The overview of existing knowledge on medical cannabis plants growing

Abstract

The use of cannabis for medicinal purposes dates back well before the era of modern medicine, but in recent years research into the use of medical cannabis in the medical and pharmaceutical sciences has grown significantly. In European countries, most cannabis plants have been and still are grown for industrial purposes. For this reason, hemp cultivation technology is relatively well researched, while little is known about the key factors affecting cannabis cultivation for medical purposes. The active substances of cannabis plant targeted by this review are called phytocannabinoids. The biosynthesis of phytocannabinoids is relatively well understood, but the specific environmental factors that influence the type and number of phytocannabinoids have been much less studied. Indoor or greenhouse cultivation, which uses automated lighting, ventilation, irrigation systems and complex plant nutrition has become much more sophisticated and appears to be the most effective method for producing medical cannabis. There are many different cultivation systems for cannabis plants, but one of the essential elements of the process is an optimal plant nutrition and selection of fertilisers to achieve it. This review summarises the existing knowledge about phytocannabinoid biosynthesis and the conditions suitable for growing plants as sources of medical cannabis. This review also attempts to delineate how nutrient type and bioavailability influences the synthesis and accumulation of specific phytocannabinoids based on contemporary knowledge of the topic.

Impact of Harvest Time and Pruning Technique on Total CBD Concentration and Yield of Medicinal Cannabis

“…Therefore, medical cannabis is often cultivated in indoor and greenhouse systems enabling both more control of environmental conditions and thus a higher standardization of cultivation processes [ 12 ]. Since cannabis is a short-day plant, indoor systems also facilitate several growing cycles per year by controlling photoperiodism and temperature, especially important to enable year-round cultivation in sub-tropical and temperate regions [ 13 ]. The importance of optimizing indoor systems has increased due to the demand for yield maximization and improved efficiency of growing systems [ 13 ].…”

“…Since cannabis is a short-day plant, indoor systems also facilitate several growing cycles per year by controlling photoperiodism and temperature, especially important to enable year-round cultivation in sub-tropical and temperate regions [ 13 ]. The importance of optimizing indoor systems has increased due to the demand for yield maximization and improved efficiency of growing systems [ 13 ]. Final yield quantity and quality of inflorescences are highly variable and depends on numerous factors such as genotype [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]; the agronomic practices, such as irrigation and fertilizer regimes [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ], light spectra [ 14 , 21 ], intensity [ 22 , 23 ] and photoperiod [ 24 ]; plant density [ 25 ]; environmental conditions (humidity and temperature) [ 12 ] and the influence of biotic and abiotic stresses [ 26 , 27 ]—including pruning and defoliation techniques [ 28 , 29 ]—and finally, the duration of the vegetative and generative period.…”

Effects of Light on Secondary Metabolite Biosynthesis in Medicinal Plants

“…These systems are initially developed for the production of out of season crops and vegetables. In recently years, they are also used to enhance the SMs yields in medicinal plants (Askari-Khorasgani and Pessarakli, 2019;Moon et al, 2020;Malik et al, 2021). Artificial lights take important place in controlled growing systems and light emitting diodes (LEDs) are supposed to be optimal artificial light sources at present time (Jung et al, 2021).…”

Prototipo de bajo costo para la automatización de la producción de cannabis medicinal en invernadero apoyado por IoT

“…Although the use of cannabis in medicinal treatments began thousands of years ago (O'Brien, 2019;Bai et al, 2021;Malík et al, 2021), the rise of this agribusiness is relatively young (Perkins et al, 2021), and it has been supported by technologies for crop control (outdoor cultivation and greenhouses). Some of the most relevant works in this area are presented below.…”