Believe it or not, there is likely one huge aspect you may have been neglecting when you grow marijuana: Using The Moon and its various phases to Grow Marijuana.
The lunar movements are more important than you might think for all sorts of things, not least of which is your marijuana harvest.
Did you know that some people use the moon as their guide for growing?
In this article, we will go over the various aspects of using the moon to grow marijuana.
Waxing and waning weed using the moon
Everyone knows the moon goes through different phases, known as waxing and waning.
This has to do with the angles involved in the moon’s orbit of the sun and the earth’s orbit of the sun.
When it is waxing, the moon appears to be growing.
It starts with the new moon, then goes to the crescent moon, first-quarter moon, and finally gibbous moon before the full moon takes place.
Four stages of the moon for your grow cycle
After the full moon, next comes the disseminating moon, second-quarter moon, and finally a balsamic moon. The full cycle, from new moon to new moon, takes place within about a month.
It can be broken down into four more major stages (which are relevant for growing marijuana):
new moon to first quarter, first quarter to full moon, full moon to second quarter, and second quarter to new moon.
The moon and your marijuana
So how does this all affect your marijuana plants?
There are several aspects that the lunar movements will affect:
The planting of your marijuana plants, the feeding of the marijuana plants, the removal of weeds, and the harvest of your marijuana plants at the end.
During the waxing period of the moon, your marijuana plants are going to utilize their resources for the growth and development of leaves, stems, and foliage — basically, the parts of the plant that are living above the ground.
Looking for high-quality seeds? Check out our seed bank to buy high-quality seeds for higher yields
During the waning parts of the moon, on the other hand, your marijuana plants will devote most of their energies to developing and growing the root system, or the parts of the plant that are underground.
For this reason, harvesting your marijuana plants is best done when the moon is waxing (since it will have the most energy devoted to the growth of the plant above ground during this time).
The waxing is also the best time to feed your marijuana plants with water, but if you’re giving them nutrients, be sure to dilute them more than usual (unless your plants are suffering from a deficiency of some sort).
Germinate faster using the moon
That being said, the germination of your marijuana seeds is best performed during the waxing or crescent moon phase — they are going to germinate faster and more effectively.
When the moon is in the gibbous phase, your plants will take in more nutrients (because of the moon’s gravitational pull).
Learn to harvest marijuana and some tips and tricks of getting higher yields in my downloadable Harvest Guide!
This is opposite during the balsamic phase when your plant is mostly “resting.” Therefore, the best thing to do during that phase is to prune, kill off weeds, and prepare for the next step.
If you can, always harvest during the new moon. This is because the water content within your plants is at its lowest during the new moon, meaning the next part of the process (drying and curing) will be easier, faster, and less likely to attract mold.
Does moon really help in growing marijuana?
People who pay attention to the science behind the lunar movements have had great success with their marijuana gardens (as well as other types of gardens, for that matter).
Plants are generally healthier and more resistant to diseases, they have a larger harvest at the end, and the early stages of germination and your plants living through the seedling phase are overall less risky.
You have probably heard stories about two growers who started with the same seeds, grew in more or less the same place, and adhered to the same growing guides, but somehow ended up with wildly different results.
There is a chance that the moon is behind this — if one of them were aligned with the moon and the ideal growing practices that go along with it, then they almost certainly had more positive results (barring any other unexpected hurdles such as sudden infestations or extreme weather conditions).
Also read “Growing marijuana in extreme climates“
If you have grown marijuana before, then you know that it grows in spurts rather than consistently — just like animal organisms.
If these growth spurts are aligned with the moon phases, you will have greater success and a higher chance of your plants having a healthier and better season.
It’s all about timing
Luckily the phases of the moon are completely predictable and therefore an entire schedule can be mapped out accordingly. Of course, using the phases of the moon as your guide will never replace good gardening techniques.
You still need to be careful about your watering and nutritional schedule, the weeding and fertilizing, the temperature and humidity levels, and the possibility of any unwanted pests.
So, while the moon will not make or break your marijuana grow, it will certainly influence it — you can help make it a positive influence so that you maximize the harvest of your beloved marijuana plants.
Faq about growing marijuana using the moon
What is waxing and waning?
Moon goes through different phases, known as waxing and waning. When it is waxing, the moon appears to be growing and waning is the exact opposite.
What is the best moon phase for planting marijuana?
Harvesting your marijuana plants is best done when the moon is waxing (since it will have the most energy devoted to the growth of the plant above ground during this time)
During which phase of the moon germination is the fastest?
The germination of your marijuana seeds is best performed during the waxing or crescent moon phase.
Thanks for reading. Don’t forget to download my free grow bible for hands-on grow guidance.
Robert
Thank you for this information. It was very helpful.
Interesting, I’ve done some research into permaculture. You seem to have contradicted yourself regarding peak time to harvest, among other things. As for lunar effect on indoor crops… it absolutely does. Not sure where you are getting your info.
John, You do not transplant auotflowers. You place them in a 3 or 5 gallon pot from the start. Also; Roots are not necessarily traumatized if you know what you are doing. Happy growing 🙂
Jim, No. Happy growing
(based on the Lunar Phases) When is the best time to transplant?
I live in VT and date of last possible frost is usually considered Memorial Day. growing outdoors necessitates using using autoflowering plants and starting indoors. When transplaning, it’s the roots that are most traumatized. I’m thinking that since the waning phase is when root growth is promoted that would be the preferred phase for transplanting.
Thank you for the article, but myself and two others are asking if this would also work for indoor plants in a tent? Thank you.
Read the article about moon phases. Does it also effect indoor grows
Its not just the moon but other celestial bodies as well; see Biodynamic Farming
Great article, interesting ideas.
Have used the solunar table for hunting/fishing. So I need to look at this!
What about cuttings and the moon phases?
Sonoran Pete,
Clones take on the age of the mother, Also they do not have the same internal nutrition and mineral makeup as the seed does. Happy growing.
To all the rest of you; Thanks for sharing! 🙂
i already know about the moon phase’s /it really does make a diffrence /that’s when i do all my fertalizing ,at first a little heavy ,then a little less as the month’s pass
thanks to knowing about the moon I had one by a window that was open where the moon comes up at. 6 pm. with 1200W Super Bright Full Spectrum LED Grow Light for Indoor Plants. 12on 12 off and one in my green room, same light setup the moon one was bigger. and a longer high. now I am setting up my green room, same there sun on it from 7 am to 10 am then just daylight with the light on from 6 am to 6 pm, lights go off. and then the moon is on it 6 pm to 10 pm. HAPPY GROWING
I always start soaking my seeds on the New Moon, pot them a few days later with the Crescent Moon and then repot them into 2 gallon pots on the next New Moon. By the time the next Full Moon comes around the plants are 6 weeks old and about 14 – 18 inches high. I then move them outside into 5 gallon pots on the second New Moon when the plants are 8 weeks old and 18 – 24 inches tall. Seems to work well, though I had a little trouble with some of the girls turning hermaphrodite on my last grow while waiting for the Full Moon to harvest. My gut told me to cut but I wanted to wait for Blue Moon weed.
does the moon phases effect the indoor plants as well?
Discover work of Georges Lakhovsky! He was a Russian agronomist who lived in Paris when he made his discoveries. His work in one sentence (arghh) … Plants are apparently spiritual beings, that are in constant communication with the Earth, and powerful cosmic energies flooding in from above.
Put a simplified Lakhovsky Ring around the base of a plant, open to cosmc energy growing outdoors — for a plant with a trunk of 2 to 3 inch diameter, take a 15 to 20 inch length of insulated single strand wire, for example from a piece of standard 12ga household wiring called Romex. Leave the insulation on! Coil it into a single loop, and overlap the two ends by a few inches, say 3 inches, leaving a half inch gap, plus or minus whatever, between the overlapping ends. The wire loop creates inductance. The overlapping ends creates capacitance. The Lakhovsky coil is a resonating device. For large fruit trees, his loops were bare copper pipe, and they were raised up off the ground by a foot or so. So that’s heavy construction. I can confirm that this works — just lay the coil of insulated wire on the ground, with the plant at center of the loop. Grow the same plant, without a loop a few feet away. The difference will absolutely astound you …
Thanks, M-X! I’ll definitely do this in my garden. Great info I would never have heard of without this post…
Would a magnet under germinating seeds add Gravity or are magnatism & Gravity to different things altogether? Was wondering if placing a 2″ dia. rare earth magnet under the glass during soaking would have any effect.
Magnetism and gravity are two different forces– they’re similar in that no one knows how they work…
The only similarity between gravity and magnetism is that the force they produce is inversely proportional to the square of the distance. Gravity being related to astronomical amouts of mass and magnetism to electrical charges.
My thoughts on your idea is that the magnet may attract ions, which in that case would be against your interest of them going into the seed.
I more or less would work evenings with my plants because of the the summer heat waves and my sensitivity with it, and I felt if I was stressed out from the how hot it was then wouldn’t our plants? So it’s coincidental that this info reflects the same routine we provided and had a great turn out unlike our neighbors unhappy one. (8 plants died and 8 pounds along with it.) very cool article
I have a lot of extra clones growing in my back yard and I must say that they are yealding much more than the grow room and I presume a lot of people are experiencing the same results but before you stop growing under lights and resort to growing outdoors please consider that your grow room is where you create the buds that grow in your back yard. So don’t be greedy. BE CREATIVE! LOVE JOHN XXX
Definitely got better results using moon phases
Good to hear! 😀
What better new moon or full moon to harvest