New To Outdoor Growing...Need Advice Please

Well here's a good story for you guys. First off let me begin by saying I have a hydro setup and am used to this type of harvesting. However, I've never tried outdoor cultivation and need some advice and any extra secrets or personal tips you can throw my way.

So a while back, last year some time, I'm in my parents back yard. They live on a hill so when I say backyard I mean our cement deck. I get a strong odorous wiff of some kind. I'm like "no way" and I start looking around. The smell is eminating from one of the many pots they have strewn around the backyard and is extremely pungeant. It doesn't look to be any kind growing because there is an ordinary plant inside the pot. So I shrug it off thinking that this plant must just smell a lot like kind. Then a couple weeks later I'm hanging out in their back yard again and I catch the same smell so I tell my parents and they assure me it's just a regular plant. Mind you they DON'T smoke or advocate it in any way. I'm like no, this smells just like herb.

Another few weeks goes by until I'm back over again and my Dad tells me some interesting news. He's like, "why don't you go into the backyard. I have something to show you." So I'm thinking, yep I was right. Low and behold is a nice sized herb plant growing in the pot I assured them was kind. I checked out the plant and there were actually 3 of them, and unfortunately it was too late because one of the males germinated the other 2 females and they became hermaphrodites.

So my Dad throws the plants out and I'm like, "damn! If I were only a few days earlier."

Skip ahead to last week. I'm over at my parents house again and I look outside because for some reason I always had a feeling there would be anotehr plant growing in the same pot. YEP! I look over through one of the windows and see this mysterious looking plant growing. I check it out steathily so as to not draw their attention. I devise a plan to take it once they both leave.

Needless to say, I now have a healthy, nice looking female outdoor plant in my backyard. I've been keeping it as healthy as I can with the little knowledge of outdoor cultivation that I know of.

This is where I was hoping you guys could help. I did some research and found a few sites with information but felt that I could get it much more concisely right here.

My specific questions are:
1. How much and how often do I water?
2. What nutrients and how much should I give it?
3. Where can I find those nutrients?
4. How can I keep the plant from not getting to be 4 or 5 feet high?
5. Any other tips, secrets or words of advice would be GREATLY APPRECIATED

Thanks for bearing with my story. It was a shortened version but gives the basics. Pretty trippy but I'm sure as hell not complaining!

Thanks Mom & Dad!!!

:stoned:

BTW I am currently using miracle grow. Is this ok or is that bad?

I will post some pics up tomorrow when it gets sunny out.

1. If its in a container, water when it needs it. Could be twice a day could be twice a month. make sure the soil never dries completely out.
2. Once it gets good and established start it out at 1/4 strenght and work you way up to full strenght.
3.Walmart, Ace hardware.. plant stores... internet..
4.You can top it(cut the stem) once it gets about 7 sets of leaves. This will make it grow bushy instead of tall. You can also simply lay it over when it gets big.
5.Cannabis grows like a weed. Just make it happy. Outdoor growing is easy. Just let it grow. Watch for pest, White flies and aphids are evil.

Thanks for the info. One question about your answer to the nutrients. You didn't mention any types or amounts just to use 1/4 strength.

FYI the plant just started flowering 3-4 days ago so I'm not sure if I can still top it now. It has waaay more than 7 sets of leaves.

I'll post pics tomorrow so you can see.

Thanks!

Try a scott's 15-30-15, Use something with mainly phosphurous. Thats what plants use to make big buds. But a week or two before harvest try to wash it out with water to clean all the salts and chemicals out of the soil and out of the plant.If you go organic try to find some Bat Guano. This is perfect for flowering, just make a tea and feed it to it twice a day.

I'll try the 15-30-15. Should I start at half strength and go to full once the flowers are bigger?

Oh ya, the top of the plant is starting to lean over! I just checked 5 minutes ago when I woke up and it's not looking good. I have to do something right now but as soon as I'm done I'll snap some pics. Hopefully you can help.

Please take a look at these pics.

Something is obviously wrong here and I could really use your help!

half strenght for 3 days and see how it reacts if it likes it increase to full only do it once every 3 days... and do it mildly

Thanks for the help. Does it matter what brand of fertilizer I use? Should I use it every time I water for the entire cultivation? Does it matter if it's liquid or powder form?

Any advice based on the pics I posted?

BTW, it stopped leaning over at the top so much. There are however, still holes in some of the bottom leaves as you can see in the pic with my finger.

Use a fert high in nitrogen for veg and higher in phosphorus for flowering

Start out with half strength and see how she takes to it and then go from there, make sure its in a spot thats gettin the most amount of sun per day. Your going to have to pop a stake or dowel in there and tie to to the dowel so she doesnt fall over and fuck herself up when she gets nice and fat. Umm thats it for now bud, good luck!

The top of the plant will point towards the sun . In the morning they face east and by evening they face west. The little holes are pests. Go to Walmart goto the gardening section and pickout a fertilizer that works for you. Makes sure you read the label. MiracleGro, Scott's... most chemical ferts are alike just look for the NPK numbers. To make her stem fatter give her more wind. wind helps plants fatten up but they use more water so water it regularly.

Should I worry about the pests eating holes in the leaves? I don't see any bugs on the plant and I did a thorough inspection. Trust me.

Well if its minor pest then it won't kill it or hurt it too bad but it will negatively affect your plant. Best to get some insecticide. Find something that is safe and can be used on vegetables. Spray it on the plant to the point of run-off and then spray it with clean water. Only use what you need after each spray wait a week or two before doing it again. You have be careful when it comes to chemicals going into something you're going to smoke.

Hey I am am also starting to grow outside, what if i let the seeds germinate too long and the sprout has shed the outer shell of the seed, are they still okay to plant or have they gone too long without sun?

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Originally Posted by Earthy Dank

Well if its minor pest then it won't kill it or hurt it too bad but it will negatively affect your plant. Best to get some insecticide. Find something that is safe and can be used on vegetables. Spray it on the plant to the point of run-off and then spray it with clean water. Only use what you need after each spray wait a week or two before doing it again. You have be careful when it comes to chemicals going into something you're going to smoke.

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Upon inspection 2 days ago I found a small caterpillar like worm that was about 1/2" long and green wiggling out of a tiny cocoon so I fed that little BASTARD to my venus fly trap. That's what that piece of shit gets for fucking with my plant!

Argh, there's holes on 4 or 5 of the leaves now.

I did another thorough inspection and didn't find anything else. I released a box of lady bugs last weekend to take care of an afid infestation in my dill and oregano.

I think a few got onto my ganja plant and I everday I find 1 or 2 white pests in the soil but none on the plant. Are those afid larvae or just a soil bug because they aren't green like the afids on the other herbs? Most of the lady bugs are dead or flew away so I can't really put anymore on my plant to protect it. Guess I'll have to spend another 7 bucks on some more...bummer I thought they'd last the entire summer.

Any suggestions???

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dealer Number 1

Hey I am am also starting to grow outside, what if i let the seeds germinate too long and the sprout has shed the outer shell of the seed, are they still okay to plant or have they gone too long without sun?

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You can still plant. The reason you plant it before it comes completely out is so you won't stress it. The plant is EXTREMELY fragile at this age and simply touching it can kill it. As carefully as you can plant is in a pre-dug hole. Careful not to put any pressure on it and have it to were the round leaves are barely poking out. You make want to grow it out inside for a week or two. It'll need mild weather and plent of water if it does stress.

Alright, Thanks, I put it in a pot and it came back to green. What is the reason for not touching it with your fingers at this early stage? Oils?

its just extremely delicate... when they are small they have little microscopic roots and are just easy for us to damage. Like barely touching it is proportionatly like putting you're head in a vice grip... you should get it before it's leave sprout because you can pick it up by the seed coat. Once it gets established you can touch it all you want.. or at least the leaves.

Thank you very much earthy dank you have been a great help.

what happends if u dont use nutrients will the plant still grow right

Cannabis plants need a variety of nutrients to survive... just as we need nutrition to survive. In order for a plant to be healthy it needs these nutrients. The basic 3 and the numbers you see on fertilizer is Nitrogen-Phosphurous-Potassium. Cannabis likes high nitrogen. Also it needs magnesium, boron, zinc and Molybdenum. Of couse there are many more. You want to make sure your plant gets as much of these nutrients as it needs so it will grow up big and strong. IF you use soil that has alot of these nutrients then you will have a healthy plant. If the soil you doesn't have the nutrients then it will ge unhealthy or die. Think of fertilizing like feeding the plant when it shows signs of being hungry (yellowing leaves (clorosis), Leaf curl, and browning of leaves (necrosis). But if you feed it too much chemicals it will burn it. This will start at the tip of the leaves and it will look like the tips are dying. They turn tan and crispy. If this happens there is no way to reverse it so be extremely careful with strong fertilizer. Always use as directed. Organic fertilizers are often prefered over their chemical brother because they breakdown over time so it won't burn the plant and will feed it slowly over a long time. If you wanna grow schwag don't use fertilizer, If you wanna grow dank, Use organics.:thumbsup:

http://boards.cannabis.com/showthread.php?t=55970

Check this thread out, it has a list of good organics

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Earthy Dank

http://boards.cannabis.com/showthread.php?t=55970

Check this thread out, it has a list of good organics

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Kick ass thread! I wish you told me this before I went out a bought 2 million pounds of the miracle grow 15-30-15 you suggested. LOL

For real though, what is the best method of feeding then if using an organic? Soil feed? or Foliar Method?

Thanks EarthyDankizzle!

Most is organics are meant for soil use. If its manure use it like you would use mulch. Just sprinkle it on the top of the soil and water it in. If it is something like blood meal or bone meal or some kind of powder then you can mix it with water and make a tea for the soil. Most organic foliar feeds are sold in stores. Personally, When I set up the plot or the hole I gonna grow in. I add about 20gallons of well-composted horse manure, 5 gallons of regular top soil, several cups of blood meal, and several cups of wood ash. This will feed the plant all year. But worms love manure and when they will gather around the roots they leave worm castings,(N= 0.5 P= 0.5 K= 0.3) and they help aereate the soil so the roots get oxygen. They make the ground settle down alot though so I'll add another 5 gallons of manure every month or two. I'll have pictures on my journal soon and you can see how they look here soon.
http://boards.cannabis.com/showthread.php?t=53951

If you're plant is flowering the best organic you could use would be bat guano. Cannabis uses mostly nitrogen in vegetative state (green,no buds).
The when it starts flowering(buds) it uses more Phosphurous and potassium. Miracle-gro 15-30-15 is a good fertilizer for a flowering plant. I would use it once a week as directed then everyday in between rinse out the soil with water. For the last 2 weeks quit feeding it and start giving it only water. This helps get the bad taste of chemicals out of the bud. And for the last few days until harvest don't water at all. This helps the bud dry faster. Chemicals are great though, as soon as the solution hits the roots the plant starts using it. This is good but makes it easy to overfeed and "burn" the plant.

Thanks for the kick ass info Earthy Dank!!!

I just started growing outdoors and was wondering what size pot to use. We got the biggest home depot had and it was only 11 liters. Is that too small?

That sounds pretty small, the one I am using is I think 5 gallons or more which equates to about 20 liters

Earthy Dank, I gotta ask you a question I'm SURE you know the answer to. So as we've been discussing, the outdoor grow hit a few real minor bumps in the road but I've managed to keep it growing nicely. I will post a few pics over the next day or so but I have one MAJOR concern right now.

The plant is about 2 months old now and is a decent size. I am curious about the flowering because I have been reading that the amount of light due to the Summer solstice is greater than 12 hours which is why the plant won't start flowering until the amount of daylight decreases to 12 or closer to that. With that said, am I just going to have a vegetative plant until that happens?

The patio where my plant is located has two walls which keeps the sun from hitting it for an hour or two after sunrise and the same for sunset. Therefore it should only be getting 12 or so hours of sunlight anyway.

What's your take on this?
Thanks!

Yes. it will veg for the rest of the time plus it will double in size when flowering begins. Most likely a 3 foot plant will end up being about 7 feet tall. So if you neeed it shorter you better top it or something.
The darkness is what makes your plants flower not the shaade or hours of direct sunlight. You need 12 hours darkness to flower.

Shit! Bad news!

I thought you can only top it right after the flowering begins. If I post a pic of my plant from today, can you tell me exactly where to do it and how? That would seriously help a lot. My patio/back yard is not exactly that large or isolated. My neighbors will know somethings up when a 7 ft plant is visible and reaks of the ganj.

Thanks!

I attached some pics. Let me know what you think based on my last post.

Kick ass plant Delta. Just snip the top of the plant. This way your plant will stop growing in height and focus on bushing out.

Cut it right at this red line. See the two shoots below the top. Those will be the new tops.
It will bush out after that. And if it starts getting too tall again in the next couple months you can top those two tops.:thumbsup:
Great plant by the way. You mighty yield almost a pound on that baby.
It is a girl right?

How deep do I make the slice?

Thanks imsmokingmyroach and Jdog, I would be a giddy school girl if I got that much off her! I was hoping for maybe 3 zones.

Oh ya, it's a girl :)

Ok, it's done.

We shall see how it takes to being molested.

I need to pinch my Columbia Gold soon so it will bush out as well. I'm hoping for a alot of cuttings for this falls indoor grow. Post a pic of your plant.

Right on!

You can see a couple pics I posted a few days ago a few posts up.

I'll snap some once I get the flowering started.

Good luck!