Right before your hemp plant is ready to be harvested, it must go through the flowering stage. The flowering stage of hemp is one that takes around two months and is integral to the success of your yield. While every part in the hemp plant’s life cycle is just as important as the next, today we’re focusing on how the flowering stage works and how it directly affects your hemp’s growth.
To help give you a full understanding of this incredible stage, we’ve broken it down week-by-week. This way, you know exactly what to expect and how to care for your hemp plants as they flower.
The Flowering Stage: Week-By-Week
Though you saw a lot of growth from your hemp plant in the previous stage of its life, the flowering stage is where you’ll truly see what you’ve been waiting for: buds! Though you shouldn’t anticipate your plants growing much more in terms of height or length, you will definitely notice some density forming, thanks to the newfound buds and flowers.
In this stage, you will also get the opportunity to fully establish your plant’s sex. Their sex organs will fully develop and you can toss out any male plants that may have made their way into your bunch. Ridding your crop of male hemp plants is important as they can cause obstructions and other issues with the female plants. Not to mention, they do not produce CBD the way that female plants do.
Now it’s time to walk you through the actual flowering process. While every grower will experience slightly different growing times, this stage is said to take anywhere from 8 to 12 weeks.
Weeks 1 & 2:
During the beginner weeks of the flowering stage, your hemp plants will go through something most growers refer to as “the stretch.” Essentially, your flowers are doing their final stretches before becoming the exact size they’re meant to be. Rather than growing super tall and wide as they did in the previous stage, your plants will now grow super slowly, if at all.
Instead of focusing their energy on growing upwards and outwards, they’re focused on sprouting flowers. During these beginning weeks, you may be able to start seeing the first signs of buds on your hemp plants. Finally!
Even though you’re seeing some growth during this time, you must be careful not to get overzealous and feed your plants too much. Overfeeding can harm your plants, throwing off certain balances.
Weeks 3 & 4:
It’s normal for your plants to completely stop growing around week three of the flowering stage. As we mentioned above, the plants are now focused on growing flowers, so you will see much more of that happening during these next few weeks.
Before this, you may have noticed tiny hairs growing from your hemp plants. These hairs, called pistils, are signs of early bud growth. In weeks three and four, you’ll likely see small buds alongside these pistils. While they won’t be as big as the hemp buds you’re used to seeing, it’s an encouraging sign to see such early signs of growth. Pay close attention to these buds over the next few weeks to see how they truly develop.
As these buds continue to develop as the fourth week comes to end, you’ll find that your plants are much more pungent than before. Now, their smells are truly starting to emit, and you can slightly pick up their individual notes and profiles. This will become even more obvious as the weeks come.
Weeks 5 & 6:
It’s during weeks five and six where a good ventilation system will come in handy for your newfound buds. As more and more buds develop throughout the weeks, their smells become more apparent. Having a good ventilation system, or good airflow, helps tremendously to keep the smells flowing and not so stagnant.
While your buds are popping up left and right, you want to make sure you’re giving your plants sufficient nutrients to allow them to keep doing so. This, along with proper watering, helps ensure that your hemp continues to thrive and produce the elements you need. Lighting during the growing phase is always important, but it’s especially crucial during these last few weeks. If you notice your plant’s leaves starting to yellow, that’s a sign of too much light exposure.
Weeks 7 & 8:
During the very last weeks of the flowering stage, your hemp buds will start to ripen. You will notice significant growth happening just from the buds themselves, as they begin to transform into the hemp buds you know and love.
Make sure you’re being extra patient during these last few weeks, careful not to give your plants too many nutrients, especially ones that stimulate growth. In fact, growth stimulation nutrients should be avoided entirely, as this will not help with the growth of the buds themselves.
We can’t tell you exactly when your plants will finish flowering and be ready for harvest, as it is different for every strain. The biggest signs that the flowering stage is coming to end are the color of the trichomes and pistils on the buds themselves. Once these hairs darken and the resin glands turn from a translucent to milky white color, your hemp plant is likely to be ready for harvesting.
Prepare to Harvest!
After just a few months, your hemp plants have finally passed through the flowering stage. This stage shows growth far different than what you’ve seen previously from your plants, and it’s exciting in unique, incredible ways. After all, you’re finally seeing the parts of your hemp plants that make the whole growth worth it. Luna Cultivation understands how important this experience can be, and we want to make it as easy as possible.
Whether you’re growing your first hemp plant or your thousandth, the flowering stage is one that can bring excitement time and time again. Through proper care, time, and dedication, your hemp plants will soon be ready for harvesting.
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