Cannabis Farming
How to Grow, Harvest, and Process Organic, Field-Grown Cannabis
Published on 11. February 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-1-63586-826-5 (ISBN)
Description
Start your own organic cannabis farm with this complete how-to manual written by two farmers with a decade of experience growing cannabis in the field.
Now is the perfect time to start growing cannabis for profit. Cannabis is rapidly being decriminalized across the country, causing a surge in consumer demand and enabling growers to cultivate cannabis in the open, rather than secretly in greenhouses. Field-grown cannabis is easier to grow organically and requires fewer inputs, and the newer varieties used in field cultivation mature more quickly than traditional cultivars, meaning less cultivation time is needed in the field.
Whether you're a small-scale vegetable farmer who wants to add a high-value crop or a home cannabis grower who wants to expand their operation, authors Adam Davidoff and Ryan Power can help you get growing. They were some of the first vegetable farmers in California to start growing cannabis as a field crop, and have even developed their own cannabis strains that are adapted to field growing rather than indoor cultivation-specifically, those that don't need a set amount of sunlight in order to flower. Called "autoflowering" or "day-neutral" varieties, they are capable of reaching a harvestable stage in as little as 60 days. Over the last ten years, Davidoff and Power have developed expertise that few others have. In Cannabis Farming, they pass on their knowledge to allow you to grow, harvest, and process cannabis in the field using all organic methods.
Now is the perfect time to start growing cannabis for profit. Cannabis is rapidly being decriminalized across the country, causing a surge in consumer demand and enabling growers to cultivate cannabis in the open, rather than secretly in greenhouses. Field-grown cannabis is easier to grow organically and requires fewer inputs, and the newer varieties used in field cultivation mature more quickly than traditional cultivars, meaning less cultivation time is needed in the field.
Whether you're a small-scale vegetable farmer who wants to add a high-value crop or a home cannabis grower who wants to expand their operation, authors Adam Davidoff and Ryan Power can help you get growing. They were some of the first vegetable farmers in California to start growing cannabis as a field crop, and have even developed their own cannabis strains that are adapted to field growing rather than indoor cultivation-specifically, those that don't need a set amount of sunlight in order to flower. Called "autoflowering" or "day-neutral" varieties, they are capable of reaching a harvestable stage in as little as 60 days. Over the last ten years, Davidoff and Power have developed expertise that few others have. In Cannabis Farming, they pass on their knowledge to allow you to grow, harvest, and process cannabis in the field using all organic methods.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Workman Publishing
Product notice
Paperback (UK-trade)
Dimensions
Height: 250 mm
Width: 201 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
698 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-63586-826-5 (9781635868265)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Adam Davidoff | Ryan Power
Cannabis Farming
How to Grow, Harvest, and Process Organic, Field-Grown Cannabis
E-Book
02/2025
Storey Publishing, LLC
€16.99
Available for download
Persons
Adam Davidoff, Ryan Power, and William Hancock own New Family Farm in Sebastopol, California. Davidoff and Power were among the first growers to cultivate cannabis in a standard agricultural production system, inventing novel production techniques, tractor equipment, labor processes, and post-harvest technology. Recognizing the need for cannabis seed with the right genetics for field growing, they started Atlas Seed. They can be found online at thenewfamilyfarm.com and atlasseed.com.
Content
Preface: Our Origin Story
Why We Wrote This Book
Introduction: It Helps to Have Chutzpah
Agronomic Mindset: Cannabis Is a Crop
Section 1: Planning - Late Winter to Early Spring
1 Genetics
Terpenes
Potency
How to Select Genetics
Light Cycle and Flower Maturation
Three Light Cycle Types Detailed
Seasonal and Environmental Genetics Considerations
Using Clones
Using Feminized Seed
What We Do
What This Means for You
2 Plant Nutrition and Fertility Management
The Living Soil Approach
Using Cover Crops
Choosing Amendments
Putting It All Together
3 Managing Insect and Fungi
A Healthy Ecosystem
A Plant-Positive Approach
Close Looking
Appropriate Pest Mitigation
Controlling Fungus
Cultural Practices
Section 2: Planting - Spring
4 Tillage and Field Prep
Effective Tillage Techniques
Leveling the Field
Shaping Beds
Plastic Mulch Considerations
5 Propagation
Starting Autoflower Seeds
Starting Full-Term and Semi-Full-Term Seeds
Seeding
Ideal Germination Temperatures
Light Requirements
Soil Fertility
Days to Transplant
Hardening Off
6 Planting Your Crop
Transplanting
Transplant Shock
Planting Full-Terms and Clones
Managing Transplants
Direct Sowing
Plant Spacing
Section 3: Crop Management - Summer
7 Watering and Weeding
Determining Watering Needs
Overhead Irrigation
Drip Tape Irrigation
Cultivating to Kill Weeds
8: Canopy Management
Topping
Trellising
Pruning
De-leafing
9: Pollen Management
Self-Pollination
Male Pollination
Pollen Drift
Breeding for Sterile Plants
10: Implementing a Spray Program
Sprayer Types
Spray Products
Spray Timing
Foliar Feeding
Section 4: Harvest, Storage, and Processing - Fall and Winter
11: Harvest
Recognizing Your Harvest Window
Other Harvesting Variables
Preparing for the Harvest
Product: Extraction
Product: Fresh Frozen
Product: Smokable Flower or Dry Extraction
Getting the Crop In
Estimating Harvest Costs
12: Post-Harvest
The Ideal Dry Space
Drying Cycle
How to Tell When Your Crop Is Dry
Curing
Storage
13: Processing the Product
Bucking Dry Material
Trimming
Grading
Packaging and Final Storage
Epilogue
The Future of Cannabis Products
Evolving Cultivation Systems and Mechanization
The Future of Genetics
A Plant Unlike Any Other
Appendix I: The Effect of Regulation on Cultivation Culture
Modern Regulations - Canopy Taxes, Acreage Limits, and How These Change Cultivation
Appendix II: Cannabis Aroma Families
Understanding and Categorizing Cannabis Varieties by Aromas, Terpenes, Smell Compounds, and Genetic Lineages
Acknowledgments
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
Why We Wrote This Book
Introduction: It Helps to Have Chutzpah
Agronomic Mindset: Cannabis Is a Crop
Section 1: Planning - Late Winter to Early Spring
1 Genetics
Terpenes
Potency
How to Select Genetics
Light Cycle and Flower Maturation
Three Light Cycle Types Detailed
Seasonal and Environmental Genetics Considerations
Using Clones
Using Feminized Seed
What We Do
What This Means for You
2 Plant Nutrition and Fertility Management
The Living Soil Approach
Using Cover Crops
Choosing Amendments
Putting It All Together
3 Managing Insect and Fungi
A Healthy Ecosystem
A Plant-Positive Approach
Close Looking
Appropriate Pest Mitigation
Controlling Fungus
Cultural Practices
Section 2: Planting - Spring
4 Tillage and Field Prep
Effective Tillage Techniques
Leveling the Field
Shaping Beds
Plastic Mulch Considerations
5 Propagation
Starting Autoflower Seeds
Starting Full-Term and Semi-Full-Term Seeds
Seeding
Ideal Germination Temperatures
Light Requirements
Soil Fertility
Days to Transplant
Hardening Off
6 Planting Your Crop
Transplanting
Transplant Shock
Planting Full-Terms and Clones
Managing Transplants
Direct Sowing
Plant Spacing
Section 3: Crop Management - Summer
7 Watering and Weeding
Determining Watering Needs
Overhead Irrigation
Drip Tape Irrigation
Cultivating to Kill Weeds
8: Canopy Management
Topping
Trellising
Pruning
De-leafing
9: Pollen Management
Self-Pollination
Male Pollination
Pollen Drift
Breeding for Sterile Plants
10: Implementing a Spray Program
Sprayer Types
Spray Products
Spray Timing
Foliar Feeding
Section 4: Harvest, Storage, and Processing - Fall and Winter
11: Harvest
Recognizing Your Harvest Window
Other Harvesting Variables
Preparing for the Harvest
Product: Extraction
Product: Fresh Frozen
Product: Smokable Flower or Dry Extraction
Getting the Crop In
Estimating Harvest Costs
12: Post-Harvest
The Ideal Dry Space
Drying Cycle
How to Tell When Your Crop Is Dry
Curing
Storage
13: Processing the Product
Bucking Dry Material
Trimming
Grading
Packaging and Final Storage
Epilogue
The Future of Cannabis Products
Evolving Cultivation Systems and Mechanization
The Future of Genetics
A Plant Unlike Any Other
Appendix I: The Effect of Regulation on Cultivation Culture
Modern Regulations - Canopy Taxes, Acreage Limits, and How These Change Cultivation
Appendix II: Cannabis Aroma Families
Understanding and Categorizing Cannabis Varieties by Aromas, Terpenes, Smell Compounds, and Genetic Lineages
Acknowledgments
Glossary
Bibliography
Index