How long does it take to grow cannabis or marijuana?

How long does it take to grow cannabis / marijuana?

There is no unambiguous answer to this question. It is a difficult questions because not everybody has the same understanding here.

Does one only mean the cultivation? Or also the prior selection process? Because, which seed do you want? Which characteristics you find important? Do you want to grow autoflower or not? What are the desired sizes? Do you want to grow indoors or outdoors? These are all choices you have to think about beforehand.

To answer this question, we use an average. For calculating the average, we depart from the time between the germination of the marijuana seeds and the harvest of the buds. This period includes the time necessary for the actual growth of the cannabis or marijuana. This process can take from 8 to 14 weeks, depending on the made choices.

Make the right choice beforehand

To support you in making the right choice, we have listed the 25 most frequently asked questions on growing marijuana or cannabis.

Step 1 Equipment 1 day to 2 weeks

Would you like to grow indoors in the winter? That is possible, but you have to buy some equipment. A cannabis plant won't grow by itself. So to make the plant grow you need the right fertilization, environment temperature and good illumination. For this, you need LED lamps and a tent. Also temperature and humidity meters are no luxury items.

Cannabis seeds can be ordered here, so they are delivered at lightning speed. We sell more than 150 different types of marijuana seeds. We deliver seeds of the best seed banks of Europe. It is therefore important to know what you want. There are many variables that can play a role in making the right choice. Think about taste, yield, CBD vs THC level, size of the plant, autoflower or not.

You know what you want? Let's go to the next step!

Step 3 Germinating  12 hours to 8 days

A difficult part remains the germination of the seeds, especially for beginners, who sometimes fail in the attempt. Germination is a beautiful, 100% natural process, the reason why we cannot guarantee this. Normally, 80 to 90% of the seeds we sell germinate. It might happen that you buy a pack of 10 marijuana seeds and 1 or 2 seeds do not germinate.

To avoid a debacle, you can best use our germination methods. An often used method is germinating with cotton wool and a Dutch Headshop germination box. See Seed Germination Kit Dutch-Headshop
Briefly explained, place two seeds in between 2 humid cotton balls and locate these in a dark and warm place. Once the seeds germinate, you can put them in the soil.

Another method is with the help of a Spongepot. See Spongepot The Spongepot is an organic germination medium with small pots and bacto micro organisms.  You can mix the micro organisms with water and then wet the soil (don't make it too wet). After this, you locate the seeds. Keep using water with the micro organisms during germination. This way, chances are the best for obtaining a good end result.

If you simply germinate some seeds, without sticking to the rules, it can happen no seeds germinate at all. That does not depend on the seed quality, but how you treat them. So be careful and literally follow the instructions that are included in our germination sets.

Step 4 growth phase 2 weeks to 6 months!

Growing indoors? Then ensure the right humidity and temperature. Growing outdoors? Then first start indoors, you can never start outdoors directly. Be sure to keep the plant inside until it reaches a height of 20-45 cm. Only put the plant outdoors after mid May (late spring), because of night frost.

In this period you can provide additional fertilizer to the plant with e.g. a root stimulator and Plagron growfertilizer, the favorite marijuana fertilizer of Dutch hobby growers. In the growth phase, the plant needs 18 hours of light a day. Is it a day with nice weather? Sunny and little wind? Put the plant in the hot sun. Be sure that you take the plant indoors in time.

The growth phase takes at least 3 weeks. In this period the plant needs to capture a lot of light each day. More light means more buds and higher yields. But be careful, it is also the way to get a very big, noticeable marijuana plant, and that might not always be what you are looking for.

Step 5 Blooming phase 6 weeks to 3 months

This phase will start automatically when you are growing feminized seeds. Did you choose an autoflower? Then this phase will also start completely automatic. The name auto flower says it all: automatic flowering. That's the advantage of this type of seed.

The blooming phase starts when the plant receives less light (half/half), like when the summer ends. In autumn the cannabis plant focuses on reproduction, so all energy goes there. The flowering can now start.

In this period you can choose to add fertilizer. Especially think about phosphor and potassium (e.g. Plagron's PK 13-14). You can also use a bloom stimulator.

This is also the period in which you can clearly see you have a female plant. We assume it is female, but it is good to know the difference between the two. You think you have a male or a herma? Then remove them. When the pollen balls open up, the female plant will dedicate more time and energy in making seeds. This comes at the expense of your buds, not the thing you want.

Step 6 Harvest  1-3 days

Now comes the question, when to harvest? You can determine this by looking at the buds of the plant. They contain the trichomes and these are full of THC. The color sequence that the trichomes should go through are:

• white
• milk-like
• half milk, half amber
• completely amber.
• When the color is starting to turn from milky-white to amber, it is time to harvest. After that they are turning brown and then you are too late.

Harvest or cutting weed

Instead of harvesting marijuana we often say cutting marijuana. One can do this manually. 
Cut the plant from its roots. Now there are 2 options. You can completely let the plant dry and then remove the leaves and buds, or you can first cut and then dry.

Step 7 Drying 1 -2 weeks

The perfect spot to dry is dark and has a humidity of about 50% and a temperature in between 15-20 degrees. This combination of factors ensures that the buds are of the highest possible quality at the end of the drying period.

When you dry the marijuana slowly, you will notice this in its taste and quality. Yet, you shouldn't wait too long either. What is the right moment? When the branches of the marijuana buds break (and do not bend), then your marijuana is dry enough.

When the marijuana is dry enough, store it in a ziplock bag or Weck jar. As long as it is air-tight, dry and dark to preserve the quality.

Now you can choose what to do with it. Smoking marijuana or making hashish or oil.

When starting this article we dealt with choices, and we close this article again with choices. Enjoy your harvest.