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Expert Cannabis Growing Tips

  1. Flowering temperature is ideally at 84 - 85 °F. This will help keep leaf temps at the Cannabis-ideal 88 degrees when using our LED grow lights.
  2. Vegetative temperatures can range from 75°-90°. However, ideal vegetative growth will occur at 85 °F and 60-70% humidity.
  3. Oscillating fans are key for optimal plant health and maintaining consistent overall temperature. Never place constant and direct fans aiming toward plants.
  4. Soil Temperature: Ideal soil temp is 68°. It can fluctuate but should average 68° for best nutrient uptake.
  5. Humidity: Ideal humidity for flower is 40-60% and for vegetative growth it is 60-80%.
  6. Light Cycle: For flower the light cycle is 12 hours on and 12 hours off. For vegetative growth either 18 hours on and 6 hours off or 20 hours on and 4 hours off. DO NOT leave lights on 24/7; doing so can retard root growth.
  7. Hydroponic Temperature: Hydro nutrient solution should only be at 68° +/- 2°. All hydro setups should include a chiller and heater set to turn on at 67° and 70° respectively.
  8. CO2: Adding CO2 is recommended and CO2 levels should be raised to 800-1200 PPM only when the lights are on for best results. Never raise CO2 above 1800 PPM- it is hazardous for you!
  9. pH/EC: Every indoor gardener should own a quality pH/EC/PPM meter. Black Dog LED recommends the Bluelab Combo meter.
    • Soil pH should be at 6.5.
    • Soil nutrients pH will vary slightly depending on nutrient brand but will usually be in the 6.2-6.5 pH range when applied.
    • Hydro nutrient solution pH should be 5.6-5.8 pH for best nutrient uptake. pH can change over time so it is beneficial to check it regularly.
    • EC and PPM are different values for the same measurement of dissolved salts in your nutrient solution. Ideal EC/PPM concentrations will vary depending on the nutrient brand you choose and the life cycle you are in but typically will be from 400 to 1000 PPM for soil and 600-1400 for Hydroponics. It is always safer to use less nutrients than recommended and add as needed. One nutrient burn can easily ruin a crop.
  10. Cleanliness is by far the best preventative in both soil and hydroponic systems. Diluted bleach and 35% hydrogen peroxide are the best garden cleaners but should NEVER be mixed together or applied directly to plants.
  11. Pests will likely show up at some point. Examine your plants on a regular basis; it is much easier to eradicate a small infestation of insects or mold than a well-established one.
  12. Don't be afraid to experiment! These LED cannabis grow tips were refined through much trial and error by people over many decades and work well as general guidelines. Every setup and situation is different; don't be afraid to run experiments to see if something else will work better for you (side-by-side testing is always best to eliminate other variables) but only experiment with plants you're willing to lose.
Happy growing!