How to Increase Grow Room Efficiency With RTU Bags

In the highly competitive world of commercial cannabis cultivation, mastering efficiency in your grow room isn’t just a strategy — it’s a lifeline.

Increasing profit margins via growing efficiencies can mean staying in business or going out of it, and in many markets, competition is fiercer than ever. That being said, let’s explore how optimizing your grow room efficiency with the right substrates can unlock greater profitability and ensure your business not only survives, but thrives long-term.

What are RTU Bags? Rip. Roll. Plant. Grow.

Meet our “Ready to Use” (RTU) Coco Grow Bags, which are filled with high-quality coco coir and designed to support healthy plant growth throughout every stage. Coco coir substrates are an incredibly popular choice for cannabis cultivation for many reasons. They optimize healthy plant growth, nutrient uptake, and water-use savings. Plus, they are a sustainable and renewable resource that can be composted after use!

With decades of cannabis industry experience and data-backed R&D processes, the team at Rx Green is always looking for cutting-edge solutions to help cultivators work smarter and find competitive advantages. That’s why the newest product in our lineup harnesses all these benefits of coco coir substrates — but with an added ease that increases efficiency in your grow room.

Our RTU Coco Grow Bags come with a tear-open top, allowing you to simply Rip open the bag, Roll it down a few times, Plant your plants, and watch them Grow to their full canopy potential.

Benefits of RTU Bags

In addition to ease of use, Rx Green’s RTU bags make it possible for you to:

Increase labor efficiency. Make the initial transfer from the freight pallet to the grow table easier for your operations team, and work in the grow room easier for your cultivation team.
With no need to transfer plants to larger pots as they grow, no extra steps, and no additional mess to clean up, our RTU bags help reduce the time and labor related to transplanting and turning over grow rooms.

Keep your grow room clean. A larger base allows the plant’s roots more room to wrap around the inside of the bag, making it less likely to tip over. Small, partially punched drainage holes are evenly dispersed around the outside of the bag for multi-directional drainage, designed to keep coco in and let water out. This eliminates messy puddles on the bag’s sides and bottom. The green color on the outside of these bags helps to hide dirt while also shielding the inside of the bag from sunlight and other external factors to prevent algae growth.

Gain trust in your supply chain. Our RTU bags come filled with OMRI-listed clean, buffered coco coir sourced only from RHP-certified sources. This coco is stored inside and shipped via covered trucks and shipping containers, ensuring protection from environmental toxins and pests. Our 3rd party lab partners test for pH, EC, mineral content, heavy metals, pesticide residue, and microbials. Gain peace of mind knowing your substrates are clean and tested.

Fit your unique operation. Currently available in both 1-gallon and 2-gallon sizes, both bag sizes feature the same width and base dimensions so cultivators can choose the size that works best for them. Depending on your preference, RTU bags come filled with either 100% pure, buffered coco coir or a 70/30 blend of 70% coco coir and 30% coarse perlite. Looking for a particular mix? We’re happy to talk about custom formulations!

Reduce environmental waste. Instead of bulk purchasing soil, coco coir, starter pots, or other growing supplies needed for each new cultivation cycle, our RTU bags are an all-in-one solution. Coco coir can also be composted after use, or used as a top dressing for raised beds and field soil to increase organic matter and moisture retention in heavy clay or sandy soils.

How Our RTU Bags Drive Grow Room Efficiency

With all of these combined benefits, RTUs maximize your overall business efficiencies and cost of goods while reducing labor and environmental waste.

In fact, in a recent study conducted on growing in RTU bags vs. growing in rock wool, RTUs produced a 40% higher yield with 60% less water usage on average. This shows that you can grow quality cannabis affordably and efficiently — all without cutting corners or causing additional environmental impacts. View further details of the study below.

Analysis Methods Between RTU Bags and rock wool

• Total plant weight was collected for each individual plant at the time of harvest, and these values were used to perform a t-test analysis of the difference between Rx Green coco and rock wool growing substrates. Because of this, t-test analysis only indicated if the testing variable was likely responsible for the biomass increase or decrease observed.
• Grams per square foot values were projected at the time of harvest based on historical data for drying and trimming rates.
• Total cannabis values include all usable material collected, whether used for extractions or flower products. Yield comparisons highlighted in green indicate a difference in which Rx Green outcompeted rock wool, while red highlighted cells indicate a difference in which Rx Green did not outperform rock wool.
• In the Figure 1 Rx Green Coco Test – Yields bar chart comparison, the test group was harvested as top cuts only, while the control group had some wet trim bud weight. This is why you will see 100% less bud weight in the test group, but 125% more top cut weight.
• Fertilizer feed usage per plant was recorded throughout the trial to determine the difference in the number of gallons utilized during the trial. In the comparison table, cells highlighted in green indicate cases where Rx Green coco required fewer gallons than rock wool. It is assumed that the percent cost difference would be roughly equal to the difference in water usage.

Yield Comparison
Figure 1. Bar graph displaying the harvested yield metrics from each experimental group.

Table 1. Yield comparisons between the test group that was planted in Rx Green coco and the control group that was planted in rock wool.

Table 2. T-test analysis of the difference in total plant weight.

Summary of Findings: RTU Bags vs. rock wool
The above study concludes that plants grown in Ready-To-Use bags produced overall higher yields with less water usage on average compared to those grown in rock wool. Additional findings concluded that plants grown in Ready-To-Use bags resulted in:

• Higher average plant weight
• Higher average total cannabis weight
• Higher average top-cut weight
• Higher average wet bud weight

Ready to “Get Ripped” — AND Level Up Your Grow Room Efficiency?

Ready to see these types of results in your own garden? We’re here to help you meet your efficiency goals so you can focus on what you do best — growing great cannabis. Explore our full line of commercial cannabis cultivation supplies or contact our team of experts to schedule a product trial and get started now!