The Beans-to-Greens Grow Guide: Step 1

The Funky Beans Method

Cannabis that you have grown at home, with your own hands…it just ~hits~ a little different. When you’re consuming a commercially-grown product, you’re getting bud at its final stage. But, what if you could have a hand in every step of its life cycle? What if you could take your time and enjoy the craft of growing cannabis at home, not only cultivating the plants themselves but the culture that reared them?

Here at Funky Beans, we’re celebrating the process and the people behind the plant that keeps us feeling groovy. Years of expert-sourcing, technique refinement, and product-control (hey, we do what we have to) has led to the development of our easy, Beans-to-Greens Growing Method.

The best part? This method is for everyone. We mean…EVERYone. If you struggle to keep a cactus alive – we see you, Cactus-Killers and we’ll get you growing cannabis in no time. If you’re a marijuana master just trying to pick up new strains, we’ve got all of the supportive intel and plenty of premium product to choose from (pssssttt…check out our Secret Stash seedscription service for access to our basement bank).

Almost all of the tools you’ll need to be a successful home-grower can be found in a hardware store or inexpensively online. These techniques focus on fostering a naturally nutritive and optimal environment in which your cannabis plants can thrive (more on this in Step 2!).

Poppin’ Beans: Germination

Now that you have your seeds, it’s time to get poppin’. Taking beans from their unimposing, little, round, brown selves to a fully mature, healthy adult plant starts with one simple, but vital step: germination.

Germination catalyzes the process, telling your seeds that conditions are prime and it’s go-time for growing.

But, before you pop those beans, give them a glance-over for quality. Healthy seeds will be brown in color and some will have stripes; their integrity will be reflected in their robust adult counterparts. Unhealthy seeds are pale in color and sometimes white; they may still germinate but would result in proportionally weaker plants.

Stuff You’ll Need:

1. A drinking glass or some kind of smaller vessel that will hold water
2. Distilled, tap, or well (not city) room-temperature water

Swimmer seeds: Conditions + Method

Germination activates seeds, taking them from their dormant state to their operative growing phase. This begins with the appearance of the taproot, a little tail with a big function. It’s the plant’s first and main root appendage, responsible for absorbing key nutrients in the plant’s earliest stages of life. From it, all of the plant’s roots will radiate to become the root zone. The taproot will only “pop” from the protective shell when conditions are optimal, which we have found is easiest to achieve with simply a glass of water and healthy, quality seeds. Here’s our preferred method:

Fill a glass partway
with water.

Add your seeds, no
more than 20 , to the
water.

Find a dark place to
leave it at room
temperature (this is
important! 71-77ºF).

Wait 24-48 hours,
then check your seeds
for a tail.

And though it may take up to 5 days, only move the seeds from their germination phase when the taproot is at least 2 or 3 times the length of the seed. Planting the seeds prematurely means the plant has to expend energy catching up to the process.

While we have found that the water glass technique for germinating seeds tends to render pretty consistent results, some seeds can be a little…stubborn. If, after 3 or so days, if there are seeds still haven’t popped, remove them from the water and try this alternate method:

An Alternate Method

1. Take a dry paper towel and fold it several times so that it will hold moisture.
2. Dampen it with water, ensuring that it’s wet, but not dripping.
3. Place the towel on a plate or piece of plastic, then add your seeds within the folds of the paper towel.
4. Store it in a dark place and check that the towel doesn’t dry out; it can be re-dampened easily with a spray bottle.
5. Within about 24-48 hours, your seed should have germinated.

After at least 5 days, we recommend ditching any seeds that haven’t popped. By only planting the seeds that display vitality, you’re exercising an early opportunity to cull your crop for quality.