The shortage of marijuana products at various Illinois stores has startled patients like David Kurfman, who desperately needs the medication. But David decided to look for a solution. He decided to grow marijuana in his home to ensure that he has adequate cannabis supply to control his chronic epilepsy condition.
Kurfman has been using marijuana to control his seizures without debilitating prescription drugs. He decided to sidetrack from other patients and is currently taking cannabis without a prescription. Hence he believes that growing marijuana at home will enable him to get the CBD oil from hemp affordably.
He has mastered the art of mixing the CBD oil with the THC in the ratio of 2:1 to relieve the seizures. Based on the new state law, patients in need of medical marijuana can grow cannabis at home, making the drug readily available and affordable. Kurfman explained that it is expensive to grow marijuana at home.
A deluxe grow room that is well-equipped with the ideal conditioners like lighting and fans costs almost $5,000 to set up. The shortage of Marijuana in Illinois has caused challenges to many patients, but growing it at home offers a viable solution to the problem. Most patients are now taking advantage of the state law and are growing marijuana at domestically.
The Marijuana Law
Currently, marijuana is grown in the enclosed and locked spaces in residential buildings away from public view since growing cannabis at home is still illegal in the state. The patients who grow marijuana at home can keep their surplus produce safely at home, but they should avoid selling it since it is still illegal.
The law prohibits the public from growing marijuana for recreational purposes since the commercial growers complained it was being sneaked in the market. Hence, only medical users are allowed to grow cannabis at home. The law provides that medical seeds should be licensed from the dispensaries. However, there are complaints that the farmers do not certify the seeds.
In 2015, the law legalized the sale of marijuana in pots by the commercial growers to ensure the seedlings are of high quality since the state law does not allow transportation of the seeds and plants. Different stakeholders are proposing that patients grow female plants generated from the clones to prevent the seeds from sapping energy from the buds.
People growing marijuana privately are facing similar situations where they have to buy the bunks of the seeds from the online platform. The state law still prohibits the growing of marijuana. Still, police rarely visit homes to search for the plant unless they suspect it is being used for commercial purposes in big states like California and Colorado.
Marijuana Growing
As for now, the cultivators are educating each other online platforms such as the Illinois Medical Cannabis Review Guide, which provide advice on the seed banks. The highest cost of growing marijuana is incurred while souring seeds and plants. Also, setting up a greenhouse costs considerable amounts, although most users prefer indoor growing operation, which costs much less.
Online organizations such as Fremont College and Leafly advise farmers on how to grow marijuana from the time they are seedlings to maturity.
Marijuana grows in four distinct stages, which include germination, seedling, vegetative, and flowering. Thus, farmers must be procedural in each step to enhance the growing process.
The basic necessity for growing the plant is a clean, dry, dark space that is mostly covered with the tents. Notably, the plants are separated to provide critical care in each stage. The seeds are placed on moist papers, towels, or soil to sprout. The soil is provided with the right nutrients to strengthen the seedling.
The plants grow foliage in about 18 hours or less and then enter the vegetation stage where they grow in light for between two to eight weeks. Marijuana starts flowering from eighth to the twelfth week when the light is cut back by up to 12 hours to signify the summer period.
The marijuana plants start budding while producing cannabinoids like THC and CBD in the right conditions. Kurfman has furnished his first stores to rescue his situation and those of others in need. He used most of the money to build a full spectrum commercial grade for pair $1500, 645 watts LED lights and more than $1,000 for construction materials and gardening materials.
Marijuana is grown similarly to tomatoes, but it needs stricter conditions of light, nutrients, and water. In the final stages, marijuana requires fine pruning and aerated with hot air with the fan and duct. When grown in the right way, one plant of hemp can produce a pound pot once every two weeks.
Many growers are using trial and error at homes, which results in raising small-scale cannabis crops. Patients and stakeholders have continued to push for the legalization of pots to increase the availability of the product.
