Flowering Basics Weeks 3-8 Show
Welcome back beginning grower. This is the 2nd part of our two-part series on Cannabis flowering for beginners. If you haven’t already, make sure to check out Part 1 here! Do you want to learn how to grow cannabis? Check out Growers Network University! Okay, let’s continue our cannabis flowering journey as we go from week three through week 8. Weeks 3-4: Buds FormThe stretch of your Cannabis plants will slow as we reach week four, but expect the upward growth to continue. At this stage you’ll finally be able to see the buds as they continue to develop. The pistils will still be white at this stage and sticking straight out from the buds. This part of cannabis flowering is when your plants are going to be exceptionally responsive to changes in their environment and nutrients, so make sure that you’re monitoring your plants closely. Remember, you may be in the home stretch, but you’ve got about another month to go, and you don’t want any health issues to start now. Your plants were pretty resilient in the vegetative stage, but now they are much more sensitive. Things to watch for at this stage are:
In short, to grow nice buds, you will want to avoid nutrient burn and deficiencies as much as you can. Your plants aren’t growing leaves like they were in the vegetative state, so it’s very important to take care of the leaves you have! The last thing to note at this stage is that your plants have probably started to smell. Depending on your situation this may be a good or bad thing, but if you’d rather not explain the smell to anyone downwind, you should consider a carbon filter to solve your smell problem. Hey! Need some grow gear? Check out Growers House!Need Cannabis Seeds? Find resources here! Weeks 4-6: Buds Fatten UpAt this stage of cannabis flowering, your buds are getting bigger. They’ll still have all the white pistils sticking out, but you’ll be able to see the buds getting bigger every day. At this point the “stretch” is about over and you can reduce the amount of training you’re doing with your plants. You’ll also want to make sure your buds and colas are standing up straight. Provide support with netting or ties, and don’t flatten them down. Since your plants aren’t adding a lot of new leaves at this stage, you have to be careful with the ones you still have. You may want to trim away leaves that are covering up your bud sites, and this is acceptable, but remember that plenty of good leaves serve as nutrient storage for the plant! The pistils will probably still be white at this stage, but watch those buds grow! Weeks 6-8: Pistils Darken and Buds RipenAt this stage of cannabis flowering, your plants are done generating new leaves altogether and putting the last of their resources into growing buds. Cannabis is an annual plant, meaning that once it reproduces, it dies. So, it’s natural to see a few of the leaves begin to die as the plants puts all their remaining energy into securing the next generation (Well, it would if we had allowed them to pollinate). The plants should still be mostly green even this late in flowering. Don’t let your guard down if you see yellow leaves, because it could be nutrient or light burn, both common during the flowering stage, and a quick response is critical. We’ll cover these more thoroughly in another article but for now, check out the images below. You can generally avoid these late cannabis flowering problems by making sure you plants aren’t getting too much heat or light. You don’t want to discolor, bleach, or burn your buds. Too much heat can also evaporate away some of your THC and that means lower potency! Week 8+: End of Flowering, Flush, and HarvestOkay new grower, you’re almost there. Are you treating your plants like the divas they are? Attending to their every need? You better be, this close to the end you don’t want any problems that will interfere with your upcoming harvest. Though there are exceptions, few strains will be ready for harvest at week 8, but we can see the finish line just ahead. Many growers will do a final flush around this time. This simply means they stop treating with nutrients and give water only for a few days up to a few weeks before harvest. This allows any remaining nutrient chemicals to be “flushed” out of the plants. If you’re growing in soil like we recommended, cease any fertilizer use. In hydro grows, they literally flush out all the remaining nutrients. You should see trichomes and pistils maturing at this stage of flowering, with the pistils darkening and the trichomes becoming opaque or cloudy (for more about this be sure to check out our When to Harvest article). At this stage you’re really just maintaining your plants until the buds are ready. Since different strains will be ready at different times, there is no magic formula to calculate how many days or weeks until your harvest, so keep an eye on those pistils and trichomes! When you’re this close to harvest, leaf yellowing is normal, as your plant is putting its last bit of energy into growing the buds. Just be sure that your buds still look nice and healthy. If you haven’t installed a filter by this point you may want to consider it if your plants are “stinky.” Remember to respect your neighbors! One final tip here -- if your buds look like they’re being damaged by light, heat, or nutrient issues, it’s better to harvest a bit early than to let the quality degrade further. Chalk it up as a learning experience. They’re not mistakes, they’re opportunities to improve your knowledge and technique. So there you have it. If your buds look go you’re ready to harvest, trim, dry, and cure. Great job new grower! You raised her up from a seed and now it’s time to see just what she can do.
In this article, you’ll find information about the Cannabis flowering, week by week, with photos and pictures. The flowering stage in Cannabis plants is the period when they grow their buds. After some weeks of vegetative growth, Cannabis plants will be able to flower when the photoperiod switches. Learn how to take care of your plant in this stage to harvest quality buds!
When does the Flowering stage begin?Flowering stage outdoors Growing outdoors, plants will start the flowering stage when the days grow shorter, usually when Autumn is coming. Flowering stage indoors For Cannabis plants to enter the flowering stage in indoor crops, the photoperiod must be switched to 12 hours of light / 12 hours of darkness schedule. Autoflowering strains don’t need a photoperiod change to start flowering, their vegetative stage lasts around 4 weeks and then it switches stages automatically. How long does the flowering stage take?The duration of the flowering stage varies among different strains. The flowering stage in Cannabis plants usually goes from 8 to 11 weeks, depending on the strain. It’s usually divided into weeks or three stages. The flowering period for Indica strains is typically around 8 weeks, but it may take up to 10 weeks. Sativa strains may take up to 10-12 weeks. Typically, hybrid strains will take up to 6-10 weeks to fully develop. How do I know if my plant is male or female?Here’s a quick visual guide on how to tell if your Cannabis plant is male, female or hermaphrodite. For more information and tips on how to find out, read our full article on determining the sex of a Cannabis plant. Determining the sex of your Cannabis plants Basic growing requirements for flowering Cannabis plantsLightingLight is very important in every stage in the Cannabis plant life cycle, but in the Flowering stage is key maintaining a Photoperiod: 12 hours of light / 12 hours of darkness. Do not interrupt the dark periods by opening “just for a sec” your growing environment. Light contamination may cause your plant to slow the budding process or even to revegetate (go back to veg stage) or start producing hermaphrodite flowers. TemperatureCannabis plants in the flowering stage thrive in temperatures around 18° – 26°C. Consequently, temperatures below this range may affect negatively the plant, or even kill it if it’s exposed to freezing temperatures for a long period. Temperatures under 17°C may slow the plant’s growth and very low temperatures (under 2°C?) may damage the plant irreversibly. On the other hand, high temperatures also affect the plant negatively. Temperatures over 28° C may cause problems such as stunted growth, burnt leaves, too heavy evaporation of water, excessive dryness, etc. HumidityAs well as keeping temperatures within those “warm” ranges, taking care of the relative humidity in the growing environment is key. Relative humidity measures how much humidity is present in the air expressed as a percentage. Nutrients for Cannabis plants in the flowering stageThe main nutrients that the Cannabis plant needs to develop are Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). When the plant starts to bloom, the concentrations of P and K must be increased progressively, while the N concentrations are lowered. That is why there are specific fertilizers for vegetative growth and flowering. Other secondary nutrients will be necessary for the correct development of the plant. These are Magnesium (Mg), Calcium (Ca) and Sulfur (S). Finally, the micronutrients are necessary but in a minimum concentration. These are Zinc (Zn), Manganese (Mn), Iron, (Fe), Boron (B), Chlorine (Cl), Cobalt (Co), Copper (Cu), Molybdenum (Mb) and Silicon (Si). So which is the best feeding plan or nutrient application schedule for my plant? That’s up to each grower, but bear in mind you’ll need to add these nutrients, via foliar, liquid or solid fertilizers. Even when growing organic, usually having your plant in plain soil is just not enough for the plant to produce big fat buds. Several brands of fertilizers offer fertilizer kits specially formulated for each stage with the necessary nutrients. Start with the dose indicated by the manufacturer or even 1/2 lower to avoid saturation and gradually increase the amounts until the desired results are achieved. Read this article to learn more about nutrients for Cannabis plants in the flowering stage. WateringWater your plant regularly with clean, safe and water. Certainly, using chlorine-free or filtered water leads to better results. Always avoid overwatering and watch for good drainage. How to know when to water a Cannabis plant? A good test might be to stick a finger down a few cms or an inch into the soil and if it’s dry, then you’ll know it is time to water. VentilationVentilation and airflow are key for Cannabis plants to thrive and grow healthy. In this stage, they need air not only to breathe and grow their bodies but also good ventilation to avoid the formation of mold, fungi, and rot. A good fan moving the air inside your growing environment helps a lot, but beware not to point it directly to the buds. An exhaust fan is great for increased ventilation and air movement, this also helps lowering humidity. If the exhaust fan is not enough, a dehumidifier is definitely the best and easiest solution for keeping humidity at range. pH levelspH levels must remain between 6 and 7 when growing in soil. Most nutrients are available for the plant in the growing medium only between this range of pH. pH levels out of this range may cause your plant to experience nutrients deficiencies and toxicities because the nutrients may be in the soil but the plant cannot absorb them. Container sizeThe size of your container is always related to the plant’s size. Are you growing in your garden soil? In pots with soil? In buckets? Hydro? The bigger the container is, the more chances of getting a bigger plant you have. Remember to transplant your tree before the flowering stage begins to avoid stressing the plant or accidentally damaging it.
Grow with Jane, the app for cannabis home growing. Track your activities and trees. Plan ahead by setting repeatable reminders. Get smart insights customized for your crop. Share your work with a community of like-minded people while learning to grow better. Flowering stage in Cannabis plants week by weekFlowering initiation stage – week 1-3From week 1-3 plants stretch and grow in size and height. This phase is also known as the transition phase, as plants experiment drastic changes these days. Plants stretch and may double their size in this phase. The female Cannabis plant starts blooming by producing pre-flowers, their pistils look like “white hairs”. Towards the end of the third week, the plant starts forming its bud sites in the plant nodes (where the main stem and the branches meet). Look for clusters of female preflowers. All those places where white pistils have been growing are future bud sites. If you accidentally cut the preflowers along with the fan leaves, there’s a chance that that bud stops growing. You may lightly defoliate your plant during this phase, but be careful not to touch or damage the forming bud sites. Look at the color of the fan leaves and the general look of each plant to have a better idea of their health and needs. The fan leaves should be vibrant green, not too light nor dark. For example, yellow and discolored leaves may indicate a deficiency, while dark and clawing leaves may indicate nutrient burn. Track these changes in the Grow with Jane app as soon as you notice them for a better chance of diagnosing your plants correctly and in time to heal them! It’s also important to check for pests, mold, and fungi before our plants start making their buds. Most importantly, to eliminate these at this point is usually easier than doing it later into the flowering stage. Mid-Flowering stage – week 4-5From week 4-5 plants stop growing in size and start growing, fattening their buds and darkening their pistils.
At this stage, you should continue to train your plant if you started some weeks earlier and you should be seeing some changes. In addition, if you need to tie or move your plants, bear in mind that now they are putting all their efforts into growing buds, so any stress or damage may slow that process. Remember to continue to move your lamp or plants so they maintain their adequate distance. Now your plants are growing at a fast rate and they need their feeding and watering schedule to be followed for optimal results. It’s normal at this phase to see some old leaves yellowing and finally turning brown and falling. That’s because some nutrients are “mobile”, meaning that once the plant has absorbed them, they can be stored and distributed inside the plant as needed. So an old leave may “send” nutrients to the newer ones and once the plant doesn’t need that leave anymore, it lets it die and fall. If you notice lots of leaves yellowing or any changes in color or texture in the new or old leaves, check for nutrient deficiencies or burn! Late flowering / Ripening stage – week 6 to harvestIn the last few weeks, buds gain the most weight. They are sticky to the touch and can be very smelly. You are very close to reaching your goal = harvesting!
Most importantly, buds are now covered in trichomes, which are rich glandules for secreting THC and other cannabinoids. These are responsible for the stickiness in the colas. Depending on the strain and the breeding, these buds may have strong aromas, reminding of fruits, flowers, and spices for example. In this stage of the Cannabis plant, pistils may show white, cream and brown colors. They also start curling inwards and they get covered in trichomes. Similarly, trichomes also change colors and you should pay close attention to these changes because they are one of the best clues for knowing when is the best time for harvesting.
Flushing your plants (week 8-10)Flushing a Cannabis plant is basically running a lot of water through its growing medium (soil, for example) to get rid of the excess salt and mineral nutrients. This action forces your plant to use up any amount of nutrients previously absorbed. The result will be buds with better flavor and aroma. The excess fertilizer in your Cannabis plant may result in buds that are harsh to the throat when smoked. Flushing with clean, room temperature water will help to get rid of fertilizer excess in the soil. Two weeks before harvesting is usually a good moment to start flushing your plants and watering with water only and no fertilizers until the harvesting moment. You can water with 10%-20% more water than usual and see how your plants react, they shouldn’t look droopy and should recover soon. The excess water will slowly drain from the bottom of the pot. A good visual sign is that, in the beginning, the water coming from the bottom of the pot will be dark and will gradually turn to a lighter color. By running this process in each plant, most of the salt buildup should flush away from the substrate. Even though lots of fertilizer companies recommend flushing plants for two weeks before harvesting, many growers nowadays choose to avoid flushing altogether and still have good results. It’s a matter of personal choice and one must evaluate the growing conditions, the nutrient schedule, and the final results. Harvesting guideRead the following article to learn exactly when to harvest your flowering plants, how to tell if they are ready by looking at trichomes and pistils, how to dry and cure your buds, and more! All explained in a simple way, with pics and a Step by step harvesting guide. How to harvest Cannabis plants indoors: a guide for beginners
Grow with Jane, the app for cannabis home growing. Track your activities and trees. Plan ahead by setting repeatable reminders. Get smart insights customized for your crop. Share your work with a community of like-minded people while learning to grow better. |
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