Cannabis Rocket SE

What Is the Best Time to Transplant My Marijuana Plants?

There is no precise formula for transplanting marijuana plants to stealth grow box kit, as it depends on various particular factors, such as the type of crop, space or free time available. Even so, we must take into account the stages of development of cannabis and its timing, so that we find the best moment to move the plant into a larger container an exercise that we can repeat two or even four times. By managing the times well, we will get the plant to waste as little time as possible in recovering from the stress generated by transplantation.

As with other processes in cannabis cultivation, transplants do not work according to fixed rules, as there are different methods and factors that will determine the times. However, we ourselves can find the ideal moment to carry out the transfer from one container to a larger one, following a few references related to the schedule, the type of cultivation, the size of the pots and the space available. In this way, without it being an exact science, we can give our plant the best possible move, without it causing many disorders and encouraging its root growth for a juicy harvest.

Transplanting your little ones at the right time can help add days of resin production to the final weeks of development. In the end, a transplant is a traumatic process for the plant, as it generates stress, so it needs some recovery time to recompose and take root in its new home. This ends up weighing down production a bit, as the plant spends a few days on restoration that it could be investing in further development. Therefore, our aim is to carry out this process when it suits the plant best and causes less stress.

Some growers prefer to have their plants for the whole crop in the same large pot. This is a somewhat risky option, since, in addition to slowing down growth, we must be careful with watering so that the water does not end up being excessive, causing an excess of humidity that ends up rotting the roots. Therefore, changing pots several times during cultivation is the best method to better control the development of the plants, making it easier to master the size of the plantation and get it right with the watering.

When to transplant

We’ll start with the assumption of an indoor cultivation. Here we know what space we have and therefore what size of pots we are going to use depending on the size of the room. The ideal time to transplant is when the plants are changing phase: at the beginning when the seedling has germinated and is about to start its vegetative stage, and a few weeks before the start of flowering, when the plant will stop growing to develop the buds. Later, during flowering, we will not need to do any potting.

During the vegetative stage we can only make one change of pot, or several; in general, three transfers. As we indicated before, this depends on the producer himself, as by doing so drastically from one size to another larger one we risk that the humidity will end up causing mould on the roots. For this reason, it is advisable to change the container gradually, which will accompany the growth of the plant more safely. For example, start with a 1.6 litre pot, move to a 3.5 litre pot and finally to a 7 litre pot, instead of transplanting the marijuana from 1.6 litres to 7 litres directly.

The first transplant of all is the most obligatory, since we will have let the seed germinate in a jiffy, in rockwool or in some very small teku pots, so it will be necessary to introduce the seedling in a pot with substrate. Some people look at the fact that the pot has 4 or 5 groups of leaves, others look at the fact that a week and a half has passed and others look at the fact that the whitish roots have passed through the initial support. Then we will introduce the seedling in a small pot, of 1.6 liters.

From here we can make use of a trick that will serve as a reference for the rest of the transfers: compare the height of the plant with that of the pot. If the latter has multiplied the height of the pot by 1.5 or 2, it means that the roots have already covered the whole substrate and that it is time to change to a larger one.

Once we have put the plant in a small pot, 1.6 liters, we will look at the size of the marijuana plant in relation to the pot. When it has reached about 1.5 of the height of the pot (if the pot is 20 cm, the plant should be 30 cm long), it is time to prepare a new move. This usually happens about a week and a half after the first transfer. We will then move to a 3.5 litre pot, which will be the intermediate size container in this process.

Here we will repeat the process, waiting a week and a half until the plant has a pot and a half size. Then we will make the third and last transplant: from a 3.5 litre pot to a 6 or 7 litre one; for an indoor cultivation this volume will be more than enough.

It will take a few days for the plant to recover, so don’t be alarmed if the cannabis goes 4 or 6 days without growing. It will then have a final growth spurt until flowering, which will take about two weeks.

In case of an outdoor cultivation, transplants are done in a very similar way as indoors, but taking into account that the life time and size are higher. Here the month in which we have planted will be key. If we sow in March we can make 4 transfers: from the jiffy to a 1.6 litre pot; a week and a half later, to a 6.7 litre pot; after 20-30 days, to a 15-20 litre pot, and after a month and a half, when we arrive in June for the flowering phase, to pass the plant to a definitive 40-50 litre pot. If we sow in April we will have to reduce the process to three transplants, and if we do it in May, to two transfers, always little by little from a 1.6 litre pot to a large one of 40-50 litres.

Whenever we do these transplants it is advisable to do them in the shade so that the sun does not damage the roots, and to make sure that we have watered two hours before, so that the substrate is not too wet or dry, and does not crumble when we change pots. Knowing all this, the operation will be a success and you will only have to think about those buds that will soon arrive.