So California-Should I plant into the ground with soil or into a 5 gallon grow bag?

[mrhomegrown22]

:harvest:I am growing in So Cal and I need advise on growing a few plants in the ground mixed with polymer crystals or 5 gallon grow bags? From 2nd week of May to Aug it doesnt rain so I will have to give a good watering every 2 or 3 days. I found a spot that a few trees cover the plant. Its perfect the plant will get about 3-5 hours of good sunlight with the rest of the day under some shade. I want to cut back on the watering in between. Looking for a good yeilding strain that finishes in mid Aug first week of Sept in Southern California. Any advise would be great advise since I am a first time grower outdoors..So a good size hole with a board at the bottom to hold water, soil with polymer crystals mixed in or a 5 gallon or bigger size grow bag? Like I said before I need to cut back on watering because the less I have to go to "my spot" the less I have of being caught. Thank you in advance

:anim_09:

 

[CalcioErba2004]

bags are easier to move around, just in case you need to. In the ground they will get bigger. You want to grow indicas if you want them to finish by august. Look for any strains with the big fat leaves.

 

[bongstar]

calico is right if you want a quick finish get an inica strain. I live in S.D and grow out door, so im not just talking out my ass. hes right about the fact of having them in bags or buckets makes them easy to move but youll need to water them more if there in bukets. in the ground the roots will grow deep and will seek all availible moisture out, get a good moisture holding medium like coco to mixin it. if your dirt where your doing it is anything like mine there is alot of clay in the soil and it will retain moisture excelent anyway. during the summer i water mine about a gallon each every 3 days or so once there in the ground and a decent size. my advice would be to put them in the ground if you want to minimize your trips.

 

[Wixon]

Ground grows a bigger plant, more weight. If its protected, ground.

 

[mrhomegrown22]

Thanks man for the input any idea of a good yielding indica? I looked at Iranian G13 But not sure..Thanks gonna go with ground for sure..

 

[edux10]

put them in bags. Only way a plant in the ground would get any bigger would be if the roots needed more room than you were giving them.

If you go in the ground, i would say make a big plot, say 10feet by 10feet and 3 feet deep. Rototil that and shovel out all the dirt. build a nice soil (compost it and all for a few months, make sure it has everything it needs) and fill the plot with that soil you just made. You will be happy with the results. All that soil and the roto rental is going to cost a little bit tho. not to mention you have to make the soil a few months in advance. If you got the budget you can just go buy fox farm ocean forest with some perlite but that will add up quickly. you would prob be looking at 2 pallets for 300 square feet. Also, one more tip would be to line the bed with perlite, rocks, or clay pebbles to add drainage. like when you til and dig out the dirt, before you put your soil in put some rock for drainage. That will separate the good nute rich soil from the dirt below. if you going to do it, do it right!:anim_09:

I have seen people put their plants into the ground before and they did it all wrong. They just dug a hole the size of a pot and filled it with fox farm. The plant did good at first but once it hit the hard dirt it was basically like it hit the sides of the pot and became root bound. Then you are screwed, good luck getting the plant out of the hole and replanting it with more soil.

also pots are so easy to move. If there is ever a security risk, you can pretty easily bring them inside or move them or whathave you. good luck. and remember, they make some pretty big pots, so dont think just cuz youre in a pot you cant go big.

 

[Silica]

build a raised box out of wood imo. seal the edges have some compost good soil even seaweed in there...

NG Timewarp is 45- 50 days apollo 11 or 13 is 50 days c99 52 days all mostly sativas if you want those

 

[Smokey503ski]

5 gallons is not going to get you shit for a harvest, and a headache to deal with. Go big with outdoor. You need at least 20 gallon pots. I would dig a hole and ammend the soil myself.

 

[bongstar]

agin i agree with smokey in the ground amend soil your self!!! There is no way to get bigger plants than in the ground. and as i said befor it will minimize your trips.

 

[Blaze]

5 gallons is not going to get you shit for a harvest, and a headache to deal with. Go big with outdoor. You need at least 20 gallon pots. I would dig a hole and ammend the soil myself.

I would second that. Somewhere in the 20-25 gallon range is the absolute minimum you want to go with outdoor. The bigger the better though - a 100 or 300 gallon will yield a hell of a lot more than a 5 or a 25 and will be much less likely to dry out in the heat. If you really want to grow some monsters, build yourself some raised beds.

 

[edux10]

yeah raised beds sound like a winner.

idk why every new outdoor grower is so infatuated with putting their plants directly into the ground. It is not like the hard ass dirt in their back yard has anything good in it.

 

[Fbm]

If you go in a hole or raised bed you really don't need to go deeper than 18 inches an about 6' x6'

3 to 5 hours of sun isn't a lot .

I was quite happy with my 300 gallon polycans last year.

Good luck. Fbm

 

[Blaze]

yeah raised beds sound like a winner.

idk why every new outdoor grower is so infatuated with putting their plants directly into the ground. It is not like the hard ass dirt in their back yard has anything good in it.

Exactly. Plus raised beds and/or containers give you much greater control over the environment of the root zone. I've done it both ways many times and I can tell you for sure that in-ground is the least preferable way to grow outdoor.

However if your plants are only getting 3-5 hours of sun they won't need much space. Such low amounts of light will mean the containers will not dry out nearly as fast and the plant will not grow nearly as fast so something like a 300 gallon smart pot would probably be over kill IMO.