the bottom of your pots.

Transplanting to final pots

Lighting

When growing outdoors, make sure the plants get as much sun as possible. When growing indoors, LED grow lights are the best option. I prefer the LED grow lights that enable you to dial in the amount of "Blue Light" and "Red Light" that your plants receive. During the grow phase, your plants want much Blue Light and a little Red light. When you start blooming, your plants will want more Red light and a little less Blue light. It is best to start your lights with 18 hours of light per day. Your plants will not bloom until you reduce the lights to 12 hours per day (If they are not Autoflowering). So keep the lights on 18 hours per day until the plants have reached the size you would like blooming to start and then switch to 12 hours of light per day. The 12 hours of darkness should be as dark as you can make it. When you reduce the light to 12 hours per day, your plants will start to bloom within 1-2 weeks.

LED Lights set-up

Watering and Fertilizing

There are many opinions on how to water your plants. It is easy to over water them. I usually water from the top until I see water coming out the bottom. The next watering should be when the soil is fairly dry, roughly every other day. There are many commercial fertilizers that you can obtain from Amazon. You want high Nitrogen and less Phosphate and Potassium during the Grow Phase. You want less Nitrogen and more Phosphate and Potassium during the bloom phase. Companies like Reefertilizer, Humboldt and FoxFarm sell ready made fertilizer for marijuana for both phases. Read the instructions carefully and do not over fertilize.

Other Plant Issues

There are many things that can go wrong with your plants and it is beyond the scope of this blog to name them all. The plants are easy to grow during the grow phase and are quite hardy no matter how badly you treat them. It is a whole different story when they begin to bloom, as they become quite needy and can get sick much more easily. You should purchase a pH meter and keep an eye on the pH of the water that comes out on the bottom of the pot. The pH can get very low (acidic) during the bloom phase and your plants will start to look like they are dying if the pH gets much lower than 5 (7 is neutral). You can buy pH chemicals to raise (pH Up) or lower (pH Down) the pH if needed. So it is important to watch the pH regularly. Fungus can attack the buds (particularly if growing outside) and cause "bud rot" which will be devastating after all your work. Fungus can also attack your roots (root rot) if you over water. Spider mites can be a problem which can be avoided by using an oscillating fan in your grow area. Finally, if certain nutrients like iron or sulfur are lacking or overdosing, your plants will not be happy. There are many websites that can help you diagnose your plants problems by the appearance of the leaves, so that you can correct the issues.

In my next blog, I will discuss harvesting, drying, and curing your buds. To get your 329 card that enables you to grow up to 10 plants, go to 329MJRX.com to set up a telemedicine appointment with Dr. Louis Mandris to obtain your certification and certify your grow site.