So, you’re busy taking care of your new young cannabis plant, and everything seems fine with the plant. But one day, you suddenly wake up to find that, for whatever reason, your leaves have started curling, just like a corn taco shell.
What the heck is going on here? Is the plant not getting enough water? If so, why has it only started curling now? Will I damage it if I try adding more? If this sounds like you and your little bud plant, you’re not alone.
One of the most common questions and concerns that many intrepid cannabis growers have been that their pot leaves are curling up. So it’s not just an isolated problem. Luckily, we have just the article for you here!
Not only will we explain to you what exactly is wrong with your cannabis plant and its leaves, but also how to spot the signs for it early. And, of course, we’ll show you how you can fix this problem on your own!
Why Are My Leaves Clawing?
So, let’s get the big question out of the way first. What exactly is causing the leaves of your cannabis plant to curl up like claws? Well, if you ask a cannabis plant expert, they’ll give you a few likely answers that could be causing your problems. See which one fits your problem best!
Calcium & Magnesium Deficiency
Probably one of the most likely causes for your leaves curling up on your cannabis is the lack of calcium or magnesium in their soil, two minerals that are essential to your plant’s well-being.
These nutrients would normally travel up the stem of the plant through osmosis or diffusion, where they help with cell diffusion and plant growth. So, needless to say, they’re important minerals!
This can be an issue, even if you’re putting plenty of claim or magnesium supplements in your soil if the pH rating of the soil isn’t ideal for your plant. It could be the very opposite: You’re giving them too much!
Because of the mineral imbalance that soil could have when it has too much calcium or magnesium in it, it could become too acidic for a plant to absorb any nutrients.
What Does Calcium & Magnesium Deficiency Look Like In Pot Plants?
So, is there any way to tell if there is an issue with the concentration of calcium and magnesium? Well, besides the obvious leaves clawing, the best way to tell if there aren’t enough of these nutrients in your plant is to look at the colors of the leaves and stem.
The stem will be turning a faded purple color, usually just before you’ll also see the leaves curling. If this is the case, you may need to treat your soil in some way to get rid of this problem (more on that later).
Humidity/Heat Stress
If it isn’t the previous issue, then the most common issue that can afflict your pot plant is that the plant is experiencing an extreme amount of both hot and cold heat. Cannabis plants require a pretty stable warm temperature, but not an overly humid environment.
Plants that start to curl and dry up can often be a sign that they aren’t in their ideal conditions. This often leads to a secondary issue that crops up.
Because people realize that their plants are experiencing heat extremes, their first action will often be to compensate by watering their plants more. And this is often the worst thing that you can do, and leads to an even worse clawing effect!
How To Fix Pot Leaves Clawing/Curling?
So, we have the ‘why’ to our cannabis plants curling up like taco shells. Now, all we need to know is ‘how’ to fix that!
Neutralize The pH
This answer will be a great fix if there is an acidity or nutrient imbalance in your soil. Because plants can often acclimatize their roots to their soil and vice versa, the best way to treat this is to bring your overall acidity level back to a neutral pH rating, around 6/6.5/7 on the scale.
To do this, you can simply replace the current soil in your pot with fresh new soil, then slowly add the calcium and magnesium back into it.
Keep A Constant Environment
While the exact amount will vary from variety, cannabis plants don’t like massive changes to their growing environment, as we already mentioned.
Make sure that, if you are changing aspects of the environment around the plants, such as the lighting, temperature, humidity, or how tightly packed the growing plants are, you change the aspects one at a time.
That way, you’ll be better able to triangulate what exactly is the issue for your bud plants!
Maintain A Good Water Cycle
If you’re trying to solve the water issue that you may be having with your cannabis plant, the best method isn’t to try and overcompensate for any under or overwatering that you are doing. Instead, you need to develop a good cycle and routine for giving your plant moisture.
Better Research
There are a lot of pot plants out there, so it can be confusing to keep track of the best-growing conditions for each plant. So, it’s completely understandable that a few details may or may not be understood when first buying one of these plants, or even that there are different varieties!
Make sure that you’re doing your research before you decide on a single plant variety to grow. You’ll better understand what conditions the soil and humidity should be in.
Early Harvest
If all else fails, and your plant still has leaves left, make sure that you harvest what you can from the plant. You don’t want to lose the good leaves that are still there, right?
Final Notes
So, as you can see, there are a potential few issues that could be wrong with your cannabis plant, none of them being good. From checking the soil acidity nice and neutral to keep the temperature stable, and a regular watering cycle, there’s plenty that you’ll need to keep track of.
Thankfully, if they are caught early enough, it should be too difficult to save the plant before things become unsalvageable.
Hi, I’m Zack Finch and I work as a Budtender for a Health & Wellness center here, in sunny California. I have been using marijuana recreationally for around 6 years now, and have many a time enjoyed the benefit that weed has to offer.
Whether you’re looking for informational guides about edibles, vape oil, CBD, how to roll a cross joint, the best blunt wraps, anything you can think of, I’ll cover it here.
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