Avoiding molds and pests in your indoor garden
When you finally get the news that you can now grow your own marijuana, the excitement is overwhelming that you can never think about mold at all. Generally, there are three types of mold that keep on attacking the marijuana plant namely white powdery mildew, bud rot, and fuzzy white mold also known as regular mold. These three types of mold have always figured out a way of creeping into our healthy marijuana plants and making a big jock out of the grower’s efforts.
All through the growing stages of the marijuana plant to the first two weeks after harvest, the plant is susceptible to mold. This is, therefore, a wake-up call to especially the new growers to always keep an eye out on the mold that might affect your indoor garden.
What brings about mold?
The next questions you should be asking yourself is how does the mold come about?” No one wishes for mold to attack their cannabis but there may be things that you might actually be doing accidentally that make your plants prey. The fact is all mold comes from the spores that just linger in the air. Even when you make an extra effort to keep your grow room as sterile and clean as possible, mold spores can get in.
This is testimony that mold spores are always present in the room, but under the wrong conditions for their growth, they will just stay dormant and not attack your marijuana plants. Also, that certain strains are more prone to the attack of mold than others and so with enough research and practice, your grow room will see no more mold.
Which mold attacks when?
White powdery mildew
This is the most common marijuana mold and it is known to attack when the plant is grown and leafy. During this time, there is more light than darkness meaning the air is going to be more hot and humid with little airflow. For indoor growers in small spaces like grow tents and small grow rooms, this is most likely going to attack your marijuana.
With so much vegetation, the plants get crowded, and release more water into the air in the form of high humidity levels. White powder mildew grows perfectly in these conditions since there is a lot of stagnant air. This mold looks like there is flour on your marijuana leaves, buds, and stems. If this fungus gets out of control, it can even end up destroying the whole plant.
Bud rot
The last weeks before harvesting are some of the most critical because it’s then that buds become very susceptible to mold. They can be attacked by any kind be it the white fuzzy, the dark brown or gray dusty kind. The sad part is, the bigger and denser your buds, the easier it is for mold to take a hold of it like it is all working against you.
Bud rot is specifically known to attack the buds from the inside. This is quite tricky because you might relax thinking that the bud is ok yet it’s rotting from in. Often times, by the time you get to realize that the bud is really in a bad condition, it is too late more or less gone.
The easiest way to spot that your buds might be sick is by being keen on the leaves around it. If they start falling off or become yellow, or even gray areas circling the plant then know that it is affected. When you spot an affected bud, the best thing is to cut it off immediately and harvest the plant. If you are slow, another entire bud can be attacked overnight.
Marijuana bud rot
During Drying & Curing
After harvesting, don’t thank yourself yet for the job well done as even then your marijuana plants are susceptible to an attack. The process of drying and curing is an important stage to help separate good buds from bad buds. If the good buds get mixed up in the bad ones, they are all gone. Therefore, always check on your buds to be sure that they are ok.
Preventing Mold in your Indoors garden
The reason why mold is able to thrive in an indoor garden is mainly that the humidity in the room or grow tent is favorable. The best way to stop the humidity from getting too high is by setting up an efficient exhaust system. This can be made possible with fans inside the grow space making sure that there is air blowing both under and directly over your plants.
But again, do not let it get extremely cold in the room as it can lead to the development of some other types of mold. Whereas white powdery mildew grow better in hot, stagnant conditions at 80°F (27°C) and even hotter, fuzzy white mold, bud rot, on the other hand, grow best in cool conditions around 68°F (20°C). The most favorable temperature for plants is 75°F (24°C) in situations where it’s humid.
Trimming your plants during the vegetative stage when they overgrow is important because more leaves add to the moisture in the air hence attracting mold. It is therefore equally important to get a prominent temperature/humidity monitor. However, it is also important not to over defoliate as it can lead to a tremendous decrease in the yields.
Cannabis strains with a high resistance to mold infestation are better options for indoor growers. Research has proven that some strains are much more resilient towards mold than others. Mold resistant strains are pretty perfect for indoor growers especially those in humid locations. Strains with a shorter flowering period are more resistant to mold since they don’t even spend much time out, for example, Moby dick and sweet tooth
Always and always inspect your plants regularly and make sure to dispose of any diseased plant tissue appropriately. Seal the diseased plant in a plastic bag, and remove from the grow room to prevent the mold from spreading.
Treating mold with fungicide might not be such a great idea because it makes them unfit for human consumption, and besides, it cannot be washed off. The safest way to protect your plants from a mold infection is by going the natural way.
NOTE: When a bud is affected by mold, it is unsafe for you and so do not at any time smock or use it for cooking.
