How Long Does It Take To Grow Weed

Are you are thinking of growing your own marijuana at home?

Well, it’s a good decision because it is a lot of fun and it’s a rewarding experience as well.

If you’ve ever enjoyed the final product, then you know exactly what we mean.

However, it’s not something that can be done overnight as no one is ever reaped a harvest that soon.

The truth is the amount of time that it will take to grow marijuana will depend on a number of factors.

So the question is, how long does it take to grow weed?

The short answer is that it can take anywhere between 3 to 5 months from the time you plant your seat till the time you sit down and enjoy it.

Ultimately, a number of different aspects, strains, and growing methods will determine the length of the entire process.

However, if you’d like to get a quicker yield, there are a few tips that you can follow.

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What Is The Average Indoor Grow Time?

Growing Cannabis Indoor

The average time for marijuana is anywhere between 8 to 28 weeks.

Ultimately it depends on several factors. And there are two main factors that should you need to complete before you’re ready to enjoy your own cannabis.

This is the vegetative stage and flowering phase.

Ultimately there are a number of factors that will influence the growing time, such as whether you are growing Sativa or Indica and using photoperiod and auto-flowering strains and ultimately whether you are growing your weed indoors or outdoors, but the average time is between 8 to 28 weeks.

The Time Needed To Grow Weed From Seedling To Harvest?

The process of growing marijuana is by no means an overnight process.

Ultimately, there are stages, and it all starts with good preparation.

Firstly, you are going to need to get your grow tent and equipment all set up.

Then you’re going to need the essentials like:

  • Soil
  • Contours and boxes
  • Germination medium
  • Lights
  • Fertilizer
  • Nutrients
  • Reflective material
  • Fans or some type of ventilation
  • Perhaps even a carbon filter

Now if you purchased a marijuana growing kit, all of this is usually included in the kit.

However, it wouldn’t hurt just to do a quick check and make sure that you have everything that is required for your successful marijuana garden.

This process usually takes 0 to 14 days.

Zero days if you have purchased a kit and up to 14 days if you’re going to have to gather all of the equipment individually or separately.

Getting Your Seeds

Feminized Cannabis Seeds

This process can take up to a month. Of course, you can’t just start growing your marijuana without the seeds.

Another tip is that you want to get feminized seeds as much as possible.

The seeds should be gathered in such a way that the plant will result in a female one.

Male marijuana barely has any THC in it, and if you have any of them in your batch, they will pollinate the female ones and ultimately ruin the entire batch.

You can purchase your seeds from the seed bank, or you can order online, depending on which options are available to you.

If you choose to order online, it could take up to four weeks to be delivered.

 Germinating Your Seeds

Germinating Weed Seeds

The next step in this process is to germinate your seeds.

Germination basically means that you need to supply the seeds with some moisture and the ideal conditions so that it cracks open and begins to sprout.

This is the beginning of your marijuana plant.

Depending on the medium that you use the quality of the seed and the conditions available, it can take between 3 to 7 days for this entire process.

However, don’t wait longer than seven days because, after this period of time, the veg state begins.

If you choose to go with plant clones, then the germination phase is not too quiet.

Vegetative State

Marijuana Plant Vegetative State

The state takes anywhere between three weeks to 2 and a half months.

Your marijuana plant will start to increase in height, and ultimately, what’s happening is it is developing a strong stem.

The vegetative state will see your branches nice and thick, and fan leaves appear; this means that it is ready for the flowering stage.

However, you should bear in mind that the vegetative state is crucial because this is when the plant is starting to develop, and the longer your plant remains in the vegetative stage, the bigger and higher it will go.

During the vegetative state, you are in control of your time.

So you need to provide your plant with at least 18 hours of light each day and do this consistently.

However, once you change the lighting schedule from 18 hours to six hours of darkness or 12 hours of light to 12 hours of darkness, the flowering stage will begin.

While some people choose to let their plants vegetate for a month, some choose up to three months.

However, you should not go over 10 weeks.

The risk of doing this is that your tree will be tall, but branches will be weak.

Ultimately it will tip over and not be able to support the weight of buds.

The Flowering Stage

Marijuana Plant Flowering Stage

The flowering stage takes anywhere between six weeks to 4 1/2 months.

A marijuana bud starts to develop, which is ultimately the final product that you are looking for.

The plant will get set in this stage and become wider and higher. Ultimately it is during this flowering stage that the THC is being developed.

So during the first one to three weeks the flowering process begins, between the third and fourth week, the flowers start to form, between the fourth and sixth-week buds will fatten and between the sixth and eighth weeks, the THC will develop.

Between week 8 to 14 the flowering stage will end, and you need to flush your plants with enough water for two weeks or more to get rid of the fertilizer’s nutrients and chemicals that were leftover throughout the growing process.

Ultimately the total time needed for marijuana to grow is between 10 to 2 and half months from the beginning of the flowering stage and into the harvest can take seven months as well.

And in some circumstances, it may take as little as a week and a half for each of the stages and 3 to 4 weeks for the flowering stage.

Harvesting And Drying

Marijuana Plant Drying and Harvesting

The next stage in this journey is to harvest and dry your weed.

You will need to trim it, and this will take a couple of hours if you only have a few plants.

The branches will have buds on them, and this is what you will take and hang up to dry.

This process requires excellent ventilation, and the entire process takes no longer than 7 to 10 days for your weed to dry completely.

If you have a dehumidifier, it will trim this time down to 3 to 4 days.

The Curing Stage

Cannabis Curing

The curing stage takes between 2 to 6 weeks.

While some inexperienced marijuana growers will try and smoke their weed immediately after it’s been harvested, this is absolutely not recommended.

And the reason for this is because half of your marijuana THC content only develops during this stage.

So if you want potent weed or you want to feel like the time you waited to smoke marijuana is worth it, you need to cure it properly.

It’s important and allows your marijuana to develop a better flavor.

The curing process should be a minimum of two weeks or up to four weeks, which is average. For maximum potency, you can leave it up to 5 to 6 weeks to cure.

If you’d like to speed up the harvest time or growing of marijuana, there are a few tips that you can use to do so.

How Can You Affect The Speed?

Marijuana LED Grow Lights

In order to speed up the harvest time, you need to know exactly what factors impact the total time in the first place.

Some crucial factors affecting how long it takes to speed up the process include your plant strain, desired yields as well as the growing method you use.

Some of the things you can do to speed up this process is providing your marijuana plant with a few hours of light each day during the flowering stage.

You can get your buds to mature faster by manipulating the light during this stage. This is especially true with photoperiod strains.

You can also help the process along by choosing a quick finishing strain of marijuana.

Although the amount of time between the vegetative and flowering stages are specific to the strain you’re using, you can shorten the vegetative stage by choosing a quick finishing strain.

During the vegetative state, provide your marijuana with 24 hours of light each and every day.

Alternatively, some growers believe in providing 18 hours of continuous light to the plant and 6 hours of darkness in the vegetative stage.

However, it is proven that marijuana plants receiving light for 24 hours of the day each day grow a little faster in the vegetative stage.

Start the flowering stage early. Normal marijuana seeds can generate flowers faster when you manipulate the flowering stage.

This is not something that everyone knows; however, it can be done. You can change the light schedule and force the young seedlings to start budding immediately.

So you need to provide 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness each night and 12 hours of light consecutively.

Ultimately this tricks your cannabis plant into believing that winter is on its way and starts making buds as soon as it is able to.

Grow your plants indoors for quicker delivery time. It is convenient, and it is cheaper to control your marijuana indoors.

Although it is believed that outdoor weed grows faster, there is an exception to this rule.

Growing your plants indoors gives you complete control as to how to keep them in each stage of the process.

Start with a good strain, and if you keep the habitat optimal and practice the tips above, you should be harvesting many ounces of buds in less than four months.

What Are The Growing Weed Stages?

Seedling Stage

Seedling Cannabis Plant

The seedling stage is basically where you have your seeds germinated by adding moisture to it and allowing it to sit between three to seven days before it starts to sprout.

How long does it take?

Three to seven days. It can take anywhere between 8 to 28 weeks to see your marijuana garden transformed or before you can actually smoke the marijuana.

Vegetative Stage

This is where the tree starts developing a thick and supportive stem for the buds.

How long does it take?

Three weeks to 2 and a half months.

Flowering Stage

This is where you start to see buds forming.

How long does it take?

Three weeks to 2, 5 months.

Post-Harvest Time

Marijuana Plant

This is when your weed is ready to be harvested.

Drying Time

This is when your marijuana needs to be harvested.

Related Questions

How Long Does It Take To Grow Weed?

It can take anywhere between 8 to 28 weeks for the entire process.

Can You Quicken The Process?

Of course you can. By using specific strains and manipulating your seeds with lighting you can speed up the process from seedling to harvest.

Does Weed Need To Be Cured?

Yes, it does, or else the potency is reduced.

Originally posted 2019-11-23 11:46:47.

James Alexander James Alexander
Hey, I'm James! The founder and head writer here at GreenBudGuru.com. I started this site to share my passion and knowledge of all things cannabis. I used to work as a budtender in central Amsterdam, and have over 7 years of growing experience.

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