Minimal soil prep but decent soil? OK or terrible idea? Experiences?

[The Green Reaper]

This year I had a bunch of seeds from one of my spots last year and decided to throw a few out.

About 30-50 or so total just in random spots. Now usually I go all out on soil prep, making big holes ect but this year I just basically dug up a little hole and plopped the little seedlings in and ripped up grass for better sun ect.

Now the soil in these field looks quite good but obviously not quite up to pay with store bought. I kind of wonder hough how well they will do. I will fertilize a few times and everything else in the field seems lush. Should they be fine just perhaps a bit smaller then if I went all out on soil prep?

Im wondering if I should go back and haul in a bunch of soil but really wonder if it will make much difference. I don care about monster harvest.

I assume huge grows must go au natural with minimal soil prep as well and they do fine?

I have 20 out so far where i just loosened up a bit of top soil and plopped em in and mulched with grass.

Any comments or experiences welcome. :jointsmile:

The Green Reaper Reviewed by The Green Reaper on 06-05-2008. Minimal soil prep but decent soil? OK or terrible idea? Experiences? This year I had a bunch of seeds from one of my spots last year and decided to throw a few out. About 30-50 or so total just in random spots. Now usually I go all out on soil prep, making big holes ect but this year I just basically dug up a little hole and plopped the little seedlings in and ripped up grass for better sun ect. Now the soil in these field looks quite good but obviously not quite up to pay with store bought. I kind of wonder hough how well they will do. I will fertilize Rating: 5

[aloha]

Guess it all depends....back in the day we used to re-use Sunshine mix, just adding bone, blood, and lime to re-condition the soil, then add fert tea, etc. Things were fine and yeilds were decent. These days the younger guys are using 1 pallet (60 bags) of soil PER plant....either in the ground or in 100 gallon pots. Additions are now along the lines of Kelp, Bone, Blood, Feather, Fish/Crab Meal, Rock Dust, Diatomaceous, Lonfosco, Worm Castings, They are growing TREES these days and getting 4-6lb organic and up to 12lb with chem. I've seen friends plots on Google Earth they are so big...and these are CA licensed grows. Both work....just depends on what scale you wanna go. ;-)

Aloha

[The Green Reaper]

Yeah. Hopefully i works out. Im just so busy I dont have time to lug in soil for 50 plants in like 5 different spots lol.

If I get 1 pound at least im happy. I dont plan on putting much work into them just the ocassional water/fert and thats it.

The soil does seem quite good in my spots so its probably fine but I didnt do much other than dig up like a 8 by 8 inch hole and plop them in so they will be competing a bit with the surrounding grass and shrubbery.

Part of it is also I was parnoid of being seen as my spots are not quie as secludedc as my previous spots used o be so I wanted to be in and out as quick as possible.

I figure if all he other crap grows good there pot should be fine especially if I fert. It would have been beter to make big holes with loose soil and manure mixed in though.

Usually I would try to dig a 2x2 foot hole and put in promix and maure and that worked great.

I stared so many plants though I just want to get them all out lol. As long as I get say 10 mothers at the end of the year tha would be cool. I dont sell of anything so its all personal bu a bigger harves would be cool oo so I can make bubblehash but whatever.l

I still wonder how much difference all the soil prep makes when you see 7-8 footers growing fine on heir own in the wild. lol

We shall see. Anyone ever had decent experiences without much soil prep?

[GrinKyle]

Whats really funny, thats exactly what I did this year....

I am moving to Texas in about a week, and will be returning around August.

I call it, "Planting wild cannabis"

I did water them 4-5 times, but havnt seen them for a good 2-3 weeks.....

Its bad soil, a lot of clay

Im just hoping to get some bud out of it... and seeds for future grows I guess....

but its basically wild cannabis besides my 4-5 waterings.

[PlantHeadJ]

In my personal opinion I think that it is better to use the soil that is available at the site. If you haul soil out there and dig a hole then plant the roots will effortlessly move through all of that loose fresh stuff and then turn back eventually becomming root bound. If anything mix in some perilite. It's real light to carry and at 30 % will break up clay based soils. Good Luck,
P

[The Green Reaper]

Thanks for the replies.

I put out another 14 or so today. The soil at this new spot seemed ok but could defiantly use better aeration. I should have brought out pure perlite.

I noticed though that the soil is pretty much the same as your run of the mill cornfield. Shitty aeration and mucky if wet but hey if the corn grows good in it hopefully MJ does too.

It was perfect timing to plant as we are now just getting a nice light rain :-).

Hopefully the bugs and stuff stay away and the plant make it through the critical next 2-3 weeks.


I have like 10-25 or so more little guys just sprouted and/or sprouting so i need o get them out then I guess thats it.

I was planning on getting alot more out this year as I have like endless seed supply but whatever 30-40 is ok. I expect probably a 50% mortality rate for various reasons so that would leave say 15 and then say 7 males.

That would leave me with 2-3 females per spot so 8 or 9 plants.

Hopefully at least 2 ounces per plant average so about a pound I guess. Not really enough for bubble has though :-(.

I always wanted to do like a 10 pound harvest and then turn it all into a big ball of bubblehash lol. Thats my dream.

Anyway if some survive the next 2-3 weeks I will start a little log like last year I guess.


The seeds are a lottery as they are a mix of random crosses between Thai Rain, Golden Skunk, Early Misty and Masterkush. Should see some interesting phenotypes.

The Thai Rain was my favorite. :rastasmoke: