Marijuana plants are very sensitive to the environment in which they are grown, and unless the ideal growing environment is provided, the plants are very likely to be of poor quality when they reach maturity, or they may even fail altogether. Growers raising their marijuana plants in cannabis greenhouses are not exempt from the problems that poor weather might cause for plants – greenhouse production simply has a different set of potential obstacles to optimum growth.
This discussion will center on two of the most important factors contributing to proper plant growth in greenhouse marijuana farming, and what the consequences are if those two factors are not provided in the proper balance.
Heating and cooling
Like a wide variety of other crops, cannabis requires both heating and cooling, and in the proper amounts. The plants do typically favor a warm climate, but if overheated, more harm will come to the plants than if the climate was cooler. That’s why a balance of warm temperature, followed by a moderate cooling period is probably the ideal kind of environment to grow your plants – at least in terms of temperature.
The nature of a greenhouse dictates where sunlight will enter the structure (through the glass roof and walls), and then traps the lights inside. If not moderated in some way, the resulting temperature would be way too hot for delicate cannabis plants, so some means of air conditioning must be provided to keep the plants from drying out. Plants should be kept within a range of 72-78 degrees Fahrenheit during the daytime, and between 55-65 degrees Fahrenheit at night for optimal growth.
Ventilation
The importance of ventilation with regard to growing cannabis plants is that the right level of humidity is established through proper ventilation. A relative humidity level of around 60% is ideal for optimum growth of cannabis plants. When the moisture level is very much higher than this, fungal diseases can develop and attack plants.
Humidity levels which are significantly lower than 60% will not provide the necessary water levels to encourage proper photosynthesis, which is an absolute requirement for a healthy cannabis plant. Low humidity levels will always produce poor quality plants and generally low yields for the entire crop, assuming the same conditions prevail for all plants. When dried out leaf tips appear on plants, this is a sure sign that the humidity level inside the greenhouse are too low.
Growers must be especially vigilant during winter months, because that’s when heaters are typically required to supplement the level of warmth inside the greenhouse. But heaters can also cause severe drying in the cannabis plants. To alleviate these effects, you can make use of standard or commercial humidifiers, which infuse moisture into the air, and by periodically checking humidity levels with a hygrometer, the proper level of humidity can be maintained fairly easily.