Some Advice, Pretty Please? AK47 & Jack

The Phantom said:
I figured I would post this here for you @gratefulredhead instead of in a message in case anyone else from AZ has other outdoor growing suggestions or wants an idea on how to take advantage of the 2 outdoor grow seasons we have here.

Like Buds said, steer clear of growing from May to September if you live in the really hot parts of AZ. I managed to grow some autos outside in June and July this year. They were sunburnt, crispy, and had very airy buds. That was with misters and a shade canopy, not worth it to try again in my opinion.

For photo period seeds, I'm actually starting my spring plants indoors right now. I'll veg them inside until February when I will bring them outside to flower (usually refered to as a spring light deprivation grow). This fall I did the same, I started the plants indoors and vegged them until September when I will took them outside to flower. You'll want your photo period plants outside to start flowering by early February or by the end of September. If you wait too long in the spring the increased light as you get towards summer will mess with your plants and you may have to do some sort of light deprivation to get them to finish without becoming hermies or revealing. If you wait too long in the fall (like I did this year because of the heat that never ended) you'll end up too far into December with the cold and limited light.

Auto flowering strains I would look at the seed to harvest time the breeder gives and add 2 weeks to it. For spring planting, I wouldn't advise going past May 1. I would calculate using the growing time of the plant to find when to plant the seeds. So for example you have a 65 day seed to harvest autoflowering seed, add 2 weeks as a buffer, which gives you approximately 11 weeks of growing. So 11 weeks backwards from May 1 would put you right around Valentines Day to plant your autos outside at the latest. For fall, I like to plant around Labor Day. Usually by then things are cooling off and it keeps you from harvesting too far into December.

I hope this helps give you an idea of growing outside down here. Having 2 flowering seasons is great you just need to know how to take advantage of it.
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This is so helpful - wondering if I should start a new thread? I have a feeling there will be some interest. There is a FB group started that is filled with über-noobies, but has a few hundred members. What do you think? I do have some questions - what strains do the best in this dry climate with intense sun, how you are lighting your indoor plants.... I can wait until then or you can let m know here. Thoughts?
 
The Phantom said:
I figured I would post this here for you @gratefulredhead instead of in a message in case anyone else from AZ has other outdoor growing suggestions or wants an idea on how to take advantage of the 2 outdoor grow seasons we have here.

Like Buds said, steer clear of growing from May to September if you live in the really hot parts of AZ. I managed to grow some autos outside in June and July this year. They were sunburnt, crispy, and had very airy buds. That was with misters and a shade canopy, not worth it to try again in my opinion.

For photo period seeds, I'm actually starting my spring plants indoors right now. I'll veg them inside until February when I will bring them outside to flower (usually refered to as a spring light deprivation grow). This fall I did the same, I started the plants indoors and vegged them until September when I will took them outside to flower. You'll want your photo period plants outside to start flowering by early February or by the end of September. If you wait too long in the spring the increased light as you get towards summer will mess with your plants and you may have to do some sort of light deprivation to get them to finish without becoming hermies or revealing. If you wait too long in the fall (like I did this year because of the heat that never ended) you'll end up too far into December with the cold and limited light.

Auto flowering strains I would look at the seed to harvest time the breeder gives and add 2 weeks to it. For spring planting, I wouldn't advise going past May 1. I would calculate using the growing time of the plant to find when to plant the seeds. So for example you have a 65 day seed to harvest autoflowering seed, add 2 weeks as a buffer, which gives you approximately 11 weeks of growing. So 11 weeks backwards from May 1 would put you right around Valentines Day to plant your autos outside at the latest. For fall, I like to plant around Labor Day. Usually by then things are cooling off and it keeps you from harvesting too far into December.

I hope this helps give you an idea of growing outside down here. Having 2 flowering seasons is great you just need to know how to take advantage of it
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also - cool to start autos outside after germinating?
 
You absolutely should start a journal.

Grow Journals

Index of real-time growers showcasing indoor and outdoor grow journals in soil, coco, hydroponics - compare LED grow lights, nutrients and methods of growing cannabis
www.420magazine.com

Local growers FB groups can be very helpful, it's actually what helped me start gardening here. Have local knowledge can really save you from future heartache if you have no idea when you should be planting things here. I grew up in the Midwest so I had to reteach myself how to grow based on the new climate.

I personally haven't selected seeds/plants based on the desert climate since I'm avoiding the hottest times of the year. I don't think it is as important here vs somewhere that has a cooler, wetter climate that would have more mold and bud rot issues you would want to select seeds for. If you want to find something more adapt to our climate look into Mexican landrace sativas.

My current indoor lighting ranges from LED PCBAs (or commonly known as QBs), HPS lights, and a new LED bar light from our sponsor Atreum Lighting (I haven't received it yet so I haven't had a chance to grow under it). Now all of these lights are for growing plants start to finish indoors. If you are looking for a light just start and veg plants under indoors before turning them loose outside to flower, I would suggest something along the lines of T5 fluorescent lights or something more budget friendly that doesn't have all the extra power you normally need for flowering under. Be careful with LEDs and wattage, some companies play a dirty trick by listing equivalent wattage and not actual wattage being drawn from the wall.

As for starting autos, I would suggest starting them inside for a week or 2 before turning them loose outside. I only say this because it can still be cold in Feb and hot in Sept. Starting the seedlings inside gives you a chance to acclimate/harden them off to the outside. If you can't start them inside, just make sure it is warm/cool enough outside that the seedling can survive.
 
This poor little lady seems to be trying to flower. Omg - smallest buds ever. :)

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Well, these ladies actually are perking up after a good drink. probably too late in their grow timeline (right?), but let's see what happens?

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HopHead said:
Good work greatfulredhead. I'm happy you were able to revive them; not an easy task. Things learnt in this grow will be an asset in future grows. :thumb:
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Thanks to you all! Think they’ll produce anything? They are still pretty small! Doesn’t really matter - learning in any case.
 
The flowering time for both varieties is 7-10 weeks so you should get some bud. If there's a male you could get some seeds as well if you don't remove them. Due to the stress they've experienced it wouldn't be surprising to me if some of them produce both male and female flowers. Something to watch for. That's an undesirable trait for breeding purposes but won't matter much if you just want a few seeds to grow without having to purchase some for the next grow. They're tiny so you won't harvest much but you should get a taste. You should have a 10x loupe to keep an eye on the trichomes. When they cloud over and turn yellow to amber it's time to harvest. That's when the THC is at it's highest level after which it starts to drop off. When cannabis flowers it requires even less water than when it's vegging. Watering at the same rate could lead to bud rot. Good luck and keep us updated.
 
really for the 1st 2 weeks of growth JUST use a good root stimulator it's need to build the base (root ball) Then add nutrients right no over watering and NO over feeding at these points:
germination stage 1-7 days
seedling stage - 2 weeks (till 3 sets of true leaves)
Vegation stage - 1-2 months ( with 45 days being the norm)
Pre-flower/Transition Stage - 7days (development of bud sites)
flower stage - 1-4 months (depends on strain - 6 weeks id the norm)
hope this helps !!!!!
 
hungry. not getting what they want. could use some n along with other nutes.

can probably still turn it around some. looks like you shocked them in to early flower. apply some nutes, ride it out and see what happens.

retool for a photo grow on the next run. leave the autos alone for a grow or two until you get stuff heading your way and gain some confidence.
 
bluter said:
hungry. not getting what they want. could use some n along with other nutes.

can probably still turn it around some. looks like you shocked them in to early flower. apply some nutes, ride it out and see what happens.

retool for a photo grow on the next run. leave the autos alone for a grow or two until you get stuff heading your way and gain some confidence.
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Thanks bluter. Isn’t this around the time they’d be flowering though? This is about 6 weeks in.
 
autos go when they want.

those plants are too hungry to really produce much of anything right now. they'll eat themselves trying to flower, and you won't get there. can still get ahead of it and cash out with something though. poor things are hungry.
 
safeman said:
really for the 1st 2 weeks of growth JUST use a good root stimulator it's need to build the base (root ball) Then add nutrients right no over watering and NO over feeding at these points:
germination stage 1-7 days
seedling stage - 2 weeks (till 3 sets of true leaves)
Vegation stage - 1-2 months ( with 45 days being the norm)
Pre-flower/Transition Stage - 7days (development of bud sites)
flower stage - 1-4 months (depends on strain - 6 weeks id the norm)
hope this helps !!!!!
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"flowering stage - 1-4 months...6 weeks id the norm). I'm not aware of any cannabis variety that has a 1 month flowering stage. Unless you include ruderalis. I would agree with a 2- 4 month flowering stage. I won't quibble about the other comments except to mention that the veg stage of a regular seed can be as long as you want. If cloning is the means of propagation then a 'mother' can grow for years. I've done it.
 
gratefulredhead said:
They are feminized autos remember so.... is there a reason they are lighter green? Lights? Some deficiencies?
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These plants almost died. They could have survived by robbing some nutrients from its leaves; thereby lightening in color. The last thing I would do at this point is to start experimenting, especially if you don't know what you're doing. There should be plenty of nutrients in the soil because these plants haven't grown much. If you start experimenting and run into difficulty then determining the cause is much more difficult. Is it because of this or that or did I get things out of balance. To get through this grow I'd keep it simple.
 
HopHead said:
These plants almost died. They could have survived by robbing some nutrients from its leaves; thereby lightening in color. The last thing I would do at this point is to start experimenting, especially if you don't know what you're doing. There should be plenty of nutrients in the soil because these plants haven't grown much. If you start experimenting and run into difficulty then determining the cause is much more difficult. Is it because of this or that or did I get things out of balance. To get through this grow I'd keep it simple.
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Totally agree. I’ll stay the course and see what comes. I am giving them a little bit of nutrients but keeping it simple.
 
safeman said:
auto growth cycle:
Vegation stage -- week 1-3
Flower stage -- week 4 - 10 (70 days being the norm)
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Oops. You're absolutely right. After a little research it turns out there are a few autos that have a flowering period of 1 month. I have no experience with autos and I was thinking regular seeds. My apologies.
 
Hey everyone. I've embarked on a new grow and hoping to put into action all your advice that you've so generously given me so far.

Gratefulred Grow 2.0 Sonoran Desert

To update on this one, I've moved most of the limping ladies outside to let them go the natural route whatever comes and to create some room for another try. Probably going too far in the other direction in terms of watering, but figuring out. Keeping two of the stronger ones inside and will monitor all of them to see what happens.

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Peace.
 
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