Flowering your plants after growing them into healthy wild looking bushes is the absolute best time for an indoor grower. It is during this time you will watch the plants produce leaves and flowers and when new growers can make common mistakes. In this article we provide a guide to the flowering stage, how to water a plant in flower, what to do with the leftover leaves and small flowers after harvesting, avoiding harvesting early and which Atami nutrients to use to grow the best weed possible, allowing you to make this year the best indoor crop ever!
A guide on growing from seed to flower
If you are new to growing Cannabis indoors, then you may not be familiar with the various stages the plant will go through during its life cycle. From seed, plants will begin life in the seedling stage, grow leaves and stems in the vegetative stage, begin to transition, enter full flower mode and then become ready to harvest.
1. Seedling stage
This stage covers the first few weeks when the Cannabis seed or seeds have sprouted and are establishing their anchor roots and growing very slowly. This is also when plants can be most vulnerable and be delicate to impact or trauma. It is normally after a few weeks when a grower will transplant into a larger pot ready for the vegetative period.
2. Vegetative stage
Cannabis plants which are kept under 18–20 hours of light per day, will be able to stay in a vegetative state for as long as the grower intends. This is when a grower will decide how big or small they want their plants to become prior to changing the timers to 12/12, the plant count, if they will do training techniques. Mother plants are consistently kept under 18–24 hours of light to prevent them ever transitioning to flower.
3. Transitioning
As plants grow from seed into a bush with leaves and stems, they will begin to transition flowering once the darkness period has increased to 12 hours. During this time, growers will notice their plants begin to stretch and increase in size by 100-300% depending on the strain.
4. Flowering
Once the timers have been switched to 12/12, then it will take around 21 days for Cannabis plants to stop stretching, and to begin focusing their energy on flowering sites. Plants indoors will begin to grow an abundance of preflowers during the first 3 weeks and then calyx development from week 4 onwards.
Temperature, humidity and maintaining healthy green plants
It is essential when growing indoors to provide the garden with a consistent temperature of 24 degrees Celsius, with the lights turned on. At nighttime or when the lights are off, the environment should be 18-20 degrees Celsius with lights turned off.
The best way to check this is to use a digital hygrometer, as these handheld devices will provide a low and high reading over a 24-hour period. Humidity levels should drop from 70% down to 30-35% and can be systematically done using a dehumidifier or a temperature fan controller for those prepared to invest.
How big should the plant grow before switching the timer to 12/12?
● Indica plants will usually double in size once flowered, so a 60 cm plant will finish around 100-125 cm tall.
● Sativa dominant plants tend to grow tall, lanky and stretch excessively high, reaching 2-3 m (6-9 fts).
● Plant training such as L.S.T will significantly reduce the final height of the plants after transitioning to flower.
● Cannabis plants grown in a Sea of Green setup should flower once they are 30-45 cm tall.
● This may also be based on the amount of room you have indoors and if you are limited with height.
● Pruning is an excellent way to remove lower side branches and prevent small sized buds forming.
What areas of the plant should I prune before the first flowers appear?
Pruning Cannabis plants just before plants enter 12/12, or within the transitioning phase, can really impact the way the plants grow. There are many benefits associated with pruning ranging from focused energy to the top buds, improved air flow around the center of the plants and eliminating any undeveloped small buds. Pruning can also be referred to as lollipopping, and the general rule of thumb is to cleanly strip away the lower 75% of the canopy for best results.
When to water flowering plants and which Atami nutrients are best to use?
Watering your pots during the flowering stage is how your plants will access the primary nutrients and trace minerals needed to grow terpene rich, dense and frosted buds. We recommend only watering the pots once the growing medium has become dry and the pots are light to lift from the ground. Do not over water your pots thinking this will result in bigger buds, when it will have an adverse effect.
We recommend for the flowering stage to use Bloombastic and B’Cuzz Boosters and to follow our instructed feeding guides.
Harvesting your plants too early
Chopping your flowering plants down early can end up costing you all your hard work and effort over the previous months. The optimal harvest window should be based on the maturity of the trichomes, how swollen and developed the calyx are, the terpene profile and resin coverage.
● There will be a significant loss in yield when harvesting Cannabis plants early.
● The effect when smoking may cause anxiety if the cultivar is a high THC variety.
● Terpenes will not get the chance to fully develop and be at their peak levels.
● The flavor of the dried buds when smoking will lack essence and a lip licking taste.
How to know when the top buds are too close to the light
Keeping the Cannabis buds well aerated with oscillating fans and fresh air is extremely important when flowering plants. One of the most common mistakes a grower can make is to let the grow light become too close. Over time, the flower can display signs of heat stress and even bleach the top buds white in some cases. It is always best to keep the distance of the light between 45-90 cm depending on the grow light.
What can I do with the leftover leaves and small flowers?
Hash and extracts can be made from the leftover leaves and smaller sized buds. There are many ways to recycle top quality sugar trim, and the most common ways are to make water hash using ice, water and bubble bags, or to do the old school method of dry sifting the material over screens. Remember though, what goes in is what comes out so try and work with only the best quality and most resin rich material possible.
Atami’s Conclusion
Understanding what flowering plants require in terms of nutrients, temperature and humidity will make a stark difference in the quality of the weed. Harvesting a plant too early will cause flowers to lose essence, flavor and the overall effect. Growing from feminized seeds or clones can often be the most practical way for a new grower to produce the best indoor garden, and for those people who demand top quality buds, be sure to use our nutrients mentioned in the article!
