Preflowering Although generally considered one of the trickiest parts of growing your own marijuana, sexing is quite straightforward and will become easier as you gain more experience. The reason for sexing your plants is so that you can remove male plants before they have a chance to pollinate the females. If this occurs the females will start to develop seeds and this will divert their energy from THC production. Pollinated weed is still smokable, we’ve all had weed with seed, but the potency will be significantly decreased. Careful observation of flowering is the only true way to sex your plants, although you may get a clue from their growth patterns. Male plants tend to be leggier than female plants with a longer internodal length. Female plants are squatter with more leaves and a bushier aspect. Towards the end of the summer, as the hours of daylight decrease, changing light levels will trigger your plants to produce flowers. The appearance of pre-flowers at branch junctions is what you are looking for. Male pre-flowers should be clearly visible to the eye, although a magnifying glass will make your job easier. Male flowers form at the junctions of the branches and stem and the pollen sacs form little balls. Female pre-flowers will also form at the junction of branches and stem and will normally start to form at the fourth or fifth branches up from the base. They are easily distinguished by the appearance of pairs of tiny white hairs, known as pistils. At this stage your plant is just about to enter the flowering phase of growth and now is the time to remove the males if you wish to. Flowering As the plant enters the flowering stage its growth patterns and nutrient requirements will change. The vigorous vegetative growth will slow, stems will elongate and flower formation will begin rapidly at first before slowing. Your plant now needs less nitrogen but more potassium and phosphorous so now is a good time to add some ‘super bloom’ fertilizer. Follow the packet instructions for fruiting or flowering plants. The female flowers will start to form kolas around the branch junctions with a main one at the growing tip of the plants. If you look closely you will see the seed pods and these will swell; either with seeds if your plant has been pollinated or with THC as false pods if you have removed the males. As the flowers become ready for harvest the pistils will darken and the seed pods will be swollen and sticky with resin and THC trichomes.
