Craft Cannabis and The Six Plant Solution
Not everyone is interested in acres of canopy. And, even those of us professionally involved with acres still try to enjoy craft cannabis from our home gardens.
The cannabis industry has grown with such momentum that it has been dubbed the “green rush”. With acres of industrial farms and innovative indoor grows, we often forget that this plant also thrives in hobby environments. The concept of craft cannabis, and the art of the home grow still exist. And, some of the most crafted flowers emerge within those smaller grows. So, what can we take home with us from the latest and greatest technologies and techniques to enhance our hobby? Or, what can us pros share which will help you embark on a new home craft?
Striving for balance
What we tell our growers, from the most advanced to infant cultivators: always respect mother nature and strive for balance within your specific environment. Your inputs work like an algebraic equation. Light + Nutrition + CO2 + Environment…..balance. Within a small system, this balance is incredibly important as there is not much margin for error. Although smaller gardens usually present smaller problems – small devastation can still annihilate a cycle. Or at the least, your craft cannabis quickly converts to plain old cannabis.
So, rule #1 – pay attention to your ladies and find balance. Start from the bottom up – with Amplify to inoculate your rhizosphere. Get the most powerful, full-spectrum microbes into your mix and let mother nature do the work. At roughly $7/per plant/per cycle this is one of the lowest cost advanced buffer techniques available. Use Amplify to allow for a greater margin of error or push your nutrients during your peak bud production period.
A perfect blend of biology and nutrients
Simply mix the recommended Amplify application into non-chlorinated water (goodbye chlorine – we don’t want you to kill your trusted microbial army. If you are in a pinch – add some humic acid to neutralize the chlorine. And that humic acid acts as a great nutrient as well). Next, use quality inputs of macro and micro nutrients – for the old adage “we are what we eat” remains true for all organisms! Mix your microbes with your nutrients in aerated water. Let this concoction bubble for a few minutes to encourage biological digestion and reproduction.
When I am not rushed, I strive for a 45 minute aeration period. For mixing this magic, good old five gallon buckets will do the trick. But, I recommend adding a larger, permanent mixing vessel, like a 35 gallon clean trash can, to your garden tools. You will thank me later. And remember – you don’t have to fill this to the top. Overwatering creates issues just like under-watering or over-feeding. Again, we strive for balance in our grows.
Finally, water your plants with this goodness. Simply attach a pump via garden hose to an extension wand. Voila, an easy watering system. Congratulations! You just fed and inoculated your plants with an active blend of macro and micro nutrients plus the bacteria powerhouse needed for nutrient conversion and pathogen prevention. These are the tools required for mother nature to produce the high end craft cannabis you desire.
Now time for some technical fun
With technology growing in leaps and bounds, your garden may be as smart as your house. Lighting controls, HVAC automation, CO2 timers, camera systems. Feel free to take balance to a whole other level. Sentinel, Autopilot, Titan, just some of the brands. Find a tool which matches your budget and addresses your tech interest, then sit back and watch the monitoring magic happen! Now spend your time reading up on advanced lighting cycles or the Legacy of Beneficial Bacteria. Let the smart system carry your management burden.
We will continue to offer tips and tricks within future blogs. Just always remember to maintain your balance – and use today’s tools to help accomplish this task. Your plants appreciate your care. Remember, these are living organisms, which will excel and provide healthy, robust, harvests full of the love you so diligently offered. And don’t fret, even those of us who deal with cannabis plants on a daily basis sometimes need to step back and smell the “roses”. Thankfully, with this passion, that’s an easy thing to accomplish.
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