This blog is intended exclusively for persons over the age of 18 Is it possible to start an outdoor marijuana crop indoors? Weather conditions in spring can sometimes be whimsical. Indeed, it seems a good idea to start growing marijuana plants indoors before making them flower outdoors. It is possible, but one must take into account some issues in particular, which we will be described in this post. In spring, in western Europe, the hours of sun during the day (photoperiod) progressively increases every day, going from 12 hours of daily sunshine in March to about 16 hours of sunlight during the day in June. In July the days  lenght begin to decrease, which facilitates the start of flowering of marijuana plants between mid-July and mid-August, depending on both the earliness of plants and the latitude where they are grown. To grow cannabis indoors, it is generally advisable to give marijuana plants a photoperiod of 18 hours of daily light (18/6 cycle). But what happens when we move a plant – that has already received 18 hours of daily light – outdoors in spring (before mid-June)?

1. The marijuana plant only receives between 12 and 16 hours of light per day, so this sudden decrease of the photoperiod can make the plant begin the flowering period in most cases.Vera Wang Wedding Dress Outlet Uk 2. However, as photoperiod increases progressively each day (by some minutes) until 21 June, marijuana plants will stop flowering to go back to the growing period. Snap On Tools Car Seat CoversThis natural process, called vegetative regeneration, is both very long and very stressful for the plant. Moving Companies Reno NevadaPlants will then form numerous deformed and abnormal leafs before starting to grow again several weeks later. 3. In July, days begin to get shorter and plants flower again, this time definitely.

This flowering after vegetative regeneration will unfortunately be poorer in both quantity and quality. How to safely move plants outdoors? You have two options (different options to start growing outdoors): 1. Start growing your indoor marijuana plants as usual – in a 18/6 cycle – but waiting until the end of June to move them outdoors. 2. Start growing your plants indoors while following the outdoor natural photoperiod. For example, if there are 14 hours of light per day, give your plants 14 hours of light per day as well. When the natural photoperiod increases to 14-15 hours of sunlight per day, you will have to set your timer and add 15 minutes of light per day. This very straightforward technique will allow you to move your plants outdoors in spring! Note that these tips do not concern autoflowering marijuana strains , as they are not photoperiod-sensitive; if you wish, you can start your indoor growing (ideally giving them 20 hours of light per day) and move them outdoors whenever you like, knowing that they will flower anyway after 3-4 weeks of growth.

What other precautions should be taken when moving marijuana plants outdoors? First, you should know that the plant will take some time to accommodate to the new environment, particularly because of light change and environmental conditions. This loss of vigor in the plant can sometimes reduce or even eliminate the benefits of starting the plant indoors. The strong sunlight, much richer in UV rays than indoor marijuana growing lamps, can be too aggressive for plants that were first grown under artificial lights. Therefore, it is not advisable to expose them directly to the sun, for they should progressively adjust to the sun; then, we should first place the plant in a shady area, and then give it more sunlight day by day. Due to the lack of an acclimatization period, plants exposed directly to the sun may show signs of burn or discolouration (bleaching) in their leafs. Thus, the plant will have to produce new leafs, which will further delay its regeneration.

One last important point: while the plants are growing, phytohormones accumulate within their tissues (i.e. leafs). When days begin to get shorter, at the end of June, the level of the plant’s hormone that stimulates flowering increases gradually, day after day, at the expense of the level of growing phytohormones, which begins to decrease. Flowering will only occur when the plant’s levels of phytohormones are adequate for flowering. This is the reason why the growing period outdoors is longer, so the plant will need more time to flower. As a consequence, this will delay the harvest time! Therefore, starting the crop as soon as possible is not always the best option. Some marijuana strains are well-known for their earliness, for they quickly start flowering from the time when photoperiod begins to decrease. For instance, it’s worth mentioning Early Maroc feminised seeds from Philosopher Seeds and Early Queen regular seeds from Mr Nice Seeds.A marijuana plant grows below a florescent light at the Colorado Harvest Company in Denver, Colo. on Wednesday, July 8, 2015.

Commercial marijuana grows like Colorado Harvest Company are responsible an uptick in energy use across the city. Colorado's appetite for lighting up requires a lot of lights, it turns out. Licensed marijuana growers traditionally cultivate their products indoors under very bright lights that suck a lot of electricity. With the release of the federal government's Clean Power Plan looming, cities across the state are working to reduce their carbon footprint. Part of those efforts include persuading grows to reduce their power consumption. Between 2012 and 2013, the latest data available, electricity use increased by 1.2 percent across the city and county of Denver. Commercial marijuana grows were responsible for nearly half of that uptick. "We’re very keen to see what is increasing energy use, and to have half of that coming from the grow industry is definitely something we pay attention to," said Sonrisa Lucero, a strategist for the Denver's Office of Sustainability.

Denver marijuana grows used just 1.85 percent of the city's overall electricity in 2013. But any uptick matters because the city set a voluntary goal to prevent total energy consumed from rising past its 2012 use levels. Lucero’s job is to make sure that energy efficiency is top of mind for new residents and businesses. The city is working with marijuana grow operations to lower their electricity use. Or the industry may sort itself out: A growing number of outdoor and greenhouse grow operations in Colorado are emerging that could make indoor grows obsolete -- or at least, less cost effective. A $12,000 electricity bill Colorado Harvest Company's Flower Room No. 1 holds dozens of green plants thriving underneath 22 1,000-watt lamps. To understand just how much energy it takes to grow marijuana indoors, look no further than Colorado Harvest Company's Flower Room No. 1. The room has dozens of green plants thriving underneath 22 1,000-watt lamps hanging from the ceiling.

Each is the size of a small card table. An air-conditioning system prevents the lights from overheating. "Running a cannabis company with indoor production means that you’re going to use more than your fair share of electricity," said Tim Cullen, the company's owner. Cullen's monthly electricity bill for the 10,000-square-foot warehouse runs a cool $12,000. Another marijuana grow reports spending nearly twice that amount. Cullen said he's tried to reduce electricity use by using LED lights currently on the market, but they haven't produced the results he needs. "We just can't suffer the losses of having a lower energy bill, but then not producing flowers," he said. Tim Cullen, the owner of the Colorado Harvest Company, stands in his grow facility in Denver on Wednesday, July 8, 2015. New LED technology under production could change this picture. But Cullen isn't waiting for that to happen. Instead he's building a greenhouse in Denver to commercially grow marijuana.

From start to finish, the planning and construction is expected to take about six months. Greenhouses blooming in Pueblo Denver has about four commercial marijuana grow greenhouses. But Pueblo is leading the charge in the state, with 16 and counting. Some are small, but others cover as many as 50 acres. Chris Markuson, director of economic development and GIS for Pueblo County, said shifting priorities are changing how and where marijuana is grown. "At first the assumption was that the grow operations had to be tightly secured and hidden from public view," he said. "Because the temperament of the community--and the society as a whole--has come around a little bit, the grow operations are not really seen with negative light. At least they're not in Pueblo." It helps that Pueblo has marketed itself as a business-friendly lower-cost location to cultivate marijuana. With about 30 marijuana grow businesses overall, Markuson said the majority are using "Pueblo sunshine" to grow product.

Energy use in the area is evolving with the industry. According to Black Hills Energy, which provides power to the city of Pueblo and parts of Pueblo County, 10 grow facilities used 2.1 million kWh in 2014. That's 0.1 percent of the energy that Black Hills delivered to its Pueblo coverage area. As the marijuana industry evolves, Colorado cities are deciding how--or if--they want to manage the growing energy demands from the industry. Denver isn't considering regulations for the marijuana industry, but pushing LED lights to grows. In Boulder, the city and county are setting measures to require businesses offset their electricity use via subscription of renewable energy credits -- things like community solar garden memberships. Xcel is reportedly working with marijuana growers to update lighting so they're as energy efficient as possible. The attempts by utilities and cities fit into a larger movement under way right now, said Howard Geller with Boulder-based Southwest Energy Efficiency Project.