Growing Marijuana and DIY Cannabis Extracts Collection

Hydroponics is even better, providing roots with even more access to oxygen while still maintaining ideal levels of water and nutrients. This enables a speedier uptake of nutrients, and faster and bigger growth of plants and buds. Hydroponic systems also give you a higher level of control over plants than what you would have with soil mixes, because you can constantly adjust exactly what the nutrient solution contains.

Also, to ensure that your plants are getting all the nutrients it needs, you must use the right fertilizer. You can use vinegar-baking soda CO2 generator, wood ashes, Miracle-Gro, and even urine. To ensure steady plant growth, you also need to test the pH of your soil every now and then and make sure it’s at 7.0. You can use a pH testing kit or pH meter.

The temperature of the nutrient solution should be kept between 68-77 degrees Fahrenheit, or within a few degrees of the air temperature. An inexpensive pool thermometer can be used. Digital thermometers that record minimum and maximum temperatures are even better.

If the nutrient solution is too cold, it can be heated with an aquarium heater, or a heating pad can be used on the reservoir. Hot solution can be cooled by passing it through a cooling radiator, or by placing coils of hose with cold water running through them into the reservoir.

Heat gain can be prevented by insulating and shading buckets and pipes from hot lights. The PH should be kept between 5.9 and 6.3. Inexpensive pool PH test kits can be used. Meters are more convenient. However, many inexpensive types are inaccurate.

Accurate digital PH meters are best. The concentration of fertilizer in the nutrient solution is expressed as parts per million of dissolved salts. Parts per million, or PPM, is measure by an EC meter. EC stands for electrical conductivity.

By testing the electrical conductivity of a liquid, an EC meter can determine the amount of chemical salt that's dissolved in a liquid. The more conductivity, the more dissolved salts, and thus a higher concentration of fertilizer.

However, for the very same reason, hydroponic systems are not as forgiving as soil. Mistakes have a greater impact. Because improper nutrients or PH mixtures could harm plants quickly and severely, greater care and attention is needed.

Care needs to be taken when drying buds. They will feel dry on the outside when they are still very wet on the inside. To correct this uneven drying, buds are cured or sweated. To sweat buds, they are placed in a sealed bag or container for several hours. This will redistribute the wetness at the center of the bud evenly throughout the bud. Bud will go into the bag feeling dry and come out feeling wet again.

Signs that a plant is ready for harvest are when white hairs turn brownish-red, and when flowers are not getting denser anymore.

When the majority of the white hairs on a plant have turned to brownish-red, the plant is ready for harvest. Some plants will mature sooner than others. Flowers on the tops of plants will be larger and denser, and may mature sooner than those underneath. Growers often harvest top branches before harvesting those in the bottom.

Keeping the air below 75 degrees will also discourage them. Avoid letting pets into the grow room and never enter the grow room wearing clothes that may have come in contact with other plants, especially house plants. Simple homemade or store bought soap and water concoctions can be sprayed on leaves to suppress mite or bug infestations.

Spray the underside of leaves where mites live. More serious cases may necessitate insecticides. Different products are available for different pests. Predator insects, such as lady bugs, are sometimes used to consume mites. Most growers avoid using insecticides that are not designed for plants bound for human consumption.

For simple, homemade, light-duty mite insecticide, mix a teaspoon of dish soap into a jug of water and spray on the undersides of leaves. A higher concentration of soap can be used, but may require a follow-up rinse of pure water the next day to remove soap residue. Soap spray should not be used on buds.

Spider-mites are a grower's nightmare, and probably the most common pest faced by indoor growers. Most mite infestations are the result of poor ventilation, high temperatures, or unhygienic conditions.

Keeping the indoor garden clean and tidy is key in preventing bug infestations and disease. Dead leaves should be removed from plants and taken out of the grow room. Water runoff should be mopped up from the floor and dirt and dust should be wiped up.

Marijuana grown under H.I.Ds with proper nutrition will grow very fast and require lots of water. As plants grow older, their need for water increases. Most growers will water their plants every two to three days. The rule of thumb for watering plants is to fully saturate the entire grow medium, and water again only after grow medium is dried out substantially.

Grow medium that does not dry out enough may lock out oxygen. This hampers root performance and slows plant growth. Grow mediums that remain too dry for too long can cause plants to dehydrate. Dehydrated plants are easy to spot: leaf and branches become limp and hang straight down.

Dehydrated plants will quickly recover if good watering is provided soon enough. However, such stress may hamper a plant's overall growth and should be prevented. If plants show any signs of dehydration, then watering is done far too infrequent. The grower must also make sure that the entire grow medium is watered evenly.

Often, when growing in pots, the grow medium will harden up and contract causing the top layer to harden and leaving an open gap along the inside wall of the pot. This causes water to drain through the pot without actually penetrating the soil. By cultivating the top layer--filling in the gap alongside the outside of the pot--and pouring water over the grow medium slowly, this problem is solved.

Most soilless mixes contain a wetting agent. This helps water penetrate the soil evenly so there are no dry pockets. A small drop of dish soap in a small bucket of water will have the same effect. Enough water should be provided so