The capacity to diagnose and treat various plant problems is necessary for anybody involved in crop production. You can remedy many diseases with early intervention before considerable productivity is lost. Making an early and correct diagnosis is critical to taking early action. Plant disorders are classified into insect or disease pests, agronomic difficulties, and environmental circumstances. Despite these evident distinctions, specific symptoms in one category might be mistaken for those in another. This can complicate diagnosis and increase the probability of an inaccurate diagnosis. Cannabis wind burn is one manifestation of this issue. When present on cannabis, it might lead growers to believe it is a variety of other problems. Let’s look at how you can tell if you have a wind burn problem rather than something else and see if plants can recover from windburn.
Understanding cannabis wind burn
Cannabis wind burn is one of the difficulties that your plants may experience. It is more typical among beginning farmers that cultivate their cannabis indoors. Growers must use fans to ensure that cannabis plants have continual air circulation inside. The issue develops when your fans are too close to your plants. The intense direct breeze from the fans might harm your crop, causing cannabis wind burn. It’s not a big deal to catch the grow tent ventilation difficulties early on. You will only lose some leaves if you act quickly. Restore the health of your cannabis plant, and it will continue to thrive and yield an abundant crop. Allowing the stress to remain might reduce the output of your wind burn plants. You can avoid this problem in the future if you follow our advice on how to deal with it.
How does cannabis wind burn occur
Cannabis wind burn occurs when your plants receive too much of a good thing. Your crop needs proper ventilation to grow and flourish. Wind can harm your plant’s leaves if it is too powerful. This typically occurs indoors when fans are used to simulate outside conditions. New growers frequently create cannabis wind burn because they position their fans too close to their cannabis crop or because the breeze is too strong.
What does cannabis wind burn look like on your leaves?
Cannabis plant wind burn, like many other plant problems, can express itself in a variety of ways. One typical result is the formation of clawed leaves. Imagine the leaf as a hand attempting to grip anything beneath it, and you’ll have a sense of what clawed leaves look like. Burnt leaf margins are another typical sign. Growers don’t want cannabis leaves to burn before they’re intended to, but excessive air movement might cause that to happen. When cannabis leaf wind burn is present, the leaf edges turn brown, indicating a lack of water. Wind burn can also limit plant growth. The stress caused by a lack of water interferes with the natural development that they should be producing, resulting in smaller plants.
Additionally, wind burn can cause leaf patches that resemble insect or disease damage. A closer look reveals that they are only seen in regions where fans substantially influence the leaves. Drooping leaves are another typical indication of wind burn. Water is essential to keeping the plant upright, and when water moves too quickly through the stem, the cells do not retain enough water to provide robust support.
Preventing cannabis wind burn on your plants
Plan your grow space arrangement
Plan to maximize your available space while setting up a grow area to create the most yield possible. Avoid cramming too many plants into small, crowded places unless you’re employing a Sea of Green (SOG) technique. By positioning fans too close to your plants, you risk causing cannabis wind burn. Check for locations where your fans aren’t reaching and modify their placement as your plants grow and fill out your grow space.
Set up your fans
When determining where to position your fans for maximum coverage, ensure they don’t blast too much air at your plant, causing cannabis wind burn. To minimize stale air buildup, don’t leave any areas unventilated. Your aim is to ensure that fresh air travels between the canopy of your plants and the grow lights. The optimum fan location gives wind from all sides to your plants. You may also position them at various heights. Set your fans to oscillate for wind burn avoidance since they produce a pleasant breeze and enough airflow without blowing directly at a specific spot for an extended period.
Additionally, utilize fans with multiple air speed settings to allow you to modify the wind speed as needed. Leaves should vibrate rather than swing violently. Moving your fans closer to your plants or reducing wind speed if this occurs. Avoid cannabis wind burn by directing your fans away from your plant’s leaves and toward a wall. You may also need to experiment to locate the best location for indirect airflow to all of your crops.
Protect your seedlings and clones
Seedlings and clones need special attention and protection against cannabis wind burn. Because they are young and delicate plants, keep your fans at a safe distance. Avoid directing your fans directly towards them during the first 2-3 weeks. It’s better to provide them with indirect airflow by directing your fans to blow against a wall. Additionally, after the interval, you can progressively introduce direct airflow.
Can your cannabis plants recover from wind burn?
Cannabis plants are pretty resilient. They can typically overcome many disease if you address their challenges and provide them with the attention they require. You’ll be able to assist your cannabis plant in recovery after you understand how to cure wind burn. Removing the dried leaves may look worn out, but you may reduce the likelihood of a lesser yield by vegging your crop for an extended period to compensate for the time it was stressed. Keep an eye on the plant while it recovers from cannabis wind burn. Because the afflicted leaves will be dehydrated, provide lots of water. Also, leave the foliage that has suffered the least amount of harm alone. It will recover if the source of the wind burn is removed. The scorched edges will fall off, but the remaining leaves will flourish.
Treating cannabis wind burn on your plants
Although cannabis wind burn damage cannot be reversed, you may help your plant recover from the stress by addressing and providing it with lots of TLC. Here’s how to treat wind burn:
- Prune your cannabis crop: There’s little you can do to revive the leaves of a wind burn cannabis crop. Eliminate the damaged or dead foliage. Then take steps to restore the plant’s health.
- Protect your leaves from drying up: To safeguard your cannabis plant, spray it with an anti-desiccant. Some goods can aid in osmosis, transpiration, and photosynthesis.
- Change the fan settings: Adjust your fan settings to ensure that air flows above and under the plant. Its leaves should rustle lightly in the air. Do not point a fan toward your crop. Wind may induce cannabis wind burn, which damages the leaves. If possible, turn the fan away from the plants and toward the wall. Examine your growing area for spots where the air is stagnant or hasn’t enough wind, and adjust your fans as needed.
Other problems you can mistake for cannabis wind burn
Wind burn can make you think it’s something else. Here are a few examples:
- Nitrogen toxicity: Too much nitrogen nutrients causes the center of the leaf to develop quicker than the margins. This might result in clawed leaves. The simplest method to tell the difference between clawing from nitrogen and clawing from wind burn is that nitrogen toxicity affects the entire plant, but wind burn is limited to places with high air movement.
- Under watering: A plant that lacks water will exhibit broad wilt and browning rather than damage localized in the air pathways formed by fans. You may also use your finger to test the wetness of the soil. It should be wet rather than dry.
- Overwatering: Overwatering will also induce wilting since the plant will struggle to manage how much water it pulls up from the roots. It will cause widespread symptoms rather than being limited to the flow route of the fans.
How much wind is adequate in a grow tent?
Before you set up your growing space, you must understand how much wind in a grow tent is optimum for your cannabis plants. There should be enough airflow between the grow lights and your crop’s canopy. The breeze should cause the leaves of your plant to flutter. If you observe the leaves waving wildly, you have too much wind and risk getting cannabis wind burn on your plant.
Before you set up your growing space, you must understand how much wind in a grow tent is optimum for your cannabis plants. There should be adequate airflow between your grow lights and the crop’s canopy. The breeze should cause the leaves of your plant to flutter. If you observe the leaves waving wildly, you have too much wind and risk getting cannabis wind burn on your plant.