also this will be my first outdoor grow.. i have some questions.. 1. well first is when do i start growing outdoors and when do i stop? 2. do they need full sun or partial 50/50? 3. do i use well draining soil like i do indoors? 4. how far should i plant each plant away from each other? 5. should i put a screen over them? or have them totally exposed? thanks!! im a noob i know.
also i was reading that i should only use super soil.. which i guess mean i need to dig a big ditch for the soil ill buy at the store... how deep do i need to dig? and how wide do the roots usually spread?
When you plant depends on the strain,tough cold weather indica could be planted sooner than sativa. All marijuana strains require a minimum 6 hours of direct sunlight (The more the better).I use a compass when planting so I can plant in the most open east-west position that I can.Planting left or right of a big tree can make a world of difference and only a compass can help with that. If your going to be watering regularly then you can use sandy well draining soil.If not I would use peat and other water absorbing mediums.Since your in Cali. I would try to get as much water absorbtion as possibile,including a tablespoon of water absorbing gel per hole. I've grown many big plants of different varieties in the same hole without any problem,taking the time to spread them out 12 inches apart would help.Just remember to spread them out north-south so they wont shade each other. Enjoy.
I can only answer your first question because I live in SoCal to. I would say in the middle of March is when you should plant it. So thats like in 2 weeks. I planted mine 2 weeks ago and I havent had much success.
gotcha thanks guys.. what about some kind of screen i can put over the plants to hide them and keep insects away? but will still let light in?
You can use chicken wire for pests. A 1ft plant, slug repellant, peeing (I never took a dump there: DNA?? lol) and a place where animals don't go (thick) is enough for my mj to be fine. I'll be using copper wire too this year (Oldpork's trick lol). See stickies for pests, storms, stealth etc... As for when to start in SoCal, you have the same type of weather as me. I start from seed in May 2 batches: May 1 - May 10. and last frosts are in mid March. 1st frosts are in mid November for me. A 3 month veg. period is PLENTY for me. Let me explain. My smaller indicas (when started on May 1) stop growing in beg. July-mid July (max height reached, they "vegetate" for nothing -but for 2-3 weeks- until buds in beg. August so it's ok...). An early grow means they'll "vegetate" (not grow if indicas) for many useless weeks. It also means more tracks in your spot, more work watering if you're guerilla growing. Bigger sativa dominant strains will be + or - unconcealable if started early (10 feet +). They'll just grow and grow and grow (lower branches all reach the top and grow it's hard keeping up with the fimming/topping if you're not there). You always can LST but they're so tall, it can be a problem. If height and watering are not a problem, then yes grow huge sativa/inidica hybrids. The earlier, the bigger. But they will be massive. Starting in May and also a late batch in mid June (or July) is a good plan for your area. You can also start early indoors and take them out flowering 2-3 weeks before August (so they don't veg back). Most strains will will all start flowering in beg. August (fem. buds) or end July for the fastest (female buds). How fast they finish depends on the finishing times in their genes. Even if your season is long, most bag seeds will finish in October (1-30) or later, so imagine growing the weed from March to ~ October 15 at least. Get a fast finisher and don't start it early imo. Your summer is veeeery long. Use it to your advantage.
Valid questions for a newbie! I found that overnight frost ends about the middle of March in south cal. I usually start about the 3rd week of March. You can buy any type of potting soil. Marijuana LOVES the south cali sun and humidity levels. I have grown decent weed in my own backyard clay soil. I would dig down about 2- 2 and half feet and fill that with just about any potting soil. Plant them about 4 feet apart, unless you are gonna do an oliander type bush bag grow (bending and topping the plants), then you should plant about 10 feet apart. You can also pot them. I got a 7 foot sativa out of a 5 gallon pot. Nutrients are not really all that neccesasary (sp?), in south cali, you just water it and walk away. Let mother nature do its thing. In some parts of canada, you may have to wait till may, and then you still may have problems growing outdoors. But in South cali, no problem. I have been growing out here for over 30 years. I did 2 gurrila (sp?) grows in the mountains above Los Angeles. First year, I got away with it. 2nd year, deer ate my buds lol. Anyway, my point being is that it's sooooooo easy to grow weed in south cali. Practically just drop a seed and water it. Let mother nature do the rest. Good luck!
thanks for the tip! I was wondering why I could smell stinky flowers down the road from me... it's about harvest time lol
How do I know when it is too late to top my plants Sent from my LG-P769 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I would spread them at least 5-6 feet apart. Follow one of the easy organic soil mixes on here, get full sun and you will have some nice plants Sky's the limit
Jaded,bated soil is so expensive, if you can afford it,fine,but you can go and get some aged horse manure and rinse it well,it does not been to be composted,you would be amazed at how well it works,absolutely as good as any bagged soil,if you are worried about weed seeds,just put it in a black trash bag out in full sun for a few hours and that will somewhat sterilize it,you can plant directly in,or work it into the soil!!! Jackkphlash Sent from my IdeaTab S6000-F using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Okay,it only has to be about two feet at the most,but the wider it is the bigger your plant will be! Sent from my IdeaTab S6000-F using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I've been veging since Jan inside ! I have 2 greenhouses that I bought on Amazon for 200 bucks ea ! They are 20 x 10 x 7 . I have a 4 ft 4 bulb T5 light on a mover to supliment the sunlight . My 16 plants went in the ground in the greenhouse Feb 7 ( sour dub ) I plan on a harvest April 1- 7 ! O yea I'm in So Cal by Santa Barbara ! My second batch will go in my other greenhouse next week ! I'll light depo them . I'm doing 3 ft x 3 ft holes with the Cervantes mix back filled !
I do mine in 5 gallon pots in April. Several strains at once. Top and top and keep topping. Or fim. Just keep working your plants over until it's a bush. I like indicas if I can. Autos too. Herbies is my spot for seeds. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
1. March 21 to October 15 2. Sativas love the full So. Cali sun. 3.yes. 4. Since your a noob, 5 feet. 5. have them exposed, but check for pests. You may end up with worms in your bud. Take precautions to avoid this.
Fox farms ocean forest or happy frog super soil. For 1 untrimmed indica or sativa, a hole about 3-4 feet deep by And 2 feet wide should do it.
i planted some seeds on the 17th and a few days later and a few days later. this guy popped up after 4 days, but most are just breaking into the air within the past 2-3 days. this is the earliest i've planted. get something going before Memorial Day and you'll be ok.
Now is good. I just started 4 blue dream a few minutes ago to go with several others I started indoor 6 weeks ago to last weekend. I wouldn't worry about growing monsters on your first grow. You can just dig a hole, and stick a plant in it as well. Like it's been done for thousands of years. No need to make it a major project. If you want to, then great. It's a fun hobby. You can start plants till July 4th and you will get a harvest end of September, early October. The more you put into it, the more you will get out of it. Remember to look ahead at harvest. Everyone would love to grow a 10-20lb plant, but think of drying, trimming, curing, and storing it. There are some down sides. Lol.