Growing outdoors(outdoor) has its pluses as well as minuses, but for me it's all about the element, a unique form of contact with nature. Here there are no lamps, fans, fans or automation, instead there is passion, heart, blood, sweat and angry gardener tearing apart uninhabited wild areas. While in a grow tent you can control almost every aspect of the conditions there, growing outdoors involves the vagaries of weather, wildlife and many other obstacles, so we've prepared a guide for you; how to grow hemp outdoors.
Be eco, grow organically
In the wave of the prevailing fashion for everything BIO & EKO, it is worth pointing out that if someone wants to become independent, cut off from local dealers, and decided to use only what has grown organically, while identifying with nature, then OutDoor cultivation is for him. Only plants grown in natural conditions can be called 100% organic.
When to start?
The eternal question of the beginner gardener is when to start growing. Of course, in this as in many other cases related to cultivation - it depends. It depends, first of all, on the weather, so the first piece of advice for those gardening in central Europe is that it is best to do it in the first half of May. Of course, it is best to root the plants at home first in small pots, e.g. 0.2 l.
Keep in mind that so-called full-season plants, the earlier they go outside, the bigger they will grow. A plant planted in early May will be much larger than one planted in June. Full-season plants begin to bloom around the first half of August, no matter when they were sown, this is due to the photoperiodism of the plants, which will be discussed in a moment. The situation is a little different with autoflowering plants, about which also in a moment.
Getting down to business
How to grow cannabis outdoors? At the very beginning of our adventure through the Green Outdoor World, it is necessary to set goals for cultivation. The idea is, first of all, to determine how many plants you intend to cultivate, and what type it will be - will it be a couch-pounding indica, a stimulating sativa or perhaps a hybrid combination of the two? Or do you need plants with high resin production to extract? Or do you only care about yield quantity?
When planning what kind and in what quantity of plants you are going to plant, translate that into your capacity, which actually determines to a large extent where your comforts will grow. The lazier a gardener you are, the less professional, less prepared and less hidden from potential visitors your growing spot, hereafter known as a spot, will be.
Genetics - or what variety to choose
The last few years have seen advances in the quality of autoflowering plants and the emergence of FAST varieties, so-called semi-automatics, which you can learn more about HERE
As for the choice of genetics suitable for growing under our sun, the market offers a full range of varieties that mature easily in our climate, which includes at least a dozen noteworthy items.
Classics
In our climate for many years indivisible reigns such strains as; Easy Sativa, Early Skunk and all starting with "early", Durban Poison, Maroc, Shaman and my two perennial favorites - Passion#1 and Frisian Dew from which, if you try at least a little, depending on the weather and the number of sunny days, you can get from eighty to even several hundred grams of dried food per plant!
It's also worth mentioning that the Frisian Dew strain is incredibly resistant to mold, which makes it resistant to harsh weather conditions and allows for later, that is, better harvests. These are classics that will not disappoint even if the summer is not as sunny as we dreamed when we started the season.
When growing under the sun of central Europe, it is worthwhile to take an interest in the relatively recently developed FAST varieties.
(Frisian Dew in the flowering stage)Automatics grown outdoors is quite an interesting topic, although they are dedicated to growing indoors, in controlled conditions(indoor) they are very often chosen by gardeners precisely for growing under the cloud.
How do autoflowering varieties differ from seasonal varieties? First of all, the moment of flowering. Seasonal cannabis is a short-day annual plant. In many places you may come across misinformation that they bloom when the day becomes short enough - this is not true.
Hemp as a short-day crop
As short-day plants, cannabis blooms when deprived of light for long enough, and this is not the same as a short period of light. During a long period of darkness, chemical reactions take place in the plant that stimulate it to begin the flowering phase. This process is called photoperiodism(so-called full-season varieties).
However, cannabis began to occur in parts of the world where optimal conditions for growth and flowering last a little more than two months, which is not enough time for both phases; vegetation and flowering to take place peacefully.
Evolution has led to the emergence of the wild strain CANNABIS RUDERALIS, a cannabis that blooms on its own, without photoperiodism. Ruderalis produces a very small amount of THC, similar to cannabis from the Sativa L family, or industrial hemp.
Crossing Cannabis Ruderalis with Cannabis Indica/Sativa initially resulted in dwarf varieties, producing a small yet quite good quality yield. The first "automatics" were varieties such as LowRyder, DieselRyder or AutoMaria.
It's been almost a decade since those days, and today's automatics are a completely different story. They are much more genetically stable, there is less often the "dwarfing" effect that often occurred when mistakes were made during the cultivation of autoflowering varieties, and they grow bigger while giving higher yields.
Today's autoflowering varieties are able to achieve growth similar to seasonal varieties, but they generally grow lower, which naturally translates into differences in yields. Lower growth also has its advantages - the plants camouflage better on our spot. It is much more difficult to spot a one-meter plant than one that has grown to two and a half meters in height.
A novelty are fast varieties, which bloom in the same way as photoperiodic varieties, but thanks to a small addition of ruderalis genes, their flowering is much faster.
On some spots it's worth planting a few smaller plants rather than a conspicuous monstrous plant that will wait there until October when the other plants begin to die back then, but we'll come back to that later.
Another advantage of autoflowering varieties is that they need approx. 3 months from germination to complete a full growing cycle, no matter when they were sown.
(Northern Blue Auto)How to grow cannabis outdoors - spot
Unfortunately, there is no universal method for a good spot - too many variables. Someone lives in the center of Warsaw, and someone else lives in a small village. In this situation, it is obvious that residents of large cities, especially their central parts, are at a much worse starting position. But the devil is not so terrible, it is enough, like Hemp Poirot, to use your little gray cells, move from the cottage and poke around how to solve the problem of the place.
If you are the lucky owner of a car then the matter is relatively simple. However, if you are a lover of public transportation, is left to us, for example, MPK or PKP(Nurture the Planty Fellow), although this idea may seem a tad crazy to some at first, it is worth considering this view.
Of course, I'm not referring to Pendolino, but local connections, regional rail and a train that stops at every station. You get on the train and a few moments later outside the window there are only fields, forests and in places houses. Somewhere here is your future spot, you just have to look for it well.
However, before you decide to travel by rail and where you will get off the train, I remind you that in the 21st century there are many useful tools like iGoogle Earth, which is an incredibly useful tool. It is from GE that you should start your search for your seat.
What is the most important thing to pay attention to? There are several elements, first of all that the place should be desolate and away from trails and other paths. It is important that it be exposed and sunny on the south side - when going there in early spring, imagine a fully green area and potentially falling shade.
There's also something that can make a spot elite - access to water. Depending on the region you live in, this may not be so difficult - rivers, ponds, ponds, marshes are found virtually everywhere. Of course, whether the water from such a river or pond will be suitable, you should check in advance by checking, for example, its pH. When you grow organically, such water can be another asset, as it is full of microorganisms that will nourish your soil.
How to grow cannabis outdoors - safety
Of course, this is an idea if one is thinking of two maybe three bushes, or a few vending machines. The difficulty of organizing everything in the initial phase, that is, digging a hole, getting the soil ingredients, and then in the prepared ground installing the planters, increases in direct proportion to the number of plants. The same goes for safety. Try not to draw attention to yourself, and if it is already focused on you, be equipped with, for example, artifacts of a mushroom picker or other berry picker. So that no one will think of the actual reason why you are busking in the forests and fields. To dig holes in the ground, I recommend using a shovel. This equipment is small, handy and unobtrusive.
As far as safety is concerned, automats have the advantage, of course, due to their size. However, keep in mind that if you make an effort and train the plant properly, it will not exceed a meter in height either.
Set up camp, get to know the area
That's exactly right. Growing and especially outdoors can be a great adventure at the same time.
Do you think you have found a good spot? I at one time, to be one hundred percent sure of this, did a little camping near the spot. A few friends, clearings and woods, tents, a campfire and a maypole. A few days in the woods is fun, and by the way, two or three days in the vicinity of a future spot will allow you to better determine whether the spot is good.
How to grow cannabis outdoors - land
Once you've chosen the genetics you'll plant and found a place where this will happen, it's time for the next step - the growing medium. If you're a beginner grower, you've probably had thoughts like "do you have to give your own soil to the out, and can't you plant in the soil found on site?" Well, no, you can't. In general, Cannabis are extremely hardy plants that will endure a lot. However, if we already put work and heart into caring for our babies, often taking the risk of cultivation, it is worth it for the result to be the best possible. Therefore, in order to provide plants with optimal growing conditions, you need to prepare the soil in which they will be installed. You can read about how to prepare the soil and how to ensure that the processes taking place in it are conducive to the roots and the bushes are healthy and give a good yield HERE
How to grow hemp outdoors? With your head. As I mentioned before, set your growing goals, browse the seedbank sites and find something for yourself. Find and check out a spot.
Also read How to grow outdoors part two
The text is informative and educational and is intended for Polish-speaking European citizens. We would like to remind you that the cultivation of non-fiber hemp on Polish territory is prohibited and is not encouraged.
How to grow hemp
