The Critical Step to Growing Cannabis Outdoors: Bottom Line

What is the critical step to growing cannabis outdoors? Transplanting.

When growing cannabis outdoors, if you live in an area where the seasons vary, you must wait until the risk of frost has passed (often early to mid-May). You must also receive the maximum amount of daylight hours (compare this time to when you would plant tomatoes) before transplanting cannabis outside. Look for a strain that enjoys growing outside.

Note: If you are unsure about planting your seeds directly in the ground, you can germinate your feminized seeds indoors for at least 4-6 weeks, then move them outside when the weather is more suitable.

 

Once your plants are germinated, give them as much lighting as possible for the first 3–4 weeks. This is the vegetative state. They must be stable and get bigger, 4 to 8 inches, before moving outside. There are three main types of lighting to assist in the process of growing cannabis outdoors.

Fluorescent Lighting:

A popular form of lighting, they should be about 4 inches from the soil and give anywhere from 16 to 18 hours a day. These include CFL grow lights or T5 lights. They are cheap to buy and don’t use a lot of electricity. However, the yields can be smaller.

An automatic timer will help you regulate the amount of lighting.

Growing Cannabis: HD Grow Lighting

More efficient than fluorescent, they reflect more light onto the plants. They are popular because of the large yields they produce. They can become very hot, and you should hook them to an exhaust to help vent out the heat.

Growing Cannabis: LED Lighting

LED grow lights are also popular because of their energy-saving efficiency. They are not as hot, can be plugged into a wall, and have great penetration, so there is no need to move around. The optimal distance from the plants is about 18 inches to avoid burning your buds. They produce a better yield than florescent allowing you to harvest up to 1 ounce a month. Buy LED with full-spectrum light (some green or white). Older models will contain only red and blue light.

Growing Cannabis: Transplanting

Keep the seedlings moist but not soaked. Spray the leaves daily with water. Once you establish the roots and stabilize the plants, you can transplant your seedlings into containers of choice (peat moss or solo cups are a good size).

Separating the Seedlings

If you have not been able to get feminized seeds and you are still not sure if your seedlings are male or female, you will need to separate them, repot them, and transfer them to larger pots to make them even more stable for transplanting outdoors.

Growing Cannabis Outdoors: STEP 1

First, we need to separate the roots. A good reason to use peat moss containers is that you can tear them apart to get at the roots of the seedlings without damaging them, especially if they are well-rooted. Gently separate each one and set it aside.

Growing Cannabis Outdoors: STEP 2

Once you separate the seedlings, you will want to fill more peat moss containers or plastic Solo cups, about a third way with your potting soil, stick your finger in the centre to make a hole at the bottom, and gently place the seedling’s roots into the hole. Tamp the earth around the root securely and then continue adding more soil, positioning the seedling in the centre until it is firmly in place and the soil is at the top of the pot. When you water it, the soil will settle a bit. Do this with all your seedlings until you repot them all.

Growing Cannabis: Planting in the Ground 

When to Transplant:

The best time to transplant is when 4 or 5 leaves are on your new plant. Roots should be healthy and white. If you see some discolouration or darkening, this could indicate that the plant is root-bound; transplant right away.

When planting directly in the ground, you need good soil with lots of nutrients (organic soil).

As discussed earlier, if privacy is important, fencing off the area or planting it with other large leafy plants such as your tomatoes is a good idea. If you have budget restraints, outdoor growing may be the way to go. All you need is a great sunny spot.

Water your plants thoroughly two days before the scheduled transplant. The soil should be a little moist, keeping your root structure intact. Gently work the plant from the container, loosening the soil. If necessary, use a butter or dull knife and run it around the outside of the soil. You can avoid this step using peat moss containers or plastic solo cups (gently squeeze all around to loosen soil, turn upside down, and gently tip into your hand).

Placing in the Ground:

The hole in the ground should be between 15 and 20 inches deep and in diameter to accommodate a large plant (some will grow as high as 15 feet!). Fill the hole with organic soil and mix it with the previously removed soil. (In Part 1, we showed a video on how to make organic soil).

Make a hole and plant the seedling. Cover with soil up to the bottom leaves. Water and you are good to go!

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Growing Cannabis: in Containers

When transplanting to a larger pot, water the soil in the current pot a few days before. It will be easier to work with. Transplant it when the plant is in vegetation (not flowering).

Note: A good trick is to make an indentation in the new pot with the current pot before removing the plant.

Gently work the plant and soil from the container as the roots are fragile, and you don’t want to damage them. If using the solo cups, you can gently squeeze them to loosen the soil and plant, turn them upside down, and let them fall gently into your hand. Place the plant and soil into the indentation in the larger pot with nutrient-packed soil. Add more soil until you cover the roots to the bottom leaves.

Some people like ‘potting up,’ which means transplanting to larger pots as the plant grows. However, this involves more handling and stress to the plants. If you are a novice, it might be best to transplant it into its final pot; the size should be between 5 and 10 gallons.

A good rule of thumb is that plants require 2 gallons of soil per 12 inches of growth.

The big advantage of placing your plants outdoors in containers is the ability to move them around so they get the most amount of light each day.

Growing outdoors makes lighting less of a concern once plants are adjusted. Natural light is way better for your plants than anything you can produce artificially. Plants require a lot of light—six hours a day in direct lighting is ideal—so be sure nothing or anything is blocking their light.

Avoid shocking your plants by placing them directly outside in the hot sunlight. Take them outside to a shady spot for the first 2 or 3 days.

By the end of the week, they should be able to handle full sun for 4–5 hours, and at the end of two weeks, full sun.

A Quick Note on Pots: While plastic is cheap and readily available, fabric pots are becoming popular for several reasons:

• Sturdy handles, straps, washable, reusable
• Prevents binding and circling roots
• Stops root rot
• Better drainage
• Boosts plant yields
• Lightweight and portable

There are a few things to keep in mind when transplanting to a larger pot:

• Clean hands or gloves will help prevent contaminating roots.

• Allow the soil to dry before transplanting.
• Gently handle the roots to ensure less stress and damage during the transplant.
• Make sure the new pot is filled with the proper soil, and as mentioned above, make an indent in the soil to make enough space.
• To minimize shock, avoid intense lighting (get them used to the sun before permanently leaving them outside).

• After transplanting, water thoroughly.

Final Thoughts

Of course, this is just the beginning, the tip of the iceberg. Growing your marijuana seedlings into healthy plants ready for harvesting will require your attention and time, especially if you are growing cannabis outdoors.  things to consider during the growing period and harvesting are:

• Female vs Male (unless you have feminized seeds)
• Sunshine/light
• Fertilizer/nutrient
• Watering
• Protection—wind, rain, pests
• Sexing
• Growing support (trellises or cages)
• Weeding
• Flowering
• Security

There is information already available on planting marijuana. If you are new and serious about this, I suggest you order your free copy of the Marijuana Grow Bible, which will explain fully all of the above and more.

 

Click here

 

Happy Planting!

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