Powdery mildew on buds after harvest is a serious concern for cannabis growers, and for good reason. This severe blight is one of the top causes of cannabis plant destruction. The key to beating this threat is to keep it from getting anywhere near your plants in the first place. Of course, you say, but how? By eradicating it from your grow areas before it can trash your crops. Keep reading to learn how to handle powdery mildew on buds after harvest.
What is Powdery Mildew?
Powdery mildew is a fungal disease that presents as a gray or white powder generated by the fungi spores. It usually first appears on the cannabis leaves and quickly migrates to the marijuana buds. Just before the powder shows up, it can produce small blisters on the tops of leaves. Most often, the powdery mildew spores are spread through the air of the growing areas. Occasionally, they can be spread by humans, tools, or animals brushing against the plants. This airborne pathogen does well in areas of high humidity and cool to moderate temperatures. It also likes crowded growing conditions. Usually, the spores kick off by going after young leaves on mature plants or just younger plants. It will very quickly spread to the entire plant. Besides attacking cannabis leaves, it will also attack the buds. When the affected plants begin to smell like rotten vegetation, they have reached the terminal stage of the infestation. Unfortunately, once powdery mildew is on your plants, it is nearly impossible to remove. Your only chance of saving the crop is by very carefully bagging and removing all infected plants from your grow areas.
Why Powdery Mildew is a Disaster on Buds During and After Harvest
Powdery mildew is a catastrophe to have on your marijuana buds at any time, but especially when you are starting a harvest. The very act of harvesting will spread the spores to any uninfected plants. And once it’s on the buds at harvest, there’s not much you can do to save your crop. You can try very carefully to remove the infected plants from the area. The problem is that every time you touch a plant that’s infected, you can spread the microscopic spores through the air to nearby plants. If the infestation has not spread too far, you can try to very carefully cut out the infected leaves and buds and place them in plastic bags for disposal. You will need to watch your plants closely to make sure you’ve stopped the disease during flowering, too. If you see it has spread to other plants, even after you’ve cut and removed the infected leaves and buds, there’s little you can do but keep cutting and removing. Unfortunately, this is a recipe for heavy damages or totally destroyed crops. The other danger is that you’ve harvested infected buds and unintentionally mixed them in with the remaining good buds during the harvesting process. Naturally, the powdery mildew will continue to spread to other buds even after harvest – and you do not want infected buds in your product.
Learn more about Cannabis Air Purification
Why Powdery Mildew is Important to Prevent Before Infestation
Once your plants are infested your entire crop can be ruined within a few days, especially if it happens at harvest time. That’s why it’s so important to prevent this blight before infestation. You must destroy powdery mildew before it reaches your plants. This might sound impossible, but it’s not. In fact, other cannabis growers use this readily accessible technology now. The secret is setting up an effective air cleaning system. Why? Because most fungal diseases are airborne. In fact, most crop blights are airborne. So it makes sense that a good air cleaning system is the best option to protect your plants.
Using a Powerful Air Sanitation System
Keeping the air clean and free of dangerous airborne pathogens is by far the best way to protect your plants. It is possible to protect your cannabis plants from powdery mildew from seed to harvest. One of the best systems available is the AiroClean420 air purification system. This device uses technology Developed for NASA to scrub the air of pathogens. Here’s how it works: the AiroClean420 system draws air through its sanitation chamber. This is where you can eliminate all the airborne diseases, powdery mildew, spores, fungi, mold, blights, etc. without worrying about harmful chemicals or emissions (AiroClean420 does not produce and/or use ozone or any other chemical or gas). The air exiting the device is 100% free of any and all pathogens.
To learn how the AiroClean420 can prevent powdery mildew from infecting buds during and after harvest, contact us online or call 844-247-3913 and talk to one of our AiroClean420 experts.
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