How to Grow Cannabis at Home When Your Space is Limited

For all you budding growers out there curious about growing your own, but are limited to a tiny apartment, here is a piece of good news: you can do it anyway. Continue reading to get some fresh tips on how to cultivate cannabis in a small space at home.

Marijuana is a flexible plant that can be grown almost anywhere given the nutrients and right light, allowing you to choose a grow room of any size.  Cultivating cannabis in a small space comes with benefits too, like blocking the curious neighbors and potheads with sticky fingers from your green treasure. Sticking to a few plants is easier to conceal. You can tuck them away anywhere. 

Opting for a tiny grow also means you don't have to bother with complex machinery to keep your indoor garden growing, plus you will be able to control the pungent smell of marijuana without any difficulties.  While growing your own pot can be very enjoyable and productive, it still requires a commitment and a certain amount of know-how. 

Tips on Cultivating Cannabis in Small Spaces

Set up Your Space

To start off on the right foot, prep your space, and make sure you tick the following requirements of the following list.

• There is an adequate growing space. You can use various spaces as your grow room, be it your closet or perhaps somewhere down in the basement. The bigger the plant, the larger the yield. Choose a space that will allow you to yield a sufficient amount of pot. To make sure the lights are off the plants, try to focus less on the width, and more on height.
• The space is clean. Steer clear from dirty closets. Make sure the grow space is sanitized and restrained from the outside surrounding. Do note that later in the process, you'll also have to drain your ladies and keep them out of standing water. So, plan ahead.
• Space is well ventilated. Cannabis plants enjoy a fresh breeze. Circulating fresh air is vital to maintain the plants’ vibrant and healthy. So you should simulate fresh air by adding a small AC unit or fan to control the climate. A growing number of small-space gardeners work with grow tents which are ideal units to cultivate single plants. The grow tent is self-contained and will offer a more manageable environment for your plants.

Know Your Seed

If you are new to the game of cultivating weed, here is advice--pick one or two easy to grow strains and keep it simple. And, make sure you are completely informed about the genetics of your seed. Indica, Sativa, and hybrids grow differently and each has unique traits. Sativas are known for their gangly growth and more open bud structure, while Indicas tend to grow stocky and short and have denser buds.

Hybrids can have traits from both. For a small grow, Indicas are easier to maintain if you want to optimize your yield because of their short and stocky nature. Sativas will do too, but they require more time and attention in pruning them. You can also try growing auto-flowering cannabis, plants that start flowering when they get to a certain age. They also grow small and short.

Train Your Cannabis

You can train your plant to increase the yield in a limited space. Below are some helpful methods you should consider:

• Scrogging or screen of green. This method is likely your best chance of maximizing the yield in minimal space. Weave the branches and stalks of your cannabis plant trough a screen, before moving to the flowering light cycle. The process will help you spread out the branches of the plant and open up the cannabis plant so that the lower and middle branches can receive light as well. This will provide you with a level canopy with sufficient colas or clusters of buds. You’ll need to trim everything beneath the canopy in order to save energy and prevent your plant from pests. Those buds that will remain directly exposed to light are to double their yield.
• Low-stress training (LST). That is, tie together parts of the cannabis plant to create new cola sites.
• High-stress training (HST). Put in some more effort. High-stress training involves topping or cropping to elevate more cola sites and even form a canopy. 

Keep the Roots Healthy

Roots are host to the rest of the cannabis plant, sending water and nutrients, therefore their health is of crucial value. A strong and healthy grow medium is particularly important for a small growth to maximize yields under confined conditions. To maintain the health of the roots, you can use both super soils or complete soils.

Both are rich in nutrients and allow the cannabis plant to stockpile water for a longer period.  Make sure that the pots have a sufficient amount of soil to stop roots from bounding. Regularly check the roots to see if they are exposed. If you see that roots are protruding from the pot’s drainage holes, it’s time to move your plant to a bigger home.

Control the Climate

Climate control plays a major role, especially when cultivating cannabis in small spaces. Temperature tip: keep it around 70 degrees. Humidity: it should be in the range between 40% and 75%. If you are using LED lights, note that they are to decrease the temperature, and they also tend to dry the plants, sucking the air out of them. A ventilator or a small AC unit can help you regulate the air within the grow space.  Fresh air exchange is essential to bigger yields since, like any other plant, cannabis too relies on CO2 during photosynthesis. Its growth is defined by fresh air.

Don’t Set the Plants on Fire

It might sound like an exaggeration, but this is one of the biggest concerns when it comes to small grow. As grow lights run extremely hot, you should make sure they are kept at a safe distance from the cannabis plants in order to avoid burning the leaves or buds of your green buddy.  You can keep the plants short or elevate the lights to tackle this little issue. Keeping the lights up high can be hard to pull off in cramped space, so in that case, make sure you regularly prune and top the plant.

LEDs are changing the game for tiny-space growing by offering high-quality lights with controlled heat. This enables plants to grow closer to the light without catching fire or getting damaged from heat. So, look for some high-quality grow lights. Cultivating cannabis in small places might be a challenge, but with little discipline and patience, you can make the most of it.