Oh, come on, this isn't a thread announcing he's an expert, this is a about how Smallz pulled off 4-5lbs per plant, and how anyone else with a little space and some muscle would be able to do it. There's nothing wrong with someone sharing how they succeeded so easily and sharing how they did it, is there? That idea feels to me the same as the statement, "Never take growing advice from someone who doesn't post pix of their grow on the internet!"
I'll use an example of where I think you're off on your own advice. My own land here is very heavy clay, something Mary just don't like. I own, not rent, so I can dig all the holes I want. Yet, for me SmartPots and raised beds are the way to go. I can line them with hardware cloth (hello, gophers, fuck off!), I can fill them with the exact soil mix I like, a mix that won't compact and become so heavy the plants can't penetrate it well within a single growing season. I can also rest easy knowing that the irrigation isn't pooling at the bottom of a hole I dug and filled with topsoil, or running off to evaporate.
I've tried both ways, and raised beds or SmartPots is where I've landed. Not to mention that one of the biggest, best and most successful commercial growers I know only uses SmartPots outdoors. Ever. And he owns plenty of land to be digging holes into. ;)
About the only thing I would take some exception to is the Fox Farms for expense, but buying bulk topsoil isn't always feasible for everyone, either. I also think that a damn good grow can be pulled off in a 65gal SP.
If you're concerned about worms and such, then build your own SmartPot like I did. Bottom and sides made from 1/4" hardware cloth (gophers can get through the 1/2"!), some electrical conduit cut down for cheap stakes, hammered into the ground, then commercial-grade landscaper's cloth lining the sides. I did mine at 3'x3'x2' deep, and I actually like my homemade fabric pots better than my purchased SmartPots (the rigidity of the conduit and wire have made all kinds of issues go away).
There's a lot that I could debate, many finer points, but the point I simply want to make is that what Smallz outlined pretty much guarantees success, and someone doesn't have to be an expert to be able to pull it off. I read what he posted, and it's actually pretty good. Except for the Fox Farms. :D
