By Adam Parsons


WHAT IS PHOTOSYNTHESIS?

Photosynthesis is how algae, cyanobacteria, and plants convert light into chemical energy. There are actually two kinds of photosynthesis: oxygenic and anoxygenic photosynthesis. Since the latter does not produce oxygen and is mostly limited to bacteria, we’ll focus on oxygenic photosynthesis for the duration of this article.

During oxygenic photosynthesis, the cannabis plant absorbs carbon dioxide and light. These inputs are processed by plants like a biological factory into energy or carbohydrates for the plant to grow, releasing oxygen as a by-product.

Cannabis plants, like other plants, contain chlorophyll; it’s what gives them their green colour. More importantly, the pigmentation is the key to how cannabis plants use their leaves like solar panels. Chlorophyll traps blue and red-spectrum light.

Photosynthesis process

WHAT DO PAR AND PPFD MEAN?

Photosynthetically Active Radiation, or PAR, is a measure for the available light that a plant can actually make use of. Visible light is the spectral bracket 400–700nm. PPFD or Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density readings in micromoles per second (μmol/s) quantify the photons falling on the plant. OK, that’s enough science. The key point is that PAR and PPFD are more accurate measurements of the usable wavelengths and spectrums of light. Most LED lighting systems are marketed based on PAR and PPFD data.

WHAT IS A LUMEN?

In contrast to LED systems, most HID grow lamps, whether MH or HPS, are sold on brightness. Lumens are a measure of how bright a lamp is. It’s not really specific enough to tell you everything you need to know, but it helps when choosing between the specialist horticulture agro-lamps available these days. Unfortunately, cannabis plants can’t photosynthesise as efficiently with old-school yellow lamps as with full-spectrum LED. This is why a 300–400W LED is comparable to a 600W HPS.

Visible Spectrum

HOW MANY HOURS OF LIGHT PER DAY?

The duration of the light cycle is another huge factor to consider. Day length governs plant development and dictates when and how much marijuana a grower will harvest. It’s not just the quality of the light that matters; Mary Jane needs a consistent amount of time to sunbathe every day to reach her full potential. Interruptions to the light cycle will stress photoperiod cannabis plants.

VEGETATIVE GROWTH

Photoperiod cannabis strains can stay in vegetative growth indefinitely, so long as they receive 15+ hours per day of light. Indoor growers favour either an 18-6 or continuous 24-hour light period. Whiter lights to mimic the springtime sunshine, which emits blue-spectrum light, are preferred. Most growers use MH lamps, cool white CFL bulbs, or full-spectrum LED.

Light Cycle Cannabis

FLOWERING

The 12-12 light schedule has become the standard operating procedure for flowering cannabis indoors. Reduction of daylight hours triggers the transition to bloom in cannabis. Outdoors, this is a slower, more gradual process as the days naturally grow shorter after the summer solstice. Now, the red spectrum is the light marijuana needs most to produce bud. Yellow/orange HPS lamps are the old-school substitute for the autumn sunlight. Full-spectrum LED growers need only adjust their timer.

WHAT ARE THE OPTIMAL CONDITIONS FOR PHOTOSYNTHESIS?

Perhaps the best study of cannabis and photosynthesis is the 2008 research study[1] by the University of Mississippi. “Photosynthetic response of Cannabis sativa L. to variations in photosynthetic photon flux densities, temperature and CO₂ conditions” is quite a mouthful, but this is juicy reading material for the ordinary decent home grower.

This study focussed on the indoor performance of 20 four-month-old clones from a single high-yielding Mexican mother plant. By exposing plants to a range of temperatures, PPFD intensities, and CO₂ concentrations, with tightly controlled humidity, they discovered the optimal conditions for cannabis plants to efficiently photosynthesise. They also proved cannabis thrives in a CO₂-rich environment.

In conclusion, researchers provided the precise formula for the perfect grow-op conditions. Home growers take note of the following excerpt from the report: “Cannabis sativa can utilize a fairly high level of PPFD and temperature for its gas and water exchange processes, and can perform much better if grown at ~1500μmol/(s·m²) PPFD, and around 25 to 30°C temperature conditions”.


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PHOTOPERIOD VS AUTOFLOWERING CANNABIS

Ruderalis is the rebel cannabis species that has adapted the autoflowering trait. No reduction in hours of daylight is needed to induce flowering. Rather, these strains have a reduced lifecycle of 100 days or less post-germination. Regrettably, to date, we don’t have a reliable study comparable to the research cited above to make definitive conclusions regarding ruderalis hybrids.

However, anecdotal evidence, mostly sourced from the microgrower community, suggests that a long day suits autoflowers best. It’s possible for an auto to survive on just 8 hours per day, but the highest yields of the most potent indoor flowers are being achieved with a 20-4 light cycle from seed to harvest. Similarly, outdoor summer crops harvested in July/August are usually the heaviest, higher-grade buds.

The jury is still out on how much blue-spectrum light an auto really requires. Bloom begins so soon that many growers use an HPS lamp for the entire life cycle. The good news is, it’s only a matter of time before scientific analysis specific to autoflowering cannabis photosynthesis begins in earnest.

External Resources:
  1. Photosynthetic response of Cannabis sativa L. to variations in photosynthetic photon flux densities, temperature and CO2 conditions https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Disclaimer:
This content is for educational purposes only. The information provided is derived from research gathered from external sources.

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Privacy Policy - Royal Queen Seeds

To ensure a safe online environment and guarantee adequate data protection, we strictly comply with all legal requirements. In this privacy statement, we provide information about how and for what purpose data is collected, safety measures, storage periods and contact details.


COMPANY NAME: SNORKEL SPAIN, SL (hereinafter ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS)

C/ Vilar d'Abdelà, 5 (nave 1) CP: 08170 de Montornès del Vallès

+34 937 379 846

support@royalqueenseeds.com


The present Privacy Policy sets out the terms on which we will treat personal data at ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS; this includes any personal data collected through our website https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/ as well as any other data we process in the course of our business activities.

ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS collects the following personal data for the purposes listed below:

SECTION 1 – PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

1.1 Account purchases

Account purchases can only be made if you are in possession of a personal account. When you create an account or purchase something from our shop, as part of the buying and selling process we collect the following personal information that you provide to us:

This information is required for delivery. In addition, when you browse our shop, we automatically receive the Internet Protocol (IP) address of your computer. Based on this information, we can optimise your online experience and at the same time protect our online environment.

Purpose of data collection

We collect and store account-related data for the following purposes:

(a) to carry out obligations arising from any contracts between you and us, and to provide you with information, products and services that you may request from us;

(b) to set up, manage and communicate with you about your account and your orders;

(c) to conduct market research and analysis;

(d) to confirm your age and identity, and to detect and prevent fraud.

1.2 Newsletters

With your explicit permission, we may send you newsletters about our shop, new products and other updates. We send newsletters based on your explicit consent. In the event that you purchase a product, and in accordance with current regulations, we may send you commercial communications in accordance with the legitimate interest of our company, always about products or services similar to those you have purchased or contracted. In any case, you may exercise your right of opposition through the channels announced in this Privacy Policy. The following information is collected in relation to the newsletter:

We do not need to know the sex of the person in order to send the newsletter (data minimisation: by law we must ask for data that is strictly necessary to provide the service, and in this case knowing the sex is not necessary to send the newsletter).

Purpose of data collection

The data collected is used to:

(a) personalise our emails, including your name and gender;

(b) provide gender-specific content.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by using the link provided in the newsletter or the contact information provided in section 2.

1.3 Customer service and contact form

In order to provide appropriate support, our customer service employees have access to information related to the account. Consequently, their support will be highly effective and friendly. The data provided in our contact form is used by our CRM provider, SuperOffice. We will only use your details to respond to your message.

SECTION 2 – LEGITIMATE INTEREST

If you have purchased any of our products, please note that we may process your personal data for promotional purposes, based on Royal Queen Seeds' legitimate interest only to offer you products or services from our company and about products or services similar to those you have purchased. You may exercise your right to opt out of future messages by the means set out in this Privacy Policy or through any notification you receive.

2.1 How do you withdraw consent?

If you change your mind, you can withdraw your consent for us to contact you for the purpose of collecting, using, or disclosing your data at any time by reaching out to us at: support@royalqueenseeds.com.

SECTION 3 – DISCLOSURE

We may disclose your personal information if we are required to do so by law or if you breach our Terms of Service.

SECTION 4 – HOW LONG DO WE KEEP YOUR DATA?

At Royal Queen Seeds, we will not retain your data for longer than is necessary for the purposes described in this Policy. Different retention periods apply for different types of data; however, the longest period we will normally hold any personal data is 10 years.

4.1 Account information

Data relating to the account remains relevant for as long as the consumer is in possession of an account. Therefore, the data remains documented for as long as the account exists. When our customers delete an account, the associated data will be deleted within a reasonable period of time. Requests regarding the inspection or correction of stored personal data or the deletion of an account can be sent to support@royalqueenseeds.com.

4.2 Newsletters

In the event that you give us your consent to inform you about our products or services, we will keep your data until you express your wish not to receive any further communications from us. However, we regularly (every month) carry out a relevance check. Registered customers (and their personal information) will be deleted whenever customers do not reply to our request. In addition, our newsletter mailing has an opt-out feature. Consumers can withdraw their consent by using this opt-out feature.

SECTION 5 – COOKIES

Cookies are small information files that notify your computer of previous interactions with our website. These cookies are stored on your hard drive, not on our website. Essentially, when you use our website, your computer displays its cookies to us, informing our site that you have visited before. This allows our website to function more quickly and remember aspects related to your previous visits (such as your username), making your experience more convenient. At Royal Queen Seeds, we use two types of cookies: functional and analytical.

5.1 Functional Cookies

Functional cookies are used to enhance your online experience. Among other things, these cookies track what is added to your shopping cart. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

5.2 Analytical Cookies

Analytical cookies are used for research and market analysis. The data collected with these analytical cookies is anonymous, making it unusable for third parties. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

SECTION 5 – THIRD-PARTY SERVICES

Third-party services are required to conduct transactions and provide our services. In general, the third-party providers we use will only collect, use and disclose your information to the extent necessary to enable them to perform the services they provide to us.

However, certain third-party service providers, such as payment gateways and other payment transaction processors, have their own privacy policies regarding the information we must provide to them for your transactions.

We encourage you to read the privacy policies of these providers so that you can understand how these providers will handle your personal information.

In particular, certain suppliers may be located or have facilities located in a different jurisdiction than yours or ours. Therefore, if you choose to proceed with a transaction involving the services of a third party, your information may be subject to the laws of the jurisdiction in which that service provider or its facilities are located.

Once you leave our website or are redirected to a third-party website or application, you are no longer governed by this Privacy Policy or the Terms of Service of our website.

Web analytics service (anonymous data)

On this website we have integrated an element of a web analytics service (with anonymisation functionality). Web analytics can be defined as the gathering, processing and analysis of data about the behaviour of visitors to websites. An analytics service collects, among other things, data about which website a person came from (the so-called referrer), which sub-pages they visited or how often and for how long they visited a sub-page. Web analytics is mainly used for website optimisation and for a cost–benefit analysis of internet advertising.

Courier service

To complete deliveries we use a courier service. This courier service carries out the delivery between our company and the consumer's home. To complete these logistics, the company requires access to the consumer's name and address information.

Mailing service

Royal Queen Seeds uses a third-party mail service provider to send its newsletter. This provider has access to limited account information related to opt-in consent (e.g. email address).

Marketing services

Royal Queen Seeds has the support of a company that specialises in marketing and communication activities. Their access to personal information is very limited and mostly anonymous.

Payment services

At Royal Queen Seeds we use external payment services to handle our transactions (e.g. credit card payments).

SECTION 6 – SECURITY

To protect your personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry standard best practices to ensure that it is not inappropriately lost, misused, accessed, disclosed, altered or destroyed.

If you provide us with your credit card information, the information is encrypted using secure socket layer technology (SSL) and stored using AES-256 encryption. Although no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, we follow all PCI-DSS requirements and implement additional industry standards that are commonly accepted. Information related to the account is protected with a hashing method. This method transforms the information into a generated hash. As a result, confidential information is protected and invisible, even to us. In addition, our databases are exceptionally protected against unauthorised access. For example, access to the database is only possible and permitted via approved IP addresses (e.g. from Royal Queen Seeds headquarters). Other attempts and addresses are rejected at all times.

Furthermore, data is anonymised as much as possible, so it cannot be directly linked to a specific consumer. With this data, however, we may be able to carry out market research and analysis. In addition, the third parties concerned (e.g. mailing service) are examined prior to our collaboration, comply with the GDPR from the EU and receive a processing agreement. Within Royal Queen Seeds, employees are assigned different access permissions. Specific permission provides access only to information that is strictly required to perform a task. Digital security measures are subject to change and must meet high requirements to ensure the safety of online customers. That is why, at Royal Queen Seeds, we appoint a security officer. Regular verification and improvement of security measures (where necessary) are part of the role.

SECTION 7 – CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time, so please check back regularly. Changes and clarifications will be effective immediately upon being published on the Website. If we make substantial changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated so you will know what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances, if any, we use and/or disclose it.

SECTION 8 – YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO: