How To Flower Cannabis Plants

Lighting.

Cultivated outdoors, Cannabis plants react to the reduction in daylight hours to induce flowering. Although many of the modern, hybrid strains have been specifically created for indoor growing techniques, it’s still the reduction in light hours that forces the plants to flower.

During the last week of vegetative growth and the first week of flowering, reduce your light-cycle by around 30 minutes per day, rather than shocking the plants with an instant reduction. This will promote bigger buds, as they have slightly longer during the pre-flower stage to develop.

The light-spectrum also plays a significant part in the flowering process. During the vegetative stages, Cannabis plants require large amount of ‘blue-spectrum’ light. However, flowering requires more ‘red-spectrum’ light.

Changing from Metal-Halide to Sodium bulbs, or altering the color-output from your LED lamps as the plants enter the budding stage, will promote better growth and density.

Temperature and Humidity.

Controlling the humidity and temperature levels during flowering is easier if you’re growing Cannabis indoors. Outdoor growers may wish to use greenhouses, or pop-up clear tents, giving themselves a greater degree of control.

Both day and night-time temperatures affect the growth and development of your buds. Try to maintain a constant 70 degrees for the best results. If your chosen strain produces purple-colored buds, such as Granddaddy Purple, reducing the night-time temperatures in the later stages of flowering will help to promote this characteristic.

Although Cannabis plants perform best when given high levels of humidty during the vegetative phase, it can cause problems in the later stages of flowering.

Warm, humid conditions cause moisture, creating the perfect conditions for bud-rot and mold, as your plants mature. Keeping the humidity to between 40% – 45%, reduces the chances of these conditions affecting your buds.

Improving Airflow and Quality.

Good airflow around the plants is vital when growing Cannabis indoors and often overlooked by new growers. It forces the stem and branches to move, strengthening them as they grow. Cannabis plants require CO2 for growth, expelling oxygen through respiration.

Without air-movement, oxygen levels will increase across the surface of the leaves, reducing the plants ability to intake Carbon Dioxide. Increasing air-flow and CO2 levels during the pre-flowering stage can increase the size and weight of your buds.

For an indoor growing room to operate at optimum levels, air intake and extraction fans need to be fitted. Heat, humidity and smell will all quickly increase within an enclosed area.

Many Cannabis strains emit a strong aroma, especially during the later stages of flowering and maturity. Carbon filters, fitted to extraction fans, help to reduce and eliminate these issues.

Nutrients and Watering.

Given a large enough area and good quality soil, the roots of the Cannabis plant will seek out and use the minerals it needs for its development. Within more confined spaces, such as pots or hydroponic set-ups, these nutrients need to be added manually.

Often new growers believe more nutrients equal bigger buds. This is not the case and can have the opposite effect. Your flowering plants require less Nitrogen, with increased levels of Potassium, Magnesium, together with a range of minerals and micro-nutrients. Find out more about Nutrients For Growing Cannabis.

The plant accesses water and nutrients through its roots. It also expels unwanted salts this way. These salt deposits can build up around the roots, reducing the plants growth.

Flush your growing medium regularly to remove unwanted build-ups. Do not allow your plants to stand in water, unless in a hydroponic system, as this can cause root-rot and irreversible damage.

Pruning and Support.

As you complete the vegetative stage, the majority of the pruning and training has taken place. You don’t want to be removing the shoots at this time, as you’ll be reducing the number of buds the plant produces.

The lower, weak branches can be removed, as they will produce very little. Lower, large fan-leaves can also be removed, improving air-flow and reducing humidity.Do not remove healthy leaves, even if you feel they are shading lower buds. These hold the stores of energy the plant requires. Removing them will reduce the size and density of your buds.

Many new Cannabis strains produce extremely heavy, dense buds, formed from a combination of both Indica and Sativa genetics.

Often these buds can become too large and heavy for the branch or stem to hold, resulting in it splitting and the buds dying before becoming completely mature. Support your plants as they develop to avoid future disappointment.

What To Do Next.

The flowering process ends with fully ripe, mature buds, ready for harvesting. Different strains produce a variety of characteristics. Aroma’s, colors and sizes all vary, as do the THC and CBD levels, together with the effects they invoke. Timing your harvest can depends upon your own personal tastes and needs.

Producing the biggest buds and heaviest yields isn’t always the key to a successful harvest. A large quantity of tasteless, low THC buds, can be less appealing than smaller yields of tasty, potent nuggets. Are you are ‘cash-crop’ grower, or producing buds for your own use?

Strain selection is essential for achieving the best harvests and this can vary depending upon your needs. Medicinal users often prefer CBD Cannabis seeds, while recreational users chose strains with a higher THC content. Cash-crop growers opt for heavy-weight varieties, while concentrate and oil producers require plants with large quantities of resin.

There are a variety of methods to help improve the flowering cycle of your Cannabis plants. By understanding which techniques work best for your plants and growing method, you can improve the quality and yield you produce. These tips and techniques are covered in greater detail in the Marijuana Grow Guide.

Completely free, this instant download can help guide you through each stage of your plants development.  If you haven’t downloaded it already, you’re missing out! Learn methods and techniques to help you achieve the very best harvests from your Cannabis seeds.