Companion planting can be defined as two or more plant species in close proximity that benefit one another (often sharing a symbiotic relationship). Some plants aid another in pest control by repelling unwanted creatures (through stinky resins or essences), or attracting beneficial creatures (with pretty flowers or alluring scents). Another plant may help to increase the yield of its “companion”, for instance by releasing nutrients into the soil. And some plants provide shade, or wind protection for their sensitive neighbors.

Marijuana has a few companions that help to increase yield and protect or attract beneficial creatures. This is mostly applicable to outdoor crops. But it wouldn’t hurt to throw a few marigolds beside your plants indoors, or in your greenhouse.

Below is a list of creatures that can plague an outdoor crop, and some plants that will deter those nuisances:

• Deer: some deer will be repelled by onions, garlic, chives, leeks (Allium family)
• Rats/Mice: spices, mints such as peppermint, spearmint, anise, anything from the Allium family including onions, garlic, chives, leeks, catnip
• Ants: catnip
• Nematodes: scented marigolds (African releases thiopine into soil, could repel nematodes for years), chrysanthemums (these flower in the fall during harvest season perfect decoration for your trim tables), dahlias
• Thrips: scented marigolds, other flowering plants to attract predatory bugs such as ladybugs, basil
• Spider mites: Allium family including, onions, garlic, chives, leeks, French or African marigolds (scented), coriander

Other plants to have hanging around:

• Sweet basil- encourages growth of everything around it and repels flies and mosquitoes
• Chamomile- attracts good insects
• Rue- repels bugs
• Yarrow- boosts vigor in other plants and accumulates phosphorous, calcium, and silica (when composted) into the soil
• Hot peppers- prevent root rot
• Comfrey-  good for the soil
• Good cover crops (for the winter to keep your soil healthy)
  Legumes, rye, oats, sudan grass

So, have a party in your garden! Plant strawberries, melons, squash, and tomatoes. If you have a good drip system established, it won’t be much work. Share the bounty of your garden with your friends. Best of all, if you are an herbalist or have herbalist friends you can make ganja/herbal tinctures:

• Use chamomile with marijuana to create a calming tincture.
• Use mint with marijuana to make an energizing tincture.
• Use calendula (marigold variety) with marijuana to make a healing tincture.

And lastly, only use organic seeds, plants, and fertilizers in your garden! Otherwise, your hard work might be wasted. Enjoy!

So when you have your mothers ready, get yourself set up at a table with the following accoutrements. A comfortable chair, a good light source above you, and a few joints already rolled for when you take a break. You will also need, a pack of brand new, sterilized razor blades (one should last for fifty to one hundred cuttings). Also have before you a sterilized cutting board, clonin’ sauce, also known as root stimulator, and a vase of water. In addition, have your sterilized trays set up with perlite or soil and Oasis clonin’ cubes. Fifty cubes per tray is good. And last but not least, turn your music on so you and the babes can groove with a niceness while workin’ away.

First water the trays and empty cubes with a very light nutrient solution. Flood the tray, then dump out the excess water, leaving the tray, cubes and soil soakin’ wet.

Now go to your mother plant and choose with your keen stony eyes, the branches to cut that will make good plants. Obviously choose ones that are not hurtin’ or deformed in any way. Cut off enough to keep your mother alive and healthy, but cut enough to make plenty of clones in case some don’t make it. Put everything you cut into the vase, so the stems and leaves remain at optimal hydration.

Now to have your medical marijuana clones grow successfully, you must have a steady, and firm stroke to your cut. Choose your branch, individually from the vase. The best clones grow from a branch that has three to five bladed leaves. Holding the stem firmly to the cutting board, take a brand new razor blade and slice firmly, and (this is the key here) at a 45° angle. The more surface area on your cut stem, the more space for roots to grow forth from, and of course the more likely you will one day have a big mature plant on your hands producing mad fat kolas. Now dip the cut end of the piece about one full inch into the clonin’ sauce. Then push ‘er about one half of an inch into the clonin’ cube gently, but with enough force to keep the little newborn from floppin’ over. Brevity and mindfulness make good babies.

Now do this until the whole tray is full. Then water the tray with a lukewarm 68F, (super) mildly fertilized solution. Fill the tray about halfway full with this water, and then put the tray under fluorescent lights. Generally the plants should be about four inches away from the lights. If they are farther away, or if the room is cold, purchase some warming mats to put underneath the cloning trays. Also you can get yourself some little greenhouse lids, plastic domes to go over the clonin’ trays. These keep the babies warm and moist.

Now the clones should be kept at about degrees and humidity. Check on them every twelve hours for the first three days. At times, lift the lids to let them breathe. Also, lift the trays to see if they need water, and if they are light, water gently. I fill the tray with water two times a day for seven days. On days three to five, check for signs of rootin’, you may see little white hairs, about twice the width of dental floss peekin’ up through the holes, or through the bottom or sides of the cubes. Once you see the roots, let them grow a little, a few more days.

When nearly all of the cubes have rooted, and you’ve thrown out the wilty ones that didn’t make it, get your four to six inch pots halfway filled with your organic soil mix. Break off a cube at a time gently; the roots tend to intertwine with one another (by flooding the tray when watering, you can prevent too much of this). Lovingly place the cube into the pot, and then hand fill soil all around. Then water with a warm nutrient solution, compacting the soil just enough, then place on your grow table under H.I.D. lights (high intensity discharge), and there you have it, successful asexual reproduction!

Like the rose or the fruit tree, marijuana is no different. A good dose of “thinning and releasing” can be very beneficial.

My peers often see my form of pruning as too deep and are surprised at how many branches I cut and toss. They joke that I could make 10,000 clones with all those branches.

I just keep clipping away with the knowledge that what I’m doing now will make the plant healthier and more productive during harvest time.

One of the benefits of skirting ganja (as this practice is called) is that it creates room for more air circulation. When air is circulating properly molds and fungi have a harder time catching hold. Also, mites and gnats and other critters have fewer places to hide of mate and colonize.

Thinning and releasing also benefits the plant by forcing carbohydrate production to the areas that are thriving, top nugs and kolas.

I skirt when my medicine is about one-third of the way through the flowering period.

Some of my favorites, the Sour Diesel, the Dieselmint, and other sativas have a flower period of 77 days. On day 25 (give or take a day) I will proceed with my skirting.

With a few plants on my work bench at a time, I will take the opportunity after thinning to stake then up with natural untreated bamboo. Then I tie them up with plant tape. (More on staking and taping in a future post.)

For now, meditate on performance. I call it “tuning it up”. You will always continue to learn with these mantras.

Bless up,~Silverback Guerilla