Class 207: Starting Your Own Grow
It has been over a year since proposition 207 passed in Arizona, and many people are still wondering where to start when they’re wanting to grow cannabis at home. We are going to have a review about how to get started and what sort of planning you need to build. The majority of this article has been covered over past entries but we are in a new year, with new people hoping to learn. We will look into our starting methods, materials, and needs to get a successful start to growing cannabis. Many of the materials and advice you might need will be readily available at our grow sponsor Sea of Green Tempe. The methods used and learned here can be continued through the entire 207 series available at cannabiscactus.com. Finally, there will be some needs that you absolutely must have, such as a source for seeds or clones, thankfully we have you covered. Follow along and let’s see where we can start if you’re wanting to start growing cannabis.
Plans & Space
We will start with planning your garden, equipment needed, and how to source seeds or clones. To begin, Arizona Proposition 207 states that each person, age 21 or over can grow up to 6 plants, or up to 12 plants maximum in a household of 2 or more people, age 21 and over. This means an adult can flower up to 6 plants as an individual, or up to 12 in a household of two or more adults, so you must decide how many plants you want to have flowering at once. Factors such as space, time to care for, and desired yields should be taken into account. The other decision when deciding indoor or outdoor, how many plants you’d like to start with, or whether you start from seeds or clones. Sourcing either of which can be expensive and difficult, but it must be decided so you can plan a timeline to plan then set up your grow space. The first decision will be, where will you grow and how much space will you need?
The answer to this will depend on your living situation, and how much space you ultimately have to allocate as a grow space. My suggested minimum amount of space would be at least an area of 2x4ft. for your vegatative plants and the same for flowering plants. This should allow for up to 3 plants in each area, and can be kept on a continuous cycle. If space allows, then a 3x3ft. space for vegatative plants and a 5×5 space for flowering plants would be ideal. If you have both of these areas, it would allow the space to raise the maximum amount of plants to keep a continuous cycle. Some home spaces that could be used include unused garden beds, closets, showers or bathrooms, as well as Arizona rooms which make for an excellent grow space. Explore your home, and try to visualize your space with plants as well as equipment needed.
Equipment Needed
How you will grow cannabis is more than the plants you choose, but also thinking about the details and options you are choosing for your grow space. Deciding what equipment you need will essentially be the following items, minus the light, tent, hangers if growing outdoors, within your budget and space allotted.
5 Gallon Buckets – These will be where we start if using rockwool to germinate, or these will also serve as your primary water reservoirs. These buckets can usually be found at a hardware store for cheap with an accompanying lid.
Soil – A good starting soil I recommend is Ocean Forrest by Fox Farms which has everything needed to start seeds or clones. This soil also breathes well and drains fast to let you know when to stop watering. To calculate how much soil you need, find the volume of your pots, add the total volumes together, then multiply by 0.133681 which will give you the total amount of soil needed in cubic feet.
*Total volume in gallons x 0.133681 = Total volume of soil needed in Cubic Feet*
pH Testing pen or strips – This will be an important tool from the start to check your pH. for the water that seeds will start in or the soaking of rockwool. Later on, you can use it to test the ph. for your feeding solution, soil, and clone mediums.
Fans – Air flow is crucial to your plant’s development and finding dependable, high quality fans will be important. Finding fans that handle prolonged use and include clips designed for the tent poles should be sought after.
Thermometer/Hydrometer – Measuring the major factors of your environment are important so the health and virility of your plants can be maintained. A digital sensor with combination displays for both temperature and humidity are recommended.
Hangers – Simple is key, and these will work with the hook anchors I am putting into the ceiling for my top tier of veg lights or with a large ballasted LED in my flower area. I want something I can easily adjust in case my plants need more or less light to succeed.
Timer – A simple, programmable timer is all you need to set your light schedule. Your seedlings, clones, and veg plants will need a light cycle of 18 hours light and 6 hours dark. When flowering, you will program a light and dark cycle of 12 hours on and 12 hours off.
Fabric Pots – These are simple, while also removing the weight and clumsiness of traditional pots. Fabric pots are inexpensive, breathable, and drain easily which is perfect for starting out.
Lights – Lights will be the biggest investment for your grow, and each stage of the cannabis life cycle has a preferred spectrum of light. Early growth into vegatative phase is when plants will prefer a greater amount of light from the blue spectrum which can easily be found in a T5 LED or fluorescent light. From the late vegetative stage to the end of flowering, plants prefer to have light with more Red, and Deep-Red from the light spectrum to maximized resin and trichome production. This is when it is best to invest more into a high-quality LED for your plants to reach maximum potential in flowering.
Tent – The second biggest investment will be your tent, which will need to be planned for depending on the amount of free space available. Your tent should be made with strong material, and must be checked for any form of light leaks before you begin cultivating.
These are the basics needed to start your grow, and are all to some degree, optional. You can grow however you want, wherever you want using whatever you want as long as it is in your home and within the law. Using this as a starting point to start shopping and finding a budget is recommended but nothing listed here is necessary to start. The next big purchase besides lights, tent, and genetics will be what fertilizer you will be using as well as any additives or bio-stimulants so start planning!
Starting Plants
How will you grow these plants and what will you start with? The first questions to ask yourself once you have the space and equipment sorted out. Hand watering is what the equipment above is suggested for, but any of this is compatible with other systems like hydroponics or aquaponics. After deciding the setup you want, the last thing you need to find is a source for your plants, starting either with seed or a clone. The challenges and benefits of both options are explored below to help make that choice.
If you are using seeds, you have to germinate, begin vegatative growth, determine sex, then grow them through the vegetative phase and you will need to determine everything needed for this. The process is long because the seeds take time, and if you have a male it will be a loss unless you are breeding. Any plant that is not a healthy female is a wasted plant, and must be culled unless a different goal is first established. Our friends at Cannabis Seeds USA, @cannabis.seeds.usa or Bee’s Selections, @bz_selects are options for sourcing quality seeds,
Here are our three starting methods for germination now that we have our space, equipment, and seeds.
1. Wet a paper towel then add seeds and place a zip lock bag. Store in a warm, dark place until a sprout of the tap root shows within a few days. Plant in your chosen medium when they are fully sprouted and healthy.
2. Rooting Cubes – Soak in water that has pH of 5-5.5 water for 24 hours, then move cubes to a humidity tray with a dome. Plant your seeds in the rockwool hole, spray the dome with pH water and cover in a warm dark place. When sprouts erupt, plant in soil and put under a light.
3. Put some soil in a small pot/red solo cup, plant your seed, wet well and cover in plastic wrap until it sprouts.
If using clones, you only need to determine the equipment needed, then begin raising your clones into the vegatative phase. This process is faster but you risk bringing the issues from other gardens to your own, such as: mites, aphids, gnats, mold, and illness. These are still extremely cost effective because you are starting with a guaranteed female plant. The clonery where the clone is sourced might also have more information about the life cycle and yield results of their clones. My personal endorsement is Plant Addicts Nursery, @plantaddictsnursery_pan who carry excellent and proven cuts of top genetics.
Starting your grow and the work involved with keeping plants can be daunting but keep everything in perspective. You are gaining knowledge while controlling exactly how your cannabis is grown. The results of your grow can supplement your needs and will reduce the amount spent on cannabis in the long term. The knowledge shared here is versatile and can be applied to existing methods or don’t need to be used at all. How you manage your plants, and the results you yield can be completely independent of anything here using hydroponics, aquaponics, or aeroponics. The goal is just to start growing cannabis, and keep growing this amazing plant! Stay tuned, and be sure to download the Cannabis Cactus App or check out the full 207 series on the Cannabis Cactus website!
See the whole cultivation series to keep reading and learning.
Adrian Ryan was born in New Mexico and attended school since elementary in Arizona, his time growing up split between the two states. He hopes to work towards recreational cannabis, enjoys reading, writing, film, music, and also writing music.