Marijuana Business Magazine - Issue 09, Oct 2017
More Harvests, More Revenue In Norco, most of the more tradi- tional strains Haub grows require nine to 12 weeks, such as the five OG Kush varieties that take 65-70 days before they are ready for harvest. But Haub has also started growing newly developed strains that can mature in less than seven weeks. For example, Haub just finished a test batch of a strain called Orange Cookies that he said took 47 days. He is also trying another fast- maturing strain, No Quarter. “If you’re growing in a ‘light dep’ greenhouse and can finish in 45 days versus 70 days, you can see how much more productivity you’d get in a year,” Haub said of a facility that uses light deprivation to force plants to flower. Autumn Karcey, a longtime grower and now president of Cultivo, a can- nabis cultivation consulting firm in Los Angeles, agreed. “If you’re looking at economics, and you have a 12-week strain, like many Sour Diesels, you’re pulling four har- vests per year. But if you have an eight- or nine-week strain, you’ll get more harvests,” said Karcey, who noted these strains have been around for at least 10 years. “Unless it was something that was in incredibly high demand, I wouldn’t grow strains that take 12 weeks. Losing a cycle throughout the course of a year is substantial.” Fast-maturing strains that are popular with clients that she’s worked with include Mimosa, Do-Si-Dos and Skittlz. Abbreviated Regimens To get the most out of these accel- erated strains, you must adjust your regular feeding and lighting practices to the shorter time frame. “If I’m feeding something at week eight on a 70-day plant, I would be feeding it at week five if it were a 47-day-cycle plant,” said Haub, who uses Mad Farmer’s Mother of All Blooms nutrient mix. “If you know that you’re coming close to the ripening of the flower in week seven of a short-cycle-strain plant, then you would treat it like you would a regular-cycle plant that is ripening in week 10,” Haub explained. Shorter-cycle plants also require less lighting, Haub said. For example, Haub uses Gavita’s 1000-watt E-Series automated lights. He doesn’t run them full blast the whole time. Rather, with his regular-cycle plants, he’ll run them at about 400 watts at the beginning of the cycle, 750 watts midway through the cycle, then up to 1,000 watts for the penultimate two or three weeks, fol- lowed by up to 1,250 watts for the final “maximum bloom” phase. But if you are growing speedier strains such as No Quarter or Orange Cookies, you don’t need to bring the wattage up to 1,250 watts for the final week of the cycle, according to Haub, who said 1,000 watts is sufficient. These strains can also perform out- doors, said Haub, who in August was running a trial outdoor grow of Orange Cookies that had just “full on” entered their flowering phase. “The plants know genetically when to start flowering. As we head to a 12 (hours of light)-12 (hours of darkness) cycle, these plants are already pushing for the finish line,” Haub said. Cautions Knowing what strains run shorter cycles and finding them can be dif- ficult, Karcey said. For example, while many Sour Diesels will typically take 12 weeks to hit full flower, some can take as few as eight weeks. “It just depends on the gestation period of that strain for flowering cycle,” Karcey said. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In large, competitive markets with many licensees, some cannabis growers are finding an edge with plants that mature more quickly than others. These strains are gradually becoming more popular. If you’re thinking of trying one, keep in mind that: • Some growers are increasingly using strains that take as little as seven, eight or nine weeks to grow versus, say, 12 weeks. • By growing strains that have shorter cycles, growers can harvest one or two more cycles per year, generating additional revenue. • Growers that choose shorter-cycle strains must adjust their feeding and lighting regimens accordingly. • Some growers believe breeders exaggerate claims of how fast a certain phenotype will mature, and it is better to let these strains mature for another week or two to get the maximum yield. 38 • Marijuana Business Magazine • October 2017 Autumn Karcey, president of Cultivo. Photo courtesy of Autumn Karcey Ryan Haub, chief cultivator at Skydweller Farms. Photo courtesy of Ryan Haub
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