Cannabis cultivation – Tips and advice
Author: Pavel Cermak
If you want to grow your hemp plants in the garden, meadow, or greenhouse, it is crucial to start with quality seeds. Only then will cannabis cultivation be easy. We will guide you on how to select, plant, and grow medical cannabis!
Why grow cannabis?
There are many reasons why you might decide to grow cannabis. It can be cultivated for collecting purposes or used to make effective cannabis ointments. Cannabis buds can also be used for vaporization purposes, such as CBD flowers.
Cannabis cultivation is definitely not simple, which is why we have prepared a user manual for you, explaining step-by-step how to successfully grow cannabis.
If it doesn’t work out for you or if you find cultivation too demanding, leave it to us and buy ready-made CBD products from Cannadorra, or come visit our Harvest event, which we organize every year, where you can gather interesting information about cannabis.
Is growing hemp legal?
It always depends on the cannabinoid content of the plant. Growing cannabis with a THC content of up to 1% is legal.
Growing up to 3 plants with a THC content above 1% is not a criminal offense, but only a misdemeanor. If you grow more than 3 plants with a THC content above 1%, it is considered a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment.
What location should you choose for growing cannabis?
If you want to start growing cannabis, you first need to choose a spot where the plant will thrive. Cannabis requires a lot of light in all growth phases. Therefore, choose a sunny and sheltered location. A very important factor is also the quality/fertility of the soil. Ideally, the pH value of the soil should be slightly alkaline (pH 7 to 7.3).
It is recommended to plant cannabis together with tomatoes. This way, cannabis receives the necessary irrigation. Cannabis absorbs moisture, thus preventing mold on tomatoes.
When is the best time to plant hemp?
It always depends on whether you’ll be growing cannabis outdoors or indoors. If you opt for outdoor cultivation, spring is the best time to plant – around late April. During this period, soil temperature begins to rise.
Indoor cultivation can start as early as the end of February – beginning of March.
Seeds are usually sown 2–3 cm deep and about 2 cm apart. It is important that the seeds have enough moisture and the temperature does not exceed 25°C.
Cannabis cultivation step by step:
1. Choosing the right seed and strain for cultivation
The best option is to choose FEMINIZED CANNABIS SEEDS. These are specially selected seeds with a 99% probability of being female.
And why is the female plant so important to us? Because most growers do not want male plants – they pollinate the females, which then produce seeds, and these are often undesirable for further processing. Male plants are basically just pollen-filled cannabis plants – that’s why we want females.
Of course, if we want seeds, then male plants are necessary :-).
CBD Candy Dawg Kush Fem is a photoperiodic indica with a flowering time of 8–9 weeks. The strain has a distinct sweet taste and also a great OG Kush aroma. It is medium-sized and bushy. It is a suitable strain for making concentrates and extracts. If you give it one or two extra weeks of flowering, it will reward you with a high yield.
It is a crossbreed of the Candy Dawg Kush X OG Kush CBD strains. The seeds are feminized.
CBD/THC ratio: 1:1.
2. Choosing a growing location for cannabis
Outdoor
You can grow outdoors in a garden, balcony, forest, or field... The advantage is its relative low maintenance, where nature plays the role of gardener, and larger plant size due to space. The disadvantage is the risk of attack by natural pests, drought, storms, and last but not least, the police, who may confiscate the plants.
Indoor
This option allows for full control over the growth, as the plants are kept in a closet, grow box... This means there’s less risk of detection. However, it requires significant care to ensure optimal conditions and investment in the necessary indoor growing equipment.
The best compromise appears to be growing cannabis in a greenhouse or polytunnel.
3. Germination of the Hemp seed
We have two options: either place the seed directly into the substrate 1 cm deep, water it, and leave it by the window. The ideal temperature for germination is 25°C. Water regularly and ventilate the space. Within a few days, sprouts will appear. If you have planted multiple seeds and they germinate, separate the seedlings before their roots become entangled. Handle them carefully to avoid damaging the sprouts.
Alternatively, you can pre-germinate the seed in water or in moist cotton wool, and then plant it into the substrate. However, this involves more handling, which increases the risk of damaging the seedlings.
Germination is never 100% successful, so it’s good to plant more seeds. A germinated seed (approx. 1 cm) should be planted into slightly alkaline soil. In the early growth stages, choose a sunny spot and ensure regular watering.
Pavel Čermák recommends for germination:
My preferred way to germinate a hemp seed is to boil water and let it cool to room temperature. Then I place the seed intended for planting into the water for 24 hours. After 24 hours, I make a hole in the soil about as deep as the first joint of my pinky finger. I insert the seed, cover it with soil, and water it. I water with a spray bottle on the surface of the soil—once the soil is moist, that is enough, no need to overwater. It’s very important not to overwater the hemp. I repeat this process until the plant emerges.
Pavel is the head of the hemp advisory center and a passionate hemp enthusiast.
4. Planting Hemp into a greenhouse or outdoors
After germinating the seed and once the plant reaches a height of 15–20 cm, it is ready to be transplanted into the ground or into a larger flower pot (if a smaller one was used initially).
Hemp needs a lot of light in all growth phases. It is necessary to choose a sunny and sheltered spot. The quality/fertility of the soil is also very important. The pH value of the soil should ideally be slightly alkaline (pH 7 to 7.3).
It is recommended to plant hemp together with tomatoes. Hemp thus receives the needed irrigation. Hemp absorbs moisture, which helps prevent mold on the tomatoes.
5. Growth of Hemp
Keep in mind that the plant needs space for further root development. Maintain regular watering.
Note: Please be aware that the plant can grow up to 6 meters tall.
The growth phase lasts approximately until the end of August, after which the plant begins to flower (roughly until the end of October). It is advisable to trim the plants to control their height.
You can use tomato fertilizer, chicken manure, or specialized hemp fertilizer as nutrients.
6. Harvesting Hemp
Only the female flowers of the plant are harvested. These flowers can be used for tea, tinctures, ointments, etc. First, dry the flowers at 20°C for 14 days, or at 15°C for 3–4 weeks. A drying device can, of course, shorten the drying time.
Questions and answers about Growing Hemp:
Question: I’m struggling with germination—it's 50/50.
Answer: Hello, regarding germination, we have two options: either place the seed directly into the substrate 1 cm deep, water it, and leave it by the window. The ideal temperature for germination is 25°C. Water regularly and ventilate the space. Within a few days, sprouts will appear. If you have planted multiple seeds and they germinate, separate the seedlings before their roots become entangled. Handle them carefully to avoid damaging the sprouts.
Alternatively, you can pre-germinate the seed in water or in moist cotton wool, and then plant it into the substrate. However, this involves more handling, which increases the risk of damaging the seedlings. Germination is never 100% successful, so it’s good to plant more seeds.
Discussion: Hello, from years of experience, I germinate seeds this way: I soak two cotton pads completely and place the seed between them. I put these wet pads with the seed on the lid of a mason jar and leave it on a windowsill. It is important that the pad stays moist the entire time the seed is germinating. It must not dry out. In a few days, the seed will sprout. Then I plant it in a small flower pot about 5 cm below the surface. Be careful when watering to avoid washing the seed out.
Question: I’d like to try growing hemp for medical purposes only. I’m curious—are CBD strains really completely THC-free, or how does that work? And what are CBD varieties good for, medically speaking? I get seasonal eczema and once had an ointment from a friend that helped, so I’d like to make my own.
Answer: Hello, according to available studies, CBD may have a positive effect in treating the following conditions:
• anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress
• schizophrenia
• epilepsy
• cancer
• diabetes
• obesity
• neurological diseases
• dystonia and dyskinesia
• addictions
• nausea and vomiting
• mad cow disease
• Alzheimer’s disease
• ischemia
• inflammations
• jaundice
• brain and liver damage
• sepsis
• skin diseases
• allergies and asthma
• sleep disorders
Medical hemp seeds always contain at least trace amounts of THC. It’s actually not possible to completely eliminate it (when discussing the plant itself). Medical hemp or its seeds are genetically modified to contain less than 0.2 or 0.3% THC. This amount is permitted and, in the case of oils and other products, is non-psychoactive (so you can drive a vehicle, for example).
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis_cultivation
http://www.cannapedia.cz
https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konop%C3%AD