Six Keys to Strong Yields
Understanding the six keys to strong yields: I am often asked what the most important factor is in making sure that you get a great crop from all your growing effort and investment. Tough question!! It is tough to answer, because the correct answering to this question is that you must improve your actions in whatever area or areas you are doing poorly. Fix the equipment or process you are using that is failing your plants.
So, rather than avoiding the question entirely, I will outline what I see as the six most important areas to manage well. This article will give you a quick outline of the six and then I will be writing about each area in more depth over the next 6 weeks. In addition I strongly recommend reading my book “Grow Great Weed” which outlines all the important factors and contains strong recommendations within each area.
- Genetics are number 1 – The pot hybrid business has exploded with the development of seeds that are easier to grow and produce much stronger and larger yields than those that were available just 10 years ago. Make sure you spend the time and money to start with the right plants for your grow room setup and for the type of high you are trying to produce. I will write more on this in two weeks with some specific recommendations on strains and places to get them.
- Great Quality Lighting is number 2 – If you do not have the right spectrum and intensity of lighting for each growth phase your plants will not produce the results you want, no matter what else you do right (or wrong). If you mess up on seeds or lighting you are on the road to disappointment. On the other hand, if you start with the right seeds and put them under the right light, you are on the road to success and the rest will be up to you.
- Plant Management and Training is #3 – This will increase your yield without spending a penny. The technique is referred to as Low Stress Training (LST) and the basic idea behind LST plant training is that bigger, wider plants with many evenly spaced colas produce bigger yields. Great yield is all about the quantity and quality of the buds your plants produce in the flowering stage, but the training of your plants in the vegetative stage is the path to enabling the most buds later in their growth.
Plants that have the right genetics, the right light, and are managed (LST) well, will give great results if you don’t mess up on the other three key areas:
- Feed your plants correctly – Use a great nutrient mix and use it in the right amount. The two biggest reasons for failure in this area is that growers mix formulas, so don’t know what the final mix is, or they overfeed. We will discuss the various brands in the next article, but the best formula is to use a variation of the Lucas formula and just adjust for the plant phases.
- Manage the environment – this is not tough, I’m just talking about making sure the temperature, humidity, and air are maintained in a reasonable range for your plants. Check them and make adjustments whenever needed. The biggest enemy here is heat, so go with LED lighting and the danger of a mistake from high temperature is way down.
- Harvest at the right time – Many growers get too excited and too impatient once they see the flowers and buds developing and they cannot wait to sample the product. PATIENCE!! The last two weeks of bud development will often produce up to 25% of the bud mass, so wait!
We will follow up with more info on each area over the next 2 months, so sign up for our weekly newsletter here:
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