Alright so I'm planning an outdoor grow for this summer and i'm expecting my seeds to get here within the next couple of weeks. I have found a couple ideal grow spots near my house and am beginning to purchase all the supplies i'm going to need. I have 2 questions ---> first: What kind of prep work should be done at my plot before the grow season starts and before i put my plants outside. secondly I Alsoplan on starting my plants inside for a week or two just to get going. What kind of light would i need for seedlings and what conditions should they be under before transplanting outside?
The CFL lighting Chadbomb suggested will probably do if you're just growing them out for 1-3 weeks.
For outside prep, you really should dig down and see what you have in the place you want to plant. Depending on where you live, you may have useful soil already at your site, you may have none.
I've lived all over the US, and most places have about 6-12 inches of ideal soil on top, and total shit below. What I'd suggest is prepping some holes ahead of time, and dig them down at least a couple of feet. Keep any loose, dark soil that might come naturally and get rid of clay, rocks, red stiff soil, gray stiff soil -- all of that will be an impediment. A plastic tarp and a wheelbarrow are handy (tarp=good soil; junk goes in wheelbarrow to be dumped -- don't dump it near a stream or wetlands.. fucks up Ma Nature).
In the hole, you can add back any number of good mixes. Check out the Organics Forum and Subcool's "super soil" mix.. lots of folks go with similar mixes. Search around..
I just busted my hump about a month ago digging a 6X3' hole that I plan to put about 4 plants in. Still have about a month to go before I can move plants out there. One-three months is a good "curing time" to let your mix come together with Nature's microorganisms. Some peeps like to pre-water their grow-holes with BMO's Super Plant Tonic, to jump start micro activity. Haven't done it myself.. just parroting others here, but I like the sound of it. If you have good native soil to put back in your mix, that may very well have plenty of micros already in it.
