We have all loved and we have all lost. But there is nothing more heart-breaking than bearing witness to the natural destruction of your cherished plant. Countless hours spent nurturing only for bugs or pests to take their emotional toil on you. Sometimes its something as simple as a nutrient deficiency. No matter the medium, more often than not the leaves on your cannabis plant will be a clear indicator as what the problem is and help point you in the right direction as you search for a solution.
There are some widespread issues that arise during the growth period and others that are less obvious. Green Smoke Room will dissect the most common problems encountered when growing cannabis below so that you can sit back and relax knowing all is well with your grow!
As with most plants in nature, the leaves are essentially the brains of the plant, using its green-pigmented chlorophyll to aid in the process of photosynthesis. Its no different with marijuana. The large hand-like fan leaves on the plant absorb light on the plant and convert it to energy, allowing the plant to flourish and grow.
YELLOW LEAVES
The two mistakes most associated with yellow leaves thankfully come with a quick fix. Overwatering and over-fertilisation can lead to all sorts of problems. Too much water can flood and suffocate the roots leading to mould, fungus, and pests due to the resulting oxygen deficiency. Root-rot can also start to occur. Simply, allow the soil to dry before watering again and try to continuously follow that pattern.
Too much fertiliser on the other hand, will lead to what growers call ‘nutrient burn’. This is when there are more nutrients present than the plant requires and is easy to identify. The leaves will generally only turn yellow or brown at the tips first before the rest of the leaves turn yellow following continued over-fertilisation. To remedy this, one can begin by ‘flushing’ their plants to rid the soil of any excess nutrients before reducing feeding amounts and frequencies, and following the same reduced pattern going forward.
Whilst yellow leaves can suggest over-nutrition it can also, rather confusingly, point towards nutrient deficiencies, more specifically, Nitrogen. Besides acting as the plants’ solar panels, the leaves are also a source of nutrients when the plant is not getting them from the soil. Except for during the flowering stage when this is completely normal, yellow leaves are the most apparent sign that something may be wrong. A nutrient deficiency doesn’t necessarily mean that you aren’t feeding your plant enough. Often it is quite opposite and results from overfeeding or merely a pH imbalance in the water. A balanced pH level of about 6.5 is usually the sweet spot.
PESTS
The peskiest of little things that will slowly but surely ruin your crop, they come in many shapes and forms. Common pests include aphids, barnacles, caterpillars, gnats, inchworms, mites and spiders. The bugs themselves may be visible, other times only the trail of destruction that they leave behind. You may notice little black or white specks on and around the leaves, that many would mistake for mould or rot. Other times, you may find tiny bites, tears or holes in your leaves and while it is often difficult to entirely prevent bugs from appearing in outdoor grows (indoor growers tend to have less issues with pests), regular check-ups on your plant will help you identify any intruders sooner rather than later.
CURLY OR DRY LEAVES
If you realise that your plants’ leaves are beginning to curl, dry out and even crumble, it is often a tell-tale symbol of irregularities with the temperatures in the environment. Heat-stress (or light-burn amongst indoor growers) is simple to spot as it will generally occur in the leaves closest to the light source. In this instance, simply move the light further away from the plant. If grown outdoors, try to ensure that your plants receive ample amounts of shade during the hottest parts of the day.
The cold will also adversely affect your plant. In controlled conditions, growers will aim for a minimum of 21C degrees. Using a powerful light, or simply moving your light source closer to your plant will help raise the temperature. In outdoor grows, attempting to protect the plant from wind and weather will go along way in ensuring a stress-free grow.
REVEGETATION
When the flowering stage is interrupted, usually due to light problems, the plant will switch back to its original vegetative stage. This ‘re-veg’ causes undue amounts of stress on the plant and results in odd and often stunted growths with strange shaped leaves. It is crucial that during the flowering stage the plant is receiving 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness. Correcting the light schedule will resolve the issue. Alternatively, one can simply allow it to re-veg and then re-flower again like normal at a later stage.
