Cannabis Mistakes: Top Growing Mistakes Made

When expanding with hydroponic systems, you can experience a variety of benefits like high commercial yield potential, hardly any need for growing medium, and faster nutrient and plant growth uptake. If this is your first time dabbling in hydro-growing , it’s crucial that you avoid making common mistakes many beginners make. In this article we will show you all the bad habits to break and what to keep in mind for next time you decide on using hydroponics gardening .

1. Not Checking pH

The pH level of your water has a significant impact on how well your nutrient solution is taken up and used by plants. Cannabis plants grown in hydroponic systems do best with a pH of 5.5-6.5; anything below 5.5 will cause nutrients to become locked out and the plant to fail to feed itself. Of course, as Cannabis plants produce waste products, the water around them starts to pollution, which can then push the pH levels outside of the optimal range over time.

In order to test the pH of your water source, you will need to purchase a digital pH testing pen. The reading this pen provides will let you know if the water is too acidic or alkaline. Balanced pH levels are key for optimal plant growth, so it’s important to make sure that your nutrients solution falls within the ideal range. Always calibrate your pH pen before each use.

2. Guessing E.C Levels

The electrical conductivity, or E.C., of your nutrient solution is an indication of purity. In short, the higher the E.C levels, the more salt-based chemicals are in the plants’ environment — which is fine for experienced growers but not so much for beginners. The same way a pH pen measures acidity level, an E.C pen measures strength of nutrients present dip it into a sample and find out just how weak or strong your current mix actually is.

With some plants, you can get away with a higher concentration of nutrients than others. And just because you’ve upped the nutrient levels doesn’t mean all your plants will be big and healthy- looking. For organic growing, you can estimate how much to give by eye, but when using hydroponics, it’s best to take a more professional approach.

3. Drip Stakes Not In Place

Dripper stakes and lines save you from manually watering all your plants, which can be time-consuming and tiring. They also ensure that each plant gets the same amount of liquid nutrients every feeding by saturating the growing medium. For an even more consistent feeding cycle, use a 15-minute segment timer.

This is a great option for beginners because it doesn’t require much hands-on action, except checking on the system once in a while.

Make sure to insert your drip lines properly into coco, rockwool or hydroton. Check all drip stakes in the garden for leaks and that they’re inserted 3-4 inches down into the medium with dripping directed downwards. Ensure all dripstakes are connected correctly before moving on; otherwise, correct flow rates of other drippers will be compromised.

4. No Timers In Sight

A crucial consider when expanding with hydroponics is the frequent movement, timeliness, and constancy of nutrients. Everything requires to be done methodically, using a quarter-hour segment timer as your guide. Calendarizing when you will feed your plants加and manually plugging in the pump–will be less fruitful than if you routinely fed your Cannabis plants 2-5 times a day. The only time you wouldn’t need To utilize a timer is if you’re using ceaseless recirculation system that can be left on 24/7 with hydroton medium supporting it; doing so would make timing superfluous.

Timers are a crucial element in any automated irrigation system as they help to optimize performance and reduce the amount of manual labor required.

If you’re growing your plants in coco or rockwool, during the vegetative stage aim to feed them 2-3 times a day for 15 minutes each time. And when they enter the flowering stage, water 3-5 times a day. I would also recommend having a backup timer just in case one of them breaks and disrupts the feeding cycle–you don’t want your babies going hungry! When selecting timers, be sure that each has 15 minute segments; anything less will interfere with their watering schedule.

5. Using Thick Organic Nutrients

The hydroponic nutrients that are available on the market have been manufactured in a specific way for a reason. The size of these nutrients is smaller than organic compounds, which allows them to be utilized more quickly. However, if you were to use an organic-based nutrient in a dripper system, deep water culture or NFT system, it would cause several problems—the main one being blockage of drip lines.

If you use organic nutrients in a hydroponic system that is designed for soilless mediums and chemical salt fertilizers, it will have negative consequences and only affect the output of the drip lines. Eventually, the lines will become blocked and aerobic bacteria will form inside them, making its way into the reservoir. Using organic nutrients in this type of system can cause serious problems down the line, from blocked pumps and drip lines to attracting pathogens and insects.

6. Keeping A Cold Reservoir

Maintaining your reservoir’s nutrient solution and ensuring it is oxygen-rich and warm are both essential. There are two root zone temperature factors to consider when growing Cannabis plants. If it’s too cold, below 20 degrees, the plants will be uncomfortable; anything over 22 degrees Celsius invites pathogens that could infect the roots.

Keep the water temperature at a level between 20 to 22 degrees Celsius. By placing an aquarium heater in your reservoir tank, you can maintain a more consistent temperature of 20 degrees Celsius. Although roots may not grow as fast at this elevated temperature, it will stop any unwanted plant pathogens from growing in the garden. To make sure dissolved oxygen is being produced and everything is fresh and pathogen-free, always keep an air stone inside your reservoir. Checking the pump’s power output and size to see if it will heat up your aquarium is crucial. A good quality heater may be pricey, but it’ll be worth the investment in the end.

7. Forgetting To Flush

Even if you’re growing your plants with water, you still need to flush them occasionally. This gives hydroponically grown Cannabis plants the chance to use up their internal reserves of nutrients and minerals, which results in a smoother-tasting flower. Allowing your plants to go through this process will also induce seasonal colors.

The last two weeks before harvest, give your plants plain water to rinse the growing medium.

If you want to achieve white, soft ash when burning a joint, the best flavor, and smoothness on the lungs, make sure to flush your Cannabis plants properly. Enzymes help break down undissolved salts and speed up the flushing process. There should be a 14-day flushing period during which time the plants will become Various colors that indicate nutrients are being used to full point of deficiency.

8. Clogged Drip Lines

When you’re looking at your drip lines, it’s easy to see the salt residue that’s left behind from hydroponic nutrients. To keep your system running smoothly and efficiently, you must use the right treatment to clean your pumps and lines thoroughly. Many nutrient companies offer different versions of cleaning products specifically for hydro systems. No matter which cleaning product you choose, be sure to follow the directions carefully. You’ll know your system is totally clean when there’s no salt residue visible inside the reservoir tank, pump, or dripper lines. To prevent having to start another crop from scratch, it’s a good idea to wash your system out thoroughly before starting anew. Leave your system on so the cleaning solution can recirculate throughout.

9. Entering the Room When the Lights Are Off

Don’t let light leaks ruin your weed grow! If you’re a first-time grower, it’s easy to get excited and want to check on your plants every chance you get. But one of the cardinal rules of growing weed is to stay out of the grow room when the lights are off. Light leaks can cause serious problems, including turning your female plants into hermaphrodites. So resist the temptation to peek, and give your ladies the dark period they need to thrive.

Hermaphroditism among cannabis plants is an evolutionary adaptation that allows the plant to pass on its genetic code. When a plant turns hermie, it produces both male and female sex organs. In just a few weeks, one plant can pollinate an entire commercial-sized crop.

If you think that one of your weed plants is starting to grow pollen sacks, it’s best to remove her from the others. If there are only a few sacs, Try and pick them off, but if there are many, it would be better to get rid of the plant altogether.

10. Over Defoliating

Defoliation is the process of removing fan leaves to assist the plant in redistributing nutrients to flowering sites. While this can improve the yield and potency, first-time growers have to be cautious of how many leaves they remove as well as how they go about taking them off. There are various methods of defoliation, from lollipop pink and topping trees, all the way to schwa zing (which we do not advise, even for experienced growers).

Pinching and pulling leaves is the method that experienced cultivators use, but we think it’s better to sharp scissors. It’s also important to note that you should never defoliate auto-flowering types of cannabis because they can’t handle the stress from defoliation as well which will lead to a decrease in yield and potency.

In Conclusion

When it comes to hydroponics, Remember: a successful hobbyist is a prepared one. Set yourself up for success by approaching your grow with professional precision and cleanliness–after all, this isn’t an endeavor where you want to cut corners. Best of luck on your next hydroponic journey!