Gooood Morning and Happy Sunday or whenever you are reading this. I have been absent for a while; I have been starting a farm this past year. But I haven’t stopped being passionate about cannabis. I also haven’t stopped consulting with everyone. I love that people reach out to me with their questions.
Sundays are for science so today I want to lightly discuss home grown vs dispensary bud. Last year’s harvest is finally gone, and I’m back to purchasing from the dispensaries. I can tell you there is a difference, a big one. I’m not here to toot my own horn in any way, but man home grown is so much better, and outdoor home grow is the best I’ve ever consumed. But why?
Now I’m going to piss off most of the commercial growers and dispensaries out there but here goes. Home grow has more love and care even when ignored than anything you are purchasing for ridiculous prices in store. I said it and I’m 100% not taking it back.
The cannabis I grew had a better flavor profile, bigger nugs, more kief and wasn’t harsh to smoke. Everything I’m getting in store is dry to the point of it being almost dust, the flavors are less abundant, and not nearly as kiefy. So, what makes the difference?
Growing conditions…
I’ve worked in commercial grows in Mass and through the cannabis mentorship through OCM I was given the opportunity to see how others are doing it in NY and at colleges. Yo, I’m disappointed in everything I have seen. Many commercials grow’s, indoor and out, you find crowding. This is often not the fault of the grower but the investors. At one of the grows I worked at (I wont name names) I saw a double deck LED room and plants had 2 square feet of space. When I brought it up to the lead grower that every plant looked supremely stressed, I was informed that the investors determined the footprint of each plant, and they wanted them even closer.
I can tell you this particular crop was full of undeveloped seeds. The flavor of this particular plant was still nice, but it only produce small buds, and they were loaded with those undeveloped seeds.
Cannabis plants under the right conditions can become massive… So massive a happy plant can take up 10-20 square feet depending on the cultivar. At 2 square feet, no one should wonder why they are herming plants and getting tons of popcorn nugs. It’s all about the money and they’re not even looking at the fact that more manpower is needed to trim subpar bud.
Why does footprint matter? Here’s the science.
Many plants roots mimic that of their stems and branches. The wider the plant the healthier and stronger the roots. These roots help the plant transfer bio nutrients up through the plant. If these roots are bound, or not allowed to stretch, the plant doesn’t get as strong as it could.
Last year my outdoor plants had main stems the width of my wrist, I NEVER saw a stem wider than my thumb in commercial grows, unless its their mom plants. Not saying you should judge based solely on this, but a stronger thicker main stem allows more nutrients to reach your buds. This makes for fatter, happier, kiefier buds.
The moral of the story is, know your grower or become the grower and I promise your experience will be enhanced! Thank you for stopping by and reading my mini science rant! Have a beautiful and blessed day!
The Lady Kush
As always if you have any questions, you can hit me up in a few ways:
Getting Cooked In The Kitchen | Facebook
Email: GettingCookedInTheKitchen@gmail.com
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