My First Georgia Outdoor Grow

Well guys, i've finally found a place to grow my first outdoor crop. It's shielded from view on all sides by trees, it's close to a creek so watering will be easy, and it's very easy for me to get to but obscure enough that no one would ever think to go there.

I plan on planting some seeds there some time around the second week in April. I have some Master Kush, Mango, Thai Stick, and Lowrider 2 seeds. I believe the Kush and Thai are sativa's and the Mango and Lowrider have more indica. The Lowrider's will serve as a testing ground for the bigger plants, and i will probably plant a few batches of them a month or so apart for the first few months of the grow season. Depending on how they respond to treatment, i can judge how the others should be treated.

My main questions are about soil, planting time, and starting the seeds.

Soil- The soil i'm planting in is pretty rich but has some clay in it. It retains moisture well, but i'm not sure how well it will hold oxygen. I went out today and dug several holes, back-filling them with a mixture of the native dirt, organic potting soil, and dead grass and leaves. Is there anything else i need to do to prepare my soil for seedlings?

Planting Time- I live in the middle of Georgia, and it doesn't stay cold here longer than March, but i was wondering what the safest time would be to start putting plants outside. I was thinking around the second week in April, but that's really just a rough guess. I'll probably be playing it by ear unless someone has some word on this subject.

Starting The Seeds- I've done a little bit of indoor growing in soil-less potting mix and i always started seeds in the mix. I've started experimenting with Jiffy cubes and i'm not really comfortable with them yet. But i want to give my plants the best chance they can get, so if anyone has any knowledge about starting seeds inside and transplanting them outside, I'd greatly appreciate it.

If anyone has any helpful tips for outdoor growing in middle Georgia, i'd love all the help i can get!

Thanks all and happy chiefin'!

Looks like you have a plan that's pretty good.

I think the soil sounds fine.

I live in TN,so we have simmilar climates. I usuall plant in April, but usually towards the end because sometimes we do have a cold spell in April that can kill young seedlings. I usually plant directly into the ground, but often times several of the sprouts get killed by bugs and such, so if you have high dollar seeds I would get them established in a pot, and then transplant them into the ground.

Keep us posted about your results.

Peace

When you say you plant directly into the ground, you mean you just put the seeds right into the ground? Or do you germinate them first? How long should i grow seedlings inside before i put them out?

I just stick them in the ground, and I would still start them outside, but have them in pots to keep them off the ground.

imo you should start them first to combat bugs and frost.

I start mine in 20 ounce plastic party cups. find my spot and dig up the soil real well and deep and take half out and add fox farm organic soil and mix it. I veg the plants on 24/0 for 2 weeks with 4 CFL lights indoors, with a small fan on them this builds the stem strength for outdoor wind. Then i take them to the spot and cut down the side of the cup and add to the loose soil the hole root ball I hold it with one hand and add more organic soil around the plant all the way up the stem so the ground is VERY even so water runs evenly. I water with distilled water for a week or two then add diluted veg nutes. Almost all my plants survive this way

I have a pretty sweet hidden "seed starter" for starting the seeds using 4 42 watt cfl's (dimentions 15"x24"x24"), so i'll probably do that. You say 2 weeks after the cotyledon pops up out of the soil should be enough time to start the plants?

I was thinking instead of plastic cups i would use those deep planting flats with 1"x1"x5" holes. That way i could transport them in a bookbag much easier out to the planting sight, since it's a short hike into the woods.

If anyone else has any advice, i'd be happy to hear it. I'll probably start sprouting a few lowrider's mid March and put them out there for an early start at the beginning of April, then start the rest of my seeds the first week of April to have them out and growing by the end of the month.

Peace!

Let see if i can get the pics to show up...

This is my "seed starter"

wow nice very nice secret grow box. I usually take another plastic cup and flip it upside down and tape around the base of the plant cup and then i put inside of a big container i put about 10 plants out every 3-4 days for a few weeks at a time. All grown in corn fields they turn into monsters good luck

Hey man,
Here is a few tips for growing in your area:

1. put them outside between 4/20 and 5/1 depending on what the weather looks like.

2. Start them now or very soon under lights so they will be big enough when you put them out to get the best start and hopefully lead to a good yield

3. Put as much compost and dead grass and pine straw and as much amendment as you can mix up in each hole.

4. Add Lime or wood ash to raise the PH. Get a cheap PH meter for $15.

5. Protect new plants from deer if in a wooded area by using wire mesh

Good luck

Thanks for the good advice guys. My seeds still haven't arrived from Holland, so i'm pretty much waiting for those before i can do anything. Also, i met a guy in Blockbuster last week (wreaked of weed) who said he could get me Super Silver Haze clones. I was pretty sketched out at first, but talked to him on the phone a little and he seems legit. Only problem is he's charging $200/clone for first generation and $100/clone for second generation. Is that even worth it or should i just stick to what i've got? This is my first outdoor grow.

Thanks!

Hey man

I would definitely not purchase clones or anything else illegal fom someone I just met. I would not even discuss it.

Good luck

thats expensive when u can get the seeds for that much....

Yeah, that's true, they are expensive, and i did meet him in blockbuster. But he was the one who brought it up, not me. We actually went out to his car in the parking lot so he could show me his stash (about 1/2 oz of SSHaze). So i guess that made me feel a little more comfortable.

Bottom line, it's simply too risky/stupid to get clones from someone i don't know, and they're too expensive anyway.

Has anyone else had any kind of experience similar to this?

Peace!

By the way, random fun fact of the day...

There is a mountain range in East Asia called the Kush mountains. Probably where the strain "Kush" originally got it's name from.

Peace!

Do not take those clones bro.

If you live in GA, it does not become 12/12 until around september/october right?

If you plant sativas this early, you will have redwood sized ganja trees... haha

good luck

peace

"Do not take those clones bro.

If you live in GA, it does not become 12/12 until around september/october right?

If you plant sativas this early, you will have redwood sized ganja trees... haha"

Hey man I wish the above were true. I live in AL by the GA boarder and we do everything we can do in order to try and create these "redwood sized trees" including planting late flowering Sativas early in the season.

From my view there is no such thing as a plant the got "too big" or then yielded "too much bud"

Seroiuosly man, If you plant a late flowering strain early in the season say around 4/21 - 5/1, you should get a big plant with proper preparation and care, but it will never get "too big" unless you are trying to keep it short to keep it hidden, in wich case you may want to look for some new spots to grow in. Also try topping them.

Yeah, i agree that you can't have a plant that's "too big" outside. I'm planting mostly hybrid plants that won't get bigger than 6 or 7 feet tall at most. If you want one of those plants that grows 20 feet tall, you'd have to get a pure, tropical sativa like a pure "haze" or a pure "thai" strain of some kind. I think those are the ones that grow really big.

I am going to top a few of each strain and let a few of each grow normally to see what kind of difference it makes around harvest time.

Peace!

You can always trim them, eh?

I think last year for me in Ga, the flowering started in late Aug and they were set out to dry by mid-Oct.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dgsgandalf

I believe the Kush and Thai are sativa's and the Mango and Lowrider have more indica.

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Correction. The Kush is a nearly pure indica. My first statement was based on what i remember of the last kush i smoked. I looked up the genetics of Master Kush and it appears there is little or no sativa in it at all.

If anyone knows the exact genetic make-up of any of my strains, i'd love to know. I'm kind of a nerd that way...

Happy Chiefin'!

Ok guys. So my seeds finally came in the mail. Here are some pics.

My plan is to germinate about half the seeds a week from today inside and grow them for 2-3 weeks in cut down solo cups full of organic potting soil. When they have a few leaves and a basic root system i will transplant them outside. If for any reason (I saw deer in my back yard today) the seedlings should not make it, i'll still have half the seeds to try again. If they do make it, i can do the rest of the seeds the same way or save them for later.

I'll keep everyone posted on what's going on.

i like the seed starter idea, very deiscrete:thumbsup:

So in my OCD thoroughness i was checking the almanac for my area to see when the sun rises and sets. It turns out that the time i was planning to move the plants outside, the days are only about 13 hours long from sunrise to sunset. I am getting a little worried that that wont be long enough to start good vegetative growth. Here's the information i'm looking at.

SUN
Begin civil twilight 6:45 a.m.
Sunrise 7:11 a.m.
Sun transit 1:40 p.m.
Sunset 8:09 p.m.
End civil twilight 8:34 p.m.

Can anyone help me out here? Should i be worried?

You can grow inside till they are 1 ft tall and then move outside.

grow to 5 feet lol

How much light are they getting now?

13 hours is enough to grow in a veg. state if they are used to it. If they're in 18 hours until they are sexually mature then they will probably start to flower outside. However, if you only grow them for a few weeks indoors they should be fine.

I would grow inside a little longer but i don't have enough space to grow ~20 plants more than a few inches. That and my roommates don't know i'm doing this and i can't let them find out. I'll probably grow them to 3 or 4 inches, then i have to move them.

Are there going to be any negative consequences to moving them outside under only 13 hours of real sun light?

So my original idea for a starter box kind of flopped. No matter how hard i try, i can't keep light from leaking out of the dresser. I ended up improvising and using a tupperware container instead. I have 1 20w CFL in there right now to keep the heat around 80 degrees. Is this going to be enough to keep seedlings happy for 2 or 3 weeks or do i need to switch to a 42w CFL?

Here's a pic of my current setup.

No i dont think youll have a problem if you move them outside at 4 in. with 13/11 cycle. As long as they stay healthy.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dgsgandalf

So my original idea for a starter box kind of flopped. No matter how hard i try, i can't keep light from leaking out of the dresser. I ended up improvising and using a tupperware container instead. I have 1 20w CFL in there right now to keep the heat around 80 degrees. Is this going to be enough to keep seedlings happy for 2 or 3 weeks or do i need to switch to a 42w CFL?

Here's a pic of my current setup.

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I dont think that light will be good enough for all those small plants even though your not growing them for a long time some will stretch towards the light If you were to get 3-5 it looks like it could work just be careful to keep fresh air moving inside and when its on its dark cycle to keep it completely dark

If you check out the pic in my post right above, you can see a fan cut into the right side of the box. That's an 80 CFM fan pulling air out of the box. I also cut several vent holes in the top of the box to allow a passive air intake. The temp inside the box is still around 80 degrees with only the 20w CFL, probably because the box is in my closet and is covered with a blanket. I am kinda stuck here because i can't think of a way to add more light without making the temp inside the closet/box too high and still keep the stealthiness i need.

Any ideas?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dgsgandalf

Ok guys. So my seeds finally came in the mail. Here are some pics.

My plan is to germinate about half the seeds a week from today inside and grow them for 2-3 weeks in cut down solo cups full of organic potting soil. When they have a few leaves and a basic root system i will transplant them outside. If for any reason (I saw deer in my back yard today) the seedlings should not make it, i'll still have half the seeds to try again. If they do make it, i can do the rest of the seeds the same way or save them for later.

I'll keep everyone posted on what's going on.

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Hey man, who did you order from? (No link, I just want the name ;))

Search Marijuana-seeds in google, and it's the second result. Good prices, but i expect the seeds are not the pure, original strains. I'm a newb grower, so i just wanted some good seeds (not bagseed) to start out with. Later on when i feel more comfortable growing MJ i'll prob get some Kali Mist seeds from Serious Seeds. Been wanting to try that one for a while...

hey man so far your doing everything right. big problem tho...that light isnt going to do anything. i just started 20 plants inside a tv unit. they just popped and arent even out of the ground yet and i have 4 100w replacement cfl in there and will probably add another or 2 in a couple weeks. another thing u want to remember is those lights dont get hot and they dnt project that far. im keeping my lights about 4in away, too much further than that and they arent doing you any good. im starting a grow log in the next couple days. look it up if you need help. good start best thing i can tell you is read a shit load of books/magazines. good luck!

You should use fluorescent lights..i use them and the grow pretty quick they pop out the first day or second. They're cheap too.:)

I was planning on using 2 42w CFls, but my grow space is a closed box in a small closet, and even with the fan, the lights are heating up the box significantly. Maybe if i rearranged the lights/fan so the lights hang from the top of the box and the fan sits on the top right between them...

I'll try a few different things and see what works. Security is a big issue, so i'm limited, but thanks for the suggestions and keep em comin!

p.s. I soaked the seeds overnight 2 nights ago and when i stuck them in the dirt, at least one of each strain had germinated. When they start showing above ground i'll take more pics and post them

heat rises, so IMO you should have your exhaust closer to the top, while your intake holes should be near the bottom to bring fresh, cooler air right to your plants.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bombdiggity

heat rises, so IMO you should have your exhaust closer to the top, while your intake holes should be near the bottom to bring fresh, cooler air right to your plants.

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Exactly what I have always told people to do. ;)

So it turns out that i am smarter than a plastic box...

I now have 2 42w CFLs each about 3 inches from the dirt lighting the box with the inside temp around 92 degrees. It's a little hot, but hell, it's way better than before. The first sprouts are starting to pop out of the dirt, so i'll move the light cycle to ~15 hours on, 9 off. The first ones to show are a few LR2 and 1 master kush. I expect that by tomorrow, i'll have more showing.

I'll take some pics of the new setup and the sprouts in a few days when the plants grow a little more. Until then, wish me luck!

Peace

Pics. I'm happy to report that 100% of my seeds germinated in very good time. Some of the sprouts are a little slow to get going, but that could be due to all kinds of things; heat stress, water stress (it's hard to keep these puppies hydrated in their current environment), or maybe they're just slow growers. Either way, they'll be going outside in approx 2 weeks.

One benefit of the box is that it will be very easy to transport the seedlings to the grow site. Just snap on the top, detach the fan and lights, and go.

On another note, i've been experimenting with Jiffy pots using other types of seeds (cilantro, basil, etc) and i think they're a better choice than what i'm doing now. I'm getting more comfortable with them and I'll prob use them when i sprout the next group of seeds.

Peace!