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So I keep searchng and reading thinking there must be more to it than this, but maybe not.
I have Blue Cheese and Royal Jack auto seeds and want to grow them in pots outdoors. I plan to soak the seeds (they're about 6 mos old) and then germinate using the wet paper towel method. Then I'll plant to their final containers -- 5 gal pots containing Black and Gold Potting Soil with no additives.
I feel like I'm missing something.
What do I have to do to acclimate the seeds to outdoors? Start the pots indoors and gradually increase time outdoors each day? I've read different things on this.
I plan to germinate with bottled water of a known pH (~6 ?). I plan to buy a pH tester. I would test the soil (runoff) periodically, but does the potting mix do a pretty good job of maintaining pH?
What else if anything do I need to consider to get started? Thanks.
You can get as deep, or as hands-off as you're happy with.
On paper what you're proposing will certainly work, but chances are you'll run into a few snags.
A ph meter is a good tool, and will get you pretty far. I'd set aside a few $ for any hiccups that pop up. If you end up battling bugs, run into a deficiency, ect..
I would recommend starting in coco coir, or a peat/coir mix. It's pretty forgiving as far as water is concerned, and your first little round leaves (cotyledons) will provide enough nutrients for the first two weeks or so, giving you plenty of time to transplant them.
I'm not the most experienced grower though, this is my first grow in several years, and I was never super-educated. Hopefully someone with more info will drop in.
You can indeed train your plants from an indoor environment to an outdoor one. However, you could also introduce an oscillating fan in your indoor environment to simulate the outdoor wind conditions. This would at least strengthen the stem structure of your plants in preparation of being in a natural breeze.
From my experience, there is little to no difference between transferring a cannabis plant from indoors to outdoors as there is any other house plant. Albeit, most cannabis plants have neither the genetically or professionally bred traits that say a rosemary or mint plant may have. This can easily be addressed through careful attentive care.
My best advice is to observe any effects your plant may undergo when introduced outdoors, and respond accordingly. Avert frosts, droughts, and such by nurturing you plant I do think it will do well.
Also, remember that a grounded (in-ground) plant can not be brought indoors in case of a strong storm or tornado.
You'll have to decide how you're planning on growing, be it organically or synthetically, then you can decide on a medium.
If you're growing organically, you should mix your own soil with the best materials you can source. The most important ingredient is compost, or earthworm castings. If you have good compost, the rest of your grow will be a cake walk. The best compost is homemade, so if you're planning on growing from now on I'd set up a worm bin and start producing your own. Try to avoid commercial earthworm castings. Check craigslist and ask local organic farms what they use. I was able to find three good local sources for compost, all three from small farmers. If you can't go this route, you can buy bagged compost, but try to avoid buying online.
The next thing you'll need is some Canadian sphagnum peat moss. This comes in a compressed bale and should be expanded/hydrated before use.
The last ingredient in the base mix is an aeration component. Pumice, perlite, scoria, rice hulls, and biochar all provide aeration, but you shouldn't use more than 5-10% biochar in a mix, and rice hulls will eventually break down over time. If you go with perlite, be sure to find the stuff without additives.
Finally, you'll want to add amendments to your base mix. I use kelp, neem, crab, and alfalfa meals, gypsum, dolomite lime, basalt dust and a few other things. It can get expensive ordering 50lb bags of each amendment, but they last a good long time. Since this is your first grow, I'd recommend starting with a simple recipe utilizing an all purpose organic dry fertilizer such as gaia green or tomato tone.
Once you have all your ingredients, it's time to mix the soil. Grab a heavy duty tarp, a rake/hoe, and a buddy. Dump all the ingredients on the tarp, spreading the amendments around. Then, with your buddy on the other side of the tarp, alternate between rolling the soil back and forth and spreading it out with your rake.
Now for the ratios. The basic ratio is 1:1:1 peat, compost, and aeration, but it can get a little more complicated. You can run into issues with 30% earthworm castings, so it's best to use;
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