"The foundation for each cultivation is laid during the cutting phase"

In 2021 it will finally come to pass in the Netherlands: legally grown cannabis for coffeeshops. Within the "Experiment closed coffeeshop chain" a maximum of ten, state-appointed, growers will produce legal cannabis that will be sold in 10 different municipalities. This experiment will last for a minimum of 4 years and may be extended with one year if the results are positive.

Despite the fact that the Netherlands is known around the world for its cannabis retail, there appears to be relatively little knowledge about the large-scale cultivation of cannabis in the legal sector. This is in contrast to knowledge about the cultivation of any other crop, in which the Netherlands is at the forefront. Maybe that is why many Dutch companies are attracted by North American growers to design and develop professional cultivation facilities. As a result, more and more Dutch companies are becoming known in the cannabis industry.

The importance of the cutting phase
After germination, or cloning (depending on the cultivation method), the plants enter the cutting phase. In this phase, it is particularly important that the root development comes to fruition. Studies have shown that the cuttings root optimally at a day length of 18 hours. A longer day length can shorten the cutting phase but will have a negative influence on the rooting of the cuttings.

Light4Food has been active in the North American cannabis market for several years now and successfully installed cutting rooms. This indoor growing concept is provided with docking stations to which specially designed trolleys can be connected. Within these indoor cells an optimal climate can be realized for these plants. These cells are easy to place at any grower's production site. Both for small and large growers, in greenhouses or fully indoors.

The most important part within this concept takes place in the four-layer trolleys: the rooting. To this end, a nutrition plan in combination with a lighting and climatological plan has been developed, which evolves with the needs of the cuttings daily. In the first seven days, the plant is most vulnerable and needs to root. The second phase is mainly used to harden off the cuttings and make them resilient. These phases each require different lighting as well as different climatic conditions and they gradually merge into each other.

The sensitivity of this phase and the fact that it is very specific is also shown by the different success rates of these cuttings. As the market is developing, the common failure rate in the market is still up to 20 percent. With its concept, Light4Food is already able to achieve minimum success rates of 95%. First of all, this will save expenses on the purchase of cuttings/clones or seeds. But, more importantly, this cultivation method results in a healthy and strong plant that is used as a basis for a balanced cultivation of both recreational and medicinal cannabis.

The concept consists of a cloning room with one or more docking stations. Trolleys, each with a capacity of 1,248 plugs, are connected to these. This concept can easily be scaled up. For example, more than 10,000 cuttings are grown at an American grower every week with this concept.