Cannabis plants undergo some stages when they grow and mature. Each step requires a different level of water, nutrients, and light. Knowing the marijuana growth stages and their duration is crucial because you can tell when to prune, train, trellis, and harvest the plant. 

If you intend to grow marijuana, the article will help you know the growth stages. Each of them needs a specific environment and unique demands in every growth stage. The growth takes from three to five months.

Four Major Marijuana Growth Stages

A marijuana plant growth undergoes the four main stages below:

1. Germination.
2. Seedling.
3. Vegetative.
4. Flowering.

Germination Stage

The germination length is three to ten days, and the marijuana light cycle is sixteen hours per day.

The stage commences with a seed that is hard and dry. It must also be from light to dark brown color. When the seed germinates or sprouts, it can get placed in soil. The taproot will drive down while the seedling stem grows upwards.

Two rounded cotyledon leaves will get produced from the stem when the plant leaves the protective seed casing. The leaves take the sunlight required for the plant to be stable and healthy.

As the roots grow, the stalk will rise, and the initial iconic fan leaves grow.

Seedling Stage

According to the article “How long does it take to grow weed”, written by cannabis experts, the second stage length is between two to three weeks. The marijuana light cycle is sixteen hours per day.

When the marijuana plant becomes a seedling, it will develop more traditional cannabis fan leaves. As a sprout, the seed will first produce leaves with a single ridged blade. Upon new growth, the leaves will grow more edges. A mature plant has from five to seven leaf blades, but some plants can have more.

The plants remain seedlings until they start having leaves with the complete number of blades on new fan leaves. Healthy seedlings have a vibrant green color. Farmers need to be cautious when watering the plant during its seedling stage. However, the roots are still small. So, they won’t need too much water.

During the seedlings stage, the plant is likely to get mold diseases. So, ensure the environment is clean, and there should not be too much moisture. You must also provide a lot of light.

Vegetative Stage

The stage duration is three to sixteen weeks: The light cycle is:

• Sixteen hours per day if indoors.
• Six hours per day if outdoor plus many hours of indirect sunlight.

The vegetative marijuana stage is where the plant growth starts. When you get here, you will have moved the plant to a bigger pot, and the roots and foliage will be growing fast. It is also the time for you to start topping or training the plants.

Ensure to increase watering as the plant grows. While young, the plants need water near the stalk. However, as they grow, the roots also develop outwards. So, you have to water far away from the branch in the soil to allow the roots to stretch out and absorb water better.

The vegetative stage requires healthy soil with nutrients. So, ensure to provide high amounts of nitrogen. The organs will appear a few weeks into the vegetative period. 

Scientists recommend separating the male plants to avoid pollinating the female plants.

Flowering Stage

Flowering is the last part of all stages of growing weed. The stage length is from eight to thirteen weeks, and the light cycle is twelve hours per day.

Flowering is the last marijuana growth stage. After that, the plants begin to have buds and. Most strains flower in weeks eight to nine, but some, mainly Sativa, may take longer.

Outdoor flowering happens naturally when a plant gets less light per day. Indoor farmers can initiate the cycle by lowering the light amount from sixteen to twelve hours per day.

The flowering stage has the following phases:

• Flower initiation: Between one to three weeks when the plant keeps growing and females produce pre-flowers or white hairs. They are the start of buds.
• Mid-flowering: From week four to five, bugs begin to fatten up when the plant stops growing.
• Late flowering: It starts from week six when trichome density increases and plants become sticky. Ensure to monitor the color of the pistils to know when to harvest.

Conclusion

You now have the answer to the question, how long does it take to grow weed? The marijuana growth stages will enable you to remain cautious at every step. 

You will know what you need. Then, after getting experience, you can experiment with several high-yield and high-quality strains.