Sungrown Timeline

In California we are fortunate to have such ideal conditions for growing a plethora of different crops. When it comes to cannabis, we believe we should apply the same healthy farming principles that we use on the produce we grow to eat. Cannabis has its own growth and harvest times, just like fruits and vegetables.

We hope this Sungrown Timeline helps put the lifecycle of this plant we all love into perspective, from germination to the cured flower on our shelves. 

Germinate

March – June

Germination is the first stage of growing any plant and means to develop or sprout. Cannabis seeds are placed in dark, warm, and humid environments such as between wet paper towels or plates. Seeds are kept this way until a sprout appears.

Transplant

April – July

Transplanting is the act of moving one plant from one location to another location. Once your seeds have sprouted into small plants, it’s time to get them either into the ground or bigger pots. This gives the plants much more room to grow their root systems and begin the growth phase.

Grow

June – October

The growth phase is when the plant is starting to increase in size and change in appearance. This is when the plants begin sprouting many leaves and flower nodes.

Flower

July – October

When a plant is flowering, it is sprouting its reproductive structure. For cannabis, the flower is the entire point. The idea is to get the plant in a state of being ready to reproduce but then not letting it. This is why we separate the male and female plants — if they were to pollinate the cannabis buds would seed which is not the desired effect.

Prune

August – October

Pruning is cutting the plant black to promote further growth and also cleaning up the unnecessary developments eating up the plants energy. The goal is to have as much energy as the plant has going towards growing those flowers. We also want the sun to get to as much of the plant as possible, cleaning up excess water leaves helps the sun reach buds within the plant. De-leafing as much of the water leaf before harvest is very beneficial as well, as it aids in the drying process.

Harvest

October – November

Harvesting is the act of gathering the seasons crop. Either the entire plant is chopped or just the top off the bigger buds. Sometimes this is all done at once, or depending on the variants of the plants, done at different times. The plants must then be hung to dry which can be done whole or the plant can be deconstructed and hung in pieces. After a seven to ten day drying time, the plant can be further deconstructed or “bucked”. This is where the plant is entirely de-leafed and each flower is removed and then trimmed. Trimming can be done by hand or machine with rotating blades.

Cure

November – December

Curing is the process or preserving something. Curing cannabis is super important because it helps preserve the flower so it can be stored over time, while still retaining its unique flavor and potency. This can be done in glass jars or “turkey bags”. During the curing process, the residual moisture and chlorophyll within the buds are leached out, allowing for the cannabis flower to reach the desired state for that particular cannabis strain.