Micro Growing Weed: Tips to Get Started
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Growing any crop affects the environment, through water use, fertilizer and pesticide runoff, and energy use. Cannabis farms and industrial grow ops are no different.
As more states have legalized cannabis, the number of larger grow operations has increased. Small-scale microgrows are one way some growers try to keep their footprint down.
Legal note: This guide is for adults 21+ in places where home growing is legal. Marijuana is still a Schedule I drug under US federal law, outside a 2026 rescheduling rule that covers only FDA-approved and state-licensed medical products. State laws on home grows differ, and some states allow them only for medical patients or not at all.
What is Microgrowing?
Microgrowing means any small-scale growing operation. For this post, we'll stick to cannabis. A few plants in a garden bed or a first indoor grow can both count as a microgrow.
More specifically, the idea behind microgrowing cannabis is to get a good harvest out of a small space. Microgrows can be indoors or outdoors, and range from a few plants for personal use to a small licensed operation.
How Microgrowing Differs from Large-Scale Growing
The obvious difference is size. A microgrow also gives you more direct control over the growing environment, which can make it easier to keep quality high.
In a large operation, pests, environmental swings and quality control are harder to manage across many plants. A large grow produces a bigger harvest, but problems can spread and waste resources.
A microgrow lets you focus on a small, controlled environment and use only the resources you need. The cannabis microgrow community shares many techniques for making the most of a small space.
Environmental Impact of Large Scale Grows
Large grows generally use more resources and create more waste than small ones. Some large operations work hard to cut their footprint, but more plants still means more water, nutrients and energy.
Water is a concern in drought-prone Western states such as California. California's Water Boards regulate commercial cannabis cultivation to protect water quality and stream flows, citing threats like irrigation runoff, over-fertilization, pond failure and grading.
Large indoor grows need water too, plus energy for lighting, ventilation, heating and cooling. When cannabis is grown indoors on power from fossil fuels, it can have a large carbon footprint.
Microgrows are More Ecologically Friendly
A smaller grow generally uses fewer resources and creates less waste. Indoor microgrows can be hand-watered, which makes it easier to avoid runoff, and an outdoor microgrow can use drip irrigation to cut evaporation.
Pesticide use can often be reduced in a microgrow, since you can watch each plant closely and catch pests early. If you do use a pest product, check that it's legal for cannabis in your state and follow the label.
Outdoor microgrows can have a footprint similar to a vegetable garden. Indoor growers still use energy for lights and ventilation, but far less than a warehouse grow, and efficient LED lights help. The University of Minnesota Extension notes that LEDs use less energy than fluorescent bulbs and last longer.
Final Thoughts
There is no perfect way to grow cannabis without any environmental impact. Every grow uses resources, but the scale of that impact varies a lot with the size of the operation.
Large operations can place heavy demands on water and energy and can affect soil and nearby streams. Microgrows use fewer resources overall, which makes them a lower-impact option for legal home growers.
Sources
- Water Board Cannabis Cultivation Programs, California State Water Resources Control Board
- Lighting for indoor plants and starting seeds, University of Minnesota Extension
- Schedules of Controlled Substances: Rescheduling of FDA Approved Products Containing Marijuana From Schedule I to Schedule III, Federal Register (U.S. Department of Justice, DEA)
