How to Grow Weed: A Stage-by-Stage Guide, From Seed to Jar

Getting a seed to sprout and into its first pot. Start with the paper-towel method, then choose and store seeds you aren't planting yet.

• Germinate Seeds With the Paper Towel MethodStart here
• How to Grow Weed From Seed: 10 Easy Steps
• Growing Weed from Seed: Ultimate Guide
• Feminized Cannabis Seeds: Complete Growers Guide
• Storing Marijuana Seeds

Taught in the Growing course: seeds and germination. See the course

The leafy weeks before flowering, and how to set up a first indoor space. Photoperiod plants stay in veg under long days; growers usually start flowering by switching to 12 hours of light and 12 of dark.^[4]

• Growing Weed Indoors: 6 Steps for BeginnersStart here
• Marijuana Plant Growth Stages
• When to Switch from Vegetative to Flowering Stage
• Growing Weed For Dummies
• How to Grow One Weed Plant Like a Pro
• How to Grow Weed in a Closet
• Guide to Growing Weed in an Apartment

Taught in the Growing course: indoor setup and the vegetative stage. See the course

Shaping the plant so more of its tops sit in strong light. In a University of Guelph study, indoor cannabis yield rose in step with the light at the top of the canopy, up to 1,800 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹.^[1]

• Low-Stress Training (LST): Step by StepNew
• Cannabis Plant Training: 7 Methods for High Yields
• How to Top a Marijuana Plant
• The Screen of Green (SCROG) Method
• What Is the Sea of Green Growing Method?
• Pruning Cannabis: A Complete Guide
• Cannabis Plant Defoliation Techniques

Taught in the Growing course: plant training. Autoflowers flower on age, not day length, so train them early and gently.^[3] See the course

Taking cuttings from a mother plant to grow copies of it, and the lab method (tissue culture) that commercial growers use.

• How to Clone CannabisStart here
• Cannabis Seeds vs Clones: Which Is Better?
• The Importance of the Mother Plant
• What Is Cannabis Propagation?
• How Cannabis Tissue Culture Works

Taught in the Growing course: propagation. See the course

How much to water, what to feed, and how to keep pH and PPM in range, plus choosing a soil and flushing before harvest.

• Ideal Cannabis Water pHStart here
• Ideal PPM for Growing Cannabis
• Guide to Overwatered Marijuana Plants
• Spot Plant Problems: Pests, Diseases and Deficiencies (Photo Guide)New
• Best Cannabis Nutrients
• Autoflower Feeding Schedule
• 7 Best Soils for Growing Weed Indoors
• When and How to Flush Cannabis Plants

Taught in the Growing course: nutrients, water and growing media. See the course

Growing without soil: roots sit in aerated water, a thin film of nutrient solution, or an inert medium such as coco coir and perlite.

• Best Hydroponics Growing SystemStart here
• Guide to DWC Hydroponics for Cannabis
• Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) Guide
• Growing Cannabis in a Coco Coir + Perlite Mix
• Growing Cannabis With an Aquaponic System

Taught in the Growing course: hydroponics and growing media. See the course

Timing the harvest by reading the trichomes. In one indoor study, flower dry weight kept rising up to 11 weeks of flowering, and total CBD yield for that plant peaked at week 9.^[2]

• Ultimate Guide to Harvesting CannabisStart here
• Cannabis Trichomes Guide
• 9 Things to Know About Croptober (Outdoor Harvest)

Taught in the Growing course: harvest. See the course

Drying slowly, trimming, curing in jars, and keeping mold out of the finished harvest.

• How to Dry Weed: Ultimate GuideStart here
• How to Cure Cannabis
• Wet Trimming vs. Dry Trimming
• Hand-Trimmed vs. Machine-Trimmed
• Mold on Weed: Prevention and Storage

Taught in the Growing course: post-harvest. See the course