Greek Outdoor Grow - Femes & Auto Fems - 2014

[Lester Freeman]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

I really don't know about the weather or soil in Greece, or how long the growing season lasts.

Cannabis enjoys soil that is fertile and well drained as you said. The roots need oxygen so anything with too much clay will clog things up in the root zone. It likes plenty of calcium and magnesium. So you could use crustacean shells crushed up. You could start an Earth worm bin and collect the castings. You will then brew a tea with the castings and serve. It can be used for flower, or vegetation. Definitely use the native soil, make sure you look at which plants are around and how healthy they are. Look and learn about the plants that are in the area where you dig up the soil. Identify the latin name for the plant and figure out what its basic metabolic needs are, figure, are those similar to cannabis or different? If the plants are growing well in your native soil, than I'm sure cannabis will compete.

PeeJay would have good input on this, he's into making his own soils. Also, I think a member by the name of closetorganic used to have or still has his own worm bin. Anyway, just a thought since you do don't have a lot of access to the same things we do in the states.

Hope this helps

 

[JadeLotus]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

I agree with RL! Crushed up crustacean shells mixed into your soil is a great idea. Several "off-the-shelf" brands use it

 

[Tamir]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Not for nothing, y'all are the best. I'm over here stressing about PH and the right size dwc bucket and y'all are over here talking about soil composition and the best way give these ladies what they need. Thumbs up to you guys. Love the hard work as dedication.

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

I really don't know about the weather or soil in Greece, or how long the growing season lasts.

Cannabis enjoys soil that is fertile and well drained as you said. The roots need oxygen so anything with too much clay will clog things up in the root zone. It likes plenty of calcium and magnesium. So you could use crustacean shells crushed up. You could start an Earth worm bin and collect the castings. You will then brew a tea with the castings and serve. It can be used for flower, or vegetation. Definitely use the native soil, make sure you look at which plants are around and how healthy they are. Look and learn about the plants that are in the area where you dig up the soil. Identify the latin name for the plant and figure out what its basic metabolic needs are, figure, are those similar to cannabis or different? If the plants are growing well in your native soil, than I'm sure cannabis will compete.

PeeJay would have good input on this, he's into making his own soils. Also, I think a member by the name of closetorganic used to have or still has his own worm bin. Anyway, just a thought since you do don't have a lot of access to the same things we do in the states.

Hope this helps

Thanks for the response, Relaxed. I was hoping to hear from you. Clear and simple and full of experience. You know what I really, really love? Somebody who knows what they're talking about.

I agree with RL! Crushed up crustacean shells mixed into your soil is a great idea. Several "off-the-shelf" brands use it

I always like a doctor's second opinion. That's settled then. It's mussels and langoustine for supper tomorrow.

Not for nothing, y'all are the best. I'm over here stressing about PH and the right size dwc bucket and y'all are over here talking about soil composition and the best way give these ladies what they need. Thumbs up to you guys. Love the hard work as dedication.

Necessity is the mother of invention, Tamir. I think I'm really fortunate to have my first garden. But if I was back in The Smoke where I was born and bred, in my little flat, then I'd be giving that spare cupboard space a long, hard look. From what I see of your journal, THAT'S hard work.

 

[goofyfoot]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Hello Mr.T like what you have heard from the others. One leaf does not make a plant and also you don't want to wait till most of them are blemished or have turned color. Over reacting is the worst, reaction. If you have a farmers market or local outdoor venders //flea market there. By doing your own compost in advance by adding to potting soil, may help build your knowledge and have a closer bond with them. I get their over ripe, or turning produce "dirt cheap" so-to-say. Beets, onions and mustard & collar greens for the minerals and minor elements. My local super market always has a trash barrel by the fresh corn on the cob. For people to peel them clean before purchase. I ask to take them and they let me have two or three bags. You can fortify your own soil by a little investigation and time, while it ferments. One good trick is the bedding for the patio stones - pavers that is the new fad. I can get crushed coquina rocks, it is layers of compressed sea shells. It kills two birds as it helps drain and adds minerals. I mix it up on a weekend and put it in trash bags or buckets w/lids. In a couple of months it is there when ever you need it.

I have been around general gardeners all my life, not just cannabis. So it is a easy understanding and not really that hard. Most are looking for the most bang for their buck and only know what the guy behind the counter said to do. They do look like they are making their way nicely...Peace....

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

UPDATE - 'ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE' EDITION

Good morning all. May we begin with a moment's silence for an AutoMazar, one of the seeds from the crushed pack:

She germinated. She tried. She died. But since this the Bright Side edition, here's the one seed from the six damaged ones that's made it. My little Angel With A Dirty Face, my Cagney, a Polar Light:

One tough little plant.

So, after a supper of mussels and langoustine, healthy for me and for my next soil mixture, 9 hours beauty sleep (most people need 8, but I'm ugly) and an hour crushing shells, here's how they look as of yesterday morning.

Star Ryder has lost a couple of lower leaves, shrivelled up, but on the bright side the rest of the plant looks ok with buds developing:

AutoXtreme also looks ok I think, although I've still got some yellowing:

I'm concerned about Passion, the outdoor fem, not auto, because the yellowing is continuing, there's brown edges to some leaves and they are curling down:

Some of the younger ones are looking poorly too. I think I'm losing a young Think Different, but it was always a bit runty-stunty:

So, my beginner's luck seems over. Last watering was on Friday.

But - on the bright side - I've had an idea. It's been hot here - 40 degrees or more and when I brought the plants in last night the pots were really warm. I've been standing them on the dry stone walls we have around the house - are their getting too hot from beneath? I remembered Lembatoast saying in his journal that his plants didn't like his concrete. Am I roasting the roots? And is there such a thing as TOO MUCH hot sun for them? (Green is my favourite colour. Not yellow or brown).

I'll raise them onto boards today to get air beneath them. Everyone's very dry again too - so I'll pop to the village at 10 to see if my nutes have arrived and water everything later. I finally found a nitrogen rich fertilzer too, but I haven't used it yet - it's certainly not organic and doesn't look great!

But extreme times call for extreme measures - do you think I should try it if I've nothing else?

Thank you as ever for any hints, tips, advice and support. Y'all ride in like John Wayne when I need it. I'll pop round your journals now - bet there's some pics of healthy plants there.

May your god go with you. Love, Mr Teddy.

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Hello Mr.T like what you have heard from the others. One leaf does not make a plant and also you don't want to wait till most of them are blemished or have turned color. Over reacting is the worst, reaction. If you have a farmers market or local outdoor venders //flea market there. By doing your own compost in advance by adding to potting soil, may help build your knowledge and have a closer bond with them. I get their over ripe, or turning produce "dirt cheap" so-to-say. Beets, onions and mustard & collar greens for the minerals and minor elements. My local super market always has a trash barrel by the fresh corn on the cob. For people to peel them clean before purchase. I ask to take them and they let me have two or three bags. You can fortify your own soil by a little investigation and time, while it ferments. One good trick is the bedding for the patio stones - pavers that is the new fad. I can get crushed coquina rocks, it is layers of compressed sea shells. It kills two birds as it helps drain and adds minerals. I mix it up on a weekend and put it in trash bags or buckets w/lids. In a couple of months it is there when ever you need it.

I have been around general gardeners all my life, not just cannabis. So it is a easy understanding and not really that hard. Most are looking for the most bang for their buck and only know what the guy behind the counter said to do. They do look like they are making their way nicely...Peace....

goofyfoot. Nice idea about the market. I've been making my own compost for about 6 months now - the veg patch is a great source of greenery. It's great to get rich, sweet-smelling, crumbly soil from the pile.

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

UPDATE.....P.S. Forgot to say for the reps. Don't deserve them. But always good to have a longer one than a shorter one. (We Brits love a cheap double-entendre).

 

[JadeLotus]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Hey Mr Teddy!
Lemme see... 40*C = 104*F
I do believe it's a little warm for your ladies. I think you are on the right idea about the concrete. Can you touch the concrete with your hand during the hottest part of the day? Kinda like the light test. If it's too hot for you, then it's too hot for your girls.
As for the nutrients.... My opinion is to go ahead and feed them a 1/4 or 1/2 strength dose. They kinda look a little on the light green side. But that's just my opinion!

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Hey Mr Teddy!
Lemme see... 40*C = 104*F
I do believe it's a little warm for your ladies. I think you are on the right idea about the concrete. Can you touch the concrete with your hand during the hottest part of the day? Kinda like the light test. If it's too hot for you, then it's too hot for your girls.
As for the nutrients.... My opinion is to go ahead and feed them a 1/4 or 1/2 strength dose. They kinda look a little on the light green side. But that's just my opinion!

...and your opinion counts! Thanks JL. The stone walls around the place aren't HOT but they are quite warm - so maybe I've not been roasting them but slow-cooking them! And good spot on your part - yes they are in general more light green than the healthy dark they had when they started.

Right - off the stand in line with a lot of lovely little old Greek ladies all dressed in black for the post office. Will update later today. Cheers, JL.

 

[littlemiss]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Your Auto's You Should Pot Straight Into There Final Pots So Your 10/11 Litre Pots & Not Put Them In a Small Pot & Start Potting Them Up, They Only Have a Short Life Span & This Can Slow Its Growth! Good Choice With Your Nutes Though Shame They Havent Arrived Yet, Just Bought The Same Thing Other Half Gave His Girls a Dosage & You Could Tell The Differnce Instantly Next Day They Bushed Up Loads & Looked Lush So I Decided To Use Some The Otherday Too, Should Help Your Plants Alot! I Defently Think Your Temperatures May Be a Bit Hot But Then Again Tent Tempertures Have Mainly Been Low 30's At Some Points In Day Getting To High 30's & They Don't Seem To Mind There Looking Good! But I Do Know Other People Have Problems With Tempertures Being So High! & Noticed Suprisingly They Do Grow Alot Slower Outside But You Really Should Try Putting Seed Into Final Pot & Starting Them Like That, Plants Looking Nice Though Still!

 

[PeeJay]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

I have to watch the sun where I'm at, Teddy. If the black containers were being hit by direct sun my plants would bake, so I give them some partial shade. Lem made that observation about the containers sitting on rocks, and most of his grow is on a North facing slope, too.

Lots of good suggestions about the soil here. I like Lester's worm farm suggestion. That would be something easy to do. My first though was that well drained volcanic soil is the gold standard for outdoor cannabis growing and Greece has tons of volcanos. When I looked into it, that is only true in tropical climates. In the dry Mediterranean climate the volcanic soils tend to be alkaline and poor in organic matter. I did run into some interesting stuff (lacking specifics) about how the agricultural land on the islands has been used for eons, and that there are concerns about the soil being overused. From what I gathered, amending and improving the soil is gathering steam on the islands.

This document is not the easiest to navigate:

ESDAC - European Commission

Talking to farmers at the market and asking them what they use on their crops might lead you to some nice local goodies to add to your dirt.

 

[PeeJay]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Oh, one more thing I thought about, maybe you could make your own fish emulsion? Fish scraps should be easy to come by there in Greece.

[video=youtube;B0woRZpIIYQ]

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[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

PeeJay! You genius. What's the old song? "One night the PeeJay saved my life".

I would have replied sooner, but I rushed out to put all the pots in dappled shade. What you say fits, since the trouble all started last week when it really started to get hot. Let's hope we're not too late, doctor. I'm an idiot first timer, reading that they loved direct sunlight and moving them round the house to keep them in it. I'll try letting them get the cooler morning and evening sun but keeping them in dappled shade in the heat of the day.

Loving the worm farm idea and looking to do that. And love the fish fertilizer - although Mrs Teddy didn't seem so keen when I told her the process! I'll be off to my fishmonger next time I'm down at the coast. Great stuff. Cheers for bothering to do that research. The pdf will be bedtime reading.

Now I'm off to look up some key Greek words like 'fertilzer' and 'soil improver' to try out at Saturday's farmers' market.

I really appreciate your suggestions. Hope you're enjoying the mountains.

 

[Tamir]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Preheat always has valuable info..good save guys

 

[PeeJay]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

It was fun looking into Greek soil ecology. That PDF will be excellent bedtime reading - put you to sleep in a jiffy.

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

It was fun looking into Greek soil ecology. That PDF will be excellent bedtime reading - put you to sleep in a jiffy.

So it will do the job before my crop matures, eh?

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

"ONE NIGHT THE PEEJAY SAVED MY LIFE" - WHY ONLY USE A GOOD LINE ONCE UPDATE

So, thanks to all you Tom Mix's riding in (there's a reference for the youngsters), this morning it was potting on for the 2 3-week-olds and a mild dose of nitrogen for the older ones. Didn't like using it, but beggars can't be... ('Tipota' said Apostolis at the village post office. Nothing.). Here they all are. Re-pots and the group looking I think like the Von Trapp family children:

Those of you paying close attention (stop sniggering in the back there, Lotus. Any more of that and I'll send you to Mr Lester the Headmaster) will notice I'm one short. A 3 week old Think Different passed over during the night. Burned by me. No photo. Too sad. Then PeeJay got back from the mountains with a backpack of experience and a thermos flask of common sense and everything got rushed into dappled shade. I've been such a twit. Even though last week I dug up 12 feet of my mixed border where everything was dying in the heat and made a rock garden, it didn't occur to me that The Plants would be suffering heat stroke too. Let's hope we've caught it early enough. This evening all looking...well...certainly no worse.

So to all who chipped in to the rescue.

That's an important lesson for me. They like sunshine but can't take too much heat. Their leaves were reacting exactly like the boarder plants - turning down and away from the sun, losing their colour and finally browning from the edges in. So now, carefully onwards.....

Pip Pip. Mr Teddy

 

[Teddy Edwards]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Your Auto's You Should Pot Straight Into There Final Pots So Your 10/11 Litre Pots & Not Put Them In a Small Pot & Start Potting Them Up, They Only Have a Short Life Span & This Can Slow Its Growth! Good Choice With Your Nutes Though Shame They Havent Arrived Yet, Just Bought The Same Thing Other Half Gave His Girls a Dosage & You Could Tell The Differnce Instantly Next Day They Bushed Up Loads & Looked Lush So I Decided To Use Some The Otherday Too, Should Help Your Plants Alot! I Defently Think Your Temperatures May Be a Bit Hot But Then Again Tent Tempertures Have Mainly Been Low 30's At Some Points In Day Getting To High 30's & They Don't Seem To Mind There Looking Good! But I Do Know Other People Have Problems With Tempertures Being So High! & Noticed Suprisingly They Do Grow Alot Slower Outside But You Really Should Try Putting Seed Into Final Pot & Starting Them Like That, Plants Looking Nice Though Still!

lttlemiss and thanks so much for responding. To be honest, the choice of nutes came down to what I could get sent here (not that they've arrived yet). But tip-top to know that they're good 'uns.
And I hear you about popping autos directly into their final pots. I've just been so used not to doing that with all my other plants and seedlings But next autos will follow your advice.

 

[brightlight]

Re: Greek outdoor grow - femes and auto fems - 2014

Hello Mr. T. During the heat a regular little dose of potassium silicate really helps the plants. There are many brands...I prefer Dyna Grow's Pro Tekt. It's also very hot where I am. Actually I use it for both outdoor and indoor plants.