Currently temps are at 56 degrees and about 75% humidity. Would this be a decent starting point or should I wait till March. I can control the heat with a heater. I'll be growing 1 clone, Just don't want to kill it. I have a friend with many clones he can give so it's not a big deal.. Suggestions please or opinions. Thanks.
If valuing only from a cost perspective it will most likely be a negative for 1 plant....id say 3 minimum for cost benefit analysis win. But if its for a hobby, fun, learning,growing etc experience where money is irrelevant then.....is the shed insulated? do you have ventilation? what are outside temps day / night
56F (13C) is pretty low, are you able to add some thick insulation to the shed? That might help you save on heating. You can also set up a thermostat temperature outlet that will only turn on your heater if the temp drops below a certain level... If you're going to go with this approach avoid using oil heaters as they'll take too long to heat up, you could try a car heater or mini space heater (e.g. Honeywell HCE100B) with low watts, that should work if you have the right insulation.
Last winter I forgot to turn my heater on in my grow tent and it got particularly cold for a few days, the temperature had dropped to around 50-60F and the plants didn't seem to mind it too much so if you have mature plants they should be able to handle that temp range for a few days, but prolonged exposure to that temp would probably stunt your plants growth at best or kill them.
Solution for you . Buy a few auto seeds . Run them 24 hours with the light on. The light will or will not keep the tent warm. Try it . In a shed it wont stay warm. Insulation is not cheap today its better to get a tent . Tents keep bugs off .
Too cold. My basement hovers around 60-65 and often in the morning I will see wilting from the cold. I don't know if 56 is cold enough to kill a clone, but it will severely impact the speed of growth at the very least.
Can you keep the soil warm some how? Wrap a low wattage electric blanket around or something like that? I’ve seen plants in my greenhouse withstand really cold snaps and do well. But prolonged cold that cools the soil down in the container can def be a problem.
The web says you rarely dip into the 30s. Grow outside year round like I do and cover or move into the shed on the frosty nights. Here is how the year breaks down for 4 harvests per year outside. August 1st = Take clones Oct 15th = Harvest, Set out veg plants, Take clones Jan 1st = Same March 15th = Same June 1st = Harvest. Set out veg plants Start plants now. Get them running and get them in Sync as you can. Current flowering set. Current Vegging clones. Half of these are already spoken for and I know a few more people will come asking for plants. Never fails. Give away 6... Then 6 more.. Then.. Hey leave me a few will you. Last guy I taught this to was in Fresno if I recall and it was working well last we spoke. Any place with mild winters can pull this off. If you have a sheltered space you can roll them into on cold frosty nights you can push this into even colder zones and still use the Sun as your prime light. My winter grown plants while smaller are every bit as potent as a summer grown one. Southern California. Los Angeles Basin. A touch of frost on the roof and the plants will still be ok in a sheltered suburban setting. BNW
My grow shed is insulated and has A/C + heat if I need it. Can get the temps to anywhere I want. I remotely monitor it with my weather app and a sensor. Works great. A/C keeps temps as low as needed and i'm sure the heater will do the same! I don't like using the A/C unless I have to because of cost of course. Haven't tried using the heater yet to keep temps in the 70's. I'm sure it will be no big deal.
