(First) Cheap Outdoor Grow

McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Hey Everyone,

Thanks to all that have made posts.

Hopefully, I've learned from your mistakes and grown from your accomplishments.

I've decided to start my own grow. Outdoors seems to be the cheapest method, thus its seems to be the best method suited for me.

Here is the plan: Ultimately, I want 2 beautiful female plants so I'll follow the rule of thumb, if the sex is unknown, double or triple the amount of plants that is desired, meaning I'll plant 6 seeds. Whatever the case may be (disease, trespassers, critters, males), hopefully I'll harvest at least 2 females.

First, I thought of growing the plants indoors and cloning to sex them, but I just don't have the funds for lights and equipment.

For each plant, I'll dig a 3' x 3' x 1' hole (spaced sporadically apart), break the dirt up, mix it with potting soil, fill the hole, cover with landscaping fabric (to prevent weeds), and replace the top layer of grass (to avoid unwanted attention). I'll do this 6 times.

When the soil preparation is done, I'll germinate the seeds in a moist paper towel and plant them in rockwool cubes for good measure.

I'll be using bag seed since I'd rather waste my time then money.

I'll be planting the seeds late March-early April between the closest New and Full Moon.
This is from the Old Farmer's Almanac: "The best time to plant flowers and vegetables that bear crops above ground is during the light of the Moon; that is, from the day the Moon is new to the day it is full."
Has anyone else heard this before?

So far, I've located a planting site, and will begin soil prep work tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

Everyone's comments, suggestions, and advice is openly welcomed. Thank you.
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Is anyone familiar with growing in Western Tennessee/Mid-South area?

I would love to hear when the best time to plant is, what strains you have been successful with, and any other advice you might have.

I'll have pictures with the next update.

Thank you.
 
tyke1973

tyke1973

Well-Known Member
If you are not useing femanised seeds make sure that you keep a close eye on them.if you don't you could end up with realy seedy weed.i good trick is plant them in your grow op when they get to a nice size way before flowering take clones of each one and keep them on your window cill make sure that you draw a plan where clones are from put he on 12/12off a week after takeing clones make sure yo use rooting gel for fast rooting.has soon has roots appear put on flowering cycle pull any males before they flower outdoors.
 
Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler

Well-Known Member
I've grown in W.Tn before with good results. Can't make any strain recommendations as I'm still weighing the options myself. Since this area is basically the Mississippi delta, the soil conditions are uniquely rich and loamy. Some of the soils have high-clay to loam ratios so drainage might be a issue. This can be fixed with addition of perlite and/or vermiculite. Planting slightly higher than normal ("1-"3) above the surrounding should also help. Humidity usually ranges from merely insufferable to being able to actually see the air, try to find an area that is slightly elevated to as this will aid with air circulation and reduce the potential for mold. Planting dates are usually after April-15 for latest frost (just remember the latest day to file income tax.) Planting earlier than that risks frost injury or worse yet, spring turkey hunters discovering your plots. Deer are a special problem in this area as well so take any special provisions that are required to protect them until they are large and in charge. Hope this helps.
 
tyke1973

tyke1973

Well-Known Member
The only advice i can give is rather than buy 5 crap seeds buy two good seeds look for the pick and mix seed companys go for blueberry or whitewidow.if yo can afford some decent seeds go for the greenhouse mix bags that way you are getting 5 differant strains.if grown right you should only have to buy one set of these mixed seeds that wayone day you can be smokeing whitewidow the next arjons supersilver haze let your mothers get to a decent size then take 10m clones of each and your next grow is ready but you will need some cfls to keep your mothers going through the winter months.
 
Irie Hawaii

Irie Hawaii

Well-Known Member
McMurphy said:
Hey Everyone,

Thanks to all that have made posts.

Hopefully, I've learned from your mistakes and grown from your accomplishments.

I've decided to start my own grow. Outdoors seems to be the cheapest method, thus its seems to be the best method suited for me.

Here is the plan: Ultimately, I want 2 beautiful female plants so I'll follow the rule of thumb, if the sex is unknown, double or triple the amount of plants that is desired, meaning I'll plant 6 seeds. Whatever the case may be (disease, trespassers, critters, males), hopefully I'll harvest at least 2 females.

First, I thought of growing the plants indoors and cloning to sex them, but I just don't have the funds for lights and equipment.

For each plant, I'll dig a 3' x 3' x 1' hole (spaced sporadically apart), break the dirt up, mix it with potting soil, fill the hole, cover with landscaping fabric (to prevent weeds), and replace the top layer of grass (to avoid unwanted attention). I'll do this 6 times.

When the soil preparation is done, I'll germinate the seeds in a moist paper towel and plant them in rockwool cubes for good measure.

I'll be using bag seed since I'd rather waste my time then money.

I'll be planting the seeds late March-early April between the closest New and Full Moon.
This is from the Old Farmer's Almanac: "The best time to plant flowers and vegetables that bear crops above ground is during the light of the Moon; that is, from the day the Moon is new to the day it is full."
Has anyone else heard this before?

So far, I've located a planting site, and will begin soil prep work tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

Everyone's comments, suggestions, and advice is openly welcomed. Thank you.
Click to expand...

Time is money. stop being cheap and buy some female seeds off dope-seeds.com its only like $50 and you get 5 fem seeds within 6 days. I recommend a Sativa for outdoors or a Haze since they get HUGE. bag seed is setting your self for allot of frustrations.
 
Gilfman

Gilfman

Well-Known Member
Irie Hawaii said:
Time is money. stop being cheap and buy some female seeds off dope-seeds.com its only like $50 and you get 5 fem seeds within 6 days. I recommend a Sativa for outdoors or a Haze since they get HUGE. bag seed is setting your self for allot of frustrations.
Click to expand...
If you are gonna buy seeds i'd buy some feminized ... but I'd go with a more indica strain .. maybe a 10 week flowering plant max.. if you use bagseed be in store for surprises ... like males and different phenos .. good luck this year
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
tyke1973 said:
If you are not useing femanised seeds make sure that you keep a close eye on them.if you don't you could end up with realy seedy weed.i good trick is plant them in your grow op when they get to a nice size way before flowering take clones of each one and keep them on your window cill make sure that you draw a plan where clones are from put he on 12/12off a week after takeing clones make sure yo use rooting gel for fast rooting.has soon has roots appear put on flowering cycle pull any males before they flower outdoors.
Click to expand...
Thanks tyke. Originally, thats what I wanted to do, clone the plants for guaranteed females, but I can't afford that right now. In the future I'd love to do that (I know I'll have better results :lol:). I'll definitely have to keep a close eye on them for sure like you said so I won't have seedy crops.
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Carl Spackler said:
I've grown in W.Tn before with good results. Can't make any strain recommendations as I'm still weighing the options myself. Since this area is basically the Mississippi delta, the soil conditions are uniquely rich and loamy. Some of the soils have high-clay to loam ratios so drainage might be a issue. This can be fixed with addition of perlite and/or vermiculite. Planting slightly higher than normal ("1-"3) above the surrounding should also help. Humidity usually ranges from merely insufferable to being able to actually see the air, try to find an area that is slightly elevated to as this will aid with air circulation and reduce the potential for mold. Planting dates are usually after April-15 for latest frost (just remember the latest day to file income tax.) Planting earlier than that risks frost injury or worse yet, spring turkey hunters discovering your plots. Deer are a special problem in this area as well so take any special provisions that are required to protect them until they are large and in charge. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Awesome advice Carl! I've never heard planting on a slight mound like you said, but it makes perfect sense. And what you said about the humidity in lowlands, I was worried about that. It might be better if I found a higher spot.

Deer are everywhere out where I am too. I've heard vegetable gardeners mention some techniques that deter deer like leaving hair or dried blood around the site, and starting early to avoid problems later. What do you use?

Its hard to find growers talk about growing in Western Tennessee so all of your advice is more than welcomed. Thank you.
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
tyke1973 said:
The only advice i can give is rather than buy 5 crap seeds buy two good seeds look for the pick and mix seed companys go for blueberry or whitewidow.if yo can afford some decent seeds go for the greenhouse mix bags that way you are getting 5 differant strains.if grown right you should only have to buy one set of these mixed seeds that wayone day you can be smokeing whitewidow the next arjons supersilver haze let your mothers get to a decent size then take 10m clones of each and your next grow is ready but you will need some cfls to keep your mothers going through the winter months.
Click to expand...
Thanks tyke. Those are great ideas. If I was going to buy seeds, I'd probably buy the Outdoor Mix like you said, Durban Poison, or Early Misty just because the growing difficulty is easy, "good for beginners." :lol: I don't know how true that is, but I figured it would be a good place to start.

But one day I would love to grow some Blueberry or White Widow. I hear nothing but good things! I'm just not sure if they're best suited for the climate around here.
 
Gilfman

Gilfman

Well-Known Member
deer are easily taken care of with a guaranteed product (Liquid Fence, Repels-All, Plantskydd*) .. also a friend said moth balls worked for him but i've yet to try .. just go with the guaranteed product instead of hair .. also predators smell the blood and MAY dig up your plants .. (i had a problem with an animal just digging up the soil of my plant and uprooting it but i saved it in time (I used blood and bone meal for nutrients tho)) ...

Also if you are looking for a spot make sure it's the spot you KNOW you want to grow there and you feel SAFER that no one will find it.. make sure the spot you use gets plenty of sun .. that's about the most crucial thing for large yielding plants IMO
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Irie Hawaii said:
Time is money. stop being cheap and buy some female seeds off dope-seeds.com its only like $50 and you get 5 fem seeds within 6 days. I recommend a Sativa for outdoors or a Haze since they get HUGE. bag seed is setting your self for allot of frustrations.
Click to expand...
Damn... $50 for 5 feminized seeds? That'd make it a $100+ grow when I'm not even sure it'll be successful no matter what.

In all reality, this grow is likely to go belly up. What I'm really worried about is problems from uncontrollable sources like deer, bud mold, or snitches.

Thats why I'm a little hesitant to invest alot of money into this. But if this goes successful, you better believe I'll ante up next time.

From what I read, marijuana is a pretty resilient plant that grows naturally throughout the world. I figure with just a little bit of care my efforts should be worth while or at least I hope so. :lol:

But I'm no expert. This will at least be a learning experience.
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Gilfman said:
If you are gonna buy seeds i'd buy some feminized ... but I'd go with a more indica strain .. maybe a 10 week flowering plant max.. if you use bagseed be in store for surprises ... like males and different phenos .. good luck this year
Click to expand...
Thanks Gilfman. I was thinking about an Indica strain too. I've heard they're heartier and have more of a learning curve. Maybe Afghan or Master Kush?

Although Master Kush is a Sativa/Indica mix but both strains were labeled with "easy" growing difficulty.

I'm not sure how much of a difference "easy" makes it, but it sounded something to look into for future grows.
Thank you.
 
McMurphy

McMurphy

Active Member
Gilfman said:
deer are easily taken care of with a guaranteed product (Liquid Fence, Repels-All, Plantskydd*) .. also a friend said moth balls worked for him but i've yet to try .. just go with the guaranteed product instead of hair .. also predators smell the blood and MAY dig up your plants .. (i had a problem with an animal just digging up the soil of my plant and uprooting it but i saved it in time (I used blood and bone meal for nutrients tho)) ...

Also if you are looking for a spot make sure it's the spot you KNOW you want to grow there and you feel SAFER that no one will find it.. make sure the spot you use gets plenty of sun .. that's about the most crucial thing for large yielding plants IMO
Click to expand...
Thanks Gilfman. Liquid Fence? I'll have to check that out. I have a strong feeling that deer with be a more than just a nuance.

I've seen deer markings and trails around here, but I've noticed that they mainly come out during full moons when they can forge for food so maybe I can keep a closer eye around those times. I don't know... maybe a close eye in general won't hurt either :lol: Thank you for all of the advice. I need as much as I can get :lol:
 
Gilfman

Gilfman

Well-Known Member
McMurphy said:
Thanks Gilfman. I was thinking about an Indica strain too. I've heard they're heartier and have more of a learning curve. Maybe Afghan or Master Kush?

Although Master Kush is a Sativa/Indica mix but both strains were labeled with "easy" growing difficulty.

I'm not sure how much of a difference "easy" makes it, but it sounded something to look into for future grows.
Thank you.
Click to expand...
You'd be safe with a sativa x indica hybrid .. either one of those im sure will be a great plant to grow .. "easy" means the plant is usually vigorous which would be good for a first time grower .. check out attitude seeds if you want to purchase from a reliable source with good prices

McMurphy said:
Thanks Gilfman. Liquid Fence? I'll have to check that out. I have a strong feeling that deer with be a more than just a nuance.

I've seen deer markings and trails around here, but I've noticed that they mainly come out during full moons when they can forge for food so maybe I can keep a closer eye around those times. I don't know... maybe a close eye in general won't hurt either :lol: Thank you for all of the advice. I need as much as I can get :lol:
Click to expand...
deer will kick your ass if you dont plan for them .. little plants more so than the bigger ones because the smaller ones are more tender, however the deer would eat the new shoots that grow on your plant.. also i made a mistake last year growing BESIDE a deer trail .. nothing will repel them from the trail they've been using ({i tried) .. it forced me to transfer my plants else where .. i saved 5 plants, got one female (one reason i recommend fem'd seeds lol)

best of luck choosing your strain and growing it :hump:
 
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