Humidity is a critical aspect of any plant’s growth cycle and it’s crucial to control it. As with temperature and lighting, humidity levels should be regulated at every stage of cannabis growth to promote optimal development.
Having proper air humidity in your grow can make all the difference to your cannabis yields and quality. In fact, it’s one of the most important aspects of a successful grow.
Optimal Humidity for Seedlings
Plants require optimal air humidity for the best harvest and healthy growth. It’s an easy topic to forget about for some novice growers, but if you don’t manage your humidity levels correctly in your grow room, you can run into major problems down the line.
Humidity is a major factor in the growth cycle of cannabis plants, particularly for seedlings and clones. It impacts the water uptake process, and can affect how much nutrient your cannabis plant takes in.
The most important way that air humidity influences cannabis plant growth is through transpiration. When there’s high humidity, cannabis plants will absorb less water from their leaves and more from their roots. This is because high moisture content in the air slows down transpiration and increases the amount of time it takes for water to leave the plants’ leaves.
This is especially important for seedlings and clones that aren’t yet developed with roots. The water uptake process is regulated by the stomata in the plant’s leaves, which close to limit the loss of water.
It’s important to keep your air humidity at around 70-80% RH during this stage, as it helps plants establish a strong root system and encourages their growth. You can use a humidity dome or heat mat underneath your clones to keep the atmosphere comfortable.
As plants transition to vegetative growth, they no longer need to uptake water through the stomata, so you can lower your veg room’s humidity to 60-70% and maintain a higher VPD (Volume Per Day). Defoliation can also help reduce the indoor humidity, as extra leafy plants tend to raise the level of moisture in an environment with low air flow or poor ventilation.
When it comes to flowering, you want to control the humidity even further in order to decrease your risk of disease and mold, as well as reduce bud rot. It’s generally advised that your flower room has a VPD of 40%-55% to minimize the possibility of excessively high indoor humidity and prevent mold, mildew, and Botrytis.
Optimal Humidity for Vegetative Growth
Optimal air humidity in cannabis cultivation is one of the most important factors in growing strong, healthy plants. It can be a tricky area to navigate for novice growers, but proper humidity management can ensure that you achieve optimal growth and production.
During the vegetative stage of your cannabis plant’s lifecycle, the ideal air humidity is between 60 and 70% RH, with temperatures of 20-26degC both day and night. These warm, humid conditions promote rooting and help your seedlings uptake water through the leaves until they are well established.
As your plants get closer to flowering, it’s crucial that your humidity levels are lowered so that the buds can develop in a more controlled environment. Lowering humidity during this phase can prevent bud rot from developing, and can also help reduce the risk of mildew.
You can use a thermo-hygrometer to measure your relative humidity (RH) in your grow room, or you can buy a dehumidifier that pulls moisture out of the air. However, it’s important to note that if you use a dehumidifier, you will need to replenish your water supply often, so it’s best to invest in a larger dehumidifier with a big water reservoir.
Pro-growers don’t take a lot of time and effort into climate/humidity control without good reason, but getting it right can really boost your harvests! If you get your humidity and temperature levels wrong during the vegetative and flowering stages of your marijuana crop, you could end up with a lot of problems.
Aside from bud rot and mold, cannabis plants will also suffer from what is known as nutrient burn. Nutrient burn is when the leaves of your cannabis plants turn yellow or look brown and scaly, and it can be a sign that they are taking up too much nutrients through their roots.
The best way to combat nutrient burn is to monitor your cannabis plants’ humidity and temperature during the vegetative, flowering and harvest stages of their lives. This will allow you to make adjustments to keep your plants happy and healthy, and increase your yields in the process!
Optimal Humidity for Flowering
Proper air humidity in cannabis cultivation is a crucial factor in the success of seedlings, clones, and cuttings. It affects growth and nutrient uptake, as well as plant health. The resulting results can vary significantly from grower to grower.
It is a good idea to use a hygrometer to ensure that the RH is within optimum ranges for each stage of plant growth. A hygrometer is a simple device that can be used to measure the humidity of air in your grow room.
The cannabis plant has a very complicated life cycle, which requires different levels of humidity and temperature for each phase of its growth. The best approach for successful crop production is to create a climate-controlled environment that meets the needs of the plant throughout its lifetime.
In this way, optimal moisture levels are maintained for each stage of the growing process – from the early seedling stages, through to vegetative growth and then to flowering. With the proper conditions, cannabis plants will thrive and produce top-quality buds, as well as cannabinoids.
During this phase, the ideal humidity level is around 70-80%. This is due to the fact that seedlings and clones are not yet established, so they require high humidity levels in order to soak up water through their leaves.
However, it is important to remember that once the plant has a root system, the humidity levels need to be lower. This is to prevent rotting from occurring as the roots extract nutrients and minerals from the substrate.
For this reason, most growers keep their humidity levels at 60-70% during this phase. This can be further decreased if necessary during the flowering period.
The main problem with humidity levels that are too high is mould formation. Mold spores are present on everything from surfaces to the air we breathe, and once they find the right conditions for propagation, they can start producing a number of unpleasant diseases including powdery mildew and bud rot.
If you don’t want to buy dehumidifiers, it is still possible to achieve the perfect levels of optimal air humidity by adjusting the number of fans in your grow room and by pruning away excess foliage from the canopy. It is also a good idea to avoid overwatering your crops, as this can cause the water to evaporate before it can be taken up by the soil substrate.
Optimal Humidity for Harvest
Cannabis is a plant that requires careful attention to temperature and humidity throughout its lifespan. Keeping these at the right levels can boost plant health and yield, minimize risk of disease, and increase revenue.
Many growers neglect to properly manage humidity in their grow rooms, but this can have significant consequences for a successful crop. When humidity is not optimal, cannabis plants are less resilient against mold and mildew. They also become more susceptible to nutrient deficiencies as they consume water at a higher rate than they can replenish.
Humidity can also affect the transport of nutrients to the leaves and buds. When air is dry, the leaves can’t take in enough moisture to transport essential minerals like nitrogen, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. This can lead to nutrient burn, which can result in yellowing of the leaves and scorched edges on the leaves.
In addition, a lack of proper air humidity during flowering can lead to bud rot and mould. This can negatively impact the quality and yield of a harvest and ultimately, the profitability of a grow operation.
There are several factors to consider when it comes to optimal air humidity for harvest, including the plant’s stage of growth and the climate within a grow room or tent. However, there are some simple steps that can be taken to ensure that your cannabis is in the optimal state of health for harvest.
During seedling and clone development, the ideal relative humidity is around 65 percent. This is to help the young plants absorb water and maintain healthy root systems. To achieve this, growers often use clone domes and wet paper towels to promote moisture in the environment.
As cannabis plants transition into the flowering stage, they need to be maintained at a lower relative humidity to avoid vapor from settling on the buds and causing mould or mildew. When a plant is in the final stages of bloom, it can be lowered to between 40 and 50 percent, depending on what strain you’re growing.
Optimal air humidity is important for any grower, regardless of the type of cannabis they’re cultivating. The best way to keep humidity levels optimal is to use a thermo-hygrometer to measure and monitor your grow room’s RH.
