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MEDICAL MARIJUANA

CATEGORIES HOW AND WHEN TO

Cannabis Blog TRANSPLANT CANNABIS
Cannabis Strains SEEDLINGS
Growing Cannabis The seedling phase is arguably the most important
of the entire cannabis life cycle. Whether you grow
Medical Marijuana
from seed or clone, the hands-on part of cultivation
More begins with seedlings. Transplanting is all
important. Get it wrong, and the crop could be lost.
Trustpilot Get it right, and grow great ganja with this guide.
227 18 Jun 2018

Contents:

1. The importance of caring for cannabis seedlings

1.1. The optimal conditions for seedlings
1.2. What’s the best starter substrate?
1.3. Cubes, cups, and small containers
1.4. When to transplant seedlings
1.5. How to transplant seedlings
1.6. Potting up vs beginning with big pots

THE IMPORTANCE OF CARING FOR CANNABIS SEEDLINGS

Post-germination or post-cutting, your bean or sprout needs a place to take root. The prime objective for
the cannabis plant during the seedling stage is the development of a healthy root zone. If your seedlings
struggle now, it’s likely they may never completely recover, and even more likely they won’t reach their full
potential. Worst case scenario, seedlings die off and the grow is over before it’s even started.

How And When To Transplant Cannabis Seedlings

from Royal Queen Seeds

00:41

THE OPTIMAL CONDITIONS FOR SEEDLINGS

ROYAL QUEEN
SEEDS Cannabis seedlings need to be treated delicately. Mind your marijuana like babies. If seedlings need
COLLECTION support, prop them up with a toothpick or a cocktail stick and some soft gardening wire.

An 18-6 light schedule is considered the sweet spot by most growers. White light is preferred. The source
Royal Bluematic​​ Skunk
of light should be CFL, MH, or LED. If you have a sunny windowsill, it can work in a pinch.
Royal Cookies
Roots grow in the dark. That’s why we advocate 18-6 or 20-4 over a nonstop 24-hour light cycle. High
Power Flower
humidity, ideally around 70% RH, and temperatures in the 20–24°C range make for a perfect seedling
O.G. Kush Easy Bud habitat. A propagator, thermo-hygrometer, and a spray bottle of water are the tools to help you dial it in.
Fruit spirit
Stretchy or floppy seedling growth can be due to genetics. Often, it’s an indication the grow lamp is
Royal Automatic​ Critical positioned too far away from the canopy. A cool white 250W CFL can comfortably hang 15cm above a
Fast Eddy Automatic dozen or more seedlings without scorching leaves.
Northern Light
Amnesia Haze Automatic RELATED STORY
Blue Mistic
Dance World
Shining Silver Haze Healthy Roots For Healthy Cannabis Plants
Royal Moby​
Stress Killer Automatic
Ice Sour Diesel
Amnesia Haze
Royal Highness WHAT’S THE BEST STARTER SUBSTRATE?
The medium must be wet, not waterlogged. An effective wet-dry cycle is the goal. Remember to resist the
temptation to overwater. Better to mist plants with a sprayer if you are not sure. Touch the medium to feel
TOP 10 how dry it is and keep RH high.
CANNABIS Before we go into the specifics, we need to be clear that starting in one medium and switching to another
SEEDS can be hazardous. Keep it simple and keep it consistent. You can’t start seedlings in soil and transplant
1. Northern Light Automatic later into a DWC bucket.
2. Royal Dwarf
3. Special Queen 1
4. White Widow RELATED STORY
5. Quick One
6. Amnesia Haze
7. Amnesia Haze Automatic Pots vs. Soil, Which Is Best For Growing
8. Easy Start
9. Royal AK Automatic Cannabis Outdoors?
10. Special Kush 1

TOP TEN MARIJUANA

SEEDS

CUBES, CUPS, AND SMALL CONTAINERS

Rockwool cubes and blocks are made for hydroponic growers. Start your seedling in a small cube and it
couldn’t be easier to transplant later. Simply cut a cube-sized chunk out of a larger block and insert. The
process can be repeated with minimal stress to plants.

Unfortunately, rockwool is a really bad idea for soil growers, even the smaller sized blocks. Invariably, the
block retains more water than the surrounding soil. Green, sludge-like algae growth soon becomes a
problem. Sure, sometimes you can get away with the tiny cubes, but why take the risk?

An oxygen-rich medium that drains well is the ideal mix for soil and/or coco growers. Between these two
growing styles, there is the most overlap during the seedling stage. Peat or coco cubes are easy to use
and relatively inexpensive. Similar to a rockwool block, you can visually monitor root development as the
white spaghetti strands protrude from the cube. Growers, both organic and hydro, working with clones
report the highest success rates using the cube-sized starter mediums.

Many soil and coco growers use cups or small plastic pots as starter containers, typically, anywhere in size
from 0.5–5l. Lightly fertilised soil mixed with perlite or coco coir mixed with 30–50% perlite are the most
common blended media for seedlings. So long as the base of the container has plenty of drainage holes
and the interior can hold the volume of medium required, it can serve as a starter pot. Don’t be afraid to
improvise. Poke a few holes in the base of a paper coffee cup with a pin and it becomes a pot.

WHEN TO TRANSPLANT SEEDLINGS

The right time to transplant your seedlings is just before they outgrow their current container. With cubes,
you can see roots poking out telling you it’s time to pot up. When you start with a cup or small pot, you are
 relying on above-ground cues. Typically, when the set or sets of true leaves of the seedling have spread
out to cover the circumference of the container, it’s time. Also, vertical growth will be an obvious indicator.

Don’t wait too long to transplant. Rootbound plants will take time to recover and may be permanently
stunted. In general, it takes 7–10 days for a seedling to take root and outgrow small starter pots of 1l or
less.

RELATED STORY

How And When To Transplant Your Weed

HOW TO TRANSPLANT SEEDLINGS

Cubes are the easiest to work with. Either cut a hole to size in a bigger block, or burrow a hole into the
medium with your fingers and insert for a snug fit. Potting up takes a little more finesse. First, don’t fill your
large container all the way to the top. Leave room so you can water properly later. If you pack the pot all
the way to the top, water will mostly run off and not reach the roots.

Next, make an impression in your large container with another small pot, or the one with the plant in it if
you don’t have any others. Make this impression in the medium after you have watered it. This creates a
perfect imprint for the transplant.

RELATED STORY

How To Prevent And Fix Root Bound Cannabis

It’s best to wait until the medium in the small pot is dry before going for a transplant. Wet soil can fall apart
in chunks as you fumble with the sopping mud. Now, turn the dry plant upside down, and firmly pat the
bottom. Grasp the plant stem from the base and ease the compacted medium out of the container in one
piece. Some topsoil will spill, but don’t worry.

Finally, gently slide the plant, roots first, into the large container. Replace the lost topsoil or coco with a
handful or two over the top and add a little more water. That’s the secret to stress-free transplanting.

POTTING UP VS BEGINNING WITH BIG POTS

JOIN US AND GET
If your A SPECIAL
final  is only a viable
container size is up to 11l, you have the option to sow seeds directly. This
WELCOME GIFT!
option when growing from seed. Clones will not take root in such a large container. Initially, seedlings in
large pots will grow more slowly than those in smaller containers. After a few weeks of vegetative growth,
the difference is negligible.

If you don’t transplant, then you eliminate the risk of transplant shock. But you also limit the potential of
your cannabis plants. That being said, a first and final transplant is sometimes the best option for
autoflowering strains with a short life cycle.
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