Updated at: 07-06-2022 - By: Sienna Lewis

Are you hoping for a better crop this time around? It’s feasible to increase the medical or psychoactive effects of your marijuana plants, as well as the overall potency of your crop.

The first step is to understand how potency is generated.

The resin and oil produced by trichomes is what gives cannabis its potency. In addition, trichomes are the hair-like resin glands on the plant’s surface. It is more likely that you will obtain the desired potency content if your plant develops more trichomes and resin from those trichomes.

How to Increase THC When Growing Weed | Grow Weed Easy

The lighting and surroundings can be manipulated to encourage the formation of trichomes and resin. If you’re planning a growth spurt in the future, here are some ideas.

Choose a Potent Strain

Your plant’s genetics play a crucial part in determining its potency. Each strain possesses a maximum potency. For example, the extremely popular Girl Scout Cookies strain may achieve a stunning THC percentage of up to 28%, but that’s where it tops off..

You should be aware that the potency of any strain you produce has a limit. It’s impossible to get more than 18 percent if your plant’s genetics aren’t capable of it.

However, it’s easy to fall short of your desired yield’s maximum content, as many home growers do. It’s normal. When it comes to cultivating, it’s a never-ending process of improvement and discovery. The use of strategies such as…

Crank Up the Blue, White, and UVB Lights

It is possible to direct your plants in terms of how they develop, blossom, and how much resin they make when you have complete control over the light spectrum of your grow lights. As a result, we strongly encourage the use of LED lighting. In contrast to the old-school practice of just replacing out an MH bulb for an HPS bulb, grow lights like these offer a wide range of spectrum options.

By encouraging your plant’s trichome production, you can increase its potency throughout the flowering stage. By turning up the blue, white, and UVB lights to 100%, and lowering the red to roughly 50%, you can achieve this effect.

What’s the reason for this?

Trichomes are defense mechanisms developed by plants. As a natural defense against the sun’s harmful UVB rays, these tiny creatures use trichomes and the resin that they produce. The more trichomes you get and the closer you come to achieving optimum potency, the more your grow room’s lighting can resemble that light.

Let Your Plants Get a Little Dry

This next piece of advice should be taken with a grain of salt. Try it, but be careful not to overfeed your plants.

A little thirst will do your plants no harm. I wouldn’t describe myself as dehydrated. Not dried out or shriveled. It’s as simple as dehydrating them a little bit. It’s ideal if you can lower the humidity in your grow chamber.

Similarly to UVB radiation, plants produce more resin in dry regions to protect themselves. For sure, they wouldn’t die of thirst if you were around. When you don’t tell them, their protective instincts will provide you an advantage over them.

Optimize Temperature for Potency

In the event that you’re having second thoughts about forcing your plants to go into defense mode, try this tactic. Reduce your grow room’s temperature by 10 to 15 degrees as your plants begin to blossom.

How to Increase THC When Growing Weed | Grow Weed Easy

When the temperature drops just a few degrees, your plants know that fall has arrived and they must hurry up and flower in order to save their species from extinction. So, your plants are concentrating all of their efforts on making resin.

The Best Time to Harvest for Maximum Potency

Everything comes down to timing. If you miss the sticky-bud harvest window, all of your hard work is for naught. During the flowering stage, you can harvest your buds at their peak maturity for roughly two to three weeks. This stage can be identified by the fact that the trichomes have gone milky white. Those little white hairs on the buds, known as pistils, will be darker and curled inward.

At this point in the grow cycle, your plant’s potency level is at its greatest point. Take a look at what you’ve harvested and see if you can detect the difference, then begin the next harvest.

There is a lot of trial and error involved in achieving the desired chemical profile for many home growers. That’s half of the enjoyment, to be honest.

LED grow lights, on the other hand, can make a tremendous difference in your ability to achieve your goals. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

5 Hacks to Increase THC When Growing Your Own Weed

THC levels in marijuana buds can be boosted for a variety of reasons. As a medical necessity, some take it while others do it for the high.

Increasing the THC concentration of a crop is beneficial for a variety of reasons.

  • Mental and psychoactive effects can be enhanced by increasing the dosage.
  • Additional alleviation from nausea, some types of pain, stiffness, and other particular symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
  • In order to raise your overall cannabis production.

The weed-breeding scene has changed dramatically in the last few years. Breeders will have more latitude as a result of the herb’s enhanced legitimacy. Increased innovation is a result of a larger pool of skilled workers in the cultivation industry. Double-digit THC levels used to be a reason for joy. It’s no longer considered “mids” weed because producers often get 20 percent or higher yields, with some even reaching 30 percent.

To begin, it’s important to know that the cannabis plant’s trichomes contain the majority of the cannabinoids and therefore its “potency.” Near harvest, they resemble sparkling crystals. In this lesson, we’ll go over five different ways to boost your herb’s THC content. In addition, several of the techniques increase yields.

Hack 1 – Strain & Individual Plant Genetics

One of the most essential aspects of cannabis cultivation is the strain’s genetics No matter how hard you work, you’ll never be able to get a strain to produce more than 20% THC. Because of this, if you don’t cultivate the plant appropriately, you’ll get less THC. Choosing a high-potency herb, such as Girl Scout Cookies, should be your first step (25-28 percent ). In addition to this, consider the following:

  • Chemical Name: Chem BerryD (25-32 percent )
  • Berry Hulk (27 percent )
  • It’s a new Bruce Banner (25-30 percent )
  • The First and Only Suspect (24-30 percent )
  • Gelato in the color of green (25-27 percent )

Choose one of these varieties and you’ll be well on your way to victory.

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Hack 2 – Harvesting

There is a three-week window in which you can confidently harvest. If you act too late, some of the strain’s THC will degrade into the less attractive CBN. You won’t get the full benefit of the plant if you harvest it too early. The trichomes turn milky white and the pistils turn white to a reddish brown during the optimal time to harvest. Here are some things to look for:.

  • There is an increase in size of the ovaries
  • Flowers have a goopy feel to them.
  • The flowers form huge colas as they continue to open.
  • Although you have great ventilation, the plant has a strong odor.
  • There are now some yellowing leaves on the larger ones.
  • 70% of the pistils have been curled.

In order to examine the trichomes properly, you’ll need to use a magnifying lens, such a jewelry loupe. Trichomes normally go through three stages of development:

  1. Flat-headed trichomes do not yet have mushroom heads. Clear as well. The plant in question isn’t quite ready to be picked yet.
  2. The color shifts from a clear to a milky white. If you want to reap the benefits of high-THC cannabis, this is the time to harvest.
  3. Trichophores have turned a pale brown tint. Currently, most of the THC is converted to CBN. CBD production is at its highest point at this time. At this point in the process, you’ll feel nauseous.

Hack 3 – Your Plants Health

In order to get the most out of your plant’s THC, you must take good care of it. Avoid frequent blunders such as over- and under-watering, heat stress, root difficulties, irregular light cycles, and nutrient problems. Avoid these common blunders at all costs!

How to Increase Production of Ripe Trichomes on Cannabis | Leafly

If you look closely at the leaves, they can tell two stories. If you’re a novice gardener, you may not notice the warning signs:

  • The presence of yellow leaves may indicate a variety of issues, including heat stress, nutrient deficiency, or overfertilization. Most commonly, yellowing leaves are caused by a major shift in the soil’s pH level.
  • Plants with burnt-looking leaves may have been placed too close to the light.
  • Manganese insufficiency is typically indicated by the appearance of mottled brown patches.
  • Nitrogen toxicity may be indicated by dark green leaves with their tips tipped downward.
  • It is possible that the presence of spots or bites is due to the presence of insects and pests.

Hack 4 – Lighting

The more light a plant receives, the more potent and abundant it will be when it is ready to harvest. During the vegetative stage, this slogan is very significant. Plants need at least 18 hours of daylight each day to thrive. During flowering, your plant still needs 12 hours of sunlight each day, in addition of the 12 hours of continuous darkness it already demands.

There are a number of alternatives when it comes to growing lights.

  • This type of illumination includes both CFLs and T5s, which are both fluorescent. They’re low-cost, energy-efficient, and provide a good range of light. However, if you’re looking for a high-THC strain, these aren’t the best choices.
  • These are more powerful and efficient than fluorescent lights. HIDs. Metal Halide (MH), High-Pressure Sodium (HPS), and Light Emitting Ceramic (LEC) lamps are among the HID lighting options. HIDs, on the whole, provide the best value for money in terms of output per watt. The bulbs can get extremely hot, which is one of the drawbacks.
  • A common alternative to HPS lighting is LED lighting. To hang them over the plants, you simply plug them into a wall. In the minds of some breeders, LEDs are the key to producing resinous plants. Always leave a good amount of distance between the lamp and your plants when using this form of lighting.

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Hack 5 – The Curing Process

When it comes to reaping the benefits of high-THC marijuana, the curing procedure varies widely in importance. ‘Curing’ is the process of storing dry herbs in airtight containers. One idea suggests that the procedure alters the cannabinoids in the herb, including THC, in a way that makes them more potent.

Once the buds have been harvested, the first thing you should do is let them air dry completely. A room with a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius) and a relative humidity of 50 percent is ideal for drying. Trim any extra leaves and hang the buds to dry after cutting down the plant. Take a look at the buds after 4 to 10 days. Curing your herb is necessary if the stems are dry and snappable.

Mason jars are ideal for this. For the first few days, shake the jar vigorously several times a day. You’ll know your buds are ready to be cured when they start to feel a little sticky. It is sufficient to open the jars once every few days once the buds have dried out for about a week.

During the curing process, your buds’ quality and potency are expected to enhance for up to six months, according to experts. If you don’t want to utilize your cannabis, you should prepare it for long-term storage rather than further curing.

Final Thoughts on Increasing THC When Growing Cannabis Plants

The THC and strength of marijuana can be increased in a variety of methods, including taking supplements or keeping the plant in the vegetative stage for eight or more weeks.

If you have any other cool tricks and tips that you can share with the community, leave them in the comments section below or post them on our Facebook page.

We’d love to hear about any additional amazing tips and tricks you’d like to share in the comments below or on our Facebook page!

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