How I grow Marijuana in my closet

I am here to show how I am growing legal Marijuana in my closet with the bare essentials. To begin you need to determine your grow area. The area that I have designated for Veg is a 4 foot by 4 foot by 3 foot cage that I have hung 2 4 foot T-12 shoplights that I purchased at the local Home Depot for 9.99 each with 40 watt natural daylight full spectrum bulbs. 

6 plants 2 4 foot t-12 with 40 watt full spectrum bulbs

I purchased my clones from various clubs here in the southern california area and tried to stick with plants that will be of equal heighth and size. Study on various strains by google search will help with all the information you need to help determine which strains will be best for your needs and which will be best for your growing conditions.  

Now that we have determined our clones its time to put them in pots of soil. For my grow I chose the best organic soil I could find Fox Farms Ocean Forest. Its stand-alone perfect straight out of the bag. 

 

I chose to grow my plants with 1.75 gallon pots since they wont be very large and i plant my clones directly into the soil about an inch from the top of the pot. For the first watering after transplant I like to use a mild Superthrive mix with water only. Superthrive is a fertilizer/vitamin supplement for your plant that will help with any transplant shock and get them growing and rooting faster due to its high amount of b-1 vitamins. This first watering should carry them into about the next week before they will need water again since the lack of roots at this stage in their life. For this watering i mix into 1 gallon water the fertilizer for vegetative growth.  I have chosen to stick with Fox Farms nutrients since I am using their soil I figure their fertilizers were optimized for their soil blends.   I’m going with Fox Farms Grow Big for vegetative growth. I mix 1 tablespoon Grow Big and 1/2 teaspoon Superthrive per gallon water and water each with 500 ml of fertilizer mix. 

I am keeping my fluorescent light about an inch from the top of my plants and am keeping them on for 18 hours per day. At about the second week of veg am having to raise lights slightly daily. After about 4 weeks of alternating feedings of fertilizer with just regular water  and monitoring plants growing towards the lights and raising them accordingly my clones have reached the heighth that I have chosen before flowering which for my grow is 18 inches tall. 

The space that I have designated for my flower room is a 4 foot by 3 foot by 8 foot closet in the spare bedroom.  For this size space I have determined that A 400 watt High Pressure Sodium hid light will be my best option providing enough light for optimal growth and potency. I purchased my grow light at the hydro store for 175 dollars. It came with aluminum reflector, Ballast and bulb and appropriate cords and i opted for the switchable ballast in case one day in the future I could use this ballast as a metal halide veg light.  I purchased a 6 inch clip on fan from walmart for 7 dollars and attached it to my reflector blowing on the bulb so I can keep the light as close to the plants as possible. Even with this fan a 400 watt hps generates a lot of heat so i add a 18 inch oscillating fan to circulate the air which with the fresh air from the room will keep my temperature at 78-80 degrees at 12-14 inches from the tops of my plants. 

Before I move my plants into flower I like to prune them. This is something that will improve your plants growth more than anything else and what is pruned off can be used as a fresh clone of the same genetics. For this pruning i remove the bottom 5-6 side branches coming off the main stalk. These branches if left to grow will have buds on them but they will be underdeveloped and wispy and the size of all other flower sites will be affected as well. The plant will produce the same amount of energy but over fewer bud sites which will produce larger flowers. After this I place my plant in the flower closet which has my light set for 12 hours on 12 hours off. At this time I give them their first feeding of the flowering Nutrients that I have chosen which is Fox Farms Tiger Bloom and Fox Farms Big Bloom. You must be careful with the Tiger Bloom and never use more than 1/4 strength recommended because it will fry your plant if overdone and you will lose valuable energy creating fan leaves.  I only feed with the Tiger Bloom 3 times in the plant’s life(weeks 1-3). I’m always sure to alternate my feedings with regular water. After the first week or week and a half you will begin to see your flowers beginning to develop and your plants will go into what is called the stretch phase. This phase in the varieties that I have grown lasts about 2 weeks. At this time in your plant’s life she will grow to her full heighth potential in a 2 week period doubling and sometimes tripling in heighth. 

After 2 weeks I like to tie my plants up and stake them. The way that I like to do this is to put a stake in my pot and tie the plant to the stake to straighten them up. Then I tie the branches to the plant starting from the top of the plant and tieing them to be taller but layered so as to not deprive any of the light. This helps with space since it cuts the width of the plant in half so you can fit more in your space. 

For weeks 4-5 I like to add a half strength feeding of Fox Farms Grow Big just to help the plant maintain its lush growth for the rest of its life and I also use full strength Fox Farms Big Bloom. At this time in the plants life it is truly the most fun part to watch because your flowers will begin to really develop. At this stage you can begin to really see trichomes developingt as well. 

Week 5 Flower

For weeks 6-7 I feed the plants with  Fox Farms Big Bloom at full strength. At this time some of the white pistils will begin to turn orange/brown and your flowers should be putting on noticeable gains in weight and nodes should begin connecting in places to form larger flowers. 

Week 7 flower

At week 8 you must stop using all fertilizers and flush your plants. What you’re doing when you flush your plants is to remove the excess nutrients and salts that are left in your soil that will give you a harsher end result. To do this flush you will need 2-3 gallons of water per plant. To begin the flush water your plants and saturate your soil. Let this sit for about 20 minutes. What this first watering does is saturate the salts that are in your soil and soften them making it easier to flush from the medium. After 20 minutes take each plant and pour the 2-3 gallons of water through the soil of each plant letting them completely drain all excess water.  After this your plants will just receive waterings as needed. 

Week 8 flower

Going into week 9 you will want to begin monitoring your trichomes with a 60-100 times zoom magnifying glass. Everyone says that you’re looking for amber but with modern-day hybrids and crossbreeding of various strains I believe what to look for is the swell of the trichomes. When they are ripe they will have just passed the milky white stage and will look as if they are exploding. Good rule of thumb is if you think they are ready water one more time and by the time your soil dries one more time they should be ready. 

Blue Dragon week 9

OG KUSH Harvest Day

Now you’re at the time you have been waiting the past 90 days for HARVEST DAY. I like to make sure to harvest when my soil is completely dry so I time my last watering accordingly. The day before harvest i pull the plant out of the flowering closet after lights out and put it somewhere dark for a full 24 hour period. After this 24 hour period its time to chop. To begin with I remove all the fan leaves from the plant so it is just bud stalks. Then I systematically remove the stalks starting with the top making sure to leave a hook on the branch to hang from. I then hang them for a full 48 hour period.

Blue Dragon and Shaman Kush Hang Drying

After 48 hours of hanging I take them down and remove all the sugar leaves that are drooping on the buds. You can remove these leaves on harvest day but i think that leaving them for a 48 hour period it helps to slow your drying process down which will give a smoother cleaner smoke.  After you trim them take them back and hang them for an additional 48-72 hours.

Og kush right after trim

 They are ready to move to the next stage of drying when your main stem feels close to snapping when bent. Once that time comes place your stalks in brown bags about 4 inches deep is ok beyond that and your bag is too full. I leave them in the brown bag about another 48-72 hours until the main stem they are on snaps clean when bent. When they snap it is time for the jar. I remove my buds from the main stalk and if you want to know how much yield it is time to weigh since no more water weight will be lost after this point. Also at this time it is ok to sample your new harvest. Then place your buds inside of canning jars to do your final cure. This process varies from what I have seen by strain but 7-14 days is about average. Be sure to open your jars daily and check for moisture. If any moisture forms in your jar remove your buds and place them back in your brown bag for 24 hours. After 7-14 days you should have your end result which will more than likely be some of the most enjoyable smoke smoke youll ever have and definately the freshest.