Working With Consultant/Grower, Can You Please Tell Me What You Think Of This Advice?

I will be growing along with a partner, and I recently purchased a home with a 30x40 pole barn that i will be remodeling into a grow. This is our first grow, so we will be sectioning it off and only doing 24 plants maximum at first. As my partner and I hone our skills in and get a couple grows under our belts, we plan on sectioning off the barn into different zones and filling it with plants.

I have a couple of guys who work for a corporate weed grow helping me plan it out for free since they work for our family friends; I am a connoisseur and absolutely love cannabis, and am willing to put in the love/work required to get the best quality, while the consultants are more of the types who want to have a more set-and-forget grow that will allow them to go on vacations and such.


My question is, what are your guys thoughts on their advice:

1. I have always planned on hand watering, however they are mentioning a Bluemat watering system to "keep the soil at an optimal moisture at all times". I have always been told that the soil dry backs are a good thing, and that you dont want your soil completely wet all the time. Ive even seen people mention watering every couple of days

2. They recommended Build-A-Soil 3.0, however I have been planning on using Roots Organic Soil. They much prefer coco/salt nutes, but since i am adamant about organic, they recommend BAS 3.0.

3. They Recommended Sliding/Rolling Tables For Flower.

4. They Recommended tiered racking for veg. Would you guys personally do this in a 30x40 pole barn with fairly high ceilings? Or would you do somthing else like just build 1 large veg room, multiple veg rooms, etc?

5. Like i mentioned in number 2 they prefer coco, and are trying to convince me organic is more likely to grow poor quality flower than coco, dont think i should top dress, and think i should take a more synthetic approach. My plan that i originally told them is below

• --I have been planning on keeping it simple for my first grow based on my research: Dont feed during seed/clone. Feed only Compost Tea and Buddha Grow once or twice a week during first 2 weeks of Veg. Then begin top dressing with Roots Terp Tea Grow every 2 weeks. Flip to flower, and top dress with Roots Terp Tea Bloom once a week, and feed buddha bloom along with compost tea once or twice a week.

Im sorry this was a long post. I just know that there are some very knowledgable people on here, and i want to make sure this grow is being built with love and connoisseur quality in mind. I dont mind avoiding vacations and having "less of a life" as they put it, if it means that more hands on, hand watering/unautomated growing = better quality flower.

Thanks!

Wouldn't do any of that. Get a 2x2 tent for veg and a 4x4 for flower and learn how to grow first.

Plenty of growers here grow fire looking plants with coco and salts. I prefer organic with dry amendments myself. Mixing the soil yourself will give you more of that hands on approach you're after. Also way cheaper than build-a-soil Plenty of good recipes to be found.

Racked veg is OK. Depends how tall your plants get and how long you plan to veg.

You want simple, organic, able to go on vacation, killer nugs, perfectly moist soil? PUt them all in sips. You can put each one on a dolly and roll them to wherever these guys want you to roll them. I put a net right on top of each sip.

Dry amendments, I've found, are the way to go for organic. After harvest, just mix the dirt in the sip back up with fresh amendments and off you grow.

raggyb said:

Wouldn't do any of that. Get a 2x2 tent for veg and a 4x4 for flower and learn how to grow first.

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I completely agree filling the barn with plants would be unreasonable for a first grow and would be damn near impossible. Thats why i mentioned in the first post "This is our first grow, so we will be sectioning it off and only doing 24 plants maximum at first. As my partner and I hone our skills in and get a couple grows under our belts, we plan on sectioning off the barn into different zones and filling it with plants."

We definitely will not go above that 24 plant count and actually begin filling the barn until we have learned how to grow. 24 plants is a definitely bigger than the 2x2 and 4x4 you mentioned, but im hoping it should be manageable since it will be 2 people working the grow.

I appreciate the advice!

Do you want to grow some great weed? Do you want to make some money? Do you want to have a hobby to take up your time and make some money? What does your partner want? No need to reinvent the wheel, if you want to make money. I recommend Follow the guys that have a proven record, then if you have enough desire, do what you want on the side. You can learn from doing both. If you don't care about making money then do what you want.

cannabiscrusader said:

Plenty of growers here grow fire looking plants with coco and salts. I prefer organic with dry amendments myself. Mixing the soil yourself will give you more of that hands on approach you're after. Also way cheaper than build-a-soil Plenty of good recipes to be found.

Racked veg is OK. Depends how tall your plants get and how long you plan to veg.

You want simple, organic, able to go on vacation, killer nugs, perfectly moist soil? PUt them all in sips. You can put each one on a dolly and roll them to wherever these guys want you to roll them. I put a net right on top of each sip.

Dry amendments, I've found, are the way to go for organic. After harvest, just mix the dirt in the sip back up with fresh amendments and off you grow.

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Yea ive definitely smoked some amazing flower grown with coco and salts, but some properly grown organic weed (in my opinion) is by far the best flower i have ever smoked. Im similar to you and also just like the idea of going organic/a more natural approach.

Ill have to look into mixing my own soil for sure. For my first grow just to make things easier i think i am going to go pre mixed with the Roots Organic Original or GreenFields, but after researching i may end up changing my mind and mixing my own as you suggested.

And by the sounds of it im thinking ill only go with racked veg in the future if i end up expanding and really need extra space.

I definitely want organic, and simple (at least simple at first while i learn how to grow), but i honestly dont even care about being able to go on vacation. If being more hands on with the plants means the quality will be greatly increased, we can sacrifice vacations for quality. We rarely even leave town anyway.

Ive never heard of sips. Ill have to look into that. Is there a brand you'd recommend? That sounds like it could be a perfect option.

And ill be sure to look into some good dry amendments. If i ever decide to reuse my soil that will definitely be necessary.

Thank you so much for the help!

warble said:

Do you want to grow some great weed? Do you want to make some money? Do you want to have a hobby to take up your time and make some money? What does your partner want? No need to reinvent the wheel, if you want to make money. I recommend Follow the guys that have a proven record, then if you have enough desire, do what you want on the side. You can learn from doing both. If you don't care about making money then do what you want.

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I want great weed. Weed with real love put into it through the grow cycle, and then not only dried but properly jar cured which a lot of people seem to skip doing now a days.

I do want to make money eventually, but am fortunate enough to be in a position where i could spend money on this grow for years without making profit and it would be OK. Eventually when i hone my skills in, i do plan on filling the barn up and making some money though for sure.

It would definitely be a hobby as well, because my partner and i have been friends since childhood, and have always had the dream of starting a grow together.

The growers i have access to that are helping me for free unfortunately are only in the grow game for the money, but they are the only people i know with some experience so i will take whatever help i can get and just take it with a grain of salt.

I really appreciate the help, take care!

24 is a fairly sizable undertaking for a first grow. A LOT of time and money to invest in something that may go completely south due to lack of experience.

Fangthane said:

24 is a fairly sizable undertaking for a first grow. A LOT of time and money to invest in something that may go completely south due to lack of experience.

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Even with 2 people running it you think it would be overwhelming? I thought 12 plants for a first grow isnt unreasonable, so 24 for 2 people should be do-able i thought. Do you disagree?

I also agree that it is a lot of time and money to invest in something that may go south due to lack of experience. This has been My friend and I's dream since childhood though, and fortunately we have nothing but time and money to put into this. Even if it went south for years we could keep funding it until we get our skills honed.

Hell, where there's a will, there's a way. Just pointing out that it is a pretty big first bite. If you wanna be really hands-on and 'love' the plants as much as possible, it's going to take up a good bit of your time.

I always have to think in terms of what's affordable, so potential loss is always something I factor in heavily. Did my first grow on a $300 budget.

Here's the sip thread. Grab a bong and a snack.


Dr earth is a great base for organic soil. You can add different amendments as you grow. Earthworm castings (ewc), langbeinite, Dolomite lime, and azomite or rock dust. Good base.

Add bone meal, blood meal, neem seed powder, the list goes on. But that base with a couple cups of the dr earth 4-4-4 and 3-9-4 will get you all the way to the finish without topdressing.

I make my own sips, way better than the ones on the market. Way cheaper too. Here's my sips, many different ways to make them. Keep in mind the smaller the tote, the less soil you got. Meaning if it's small, you'll have to topdress through the grow. Mine holds 12gal of medium, and 6gal of water.

My sips, and a little poem

Fangthane said:

Hell, where there's a will, there's a way. Just pointing out that it is a pretty big first bite. If you wanna be really hands-on and 'love' the plants as much as possible, it's going to take up a good bit of your time.

I always have to think in terms of what's affordable, so potential loss is always something I factor in heavily. Did my first grow on a $300 budget.

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I definitely see where youre coming from. If time is the main worry though, as embarrassing as it is to say, my buddy and i have as much time in the world to put love into the plants. We really only hang out with each other, and besides that we are introverts that prefer to stay home most of the time. So having a grow to work on constantly could even be a good thing for us to get us up and moving, and our only real passion in life has always been cannabis.

And thats amazing that you did it on a $300 budget. Like you said, where theres a will, theres a way. Im sure you grew some fire with that $300 too as long as you put the proper care into the plants.

Do you have a full time job? Because you are about to pick up a second one. Have either of you ever grown at all? If not, if you want to.try 24, go for it, but I'd scale it way back and work on several things. Environment, equipment, media, genetics, etc... Get a couple grows under your belts with salts and organics. See which will be the better option for you to scale. Handwatering takes a lot of time. Could be daily depending on plants, size of containers, etc... Find out what works for you and then dial that in and start scaling up. If you are in a legal state/country, you will probably fins out pretty quick that the payday isn't quite what you are expecting. If you are running an illegal grow op, the risks grow considerably with the profits. And you will very quickly realize that if you hope to make money from it, you are going to have to be about the money side of things.

Bottom line, 24 plants is a lot of plants and a lot of work. Yes, even with 2 people. I'd definitely start smaller and learn the craft. It will make scaling up much easier and smoother in the long run.

Haven't quite graduated to "fire" yet, but my middies blow away pretty much anything I've bought in this remote dump. You seem to have a great attitude and are open to having your mind changed. That'll help you a lot. I'm just getting too old and stubborn to be learned much of anything these days.

cannabiscrusader said:

Here's the sip thread. Grab a bong and a snack.

SIP thread -- (Sub-Irrigated Planter)

Sub-irrigated planter From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Sub-Irrigated Planter Sub-irrigated planter (SIP) is a generic name for a special type of planting box used in container gardening and commercial landscaping. A SIP is any method of watering plants where the water is introduced from...

www.rollitup.org

Dr earth is a great base for organic soil. You can add different amendments as you grow. Earthworm castings (ewc), langbeinite, Dolomite lime, and azomite or rock dust. Good base.

Add bone meal, blood meal, neem seed powder, the list goes on. But that base with a couple cups of the dr earth 4-4-4 and 3-9-4 will get you all the way to the finish without topdressing.

I make my own sips, way better than the ones on the market. Way cheaper too. Here's my sips, many different ways to make them. Keep in mind the smaller the tote, the less soil you got. Meaning if it's small, you'll have to topdress through the grow. Mine holds 12gal of medium, and 6gal of water.

My sips, and a little poem

The P.I.S.S. Method - ( Pee in your Soil Stupid ) Grow Guide

could piss work in hydro?

www.rollitup.org

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Do you think dr earth would be a better option than Roots Organic. Roots Organic Original mix has enough nutrients in it to feed pure water for the first couple weeks, and their "Greenfields" mix has about an extra week or 2 of nutrients in it than compared to their original.

To give you an idea their soil is:

ORIGINAL MIX - Perlite, Coco Fiber, Peat Moss, Composted Forest Material, Pumice, Worm Castings, Bat Guano, Soybean Meal, Alfalfa Meal, Fishbone Meal, Kelp Meal, and Greensand. Also contains beneficial mycorrhizal fungi: Funneliformis mosseae, Rhizophagus intraradices, Septoglomus desertícola

GREENFIELDS MIX -Composted Forest Material, Peat Moss, Perlite, Coco Fiber, Pumice, Worm Castings, Crab Meal, Feather Meal, Fish Meal, Bat Guano, Soybean Meal, Fishbone Meal, Kelp Mea. Also contains beneficial mycorrhizal fungi: Funneliformis mosseae, Rhizophagus intraradices, Septoglomus desertícola



If i do go with the Dr Earth, do you just amend the soil with the 4-4-4 and 3-9-4, and then just strictly feed the plants water for their entire life cycle? Would that mix be too hot for seedlings/clones? Do the plants end up flushing well, burning clean, etc?

And lmao that poem is absolutely beautiful. Damn near made me shed a tear If i do end up going the sip route ill have to look into making my own for sure. Your setup looks awesome.

I seriously cant thank you enough for the help!

Twenty four plants shouldn't be a problem for two people. I put some of my autos in with my mothers and I tweak on them less than a couple of hours every three or four days. You can do it! Good luck.

TCH said:

Do you have a full time job? Because you are about to pick up a second one. Have either of you ever grown at all? If not, if you want to.try 24, go for it, but I'd scale it way back and work on several things. Environment, equipment, media, genetics, etc... Get a couple grows under your belts with salts and organics. See which will be the better option for you to scale. Handwatering takes a lot of time. Could be daily depending on plants, size of containers, etc... Find out what works for you and then dial that in and start scaling up. If you are in a legal state/country, you will probably fins out pretty quick that the payday isn't quite what you are expecting. If you are running an illegal grow op, the risks grow considerably with the profits. And you will very quickly realize that if you hope to make money from it, you are going to have to be about the money side of things.

Bottom line, 24 plants is a lot of plants and a lot of work. Yes, even with 2 people. I'd definitely start smaller and learn the craft. It will make scaling up much easier and smoother in the long run.

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No full time jobs, without getting too personal my friend and I have gained enough money to retire at a relatively young age. So we have nothing but time.

My friend has worked in grows, but has never personally had his own grow and has very minimal experience.

Thats a great idea to try both salts and organics and see which one works best, and then when we do expand the barn we will have a better idea of what style we like.

And its a fairly tall pole barn so im planning on having some decent sized pots, but if hand watering really becomes too much of a hassle ill have to look into automating for sure. Ive just always heard hand watering and putting attention into each plant yields the best results, but maybe thats just old "hippie" mentality haha.

And yea i am not expecting a pay day for quite a while. We are fortunate enough to have plenty of money to put into this, so even if it takes years before we see profit thats fine with us. We dont even plan on selling any until we hone our skills and expand start adding more plants. I spoke to the city and it is completely legal to do this type of grow.

I appreciate your opinion on the 24 plants being too much, and will definitely take that into consideration and speak to my friend about that. Maybe we will scale down a little for our first grows.

Thank you so much for all of the help, i really appreciate you!

warble said:

Twenty four plants shouldn't be a problem for two people. I put some of my autos in with my mothers and I tweak on them less than a couple of hours every three or four days. You can do it! Good luck.
View attachment 5344089

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Thank you so much for the encouragement! I've been thinking 24 plants is do-able for 2 people, but some other responses im getting have me reconsidering. I guess i have some thinking to do haha.

Thanks again for the encouragement, and i really appreciate the good luck wishes! Take care!

MajorGrindage said:

Do you think dr earth would be a better option than Roots Organic. Roots Organic Original mix has enough nutrients in it to feed pure water for the first couple weeks, and their "Greenfields" mix has about an extra week or 2 of nutrients in it than compared to their original.

To give you an idea their soil is:

ORIGINAL MIX - Perlite, Coco Fiber, Peat Moss, Composted Forest Material, Pumice, Worm Castings, Bat Guano, Soybean Meal, Alfalfa Meal, Fishbone Meal, Kelp Meal, and Greensand. Also contains beneficial mycorrhizal fungi: Funneliformis mosseae, Rhizophagus intraradices, Septoglomus desertícola

GREENFIELDS MIX -Composted Forest Material, Peat Moss, Perlite, Coco Fiber, Pumice, Worm Castings, Crab Meal, Feather Meal, Fish Meal, Bat Guano, Soybean Meal, Fishbone Meal, Kelp Mea. Also contains beneficial mycorrhizal fungi: Funneliformis mosseae, Rhizophagus intraradices, Septoglomus desertícola



If i do go with the Dr Earth, do you just amend the soil with the 4-4-4 and 3-9-4, and then just strictly feed the plants water for their entire life cycle? Would that mix be too hot for seedlings/clones? Do the plants end up flushing well, burning clean, etc?

And lmao that poem is absolutely beautiful. Damn near made me shed a tear If i do end up going the sip route ill have to look into making my own for sure. Your setup looks awesome.

I seriously cant thank you enough for the help!

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I've never used roots organic, or greenfield. I only use plain water for the entire grow. Sometimes I'll put a gallon of filtered ewc and bonemeal tea around week 4, bit only if I'm bored. In that barn you can just drag a garden hose and fill them all up in 10 minutes. Cover over the dirt keeps fungus gnats at bay too. Also helps keep the humidity in check. No time lost mixing nutes, just plain water.

For freshly rooted clones and seedlings, I just use promix hp, %10 perlite by volume, pinch of 4-4-4 and some ewc. I fill solo cups, with holes cut into the bottom for drainage, half way with that mix. Half full cups make it easier to bury the stem a bit to keep them short.

There is no need to flush with organics. Smoke burns clean and tasty, full of flavor. My gorilla zkittles smells like a bag of cold tropical skittles, not a hint of harshness. I posted some reviews from people in my grow journal.

Just got another review yesterday. Guy I gave some to smoked his buddies up before lunch. They went inside after and just said "what did you do to us".

They said it reminded them of the old-school weed effects. Floored me with that comment. Nothing better to hear as a grower

cannabiscrusader said:

I've never used roots organic, or greenfield. I only use plain water for the entire grow. Sometimes I'll put a gallon of filtered ewc and bonemeal tea around week 4, bit only if I'm bored. In that barn you can just drag a garden hose and fill them all up in 10 minutes. Cover over the dirt keeps fungus gnats at bay too. Also helps keep the humidity in check. No time lost mixing nutes, just plain water.

For freshly rooted clones and seedlings, I just use promix hp, %10 perlite by volume, pinch of 4-4-4 and some ewc. I fill solo cups, with holes cut into the bottom for drainage, half way with that mix. Half full cups make it easier to bury the stem a bit to keep them short.

There is no need to flush with organics. Smoke burns clean and tasty, full of flavor. My gorilla zkittles smells like a bag of cold tropical skittles, not a hint of harshness. I posted some reviews from people in my grow journal.

Just got another review yesterday. Guy I gave some to smoked his buddies up before lunch. They went inside after and just said "what did you do to us".

They said it reminded them of the old-school weed effects. Floored me with that comment. Nothing better to hear as a grower

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Is there a specific material youd recommend using to cover over the dirt to keep fungus/gnats at bay? Would i just put a layer of hydrated coco on top of the soil?

And that sounds like a very simple method. I am going to bring this up to my friend and seriously consider it. Maybe we'll try it at least on a few plants and see how it works.

And oh thats awesome, not needing to flush is a huge pro to organic that i wasnt even aware of. I cant believe i havent heard that before.

And you're killing me talking about that gorilla zkittlez. My absolute favorite terp is properly grown zkittlez (and some proper OG), and its been wayyyyy too long since ive had some. Ill have to check out the journal. Ive never had gorilla zkittlez, but that Z candy terp is unmatched. I envy you haha, i wish i had some of that to smoke right now.

And lmao that story is amazing. Your homie wasnt ready for some real deal flower hahaha. He must be used to smoking mids and was floored. And thats exactly what im saying. My goal is to bring back real deal fire like back in the day. I can only imagine how good that felt to hear. Hopefully i have the same told to me someday haha.

Thanks again for the help man! It always amazes me how much knowledge you guys have on this forum