1.) More nutrients does not equal more buds
It’s tempting to try to give your plants as much “good stuff” as you possibly can.
When I first started growing I remember the thoughts frantically rushing through my head when choosing nutrients, “Which nutrients are the best? What supplements do I need to use so I get great yields?”
But I’ve realized that as long as you give your cannabis the basic nutrients needed to grow, you really don’t need to know a lot about nutrients. In fact, if you ensure your plants are growing in a perfect environment, you can get incredible results using just base nutrients, without any special supplements whatsoever.
So for a lot of first-time growers, the most important lesson about nutrients might be that LESS IS MORE.
2.) The grow light may be the most important tool in the grow room
Honestly, if you really want to get the biggest yields indoors, the best thing you can do is get the best possible light setup for your grow space.
Small grow lights produce small buds no matter what you do
Be careful when ordering grow lights from unknown companies overseas (especially if they’re not UL-listed). These lights are almost never tested on actual cannabis plants and the results show it. In some cases, they can even be dangerous.
Many old-school or generic LEDs produce small or strange-looking buds like these ones.
Not sure which grow light to get? Check out this list of the 5 Best LEDs lights for Growing Weed (beginner-friendly).
3.) The strain makes a HUGE difference in your results
Even if you grow two strains with the same grow light, grow medium, nutrients, and care, they can grow WILDLY different from each other.
These strains were grown in the exact same conditions. The Amnesia Lemon produces big green buds of medium potency, while the Pacific Punch produced purple and sparkly buds that stayed small but were incredibly potent. I did nothing different between these plants. The differences are 100% from the genetics.
4.) Harvest buds right
After months of waiting, it’s easy to jump the gun and harvest your plants too early. It’s also easy to get caught up with life and neglect your newly harvested buds during the drying and curing process. For truly killer buds, wait until the right time to harvest your weed, and take the time to properly dry and cure them.
5.) Proper airflow prevents a host of problems
Great airflow…
- can help plants grow faster
- strengthens stems
- helps prevent mold and bud rot
- defends against certain bugs like fungus gnats and spider mites
- like most things, just don’t go overboard
Don’t go overboard with fans or you’ll give your plants wind burn. Leaves should be gently rustling but not waving around.
6.) Growing weed doesn’t have to be hard
I think a lot of people want to feel like they accomplished a major feat because they were able to grow weed.
But truthfully, if you just need medicine for personal use, growing can be incredibly easy. Even if all you’re doing is a simple hand-watered grow, you can easily end up with several ounces of buds off your first plant, even if you make lots of mistakes.
Each grow after that you’ll learn more and more about what works for you. For many people, just growing 1-2 plants at a time is all they’ll ever need to keep a regular medicine supply.
If you can dedicate a weekend to setting up, ten minutes a day to care, and then a few hours at the end of each grow to dry and cure your buds, that’s all you really need to faithfully grow an abundance of super potent buds that last all year long.
7.) Seek out experienced growers, but always take every piece of advice with a grain of salt!
It’s not worth re-learning everything from scratch when you could get information from experienced growers to make your plants grow exactly how you want from your very first grow.
But sometimes, even the most well-meaning and experienced growers will give advice based on their genetics, environment or personal grow style, and it might not necessarily apply to your particular situation. I highly recommend to always listen to your instincts if advice just doesn’t seem right. Just like a medical doctor who seems wrong. No one knows your plants (or body) better than you.
These plants were grown together from seed in the same environment. One stayed small, the other got huge. Genetics makes a huge difference! Now imagine if they had been grown in different setups with different grow styles. Advice that works for one plant might not be good advice for the other.
