Well, it's that time again. We find ourselves browsing the 'tude, figuring out who will sell us worm poop, and trekking through the sometimes snowy woods looking for that perfect spot. Yes that's right folks, its already time to prepare for the 2013 guerrilla season. For me 2012 was my intro season, and I sure learned a lot. Among the things I learned: May is a terrible time to get your grow in order. For a guerrilla, the season never really ends, it simply slows down for a while. So, here I am in January posting my thoughts and preparations. Take some of my ideas for your own, or tear them down if that suits you. 2013 Rough Plans Containers 15 gallon Hyrdrofarm Dirt Bags (I bought a few 20 gals, but I'm concerned about transporting so much soil). These are just like smart pots, and can be backpacked in reasonable numbers. Pricey little suckers, though. This is up from 3 gallon containers. Soil ORGANIC SOIL A properly made organic soil will likely remove the need for chemical ferts. A top layer of cooler soil, think fox farms strength stuff at the very most. Below that: 50% sphagnum moss 30% organic material (worm castings, mushroom compost, manure, kelp, ratios undecided). <20% perlite How do you get your soils outdoors? Nutrients / Additives SUPERTHRIVE - I will start using this product this year, adding it every to every other watering. Reports say it makes plants more resilient, if not larger. By late August / early September I may need to supplement. Compost tea with bloom nutes would be the preference, but likely not the easiest option. Water crystals will be used. Where? Swamping! I have found some excellent areas in lightly wooded swamps. I will be killing (not cutting down) a few trees to allow enough light to penetrate. The water levels are low in these areas and flooding should not be a problem. I still have my eyes open for a perfect full sunlight area with nasty brush but no trees. More than a few hours of driving and hiking aimlessly are in my near future. How do you search for your spots? Propagation Propagation was a disaster last year. TO be clear, my germination rate was amazing, almost 100%. However the survival rate was about 15%, and then a few males had to be culled. I do have a few ideas on improving outdoor propagation, but I will be scrapping that idea altogether. Starting seeds indoors under my 180w California Lightworks SolarFlare LED. I will try to get them 6" tall before going outside in mid/early May. I need advice on hardening off, I can possibly expose them to sunlight in a window, but not outdoors until they reach their permanent homes. How serious do I need to take hardening off? I will bait slugs and use animal repellant, however I had zero issues with pests last year. The Strain Game I'm growing at 42*N and this will factor into my selection. I grew until Oct. 12 last year, and that was due to mold starting, not frost. This is not a final list. I will be going ALL feminized, which is new for me. This is to reduce costs of other non-seed materials (think dirt and pots). I need at least one strain which is low odor, due to the location of certain sites. Female Seeds Purple Maroc - People have been raving about what this plant can do in the cooler outdoor climates. It should finish with plenty of time to spare. Finish late Sept? Nirvana PPP - Reviews from other blades suggest this is also an early yielder. I have had 99% germ rate from all Nirvana seeds so far. Female Seeds Easy Sativa Some Auto's - I need help picking these. It really needs to be one of the new generation high-yield auto's, and hardy outdoors. I will either use 3gal containers I have, or buy something in the 5-7 gal range. Auto's will only be grown to ensure a crop, and to stagger the harvest out. Thoughts? Comments? What are you doing?
Nice, i'm going to try to grow for my first time this summer. I'm also growing at 42*N, but i'm in the midwest though I do hear indica's flower faster, so i'm going to try indica dominant strains because it does get pretty humid in the summer.
Don't limit yourself to anything that is described as a pure indica. Many Indica / Sativa crosses have been bred to grow as far north as Canada. As for humidity, it is not a problem in the summer so much as it is in the fall. Fall humidity combined with low temps and dense buds = mold. - Anyone here have experience with hardening off plants from indoors to outdoors?
good start! Planning is everything How much were those 15 gal grow bags? Im thinking on making my own for my spot. Hardening is easy if your around 42N you will want to harden in case a late spring cold front hits. Ide recommend doing it at night outside in a tote or container. goodluck
The one i posted a picture of is 20 gallons, that one is ~$12 amazon. The 15 gallon version is ~$8.50. For a few its a fair price, but buying large numbers would hurt the wallet The issue for hardening is that I rent. I cant just throw plants on the back porch. edit* i could put containers in my car at night! Problem solved. This will harden them temp wise. Now i still have to hope that they can handle transition to natural UV.
My current area of interest is topping, LST, and other plant shaping / yield increasing techniques. I'm wondering how aggressively they can be done outdoors, as some of them do alter the strength and structure of a plant. Also, can any1 give an odor report on the strains listed ( PPP, Purple Maroc, Easy Sativa).
this year will be my first grow, i plan to start indoors and move them outside eventually. when is a good time to start the indoor process? im assuming soon
Be careful using fabric pots outdoors. I used 15 gal smart pots outdoors last season and had to water them every day. They dry out fast in the summer heat.
Yeah I noticed smart pots dry out a little quicker than plastic. Mustang, funny I ordered the PPP, ES, and maroc last year, so seems like you've done some research. Unfortunately none survived so can't really comment lol. getting them to 6" and protecting them from bugs/slugs and keeping them in a shadier place would prob be good, I have a real hard time in the seedling stage myself, outdoors is just too unpredictable. I have had my share of problems with slugs and animals, ALWAYS use a fence/fencing, trust me. and something for slugs, lots of curious animals out there, especially beavers (in swamp) Umm, 15 gallon is probably a good size (there are a couple good NE grows in the OD grow journal section using bags, pretty sure). no veg nutes? idk if you really need superthrive past the seedling stage, guess it cant hurt though. soil mix sounds decent, might want a fert or organic soil amendments though.
Organic soil contains FAR more nutrients than what an inorganic soil would contain, and they should be released over the course of the grow. I imagine that I may need to add some compost tea, but not until later in the grow when the soil begins to deplete. Did you germinate outdoors? I think that it's a terrible idea after attempting it last year. 60 seeds and 8 girls survived, after being stunted / stuck in seedling phase for far too long. It's great to hear that someone in my region looked at the exact same photoperiod strains as me I'm still not sure about auto's though. Finish time is naturally not an issue, so I'm more concerned with yield and pest resistance.
The fabric pots are great to keep the roots cooler and it prevents the plant from becoming root bound but like another blade mentioned they do need constant checking firing the hot summer because they do dry out faster. If placed on dirt the roots will grow through the bottom of the bag and into the soil. As far as super thrive I have read that it contains some chemicals that are harmful to the plants and it has been proven by a college that it doesn't help the plants . I've used it in the past and stopped and my plants grew just as we'll if not better without it, I would use chicken wire at least to fence of you plants from wildlife. The last thing you want up do is check on you girls to find they where damaged. I would veg indoors until the 4th node develops the you can harden off by placing outdoors a few hrs at a time even if you have yo hide them, you just want them to stay above freezing,
This will be my first attempt at growing, hope I can pull an ounce or two. I'm located at 42N also. A few questions. Are five gallon buckets appropriate for holding my plants? I only plan on having one or two, and they will be bagseed. Has anyone here ever done 'urban guerrilla growing' ? I've seen a few people mention it on here and, because of my location I must do this. The land is at the bottom of a ~60 foot hill that is really steep. The entire hillside is covered with thick brush and sharp thorns. The land is the same way and is more than 5 acres, however, there are houses nearby. The intended spot is on the other side of a creek. The creek is only knee high, but it could flood, which deters people from going down there, I've lived in the area for more than five years and have never seen anyone go down there. Does this seem like an okay location? Any answers are great, thanks!
You can try it but as soon as you do you will find out the hard way that people go there. Plus anyone including young kids can get to it. Why not grow on your own property?
I don't have property that I could grow on sadly. I see your rationale, I wish I could show you pics so you could understand though. It is essentially a marsh, if it ever rains the entire ground becomes mud and water, the grow site is elevated. Young kids really CAN'T get to it. I suppose it's physically possible, but it took me good amount of time to even find a decent entrance, not to mention getting more than twenty feet. I've made a path which is not identifiable, and is covered still with large branches, and will stay there during the season. That is how it is NOW, while it is still snowing, during the spring and summer it is a real challenge to move around down there, as it completely overgrown. I doubt any children's parents would allow them to go there, and if they did, I'm sure the kids would decide not to. Still though, it is a possibility, so I intend to take every possible step to prevent this.
honestly containers aren't the best way to go guerrilla IMHO .. I've grow in them a bunch and they just require too much attention .... If I were you I'd be out there finding rocks to make a bed or logs so you can bring out less soil and less trips to water and more room for roots equals bigger plants... Don't get me wrong you'll pull 5/6oz per container as long as nothing stress' them terribly ... But same plant could easily get 8-12oz in ground ... I put fresh rooted cuts out mid July in ground and got 5oz each w bloom in mid august I pack my soil in xl duffle bags and hike it in during bad weather .. Usually walk through a stream to cut down on a path from the trail ... But I'm running coco and peat with 10% perilite, 10%Ewc , Espoma, greensand, kelp, compost ... And a few foliar Ewc/kelp sprays ... Try bringing it out in the winter ... Storms are great for covering tracks and soil ... Drag bulk on a sled area dependent though ... I like the coco cause it's much lighter than soil and expands when wet ... Add a few scoops of water crystals and your golden Google maps .. To refine .... Find maybe a dozen ... Go walk and scout them the full season before .. And start prepping in fall/ early spring If your swamping make sure you check water levels the day after a storm in may ... Plant in the dry areas you find .... Also look into swamp tubes to help Either put them on your deck or in a full sun window ... In an opaque milk container to hide them ... Or just under a bush to lightly shade them the first week .... Make sure you don't put them out till late may if their older than 4wks ... Can cause preflower ... Or veg them 15/9 so they aren't going from 18/6 .. 20/4 .. 24/0 ... Can also cause preflower on old clones or seedlings over 4-6wks. The Strain Game I'm growing at 42*N and this will factor into my selection. I grew until Oct. 12 last year, and that was due to mold starting, not frost. This is not a final list. I will be going ALL feminized, which is new for me. This is to reduce costs of other non-seed materials (think dirt and pots). I need at least one strain which is low odor, due to the location of certain sites. Female Seeds Purple Maroc - People have been raving about what this plant can do in the cooler outdoor climates. It should finish with plenty of time to spare. Finish late Sept? Nirvana PPP - Reviews from other blades suggest this is also an early yielder. I have had 99% germ rate from all Nirvana seeds so far. Female Seeds Easy Sativa Some Auto's - I need help picking these. It really needs to be one of the new generation high-yield auto's, and hardy outdoors. I will either use 3gal containers I have, or buy something in the 5-7 gal range. Auto's will only be grown to ensure a crop, and to stagger the harvest out. Thoughts? Comments? What are you doing?[/QUOTE] I grew nirvana ppp at 42*N in NE ... 10gal tote .. 6oz .. Started getting some mold ..5% smells a bit piney ... But mainly classic MJ smell ... Best way I can describe it ... Doesn't smell up the local breeze either If only you can access the porch/deck put an opaque container with large holes over top your plants ... Hardening off is more than temps .. It's so they don't burn up small seedlings .. Wind to strengthen the stalk ... But it's not really needed IMO .. It's just nice reasurance In ground only way to go or in beds if it's swampy ...
I have some of those exact same dirt bags and I really like them. Same size and everything. The handles are great and if your plant gets too big for the pot you can just burry it half way in native soil and let the roots grow through the pot. It gives you a lot more root space without needing to hike in more soil. I wish I had your plot with zero pests! That's awesome. They are by far my number one challenge. Good luck with the grow.
The area you describes sounds good. Make sure people can't see the plants looking down, as they are at the bottom of a steep hill. Will they be the only green thing amidst a field of yellow come Oct. 1st? When I have time I'll be looking into LST'ing outdoor plants to keep them short. 5 gallons will work but it will decrease your yield. There is always the option of cutting off the bottom of the pot and letting it grow into the earth in the likely event that the roots start growing in circles. My experience was that in the first year you do more learning than growing.
NOVA I'm going to split your post up a little, hopefully you don't get 5 notifications at once or anything. For some of my sites, those that are not right on the water table, I think you are right. In some of the swampier locations I'll still feel more comfortable with the bags as I can move them to higher ground if the water level rises. I like the idea of trying both methods. I think raised beds are something I wrote off because I simply never looked into them. I've seen a lot of debate between coco and sphagnum peat moss. Some people suggested that the moss may give better results, while the coco can be transported easily in brick form. Weight of soil is pretty important, but only to the extent that it does not result in smaller / unhappy plants. That's what I do. I have found that google earth can miss some good stuff, but it has also given me some great leads. I guess nothing beats getting your boots dirty. Nice idea, with the milk container. I still cant put them outside but I can put them just inside the window. I'm hoping that by starting under LED instead of CFL like most people do (outdoor guys usually dont have an indoor HID laying around) the plant will be a little stronger, HID's still dont make UV. Also that is EXACTLY what I wanted to hear about PPP. I could easily get pests this year even though I didn't last year. Fingers are crossed. It's good to hear that the dirt bags worked out nicely for you.
Great advice P51! I totally understand that there will be more learning than growing. I'd be ecstatic if I could pull a few ounces off of three or four plants. It won't be the only green thing, because there are a few evergreens on an elevated part of the land. The plants will be impossible to see from the top of the hill, I've heard of cutting off the bottom of five gallon buckets, I may do this with one or two of them, and leave the rest, so I can compare them. Good luck, I'm excited to see your grow.