Greenhouse

A structure made primarily of transparent material, often glass, in which cultivators grow plants. Growing weed in a greenhouse allows for the plants to grow in natural sunlight while being protected from external elements associated with outdoor grows. Greenhouse cultivation is also more environmentally friendly and minimizes the energy expenditure associated with indoor grows.

A greenhouse is helpful to protect your plants from the elements while using natural sunlight to grow.

I like greenhouse-grown cannabis from northern California.

Photo by: Gina Coleman/Weedmaps

What does greenhouse mean?

The term “greenhouse” refers to structures designed solely to grow plants. They facilitate plant cultivation by providing a controlled environment that simultaneously traps sunlight and warmth.

It's possible to cultivate virtually any type of plant inside a greenhouse, from flowers to vegetables to cannabis. To raise healthy crops, a cannabis cultivator must provide plants with the proper amount of light, temperature, humidity, and nutrition, and marijuana greenhouses can be an excellent way to accomplish this.

How does a greenhouse work?

A greenhouse—including a marijuana greenhouse—operates on simple principles. The glass, or whatever other transparent material of which the greenhouse is built, allows light and heat from the sun to enter into the structure, where the heat then gets trapped inside. This process provides an ideal environment for plant growth year round, regardless of the season.

How to grow weed in a greenhouse

Growing cannabis in a greenhouse is essentially the same as growing indoors. The key difference is that the sun will provide most, if not all, of the light and heat required to keep plants happy and healthy. In winter months, growers may need to supplement the limited daylight with indoor growing lights and counteract the colder temperatures with heaters. As a general guideline, here's how to cultivate cannabis inside a marijuana greenhouse:

Step 1: Sprout your seeds

One of the simplest ways to sprout your cannabis seeds is to use a peat seed starter pellet. Start by wetting the pellet and letting it expand. Then, gently press the seed down into the pellet, so that it is lightly covered by a thin layer of peat. Keep the pellet moist and in a few days the seed will start to sprout.

Step 2: Pot the baby plant

When the seed has developed roots, it's time to plant it. Get a pot filled with your preferred growing medium, dig out a small depression, and place the entire peat pellet inside the depression. Cover the roots and pellet with your growing medium so that the baby plant peeks out above the top.

Step 3: Nourish and care

As the baby plant grows, feed it with adequate water, plant nutrients, light, and heat. In hotter months, growers will likely need to run fans to circulate air and keep it from becoming too hot or humid inside the marijuana greenhouse. During cooler seasons, growers may need to provide some additional light and warmth to keep plants happy.

Step 4: Harvest

When the plant has flowered and the trichomes on the flowers are milky white, it's time to harvest. Using a sharp and clean knife or scissors, cut off all the flowers, being careful to not disturb the trichomes.

Step 5: Dry the flower

Now it's time to dry the flowers. At this point, it's helpful to retain the long stems to which the flowers are attached. Hang the buds upside down by their stems inside a well-ventilated room. Let the plant matter dry until the smaller-sized twigs snap easily.

Step 6: Trim and cure

When the buds are adequately dried, trim away all excess stems and sticks. Place the flowers inside airtight glass jars in a location away from direct light and heat. Check the buds once or twice per day to make sure no mold or bacteria is developing. During these checkups, open the lid to circulate fresh air into the jars. Continue this process until the bud strikes the ideal balance of dryness and stickiness. At that point, the greenhouse bud is ready to smoke.

While most strains thrive in a marijuana greenhouse, hearty and resilient ones tend to be the best choices for a greenhouse crop. Some options include:

• Zkittlez
• Blueberry OG
• Jack Herer
• Northern Lights
• White Widow

Benefits of growing marijuana in a greenhouse

There are many potential benefits to using a marijuana greenhouse:

• A controlled environment limits the plant's encounters with bugs, pests, bacteria, and disease.
• Because a marijuana greenhouse relies primarily on passive solar for light and heat, it's more energy efficient than traditional indoor growing.
• This method allows you to begin growing cannabis in a greenhouse during the winter for additional harvests.