Click below links to take you to that years outdoor grow 2016 Grow 2015 Grow 2015 Grow Greetings folks, I'm relatively new at growing the cannabis plant, with about a year of experience, beginning with a closet 'deep water culture grow' that spawned into a perpetual garden of 2+ rooms (Veg/Flower rooms and what I call, 'clone kingdom')... it's nothing fancy, but it puts a smile on my face! At any rate, I suppose that's all for another post on here somewhere else... What I wanted to share here, are these four plants I had that were "extra" and decided early on that they would be going outside as an outdoor experiment. I'm familiar with growing in DWC, ebb & Flow as well as coco/indoors and aeroponic cloning, however I have not tried growing in coco, in an outdoor environment and smart-pots are new, altogether. The two Northern Lights (the tall ladies) were both mothers for about 2 1/2 months before bringing them out. While the 2 White Rhinos were just a couple extra clones I had and are, maybe a month younger. In my opinion they are all doing quite well, so well, I almost wish they were "rescued" lol... These things are simply amazing and each day I swear I get more anxious that I'm going to lose these things before they ever flower for me! I started acclimating the white rhinos to the outdoor environment gradually over about two weeks, bringing them in at night. That was in early June, and by mid-June I realized I had two mothers I couldn't handle either. The thing is they didn't get the adjustment the other two did. They survived, though I'm sure, I have a picture taken of them about four hours after I put them outside where they were lying flat on the ground. I got them tied up and they hardened up over the next few weeks, but there were a few days I didn't think they were going to do well. – now they are slightly insane to me… I really had no idea what to expect and to be honest I didn't expect them to thrive so well outside here in the PNW. I will say, the weather has been phenomenal for growing the cannabis plant, as it was last year. Everything else is pretty burned and brown around here, however we are getting some much needed rain today! So that pretty much covers the time frame here, in terms of nutes – I have kept it simple beginning with general hydroponics flora series. In fact, I just started the other day, putting the transition flower mix on them… a change from the max veg formula. They have begun to show their sex, but not nearly as much as I would like at this point (weather here worries the hell out of me… PM & mold) so I up and decided to start changing the nutes hoping they would at the minimum slow some growth! At this point I'm trying to build a structure large enough to drape some plastic over, because it looks like I will be in for the long haul into October. It doesn't freeze here and my pops grows in WI, so I figure this stuff has a chance as long as I can keep the rain off it. Which, we haven't had much of, and we aren't predicted to get much either – another warm winter, so they say… I also add Cali-Magic to the mix, along with this armor-si, which is new for me. I have been using it for a couple weeks, outside and I'm not sure I notice a difference yet. In terms of other growth patterns this location gets about 8 hours of solid sun and I water each plant with about 4 gallons per day (which is when the water leaks from the smart pot). I add nutes for two days then I run a day of Ph +-6 water, then two days of nutes water for day, nutes two days, let them dry a bit, then I flush them with water and some FloraKleen. So far, that's been the process I have been repeating. I also spray them down with neem oil and or some Organocide about every week as a much needed prophylactic for PM here. I had a rough PM experience with my last indoor grow. Now my eyes are finely tuned to recognize the very beginnings PM from a hundred meters out… lol… Well, I suppose that's the gist of this story up until this moment - give or take. Soooo I suppose it's time to post some pics of what we're looking at here! I'll post some pics taken over time, so everyone can see the growth of these things. This is from June 9th while I was acclimating them to the sun. They had been under a 4 bar T5 previously. Here is a pic of the Rhinos on the 11th of June after I pulled them from their plastic pots and put them in 5 gal smart pots. Those were great for about 10 days and then they started to dwarf the little pots so I upgraded (seen later). Here are the Northern Lights mothers I had. This was about 2 weeks or so before I put them outside, shortly just after I cloned the heck out of them. And here are the NL just after I decided to put them outside. I was just dying to get these plants out here under some real light, just to see what they look like! No man made light can replace what the sun does best... And these plants have proven the power of light right here this year! Here you can see I placed each of the plants in their "final resting" place... I more or less stacked them into 20 gallon pots in order to maximize the available root growing space. It's more or less a raised bed made of smart-pot material. So far it's worked quite well. Just because... I love to hang out in the canna canna canopy! Ladies getting their hair washed. A nice top view. Last one... Tomorrow, I hope to have a structure worthy of plastic up and ready for the next onslaught of moisture! More to follow... any suggestions, thoughts, comments? I'm just here feeling around in the dark so to speak with this particular grow, so anything to offer here would be great! I wish I would have had this structure built about two weeks ago and knew I could use a blackout tarp to limit the light in the eve and start some early flowering. I really, really wish I had the auto-flowers out here that flowered out, unknowingly on a much earlier grow (yet another post I'm sure)! Peace! GHG
LOL...I've got 4 mother plants growing out on the deck just like you. We live in the middle of nowhere...literally, and don't get much company at all so I leave them on the deck until they get shaded by the trees and, when I think about it, I take them out in the middle of the back yard for the rest of the day because they'll get sun there all the way till sundown. Aren't they amazing? LOL I didn't do any hardening. Just threw them out on the deck and they have taken off. One is at 5' 6" , two slightly shorter and then I have one short bushy plant. All four are beautiful and are budding like crazy. Should be ready to harvest around the second week in October and I'm starting to get excited about them. I put them out just because they took up too darn much room in my veg space inside. I grow for real with an indoor setup but usually grow a few outside each year just for the heck of it. I guess I'm just trying to flirt with the law since they fly our place religiously every year with the chopper and little men in black suits. So far, so good. LOL Your plants are quite beautiful. I've been growing seriously for a couple of years now and once I got to a place where I felt like I had a good grasp on things, it started to be more fun than stressful. I stressed myself out in the beginning pretty bad because, though I had been a gardener my whole life, I felt totally lost with the indoor growing environment. If it hadn't been for the forums and the kind folks willing to share their wisdom, I would've thrown up my hands a long time ago. So glad I stuck with it now. We are able to grow a whole lot more good bud than we could ever use, I know exactly what I am consuming and I really enjoy growing the plant. Good luck with yours! Let us know how you come out when you harvest. TWW
Well, these backyard babies are still growing! I finally decided to get under them and start removing some of the stuff in the middle. I have reduced the nute schedule some, and I hope to have my "little" structure up here in the next day or two. A geodesic dome would have probably worked well, but hopefully I can arrange some trusses so when I pull the plastic over and staple it down water doesn't puddle. I'm still spraying them down with neem regularly and it has certainly become a task. I might need to build a deluge system around these ladies while I'm at it to spray them down lol!!! I keep pludging on with them, but I fear all this effort will be for not once the rains start and the weather cools off. It's end of August and still only some pistols... I cut quite a bit out, despite the fact that I have never really heard of anyone "pruning" outdoor plants, but just like indoors, I assume the best buds will be at the tops! Just a pic from behind the White Rhinos... I'm actually a little sad, because these things grew some insane colas on my last grow, but I also discovered they were the culprits that hermied on me. That won't stop me from letting these continue however Just not in my grow rooms. Here is a pic from this AM of the paltry few pistols that are present on the Rhino and a close look at the Northern - probably a few more pistols to look at on the tops, but, I didn't feel like climbing the ladder so early in the morning. Ciao for now! GHG
UUUGGGGHHHHH.... 20 to 30 mile an hour winds they say today..... and rain, rain, rain rain for the better bit of the next week. This doesnt bode well with my hopeful outcome for these plants I got some nets and rope up and the structure is up, however, I didn't have enough rope or plastic to cover the thing and the rain has already begun... I'm going to the grow store later today to pick up some more trellis netting and 8 more of the biggest metal stakes I can find along with some more rope to finish the job and after that it is out of my hands! On the positive side they are starting to flower now! Positive vibes and fingers crossed - More to follow... Happy Growing! ~GHG
Yeah.. is is that flippin windy out! My plants are tied up like spiderman was here himself... One went down and we pulled it back up - no harm... yet (whew) Other things aren't faring so well... like my front yard tree...
Well, they survived yesterday's ridiculous wind and rain! I made it back from the grow store and Home Depot just in time to see my plants start blowing over! The pots were of course nearly empty so they were plenty top heavy. I came loaded with 8 new 6 foot metal stakes, more trellis netting and about 400 feet of rope, all of which was used. I haven't gone out yet to survey any damage, they look beat up but otherwise are doing better than I thought they would. I seriously debated just laying them on the ground for the day while the wind was whipping through. I know there are some good organic homemade sprays for PM with milk, garlic etc... I guess that's my next endeavor here this week since it's rain, rain, rain as far as I can see on the weather app. Although, I'm hoping PM simply won't stick to the leaves while it is this wet... I have been using neem oil and other box store stuff, but that gets expensive, particularly when I'm not that confident these things will be successfully fruitful in the end. ~GHG
I'm starting to feel a little like Noah here... I saw the first bit if sun in days I think. I flung open the sash and opened the window. What amaizing fresh air here in the PNW!.. I sit down and start to hear the sound of eggs frying all around me. But I'm not cooking... Water pouring from something? Am I filling a Res? ...Nope... It's flash flood right through my wide open windows! Waaahhhoooooo!!!! And here I was just doing an amazing job of lowering my humidity out of the mid 60s and into the very low 50s. So that's my lead in ~ I went out just long enough to inspect while the sun was out for about 2 minutes and got a few pics. It started raining again, but I didn't think I would need a rowboat to get back to my window! Trees are still up and transpiring! And presumably still flowering. Some things have cracked... The White Rhinos are starting to toss a few significant pistols... but I was hoping to have some nice pom poms at least by now! The Northern Lights not so much yet. I figured They would be ahead of the Rhinos since it was really meant to weather out here. A view... Overall they seem to be doing well! I expected to see huge piles of PM everywhere... my worst nightmare!!! Alas... no real drama.. Still trying to tie the center of one of these Rhinos up. I didn't have time to get her bundled up before it went crazy with the weather here. I knew she was protected since she had a sister taking the brunt of the storm coming out of the south. I pulled some branches apart and tied some to stakes - I heard a crack, but haven't found a break yet... Still trying to get a net around her top, but I'm a little challanged in the height department. ~Always something to do! ~I need to cup some clones... ~After a dab perhaps....
I've been putting transition nutes on them... I think they are soon to be ready for some full bloom? They don't look ready to me... Perhaps in the next day or two...
Thanks! It's been quite a challenge ~I sure never expected this much plant to grow here in the PNW. I also have an indoor grow http://forum.grasscity.com/indoor-grow-journals/13...
We have had a crazy awesome growing year this go around. I am just happy to start getting rain again, been needing it.
Well I climbed around in the jungle last night. I cleaned all the "brush" on the inside of the plants - basically all the inner bits that don't see any real light. I might have gone a bit far on the outside and maybe even cut off some good bud limbs... I figure if it's not on a big branch looking up I don't really need it. Besides, I figure more air... less MP. Starting to look more like palm trees... I'm pretty sure I'm done cutting stuff off!! And these are from today... looking lovely! The window is open and the smell of erb is in the air!! If you like this... Perhaps you would like to see the rest of my green pastures! http://forum.grasscity.com/indoor-grow-journals/13... ~GHG
I can't complain about the rain but I soooo want these ladies to come through, so, I am hoping to get back to some dryer, sunnier days. Giant mold balls would be tantamount to falling two feet in front of the finish line... Just sad... We have had some great weather short of the last week or so. Are you in the PNW?
Yeah, we will have some more rain into next week then should have some 80 days again. Assuming your west of cascades like me. If you have any throw some cal-phos as a top dressing on top the coco will help if we get a lot of rain in the end since cal will wash out pretty fast. Also if you apply a 1:5 mix milk to water on a sunny day after rain it will combat powdery mildew. Sunny is important because it is the milk proteins that will break down in sun that provide anti fungal effect. Also watch out for bud worms those stupid brown moths will be looking for a place lay their eggs and they will spread fungus quick in addition to the damage they do. I lost almost 75% right at the end one year to them.
I don't want any more 80 days, i have no a/c and i have to run my lights at 450 watt when it's that hot. =P Lincoln city here.
Yup, I'm west with the best!! So, were sharing the same weather... I built a structure for these ladies, but the NL's have nearly outgrown it already. I also haven't put the plastic up yet... I'm hoping I won't need to. The wind here is vicious and will surely carry it away or shred it if we have another 20-30 mile an hr windstorm. Cal-phos? What does this do? Thanks for the pointer with the milk BTW.., I didn't realize it required sun as part of the equation. I have definitely been keeping a hyper critical eye out for all manner of pests including those budworms. I found a couple oakleaf rollers, but I'm pretty sure they just fell out of my trees and are relatively harmless. Regardless, they have been evicted. I know my time for using neem is quickly coming to an end, so I probably need to line up some stuff to get these babies through. I picked up some Green Cure to test out in my flower room, but haven't needed to use it yet. So I have some of that, and will ofcourse be trying the milk deal. Sadly, if it needs sun, I get the feeling it won't be of much use here in another month, but here's to hope! I probably need to line up some other pest control measures... Though I honestly haven't had any real issue with that... So far...
Cal-Phos is a mined soft rock phosphate. It breaks down over all of flower and beyond so it provides a steady stream of phosphates additionally you get a heavy calcium boost which help off set calcium being washed out and or locked up with the coco. You really will only tap into the instantly available portion of it but will get a heavy buffer of slow release (P 3% avaible 20% total then Ca 20%) this will leave you with a excellent base mix for later reuse. Bud worms is easy to deal with by using Thuricide which is a bacteria that kills larva and completely harmless to everything else, omri approved and cheap. You can apply it in flower without issue. Rosemary oil will help with both mites and fungus, I mix 1/4 oz in a bottle of safer soap that has been diluted down in half. Shake it up really good and then spray it on in the evening when hopefully there will be a cloudy day following. I try to do this every 2 weeks depending on weather, I have not been able to use my shade cloth in over a month because of plant height. In this instant less light is better because is the potential for a photo toxic effect in weaker plants such as you find with neem. This can be used in conjunction with neem. The alternative is to by SNS products that easy mix with water but cost a lot more for the same thing. By pre treating with those things you will make it so any potential pest will get dealt with in short order without having to resort to more serious and toxic resorts. For example About a week ago I had a huge locust try to move into my green house, I had seen the damage he had done to a few of the leaves but never could never seem to locate him in the canopy. One day I did see him way up on a rafter but then I think one of the dozen or so praying mantis that live in the canopy did too. My point is when I first put praying mantis in I had no locust but be pre emptively introducing them in they where able to take care of the locust who could have done of a lot of damage quickly. The mantis will also take care of flies and moths.
Awesome! Thanks for the info... something new to look into! You mention neem as being potentially phototoxic to weak plants? or are you referring to the rosemary? I haven't tried rosemary, but I have tried fish oil - which I'm not a fan of because of the smell. After week 3 or 4 I understand you don't want to use essential oils because it will stay on the buds as they grow and clump together. You also mention SNS products? I'm slow but I catch on quick ~promise! Thx ~GHG
Calphos http://www.homesteadorganics.ca/calphos.htm http://www.kisorganics.com/products/shop/calphos-s... I will try some of this with my next coco run...
