Cannabis grow apps work like a pocket assistant: when this roundup was written, the standouts were Grow With Jane for grow logs and reminders, SimLeaf for a 3D grow simulator, Botana for grow data, Leafly for strains and My Canary for an impairment self-check. Apps come and go, though, and some of these may have been discontinued or changed since, so check your app store before you count on one. Back in the day, growers pieced together their own grow guides from books, notes from other growers and, later, whatever they could find online. Today there's a growing market of mobile apps built by experts for the cannabis growing community, and thanks to recent tech advances, everything you need to know about your grow can live on your phone.

Beginners can use several of these apps to pull off a harvest worthy of a seasoned grower, and even to figure out what plant they've got. From scheduling nutrients and watering to looking up info on the strains you're growing, more and more cannabis growers rely on these digital tools to sharpen their technique.

Here are some of the most popular apps, both for growing and for finding dispensaries or products in places where cannabis is legal.

Grow With Jane

Focused mainly on growing cannabis, this app gives you grow logs and scheduling tools for every plant. Using it feels like having an assistant who jots down your growth numbers and how much fertilizer you need, and reminds you of everything the plant needs day to day. 

A nice touch: with Grow With Jane you choose whether or not to share your logs, because the team gets and respects growers' privacy. If you do share them, the app's community can compare notes, show what worked and what didn't, learn together and swap data to keep perfecting the art of growing cannabis.

SimLeaf

This 3D cannabis grow simulator was built by experienced growers using scientific data. SimLeaf lets you practice growing weed virtually on your phone or tablet. The platform is pretty sophisticated: you have to log everything, like light levels, temperature, humidity, water, nutrients and pH, through each growth stage. SimLeaf also serves up helpful tips and educational info along the way. It's a great app if you want to test new techniques and see how they might affect real-life plants.

Botana

Botana was, at the time, one of the most downloaded grow apps and one of the most complete on the market. It lets you compile detailed info and data on every relevant environmental factor, strains and more. Botana is a data analytics platform that helps cannabis growers run more efficient, more profitable grows.

Leafly

Leafly is known as one of the best apps for learning about cannabis. Millions of people use it, and at its core it's a cannabis search app that helps users discover and find the right weed for them.

Built on effects and reviews for thousands of strains, this dispensary finder and map app helps users find legal cannabis nearby for medical and personal use. You can find weed products, CBD and medical marijuana doctors. Of course, it only works where cannabis is regulated and legal.

My Canary

My Canary is a simple but effective cannabis impairment test that helps you gauge whether you're in shape to drive. It's designed to be really easy to use. To measure how impaired you are, it runs a series of sobriety tests like the ones traffic cops commonly use, such as balancing on one foot or memorizing and repeating a string of numbers. At the end, the app combines all your results into a score that shows how sober you are. It's a self-check, not a green light: if you're high, don't drive.

Cannabis apps keep evolving right alongside tech, giving users more options for different needs and helping them level up as growers and consumers.

Best ways to harvest cannabis:

Harvest is a make-or-break step in any grow and can shape the final quality of your buds. Here are some key methods and things to keep in mind for a successful harvest:

1. Check the trichomes: Trichomes are the tiny resin glands that form on the buds. Watching them tells you when it's the best time to harvest. Use a loupe or a microscope to check them, and look for a milky, cloudy white instead of clear. If they're turning amber, the plant is further along.

2. Staggered harvest: Instead of taking the whole plant at once, you can harvest in stages. That means cutting the ripe top buds first and leaving the lower ones to ripen longer. That way you get the most mature buds and let the rest keep developing.

3. Flush: Before harvest, it's a good idea to flush with plain water for about a week. This helps clear out excess nutrients or residue that could affect the flavor and quality of your buds.

4. Cut it right: When you cut the buds, use clean, sharp pruning shears to avoid damaging the flowers. Cut near the plant's main nodes and remove the big fan leaves around the buds to make drying easier.

5. Dry it right: After cutting, dry the buds properly to prevent mold and preserve quality. Hang them upside down in a dark space with good airflow, a temperature around 18-21 °C (64-70 °F) and 45-55% relative humidity. Drying usually takes 7 to 14 days, depending on conditions.

6. Cure: After drying, it's worth curing your buds to take flavor and texture up another notch. Put the dry buds in airtight glass jars and store them somewhere cool and dark. Open the jars now and then ("burping") to let air in and keep humidity in check. Curing can run several weeks or even months, and the longer the cure, the better the final quality.

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