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RO
Rio Okafor
Senior Growing Correspondent
Cultivation science · Genetics · Equipment
Rio has run commercial cannabis cultivation operations across three states and now reports on growing science, genetics, and emerging plant pathologies — including hop latent viroid.
Credentials: MSc Plant Pathology, Oregon State University. 11 years commercial cultivation.
Stories by Rio
Grow
Hop latent viroid is now the costliest pathogen in commercial cannabis
How to detect it, why bleach is not enough, and the tissue-culture clean stock pipeline reshaping the industry.
By Rio Okafor · May 11 · 9 min
Grow
LED vs HPS in 2026: the calculation has changed
Modern high-efficacy LEDs hit 3.0 µmol/J. Here's how that recasts the economics versus 1000W HPS.
By Rio Okafor · May 7 · 8 min
Grow
The germination method that consistently pops 95% of seeds
Four steps, 48 to 72 hours, and every mistake we've made so you don't have to.
By Rio Okafor · May 5 · 6 min
Grow
Outdoor soil prep for 2026: amend the holes, not the transplants
What to mix, when to mix it, and why the week before transplant matters more than the day of.
By Rio Okafor · Apr 30 · 6 min