How to Build a Successful Cannabis Grow

Cultivating cannabis in a commercial setting is far more complex than simply building out some rooms, putting lights up, and watering plants. Growing weed compliantly and profitably in adult-use markets requires both a facility that’s built to the task and consistent execution. In this third installment of our Boots and Suits series, CEO Gary Santo and Head of Product Sean Cute sat down to discuss what it truly takes to build a successful cannabis grow in today’s hypercompetitive industry. Their valuable insights apply to existing operations and new ones alike, so that any cannabis grower can leverage Gary and Sean’s experience to produce more weight with every harvest. 

Want to watch the full video? Check it out here and make sure to subscribe to Rx Green’s YouTube channel for more great content. 

A large room of cannabis plants preparing for flowering

Designing Cannabis Grow Facilities for Success

Long before anything gets planted or the ventilation systems start humming, designing a cannabis grow facility’s floor plan for success starts at the drawing stage. Every building or plot has its own unique characteristics that need to be accounted for (and which are rarely intuited from the beginning). 

If rooms at one end of the building are north-facing, will they be significantly colder than other rooms? It’s likely. Is the ventilation system correctly oriented to the direction the wind blows to work with nature, instead of against it, as temperatures fluctuate throughout the year? It’s worth the effort to figure such things out before the hammers get swung and wrenches get turned. 

It’s essential to work through these small but critical details before submitting construction plans, because “just putting rooms together” often results in expensive change orders and long-term environmental control problems. All of the plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems have to be installed with intentionality to succeed. 

The more closely that rooms can be controlled to support the needs of certain strains, will translate to bigger, better crops. Another suggestion is to have individual feeding reservoirs for each room and combine them with intelligent data collection systems that can help refine inputs during future runs; not all genetics require custom-tailored feedings or temperature cycles, but many do for the best results. 

Finally, because the CapEx required to construct a grow is onerous, cutting corners with cheap, fault-prone equipment is a common mistake many new operators make. Most cultivators are running perpetual harvests, and to produce quality cannabis consistently, the facility needs to work with the team, not against it. While having a space-age buildout is likely not going to be built within budget; banking on budget lights, trays, and cheap substrates is not going to be conducive to high-quality end results.

Mature cannabis buds preparing for harvest that were grown for live oil production

Settings Intention for Every Grow

Every plant cycle should start with an intention. Are you growing for oil production? A top-shelf terpene profile? Maximum yield? Usually, it’s a combination of these things and others, but if the grow team is sleepwalking into every run and room without clearly defined goals established from the jump, less-than-ideal outcomes typically follow. 

For example, is there a schedule established for how long each given block of plants is expected to finish within? Certain genetics can run longer than expected, especially ones that lean heavily in the sativa direction, which can throw off the rhythm of the entire propagation-veg-flower planning if a shorter timeline was anticipated. When the timing is a surprise, it can drive up the cost of the run and quickly eat into margins. While it’s not always possible to know exactly how long a new strain needs to finish, trying to project this aspect is especially critical and requires communication all the way from the time of clones or seeds to harvest to keep everyone on track.

The simplest way to realize congruency throughout rooms and cycles is to have the propagation end of the equation fully dialed in, which in turn leads to better outcomes in veg, and then ultimately flower. Young plants need to be healthy and ready on time for every run. All of this starts with clear and direct intentions that must be communicated from day one so everyone working in cultivation is on the same page.

Having substrates and fertilizers that are reliable makes the job that much easier, which is why Rx Green Technologies is dedicated to providing the best in both categories so that growers don’t have to worry about these key variables.

Rx Green’s RTU coco coir bags being prepared for clones

Pay Attention To The Data or Else

Every successful cannabis grow relies heavily on accurate data coming out of each room for every run. This doesn’t just mean keeping a neatly organized spreadsheet of final yields by strain or room; it also means paying very close attention to key environmental indicators throughout every cycle. Did temperatures accidentally spike because of an HVAC malfunction? Or is vapor pressure deficit not being routinely monitored? 

Cannabis plants need different things at different stages of their growth to do their best. Clones and early seedlings should be subjected to minimal stress to create ideal rooting conditions for stronger growth. In contrast, middle to late flowering plants tend to produce the most resin when they are stressed, since that’s how they’ve naturally evolved to produce trichomes. The only way to carefully manage what they need is to have a strong handle on the environmental capabilities of the facility, determined through regular quality data collection

Having accurate data can also make an impact when things are going wrong. With accurately collected data, the team can carefully comb through information to find solutions. In a real-world scenario Sean encountered, one grow room was consistently having heat problems while another wasn’t. It turned out that it was due to flipping the temperature-affected room on during the day instead of at night, which was easily solved by switching a lighting cycle with the other room overnight, which reduced the cooling burden on the HVAC system. Without having clear data recorded, identifying these sorts of problems expediently becomes that much harder.

Know Your Strains, Know Your Plants

This is a common refrain from the Rx Green blog, but it’s impossible to understate the importance of truly knowing the strains that are being grown and paying close attention to the plants on a daily basis. Growing a strain because it’s extremely popular can be justifiable, but not if that comes without prior research into potential downsides, such as poor resistance to pests, finicky feeding requirements, or a challenging bud structure to process down the line. 

While data collection is key, the numbers and graphs must be supplemented by actual human insights and expertise. Walking the grow and inspecting every plant with some degree of frequency is perhaps the only way to get ahead of issues before they become major problems. No amount of monitoring, sensors, or expensive cultivation software can replace the expert eye, and it’s the combination of science and hands-on experience that makes for the best possible harvest outcomes.

Rx Green coco coir being inspected mid-production run for texture and quality

Find a Partner for Your Supplies Instead of Another Vendor

At Rx Green Technologies, we’re dedicated not to just putting out educational content that helps move the needle in the grow, but to being a holistic solutions partner for your operation. That’s why all of our cannabis growing substrates, nutrients, and additives are carefully developed for the real-world challenges that cultivators face every day. Consistency is the name of the game, and that’s why every product Rx Green offers is tested multiple times throughout production to help our customers grow healthy plants, which means bigger harvests. Contact our cannabis cultivation experts today to start a free trial of our industry-leading supplies.