Every cannabis plant goes through different, very complex stages during its lifecycle. Controlling these stages becomes challenging because every plant has unique requirements. Various cannabis plants require different nutrients, temperature, water, and light levels during growth.
Almost 4 to 8 months are needed for plant growth. Each growing cycle can take up to 10 to 32 weeks for harvesting plants.
Understanding the plants’ nature helps a great deal throughout the cycle. The grower’s basic knowledge of the growing weed stages protects the growth stages from various bacteria and lousy air that are harmful to cannabis plants.
If the plants are not managed well during this lifecycle, it becomes difficult to protect them, as they can die or not reach the flowering stage.
Some states allow the growers to produce cannabis plants at home. The purpose of this permission is to give them the liberty to produce the best plants for medical use. Furthermore, they can completely control the conditions within a few weeks.
In this blog, we will cover the step-by-step growth of cannabis plants and how you can ensure promising growth. From germination to flowering, you will learn about another stage of harvesting.
Timeline of Cannabis Growth
As mentioned above, growth depends on different conditions during the growing weed stages. But here is the average time duration for the growth stages of a weed plant:
- Germination: 1 to 10 days
- Seedling: 2 to 3 weeks
- Vegetative: 3 to 16 weeks
- Pre-Flowering: 1 to 2 weeks
- Flowering: 8 to 11 weeks
- Harvesting
Light Cycles of Cannabis Growth
Here are the light cycles of the weed plant stages of growth:
1. Germination
- Light: 16 hours
- Darkness: 8 hours
- Spectrum: Red Light
2. Seedling
- Light: 18 hours
- Darkness: 6 hours
- Spectrum: LED Blue Light (First 10 to 14 days)
3. Vegetative
- Light: 18 hours
- Darkness: 6 hours
- Spectrum: Blue Light (450nm)
4. Flowering
- Darkness: 12 hours
- Spectrum: Red LED Light (660nm)
Moisture Levels for Cannabis Growth
Here are the primary humidity requirements for the stages of growing weed:
- Vegetative Stage: 65% to 80%
- Seedling Stage: 65% to 80%
- Flowering Stage: 45% to 60%
- Flowers Drying Stage: 45% to 60%
Stages of Cannabis Growth
The following are the growth stages of a weed plant:
1. Germination
Germination is the first step of the growing cycle, during which seeds mature enough to germinate. Seeds get ready to be placed in the soil after drying with a light to dark brown color. Seeds become hard to touch in this phase.
In case of underdevelopment, seeds might feel soft and show as green or white. Seeds must be kept in a dark and wet area. If seeds are exposed to humidity and light, it can boost the germination of cannabis.
Remember! Almost 20-30% yield of plants increases through seed germination.
In the germination process, the stem produces two round leaves, allowing sunlight to start photosynthesis. After this, the leaves begin to grow, a sign that the growing process has started.
Note: Always maintain ideal humidity and temperature during this stage.
2. Seedling
Seedling is the next stage after germination, where more leaves and leaf blades are developed. These blades can be almost five to seven, but they can be up to nine, which is a good sign of mature growth. They grow up to four inches above the cotyledon.
The seedling is one of the stages of growing weed that requires a temperature of 68-77°F during lights-on and 10°F less at lights-off. With continuous light and minimal watering, plants grow well in this phase. Overwatering may cause plant death. Growers prefer inside growing to protect plants from adverse conditions.
Note: Keep your plants away from pesticides by keeping the environment clean.
3. Vegetative
The vegetative process starts after the growth of leaves and plants are moved into larger pots outdoors. The number of leaves and branches increases with the strength of the root system, and the plant’s stem gets thick and wide.
With continuous exposure to sunlight, plants need a temperature between 70–85°F, 85% humidity, and an optimum amount of minerals like phosphorus, nitrogen, and potassium. Plants need around 160 mg L-1 of nitrogen, which helps grow plants 2-3 feet tall.
Plants need a high amount of water for their roots during this stage. Always make sure the root tips completely absorb the water.
Remember! All indoor growers can switch to flowering after achieving ¾ size.
4. Pre-Flowering
Pre-flowering is the stage where the plant’s sex is decided. This growth phase is processed indoors under darkness, while outdoor growing begins at the end of the day. The pre-flowering stage witnesses the plant’s double growth, and its height stretches a foot.
After two weeks, a few sex signs can be identified on the internodes of the plant.
- The male plant shows tiny green sacs full of pollen
- The female plant shows two white pistils with oval leaves
The crop can be destroyed if male and female weed plants are grown in one place. The male and female plants must be grown in different gardens. Otherwise, trichomes are not produced, and bud sites become pods for the seeds.
5. Flowering
Healthy plants grow in the flowering stage under optimum humidity, weather conditions, and nutrients. Better plant growth requires almost 10-12 hours of darkness, 85°F temperature, and 35-45% humidity. The flowering is divided into the following three sub-stages:
- The start of flowering takes 1 to 3 weeks to develop white pistil hairs.
- Mid-flowering takes 4 to 5 weeks to stop plants’ growth with the increase in bud size.
- Late-flowering takes over 6 weeks to turn white pistils into brown or red.
Ultimately, trichomes covering buds turn from transparent to opaque and then amber. It shows that the plant now meets the maturity level.
6. Harvesting
The last stage of cannabis plant growth is harvesting, which the grower determines. Harvesting can be done if the grower observes white trichomes and rusty pistils. Plants are chopped down and hung for drying, while buds are cut down by scissors and dried on a rack.
Cannabis plants are dried under 40-50% humidity by hanging for 7-14 days. Plants can be protected from bacteria and their harmful material by drying. If plants are placed in a container with 50-60°F temperature, they can be cured. It can improve the quality of cannabis in terms of flavor and burn.
Wrap Up
All the weed plant stages give you complete control of production. Under controlled conditions, cannabis cultivation is boosted up. Meanwhile, you learn about your plants’ best choice of seeds by understanding the optimized environment. We are always eager to provide you with the best cannabis cultivation help to improve growth and profitability.
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