What is a seedling?
A seedling is a young plant which follows after germination. It is the second phase of the four cycles of Cannabis growing. In this time, the seedlings will start to produce set of small leaflets. Among the phases of Cannabis plants, a seedling is the most dangerous and the most fragile. They are easy to destroy and that is why they need optimum care from its growers.
Cannabis seedling life cycle
Basically, a seedling is a kind of plant embryo which sits in a seed shell and will eventually start to grow when the protective layer will start to receive moisture. After that, the young plant will try to find sunlight by growing upside down and the plant tries to crack the seed. This scenario always happens to seeds because most of the time they are cultivated under the soil or any material and in order to get light, seeds will find its way upward to receive the supply of sun. At this moment, the seedling is currently storing energy from the sun and it used the stored energy to grow. The energy cannot be processed yet because photosynthesis does not take place in this stage. When the little life of the plant reaches the ground, it will automatically find light and the photosynthetic process will start. Sets of leaves will be produced and the life of the plant started. The first set will start only one leaflet, while the second set will produce three leaflets.
How the growths of the seedlings differ from the later growth of mature plants?
In this stage, your Cannabis seedling has only one focus. That is to get more energy in order to stabilize its strength and to make its roots strong enough to find nutrients in the ground. That is the very reason why you should be careful not to damage your seedling because its only focus is its survival. At this point, your seedling will not use any nutrients in the environment because it only uses the energy and natural elements stored in the seeds.
Nurturing Cannabis seedlings
Since in this stage, your little Cannabis will not use additional nutrients from the environment, you don’t need to add any elements in it. However, you should water your little plant regularly but bear in mind that your watering application should not be frequent. Too much water supply in the seedlings will result in too much moisture and this will cause molds and bacteria to visit and damage your little weeds.
When it comes to light schedules, your Cannabis seedling will grow in different schedules, however, the intensity and color of your light will influence as to how fast your seedlings will develop. It would be better to keep your lights for your seedling because they need warm temperature. This is mainly because Cannabis seedling will sprout when they can feel warmer temperature.
Seedlings will also need 24 hours light periods. You should not only give them warmth but a continuous and consistent light because in this way they tend to develop faster. When it comes to humidity, seedling should receive 60%-80% humidity because they need to retain their moisture. As stated earlier, seedlings will not need any additional elements and nutrient they only need a plain water with a pH level of around 6.5-7.5.
The duration of the Cannabis seedling
The leaf’s finger number is the determinant as to when the vegetative stage starts. Some growers consider that the seedling stage is over when the stems will become thick and will consist 3-4 leaf nodes. Its whole duration will depend whether you are growing indoor or outdoor. For indoor growing, it will take the Cannabis 3-4 weeks being a seedling while up to 6 weeks for growing outdoors.
Transplanting the Cannabis seedlings
Once your little weeds are starting to develop a stable and strong root system, the time of transplanting has come. However, even if the roots of your seedling are strong enough, you should still be careful in transplanting it because seedlings are very fragile and can easily be damaged.
Lighting for the seedling
When giving light for your seedling, you can place the light about 5 cm above the seedlings. This measurement ensures that your seedlings will not experience too much heat. The consistency of light is important but too much heat of the light could able to cause any damage to your seedlings. On the other hand, avoid placing your light a bit far than 5 cm from your seedlings. It will cause the seedlings to stretch out and too much-stretched seedling are easy to be tipped over.
If you are using HID or other forms of growing light that will produce too much heat, make sure to find a good distance between the seedlings and your grow lights. 80 cm above your seedling is the ideal distance for your grow light. You can also conduct a heat test before placing your grow lights to make sure that your seedlings will receive enough warmth.
For a more efficient lighting, you can use LED lights with cooled spectrum. You can use the 18/6 light schedule or 18 hours for light and 6 hours of darkness.
Nutrients for seedling
The most common mistake by some growers especially for those beginners is they fed their seedlings with additional elements and nutrients. It is essential that you knew the fact that Marijuana seedlings don’t need any nutrients to grow. They need a pH leveled water, moisture, and light. During this period of growth, it is better to let your seedling survive on its own rather than spoiling them with elements in that early stage of their life.
You can start feeding your plants after a week or two but you can only use half of the recommended dosage or otherwise, you will end up killing your seedlings.
Final words
The seedlings are the start of a life of your Marijuana plants. They are their most vulnerable and sensitive stage in which they should be taken carefully. They are very fragile that growers should always “handle them with care”.
