question about the outdoor growing life

[damianmarleyisraw]

hi, this summer i plant to start a grow of possibly 10-12 plants and maybe even more, the only exspircne i have in growing is i have a lowryder in a cardboard box walled with tinfoil. i will be new to outdoor growing, all i want to know is, ive seen people put there plants in the ground and seen some who buy soil and put em in pots, whats the best to do?

i am going to be money tight and need to know at the minimum everything im going to need(organic ferts,pots if needed..ect.) and if i need to str8 up ground em or put em in pots with soil.


thanks

damianmarleyisraw Reviewed by damianmarleyisraw on 02-21-2007. question about the outdoor growing life hi, this summer i plant to start a grow of possibly 10-12 plants and maybe even more, the only exspircne i have in growing is i have a lowryder in a cardboard box walled with tinfoil. i will be new to outdoor growing, all i want to know is, ive seen people put there plants in the ground and seen some who buy soil and put em in pots, whats the best to do? i am going to be money tight and need to know at the minimum everything im going to need(organic ferts,pots if needed..ect.) and if i need Rating: 5

[damianmarleyisraw]

thanks devon, now that i have thought about it, i think i might be going with the pots, i dont know though, i might or might not be able to be there everytime they need water. but if i pots im going to buy the cheapest nursrey pots they have.

back to more questions, if i do get the pots what size pot am i going to need? i prefer to only to buy one size and not different but if i have to i gotta do what i gotta do. Also, i want to do all organtic due to chemical issues, and what would be the best kind of soil/ferts for the pots?


thanks agian

[unclebob]

Unless you have some reason to think you will need to move them, it's much easier to get a ood result by just planting directly into the ground. It does require carefull and thourough preparing of the planting area / beds. You will get a much greater yield and they will require less tending. If your are anticipating a need to move them, then better off to pick a better spot to begin with. When preparing beds don't forget to turn thoroughly, remove roots and debris, add organic amendments, add timed release ferts, add water crystals, add lime if too acidic, prepare beds at least one month before putting plants in. Good luck

bob

[damianmarleyisraw]

ok, i have always pictured good soil being rich looking and black. the soil we have out here(im in georgia) is more of a grey/little black. would that be ok to grow in you belive?


as an outdoor noob, and not knowing about ferts/plant necciecties what are organtic amendments and water crystals?

also where is the best place to buy all this? i wanted to go ebay



thanks agian :rasta:

[unclebob]

Hey bud,

By organic amendments I mean anything that will compost. I am right next to you in Alabama and I have also done this in GA so I know your soil type. I suggest the following:
First turn the soil completely and remove rocks sticks roots etc. Second add some leaves, dead grass, pine straw or whatever is on the ground (no wood or sticks). Turn that in. Then add either strait peat moss or high grade plant mix at about 3/4 cubic feet per each bed of about 3X5 (holds two girls).
Turn that in. Next add about 5 Tbs of lime cause your soil is acidic. Next add a 1/2 dose of timed release ferts, Next addd 1.3 recomended rate of water crystals. Turn one more time. Cover with dead stuff sticks branches, etc. Come back at plant time and rake in one full dose of TR ferts. Pop em in. Water at plant time and 2,3 days later to get em started. Come back in 3 weeks to remove competing weeds and one more time about one month later. Must do all prep work at leat one month prior to plant time to give it all time to work. Water crystals are available at any plant shop, home depot, etc.

Good luck

bob

[damianmarleyisraw]

im guessing im going to need a gas tiller? anything else i can use to turn in soil? im also having a problem finding a place in the woods to plant, all shaded and the plants are going to need full sunlight, so am i going to need to have a openspace?

im going to need to make a trip to home depot and pick up some soil, any suggestions on type/brand? and correct me if im wrong, i shold put the plants outside april 10-20th?

and thanks to unclebob for being a big help! :rastasmoke:

[unclebob]

Hey marley man neighbor from GA,

Sure a gas tiller would be great if you can get it to the site and oprate it without being detected. Have never had that option. Have always had to rely on a good old fashioned shoval and lots of elbow grease. A full size shoval will be much easier on the back, but a fold-up or shortie will due. Any brand of dry type plant mix will work well. Most are about 40-60 % peat based. I say dry type cause its lighter. No need for any high priced designer type nutes or soil or amendments - not needed. Especially not needed are products made especially for growing weed. Just a way to sepearate you from your cash. Growing weed is like growing flowers or vegetables or shrubs or anything else. Standard and proven gardening practices work the best. The main key to sucess is proper choosing and preparation of the site, not what brand of stuff you use. Yes you are right that a shaded site in the middle of the woods won't work. It would be a complete and total waste of your time. The best areas are those where the woods was cleared or burned say 5-10 yrs ago and now their is re-growth of brush 3-6 feeet high with pines and other trees mixed in say about 8-15 tall. Try to pick a spot at least 30-40 feet from the nearest older taller trees. It might be an abandoned residential or comercial propery that is all overgrown and has no immidiate neighbors with a clear view. It could be a private or public patch of land that is not presently being used for anything. Sometimes it's a peice of land w/ a sign that says XXX acres for sale, but you can tell it's been sitting on the market for years. Drive around rural areas and keep your eyes open.

Finding spots is the very first and most important step. Its also a very a time consuming step because they dont just jump out at you everywhere you look. Preparing spots / creating planting beds is next. It is very time consuming and back breaking work to do it right. If not done right, the entire effort will be a total wast of time cause you wont get squat for results. Too many overlook this, and they just go on line and order a bunch of seeds. They think they can just go find spots and then break up the ground and put the plants in all in one day. It does not work that way. When ordering seeds, its best to just order a few more than what will fit in the beds that you have already found and already prepared. The other myth a see often is that your beds must be near a stream or pond or swamp or lake. This is IMHO a bad idea. These areas get lots of hikers, fishermen, hunters and nature lovers. They are often low lying areas with poor drainage and / or poor air circulation. Not to say that good sites near water don't exist. However, I prefer to prepare good beds that will not require regular irrigation. Very easily done in an area like GA or AL where we get above average rainfall. Oh yeah, one more thing - the very, very worst possible place to plant is in a public parkland, forest presearve, campground or similar. They get steady foot traffic from hikers, bikers, campers, hunters, bird watchers, fisherman and nature lovers of all types. Also they have Game Wardons, Park Rangers and the like. Finding illegally planted weed is a part of their written job description. Don't try it unless you want to get popped.

Good luck in GA

bob

[nitepharmer]

Listen to yer Unclebob. First few years I had the bright idea a lot of noobies have, Why I,ll just grow a few plants over in the local forest preserve. Mistake. Grow where its ugly, not where its pretty, grow where people don't think of going for a walk or growing. Each year they bust a bunch of grows in the forest preserves in every metro area and you just know some ranger is getting his ass chewed out or not finding it earlier. I have an evil hobby. Each year I plant a bunch of ducksfoot marijuana in the local forest preserves, with no intention of harvesting it. It stays camoflouged with it's mutant leaf shape till September and then when it starts to sex, it reverts to its normal very recognizable marijuana leaf shape. I'm a bad man