I’ve got bad news. Every cannabis grower is going to deal with spider mites at some point.  When you get them the first time, the novice grower panics and sprays something—anything, regardless of the stage of the plants in the garden. Instead, here are some tips to keep from having to use and/or misuse toxic pesticides.

How to prevent spider mites

If you don’t have spider mites on your cannabis plants, then congratulations. The first step to preventing spider mites is not getting them. Now this may not be what you want to hear if spider mites are chewing their way through your precious cannabis, but there is hope! These seven steps will keep you from getting them again and again. After all, one way you may have got spider mites in the first place is that you brought them in yourself.

Spider mite cannabis recipe (delicious)

1. Keep other cannabis plants outside your grow space mite free or just get rid of them. Keep your grow room clean and don’t allows pets near your plants.
2. Wear clean clothes that haven’t been outside on in another friends grow room or around pets.
3. Keep other growers out of your grow room.
4. Take your shoes off outside of your grow room.
5. Quarantine new cuttings before you bring them into your grow room.
6. If your cuttings look clean, spray or dip them anyways every three days with an organic oil-based miticide.
7. In a clean room, you should still spray weekly as a preventative measure, focusing on the bottom of the leaves and the lower half of the plant.

How to deal with spider mites

If you spot them during vegetative stage of your cannabis harvest or early flower, then you are in luck.

1. Get high and pluck off every leaf that shows speckling and remove them from the grow area.  That physically removes most of them off your plants. You will notice they a start at the bottom of the plants, so just remove all bottom growth.
2. If your cannabis plants are small you can dip them in an organic oil based miticide. Dipping gives better coverage and coverage is key. If they are too big to dip, spray thoroughly focusing on the underside of the leaves.
3. Repeat your dip/spray every three days to kill any eggs that hatch for 12 days. This will ensure there are no remaining eggs hatch.
4. Go back to weekly preventative sprays up to week two of flower.

Here’s the deal with marijuana seeds. If you have been growing for a while you may have noticed lots of new companies selling marijuana seeds popping up over the past few years. For those of us that have been growing cannabis and searching for better and new genetics know better than to trust these new start-up businesses selling marijuana seeds before doing a little research.

Not all breeders are created equal

First you need to understand that just because someone makes marijuana seeds doesn’t make them a breeder. It is fine to make a cross of two plants you think could mix traits well and create something special. That is what many of these new seed companies are doing. The process is quick to market as many people never test their product to check for hermi traits or otherwise bunk traits before releasing them to the public for top dollar. Believe me, it is an entirely different thing to actually do real breeding.

Good marijuana seeds and genetics take generations

Without going into too much detail, let’s just say to fix a trait into a new line of marijuana seeds takes many generations and large selection populations. It also takes time and money that most are not willing to invest. These breeders go through many rounds of trials before release and never see a dime from their early generations if they deem them not worthy. These breeders have a passion for the plant and their genetics and truly want to give something beneficial to the world.

Keep in mind that one can create tens of thousands of marijuana seeds off a single 1k light. When you multiply that by what a seed retails for, it invites scammers to cash in by creating some hype and dumping some pollen into the flower room. Meanwhile the real breeders making great crosses with integrity must take their time with the process, sometimes at the cost of their bottom line.

Due diligence with seed companies

It is important to research the company selling the marijuana seeds before making a purchase.  Many places online allow you to talk directly to a representative or the breeder.  You can also go to a trade show and speak with breeders face to face. Ask them questions and see if their story checks out.  Also check for reviews online from previous growers.  There are still a lot of shady characters in this industry and they have been attracted to the seed making side of it since it started.  The true breeders have created the genetics that are the foundation of the strains we love today. Support them and their work and your garden will reward you.