HOW TO GROW MARIJUANA INDOORS: Vegetative stage
vIDEO TRANSCRIPT
INTRO
Hi, I’m your prof from Indica Institute, and this is my beginners course on how to grow cannabis indoors. I’ve designed this course to teach beginner gardeners how to grow their own cannabis plants, so I hope you enjoy, learn and share. Visit me at indicainstitute.com, or subscribe to my YouTube channel to gain access to a growing list of cannabis related courses, tips, and more. I hope you find my videos useful, and please like and subscribe so I can continue making more videos like these!
BODY
Hello and welcome back to my beginner course on “How to grow cannabis indoors.” This is Lesson 5 of 10, where I will tell you how to take care of your plants during the vegetative stage of growth. For this lesson you will need a pH testing kit, vegetative stage nutrients, a timer, and a thermo hygrometer. If you do not have any of these tools or equipment, click the link in the description for my recommendations on what brands are best and where to find them for purchase. The objectives of this lesson are to learn to: Set your vegetative lighting schedule, Provide nutrients to your plants, Properly water your plants, Keep a steady temperate environment.
All links mentioned in this video can be found in the video description, along with a link to Indica Institute where you can find a growing list of cannabis related courses and recommendations on the best products for purchase. I’d also like to give a special thanks to my partners at FourBudz grow equipment for supporting free cannabis education. You can check them out at fourbudz.com.
Last lesson your seedlings were transferred to their 5-7 gallon adult pots. It’s now time to place them under your LED or HID lighting. When doing this, always be sure to check the distance of the lights from the top of your plants throughout its growth cycle. Apply the ‘hand test’ if you have to. As a quick reminder, this is when you place your hand just above the top of your plant and wait 8-12 seconds to see if it burns. If its hurting you, it’s hurting your plant.
If possible, set your LED lighting to ‘vegetative mode’ if there is a switch for this. I have channel settings on my FourBudz light that let me control 4 separate spectrum ranges, so at this point I set blue, UV and white light to 100%, and Red and Far red light to 70% intensity. Then plug your light into a timer set to an 18-6 cycle. This means the plants will get 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness each day.
Water your plants regularly, but be careful not to overwater them. A good test to see if you plants need water is to place your finger about an inch deep in the soil. If it's dry, it’s time to water. Though in doing this just keep an eye on plant leaves, if they look droopy it could be a sign of underwatering. If they are droopy and curling in, it could be a sign of overwatering.
Keep pouring until you see about 20% of the water you poured drain from the bottom of the pot,
and always remember to pH test your water before you give it to your plants. Measure how much water you give your plants, and try to limit the runoff. More instructions on watering can be found in the ‘Environmental Conditions’ lesson of my advanced grow tips course which can be found on my website.
It's during this stage that you begin using nutrients to help your plant thrive. Start with a third to half the recommended dose, add it to your water, and only increase this dosage if you see that the plant needs it. Your rule of thumb for nutrients should be ‘LESS is MORE’. More damage can be done to your plants by using too much nutrients, than not enough. A thorough guide to proper feeding techniques can be found in the advanced grow tips course on my website.
Hang a thermo hygrometer close to the plants, and always keep an eye on the temperature as you check on your plants daily. The temperature of your grow space should be between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. If it’s not in this range, it’s likely because your lighting is insufficient, too far from your plants, or you need to add or remove fans. Remember that airflow and constant oxygen intake is just as important to plant growth as temperature, so make sure there’s still adequate airflow in the grow space if you’re removing a fan. The fan and vent airflow in your grow space should be strong enough to cause a constant gentle rustling of the leaves on the top of your plants.
In theory your plants can stay in the vegetative stage as long as you want them to, but the typical rule is to switch them to the flowering stage at about half the height you want your plant to be at harvest. Be sure to take the height of your grow space into account when making this determination. Also keep in mind that different strains grow differently, so use this rule as a guideline only.
A general timeline for the vegetative stage is 3-5 weeks depending on strains. If height becomes a problem, you may still be able to train your plant through a technique called supercropping. To learn more about supercropping, check my the course on plant training techniques. You can find this on my website.
So to review, make sure your lighting is the proper distance away from your plants, set your spectrum to ‘vegetative’ mode, which favours blue spectrum range light. Then set your lighting timer to an 18-6 light cycle if you haven’t done so already.
Water plants regularly, and test to see if they need more water by sticking a finger an inch deep in the soil to feel for dampness. Use a calendar to track waterings and try to stick to a schedule. Provide your plants with vegetative formula nutrients, and remember the less is more rule. Be sure your grow space environment is between 20 and 30 degrees celsius by keep track of temperature with a thermometer. Keep track of the height of your plants. Typically at about 3-5 weeks, once they have reached half the height you would like them to reach by harvest, it is time to move them into their flowering stage. Once you’re satisfied with the height of your plants, it is time to move on to Lesson 6. For the next lesson you will need a pH testing kit, flowering stage nutrients, a timer, and a thermo hygrometer.
OUTRO
I hope you found this installment of my course “How To Grow Cannabis Indoors” useful. For more cannabis related courses or recommendations on the best grow products out there, visit me at indica institute or subscribe to my YouTube channel. If you have any comments or suggestions for a new video, be sure to join the discussion in the comment feed below. Please like and share this video, and as always, thank you for listening! Click here to skip to the next lesson.
Hi, I’m your prof from Indica Institute, and this is my beginners course on how to grow cannabis indoors. I’ve designed this course to teach beginner gardeners how to grow their own cannabis plants, so I hope you enjoy, learn and share. Visit me at indicainstitute.com, or subscribe to my YouTube channel to gain access to a growing list of cannabis related courses, tips, and more. I hope you find my videos useful, and please like and subscribe so I can continue making more videos like these!
BODY
Hello and welcome back to my beginner course on “How to grow cannabis indoors.” This is Lesson 5 of 10, where I will tell you how to take care of your plants during the vegetative stage of growth. For this lesson you will need a pH testing kit, vegetative stage nutrients, a timer, and a thermo hygrometer. If you do not have any of these tools or equipment, click the link in the description for my recommendations on what brands are best and where to find them for purchase. The objectives of this lesson are to learn to: Set your vegetative lighting schedule, Provide nutrients to your plants, Properly water your plants, Keep a steady temperate environment.
All links mentioned in this video can be found in the video description, along with a link to Indica Institute where you can find a growing list of cannabis related courses and recommendations on the best products for purchase. I’d also like to give a special thanks to my partners at FourBudz grow equipment for supporting free cannabis education. You can check them out at fourbudz.com.
Last lesson your seedlings were transferred to their 5-7 gallon adult pots. It’s now time to place them under your LED or HID lighting. When doing this, always be sure to check the distance of the lights from the top of your plants throughout its growth cycle. Apply the ‘hand test’ if you have to. As a quick reminder, this is when you place your hand just above the top of your plant and wait 8-12 seconds to see if it burns. If its hurting you, it’s hurting your plant.
If possible, set your LED lighting to ‘vegetative mode’ if there is a switch for this. I have channel settings on my FourBudz light that let me control 4 separate spectrum ranges, so at this point I set blue, UV and white light to 100%, and Red and Far red light to 70% intensity. Then plug your light into a timer set to an 18-6 cycle. This means the plants will get 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness each day.
Water your plants regularly, but be careful not to overwater them. A good test to see if you plants need water is to place your finger about an inch deep in the soil. If it's dry, it’s time to water. Though in doing this just keep an eye on plant leaves, if they look droopy it could be a sign of underwatering. If they are droopy and curling in, it could be a sign of overwatering.
Keep pouring until you see about 20% of the water you poured drain from the bottom of the pot,
and always remember to pH test your water before you give it to your plants. Measure how much water you give your plants, and try to limit the runoff. More instructions on watering can be found in the ‘Environmental Conditions’ lesson of my advanced grow tips course which can be found on my website.
It's during this stage that you begin using nutrients to help your plant thrive. Start with a third to half the recommended dose, add it to your water, and only increase this dosage if you see that the plant needs it. Your rule of thumb for nutrients should be ‘LESS is MORE’. More damage can be done to your plants by using too much nutrients, than not enough. A thorough guide to proper feeding techniques can be found in the advanced grow tips course on my website.
Hang a thermo hygrometer close to the plants, and always keep an eye on the temperature as you check on your plants daily. The temperature of your grow space should be between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. If it’s not in this range, it’s likely because your lighting is insufficient, too far from your plants, or you need to add or remove fans. Remember that airflow and constant oxygen intake is just as important to plant growth as temperature, so make sure there’s still adequate airflow in the grow space if you’re removing a fan. The fan and vent airflow in your grow space should be strong enough to cause a constant gentle rustling of the leaves on the top of your plants.
In theory your plants can stay in the vegetative stage as long as you want them to, but the typical rule is to switch them to the flowering stage at about half the height you want your plant to be at harvest. Be sure to take the height of your grow space into account when making this determination. Also keep in mind that different strains grow differently, so use this rule as a guideline only.
A general timeline for the vegetative stage is 3-5 weeks depending on strains. If height becomes a problem, you may still be able to train your plant through a technique called supercropping. To learn more about supercropping, check my the course on plant training techniques. You can find this on my website.
So to review, make sure your lighting is the proper distance away from your plants, set your spectrum to ‘vegetative’ mode, which favours blue spectrum range light. Then set your lighting timer to an 18-6 light cycle if you haven’t done so already.
Water plants regularly, and test to see if they need more water by sticking a finger an inch deep in the soil to feel for dampness. Use a calendar to track waterings and try to stick to a schedule. Provide your plants with vegetative formula nutrients, and remember the less is more rule. Be sure your grow space environment is between 20 and 30 degrees celsius by keep track of temperature with a thermometer. Keep track of the height of your plants. Typically at about 3-5 weeks, once they have reached half the height you would like them to reach by harvest, it is time to move them into their flowering stage. Once you’re satisfied with the height of your plants, it is time to move on to Lesson 6. For the next lesson you will need a pH testing kit, flowering stage nutrients, a timer, and a thermo hygrometer.
OUTRO
I hope you found this installment of my course “How To Grow Cannabis Indoors” useful. For more cannabis related courses or recommendations on the best grow products out there, visit me at indica institute or subscribe to my YouTube channel. If you have any comments or suggestions for a new video, be sure to join the discussion in the comment feed below. Please like and share this video, and as always, thank you for listening! Click here to skip to the next lesson.
