Hydrolife Magazine February/March 2017 (USA Edition)

grow
BY LEE G. LYZIT
JACKING UP YOUR PLANTS’ POTENCY CAN INCREASE THEIR MEDICINAL PROPERTIES AND
MARKETABILITY. WHILE GENETICS PLAY A PART IN THE ABILITY TO RAMP UP CANNABINOID
LEVELS, THERE ARE A FEW OTHER WAYS TO ENHANCE TRICHOME PRODUCTION.
Cannabis growers are always on the lookout for products
or techniques that will enhance the potency of their
crop. After all, the potency of cured cannabis affects both the
product’s effectiveness as a medicine and its marketability.
When discussing potency, we are actually talking about
the levels of cannabinoids found in a finished product. The
two most sought-after cannabinoids by cannabis growers
are delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol
(CBD). These cannabinoids are found throughout the
cannabis plant but are most concentrated in the essential
oils found in and on the trichomes. Trichomes are the small,
glandular, almost mushroom-like structures found on the
leaves and flowers of the cannabis plant.
The easiest way to get a potent cannabis crop is to
choose plant varieties that naturally create an abundance
of trichomes, a genetic trait that can give the flowers or
leaves a whitish color.
Breeders can also use these plants and other varieties
that naturally produce more THC and/or CBD to create potent
hybrids. However, aside from picking the right genetic
profile, there are a couple of ways growers can enhance
the essential oil production and, in turn, ramp up the THC
and/or CBD production of their cannabis plants.
ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT
To understand why ultraviolet (UV) light enhances the
production of trichomes, you must first understand the
main purpose of trichomes. Contrary to popular myth,
the cannabis plant does not create trichomes, or THC,
specifically for human consumption. Truth is that
trichomes serve as a form of protection for the cannabis
plant. In particular, they protect the plant from
insects, molds, and UV light.
Like just about everything else on the planet, cannabis
plants are damaged by too much UV light.
That’s why a cannabis plant will create more
trichomes to protect itself if there is an increase in
harmful UV-B rays. As such, supplementing this
light using UV-B fluorescents (commonly sold at
pet stores for reptiles) in a flowering room can help
boost trichome production. This trick is particularly
useful to growers who exclusively use high pressure
sodium (HPS) bulbs for flowering as that technology
doesn’t produce much UV-B light. However,
it is important to remember that the supplementary
UV-B light is just that: a supplement. You don’t need
a lot of it and too much can be counterproductive.
One to two watts of UV-B light per square foot of
garden space is efficient. Also, note that other commonly
used lighting technologies, such as metal
halide, already contain a good amount of UV-B
light and do not need additional supplementation.
NUTRIENT ADDITIVES
Another way cannabis growers can enhance their
plants’ trichome production is with nutrient additives.
Terpenoid enhancers trigger the plant’s
natural defense system and cause the plant to
create more essential oils. As there are many of
these on the market, the best way to figure out
which product works best for your plant variety is
to experiment and test the results.
Another additive used by cannabis growers to
enhance trichome production is silica (potassium
silicate). Plants that receive silica have a stronger
resistance to pathogens, and it is believed
that silica boosts the physical hardiness and
resilience of the cannabis flowers and trichomes.
This makes the finished product more potent and
less susceptible (even after harvest) to damage
that could diminish its overall quality. In other
words, some growers believe that cannabis flowers
harvested from plants supplied with silica
have a longer shelf life.
More and more, growers are striving for bountiful
crops of high-quality buds as opposed to high
quantities of mediocre cannabis—which is good
news for both the medical and recreational
cannabis industries. By using terpenoid
enhancement products and/or supplementing
UV-B light during the flowering stage of growth,
cannabis growers can boost the trichome
production of their plants and maximize the
potency of their particular cannabis strain.
Using potassium silicate can also offer their
plants a unique defense against pathogens and
the possibility of higher potency for a longer
period of time. It can take some trial and error to
determine the exact products and techniques that
will ramp up a strain’s trichome production, but
it is worth the effort. After all, experimentation is
how we discovered these tricks to boost cannabis
potency in the first place; just imagine what
practices we could develop if we keep trying.
Lee G. Lyzit has been involved in the medical cannabis
industry for nearly 15 years. His passion for
natural healing drives him to learn as much as he
can about the cannabis plant. Lee breeds his own
strains of cannabis to create concentrated glycerine
and coconut oil extracts. Aside from cannabis education
and consumption, Lee enjoys playing music,
gardening, hiking, and cross-country skiing.
26
grow. heal. live. enjoy.
myhydrolife.com