8 Tips for Growing Agent Orange Cannabis: Grower’s Guide

While this strain’s name is arguably in bad taste, its flavor certainly doesn’t taste bad. Agent Orange is renowned for its delicious citrusy orange flavor, making it one of the tastiest sativa-dominant strains out there.

Subcool at TGA Genetics created this wonderful hybrid strain by crossing Orange Velvet and Jack the Ripper. This practical grow guide will help you through the process of cultivating Agent Orange plants at home.

1 – Learn to Understand Agent Orange’s Growing Difficulty

An Agent Orange plant is moderately difficult to grow. Most of the growing techniques available aren’t overly difficult to master. However, they require a certain level of carefulness and skill to carry out properly. An Agent Orange plant is relatively high maintenance. You will have to pay careful attention to several factors, particularly in the germination and vegetative stages.

You will have to pay careful attention to several factors, particularly in the germination and vegetative stages.

You must regularly carry out Low-Stress Training (LST). This technique involves manipulating the plant’s stem and bending it over to encourage new nodes to form on its branches.

During the vegetative stage, you will need to regularly defoliate the larger fan leaves to improve air circulation. This process also aids light distribution and helps with growth in the lower parts of the canopy. There is a lot of work involved. However, the rewards more than make up for the effort.

2 – Should I Grow Agent Orange Outdoors or Indoors?

You can cultivate an Agent Orange plant indoors or outdoors, in soil, or hydroponically. This plant thrives outdoors in a sunny, warm climate with mild nights. While growing outdoors will undoubtedly produce a higher yield, you can still get excellent results from growing indoors.

If cultivating outside isn’t an option, you can use a grow setup such as an indoor two-by-four tent. Growing your Agent Orange plants in a humidity dome will help maintain the desired humidity level. Use an exhalation bag at the start of the vegetative stage to provide the Agent Orange plants with carbon dioxide. An oscillating fan will help improve air circulation within the humidity dome too.

3 – Agent Orange Growing Techniques

Everything begins with the germination process. There are a few options, but most growers choose the paper towel method. It is a quick and easy way to ensure your seeds sprout. Once the seeds develop roots of at least half an inch in length, it is time to transplant them. If you’re growing hydroponic marijuana, place each seed into a Rockwool plug.

Once you have all of the plugs in your plant tray, place them in a humidity dome. Keep the Rockwool plugs in the dome for another 24 hours with the cover on. The next day, they should have produced a root visible at the bottom of the plug. Now, you can transplant them into solo cups.

Place the solo cups in the humidity dome and light mist the growing medium several times a day for a few days. You should soon see fan leaves and roots coming out of the bottom of the solo cup. At this point, you can move them to five-gallon pots with prepared or purchased nutrient-rich soil as your grow medium.

At around week five of the vegetative stage, the plants will benefit from introducing a Screen of Green (SCROG) net. The SCROG method is a useful technique for increasing the number of budding sites on your Agent Orange plant. Hang a SCROG net about two to three inches over the top of the plants. You will need to defoliate and carry out some LST regularly. These processes help the Agent Orange plant to become bushy and fill out the SCROG net.

4 – Agent Orange Watering and Misting

As early as the first week of the vegetation stage, you will need to begin watering. Check the soil just below the surface with your fingers to judge how moist it is. If the soil isn’t dry, then a light misting three times a day is sufficient. Once it is dry to the touch, you can start feeding and watering. The recommendation is one nutrient feed followed by three watering applications.

It is a good idea to create a grow journal to keep track of your nutrient feeds and water applications. Without a record, it could become confusing. You might forget the number of water applications you have given. It is also hard to tell whether it is time for a nutrient feed without a written record.

5 – Feeding Agent Orange

A quarter-strength application is appropriate for the plant’s first nutrient feed during the vegetation stage. You can use a nutrient feed such as Fox Farm Dirty Dozen or Cal-Mag. Use a quarter of a teaspoon of each mixed in water. Pour carefully and directly into the soil, not on the leaves. This is because the plants will absorb the nutrients from the soil.

Water around the top of the soil in the pot to encourage the roots to grow in all directions. After feeding the plants, mist them again to keep them moist. The plants should start to thrive after their first nutrient feed and water applications. The leaves should turn a vibrant green color, and the stems will begin to stand upright.

What if you have given three plain water applications since your last nutrient feed, and the soil is dry? In that case, provide the plants with another nutrient feed. As the plants progress through the vegetation stage each week, gradually increase the level of nutrients and water. After beginning with one-quarter strength, move to half, then three-quarters, and finally full strength. Refer to a feed guide to make sure you are giving the plant the appropriate amount.

6 – Low-Stress Training (LST) for Agent Orange

Early on in the vegetative stage, as the Agent Orange plants start to thrive, you can begin Low-Stress Training (LST). LST involves manipulating the plant’s stem to one side to encourage new node growth. This causes the plant to thicken and become bushier, which will mean a higher yield come harvest time.

An Agent Orange plant requires regular LST to produce the best results. Give the plant a full day’s rest after LST to recover and develop these new nodes.

An Agent Orange plant requires regular LST to produce the best results.

While performing LST, it is recommended that you use the three-finger technique. Place your index and middle fingers on the plant’s stem, about an inch from the top. Then, move your thumb behind the stem. Gently and carefully ease the plant’s stem over your thumb using your fingers. Work your way down the stem until the plant is bent over to one side.

Make sure that the plant’s leaves are not in the soil, as it can be harmful to them. Tie a piece of string or an anchor (thin cable) around the top of the plant’s stem. Tie it to the pot to hold it in place.

You will probably find the three-finger technique a little awkward at first. However, it’s a great technique that should ensure that you don’t damage the plant’s stem. The plant should respond to the LST by growing up towards the light from its bent-over position.

Over the next few days, you should see new node growth. As the plant grows during the vegetative stage, bend the new growths away from the plant’s center and the light.

7 – Agent Orange Defoliation and Airflow

When the plant develops large fan leaves, tuck these in to improve air circulation and light distribution. However, as the plant thickens up and gets bushy, you will need to start defoliating heavily regularly. Remove the larger fan leaves so that the lower parts of the canopy receive enough light. This helps the entire plant receive the light it needs. It also assists with air circulation and provides the space for new growth to flourish.

The CO2 emitted from your exhalation bag will eventually prove inadequate for your growing plant’s needs. This will likely happen by the fifth week of the vegetative stage. You can purchase a CO2 canister, which is designed to cover eight square feet of growth. If you are growing your plants in a two-by-four tent, one canister is enough.

Add a liter of lukewarm water to the canister. Place the lid back on the canister, remove the sticker, and put your thumb on top of the hole and shake. Once you release your thumb, you will hear a hissing sound as the CO2 is released.

Hang the canister above the plants. Shake it daily, ideally during the early morning hours, to release the carbon dioxide the plants need to grow. You can buy refills for the canister when they run out.

Aim to keep the temperature between 72-78 degrees Fahrenheit during the latter weeks of the vegetative stage. You also should keep the humidity level between 60-65% in the vegetative stage. Lower it to 40-50% at the beginning of the flowering stage. An Agent Orange plant usually flowers after 8-9 weeks.

It is ready for harvesting around October when grown outdoors. It typically produces 19 ounces of bud per plant. When grown indoors, it can produce an average yield of 16 ounces per square meter.

8 – What Lighting Should I Use to Grow My Agent Orange Plant?

Place a 100-watt LED light approximately 18 inches above the plants while they germinate. You can start by using 18 hours of light exposure and 6 hours of darkness to sprout the seeds. Some growers find that their plants look thin rather than bushy and strong during the early vegetative stage. If this happens, you should increase the LED light in the humidity dome by about 5%. As the plant grows, gradually increase the LED lighting by 5% each time.

By week four of the vegetation stage, you will need to raise the light around four inches higher physically.

By week four of the vegetation stage, you will need to raise the light around four inches physically. This is because plants will have grown significantly by this time. This action will prevent the leaves from being damaged by being too close to the heat source.

You can switch to a 200-watt LED light during the middle weeks of the vegetation stage. By week six, however, you will need to substantially increase the wattage to a 600-watt LED set to about 50%. Again, increase the light intensity by 5% each time until you are operating at 100%.

Final Thoughts on Growing Agent Orange

As you can see, growing an Agent Orange plant involves more than throwing seeds into the soil and shouting “grow” at them. It requires a lot of care and attention to get the best results.

If you are a keen grower, you are likely to relish the challenge of performing the daily tasks required. Regular LST, misting, watering, and nutrient feeding, as well as a significant amount of defoliation, make Agent Orange a high-maintenance plant to grow. For those who persevere, though, the rewards make all of the effort worth it.