If you are into cannabis cultivation, you may find it that growing pot can be an interesting and rewarding experience but it can be tricky as well. Cannabis may be considered a very versatile plant, yet growing it may require extra care especially if you are expecting quality yield.
Like any other plant, cannabis plans are prone to common plant diseases caused by several factors like nutrient deficiency, cannabis light burn, and pest infestation among others. This is the very reason why it is important to take good care of your plants by providing or exposing them to just the right amount of nutrients or important growth factors that they need.
Among the common problem that you may experience in growing weed is cannabis light burn. It is not just enough to leave them under the heat as they grow, you have to be very watchful especially for indoor growing.
What is cannabis light burn?
Cannabis light burn happens when the source of light is very near or too close to the plants or the leaves of the plants. The leaves are exposed to too much heat that it burns the chlorophyll buds thus it destroys the leaves.
If you are growing your plants outdoors, cannabis light burn is the least of your worry since your plants are not too close to the natural light source. They will receive just the right amount of light exposure that they needed to be very productive and the amount of light is not harmful to them.
Apparently, light burn often happened in indoor cultivation. Using artificial lights like LED lights or any type of grow lights, cultivators should be very keen on keeping the plants at the right distance away from the light source. If the plants grow, naturally they become taller thus they go nearer to the light source thus they experience light burn.
Therefore, light burn occurs when the source of light is too close to your cannabis plant. Usually at the top part of your plant. The intensity of the source of light is too strong for the plants that it damages the exposed parts or the leaves.
What are the signs of cannabis light burn?
Naturally, as your cannabis plant grows it increases in height. As mentioned earlier, the light burn is unlikely to happen in outdoor cultivation. For indoor growers, you must be very keen on keeping an eye on the cannabis plant. It is important to know important information about your plants like how tall they would grow so you can set the indoor lights.
To spot cannabis light burn, look for the following:
- Yellow leaves. This the first that you will notice if your cannabis plant is suffering from a light burn. The yellow leaves on the top part of the plants are affected. This is the difference between nutrient deficiency and light burn. In the case of nutrient deficiency, the yellow leaves start from the bottom part of the plants. The light burn will initially affect the top leaves of the plant.
- Bleached flowers or buds. This is possible when the flowers are also very close to the source of lights. They may appear light-colored on which some actually call it “albino” but the truth of the matter is that most of the time, these are bleached buds indicating that your cannabis plant is suffering from a light burn. This is not very helpful as the heat can damage the plant’s quality like it can affect the cannabinoid. Cannabis light burn can degrade the cannabinoids that are present in the resin which can affect the potency as well.
How to prevent cannabis light burn?
The saying ” Prevention is better than cure” holds true in the case of cannabis cultivation. In growing cannabis, there will always be the probability that you can encounter problems such as cannabis light burn. So what do you need to do to prevent this from happening?
- Know important information about the plant that you are growing. This is very essential so that you will know if this will be a tall plant or a short plant thus you can set up the grow lights properly and then adjust it as your plants are growing. This can prevent light burn because you can adjust the indoor lighting as your plants are growing.
- Put a manageable gap or measure the distance between the plants and the lights. Do not place the lights so close to the plants. It should be manageable enough that the plants can be exposed to the right amount of light without burning them or depriving them as well.
- Reduce the intensity of the indoor grow lights. If you can move or adjust the grow lights, then the better. Reducing the intensity of the lights will expose your plants to a mild heat that is just enough for it to grow healthily.
How to treat cannabis light burn?
For some unfortunate reasons that your plant is suffering from a light burn, it is very important to fix the issue right away.
- Adjust the light right away. If you can move the lights away from your plant right away, the better. It will prevent the continuous exposure of the top portion of the plant to the light.
- Reduce the intensity of the light source. As mentioned, this can be done by moving the lights away or increase the distance of the light from the plants. Of course, it should be a reasonable distance making sure also that the plant is not deprived of the amount of light that it needs to grow. So, the remedy for cannabis light burn is to either move the indoor lights away from the plants or lower the intensity of the bulb.
In conclusion, cannabis growing may seem easy but you have to be very careful as you may encounter growing issues such as cannabis light burn along the way. If so, it is important to know what to do to save your plants from any damage that they might cause. It is important that you are equipped with the right information and the knowledge on how to deal with it.