Greenhouse or open air?

[I'mOne]

Soon I will have my medical card here in Oklahoma. We have a very decent law that allows me to grow numerous plants no matter hwo close a dispensary is, or what my ailment is. We can have 6 plants, males don't count, mother plants don't count. I have a country home with only one close neighbor. They are nice folks but probably typical Oklahomans and not too sympathetic of a pot grow. I can grow in my garden if I put a fence up as perlaw. I could grow indoors. I prefer to use the sun for lighting. I'm not sure about the soil or the rain however. I could create good soil and water plants with the rain. However....this fall has been incredibly rainy and wet. My vegetables are suffering from wilt, mildew and washed out nutrients.
I'm considering my shed as a green house. I have no roof on it now. I can put a poly carbonate roof on it and have a green house. It's 12 by 12 and has metal sides. My only concern is the build up of heat. I'm thinking I can make a vent ridge and open the door when I'm home. It will not be totally bug proof or temperature controlled. I can control the lighting and watering and use the potting soil if need be?

 

[TheFertilizer]

Well having a greenhouse will always be more advantageous, but you have to be careful to properly ventilate it otherwise you'll run into all sorts of environmental issues. The heat is one thing, but if it gets too humid and warm then that creates a strong susceptibility to mold.

You could run a heavy-duty extention cord out there and put an exhaust fan on the outside of the shed, then just knock a hole in the wall of it. The fan will pull air out of it, and into it from any openings.

Without that as a bare minimum of ventilation I'd say you'd need to stick to open air.

You could also run them in the open air for the majority of the summer months, and then put them into the greenhouse in the fall when the temperatures drop.

How to Grow Marijuana Everything You Need to Know
What are the Advantages of Growing in a Greenhouse?

 

[I'mOne]

Thanks I was thinking about that, it may be advanatageous that my shed is not quite air tight. It ctually is a lean to on the north side of my "guest house" and it would be simple to run a fan out there. Secondly i need to put some plastic down on the dirt floor to cut down on ground source moisture. I think i can rig up a vent at the top ridge and raise and lower the top panel of the roof with a pole. I would put the plants in tubs and could move them outside periodically with a hand truck. My height will be restricted to 7.5 feet. I will have to train or trim the plants to keep them from touching the roof and getting rotten buds when the roof has condensation.
As much as i would love 12 foot tall columbian sativa plants, i think i may need to start with some shorter varieties.
Not sure which ones yet. My wife needs cbd and i just need to forget my work week on friday nights.

 

[Blew Hiller]

Soon I will have my medical card here in Oklahoma. We have a very decent law that allows me to grow numerous plants no matter hwo close a dispensary is, or what my ailment is. We can have 6 plants, males don't count, mother plants don't count. I have a country home with only one close neighbor. They are nice folks but probably typical Oklahomans and not too sympathetic of a pot grow. I can grow in my garden if I put a fence up as perlaw. I could grow indoors. I prefer to use the sun for lighting. I'm not sure about the soil or the rain however. I could create good soil and water plants with the rain. However....this fall has been incredibly rainy and wet. My vegetables are suffering from wilt, mildew and washed out nutrients. I'm considering my shed as a green house. I have no roof on it now. I can put a poly carbonate roof on it and have a green house. It's 12 by 12 and has metal sides. My only concern is the build up of heat. I'm thinking I can make a vent ridge and open the door when I'm home. It will not be totally bug proof or temperature controlled. I can control the lighting and watering and use the potting soil if need be?

If you have the space and budget...absolutely GH. Venting is easy, especially if you don't mind making a few structural adjustments to your shed. Just make sure there is 2x as much lower intake as upper exhaust and convection will do the rest for you. I use polycarbonate and I love it. Another option to consider is a hoop house (high tunnel). Cheap, roomy, easy to erect. Everybody loves growing outdoors in June/July/August because the weather is optimal, but the challenge is keeping your crop intact until harvest through September and October when it can be cold, windy, and wet....all things that will destroy your plants and, especially, your flowering buds. Take a stroll though the current threads and see how many outdoor growers are battling the elements.

 

[Blew Hiller]

Thanks I was thinking about that, it may be advanatageous that my shed is not quite air tight. It ctually is a lean to on the north side of my "guest house" and it would be simple to run a fan out there. Secondly i need to put some plastic down on the dirt floor to cut down on ground source moisture. I think i can rig up a vent at the top ridge and raise and lower the top panel of the roof with a pole. I would put the plants in tubs and could move them outside periodically with a hand truck. My height will be restricted to 7.5 feet. I will have to train or trim the plants to keep them from touching the roof and getting rotten buds when the roof has condensation.
As much as i would love 12 foot tall columbian sativa plants, i think i may need to start with some shorter varieties.
Not sure which ones yet. My wife needs cbd and i just need to forget my work week on friday nights.

Not sure why you are concerned about ground moisture...plants in veg may love that in the summer heat. 7.5 feet is a good height, but make sure you have them pruned to around 5ft before flowering...they will stretch in flowering and then it is too late to prune. I am growing a CBD Cheese and Cream from @SeedsMan which is a very robust, healthy plant (and she is currently 8' tall!). She is an approximate 1:1 with high CBD/THC (18/22%).

Don't fixate too much on heat...I have had my GH peak temps @ 95-100F and the plants are fine. As long as there is air moving the temps will fluctuate and cool in the night. Larger pots=more soil=cooler roots= bigger plants=bigger yield.

 

[I'mOne]

Oh yes our famous Oklahoma wind would wreck a hoop greenhouse while im away at work...not a good scene.

 

[I'mOne]

Oh, but heat our here can be brutal at times, then next year not so much? 2012 we got 115 and it stayed over 100 for two weeks. Last summer was not quite that bad but my garden definitely suffered. It just stopped producing. Im afraid the poly roof will create an even more brutally hot situation.

 

[Blew Hiller]

Oh yes our famous Oklahoma wind would wreck a hoop greenhouse while im away at work...not a good scene.

12x12 shed is plenty of space. 6x plants will fill that easily....

 

[Blew Hiller]

Oh, but heat our here can be brutal at times, then next year not so much? 2012 we got 115 and it stayed over 100 for two weeks. Last summer was not quite that bad but my garden definitely suffered. It just stopped producing. Im afraid the poly roof will create an even more brutally hot situation.

If it is vented it will cool. Cannabis is surprisingly tolerant of heat...it's the wind and wet that will damage it.

 

[I'mOne]

Thats what i thought , i can control the rain and winds...and in my wood frame shed can easily rig up a shade system or black out the sun for shorter days if i need to control the sunlight also. I might be able to rig up a gutter on my building and save the rain water for watering.
Does anyone know if rain water has a low ph?

 

[Blew Hiller]

Thats what i thought , i can control the rain and winds...and in my wood frame shed can easily rig up a shade system or black out the sun for shorter days if i need to control the sunlight also. I might be able to rig up a gutter on my building and save the rain water for watering. Does anyone know if rain water has a low ph?

You'll want to maximize the sunlight, so don't worry about shading (controlling light cycles on cannabis only works if it is 100% light tight, and that's hard in any large space). Rainwater is a great resource and the best way to know is to collect some and test it (pH pen or strips). Odds are it is in the 6.4-6.8 range which is perfect. Definitely consider larger fabric pots (20+ gallon) as they hold more water and that will allow the plants to deal with fluctuating temps.

 

[I'mOne]

Why do you prefer cloth pots, as compared to plastic or ceramic?

 

[MrSauga]

Why do you prefer cloth pots, as compared to plastic or ceramic?

There are several reasons why the good growers will tell you to use the fabric pots.
First, they are difficult to overwater your plants in. You can still drown them, but the fabric helps pull out the excess water.
Second, they breathe better. Your roots will love the fact that the fab pots allow for better ventilation inside the pot.
Third, you can feel the weight when it's time to water. Your pot will feel light when it's time to water. Ceramic or plastic pots are heavier and harder to feel that lightness.
In general you will have a much happier and healthier plant in a fabric pot.

 

[Blew Hiller]

There are several reasons why the good growers will tell you to use the fabric pots.
First, they are difficult to overwater your plants in. You can still drown them, but the fabric helps pull out the excess water.
Second, they breathe better. Your roots will love the fact that the fab pots allow for better ventilation inside the pot.
Third, you can feel the weight when it's time to water. Your pot will feel light when it's time to water. Ceramic or plastic pots are heavier and harder to feel that lightness.
In general you will have a much happier and healthier plant in a fabric pot.

All true and I'll add...

- Fabric pots allow the roots to "air-prune" meaning they will grow into the fabric and terminate when they hit air...this allows them maximum surface area (and breathing roots = happy roots). In a solid pot, roots can get root bound.

- Most fabric pots have handles which is useful if you need to rotate or relocate.

 

[I'mOne]

Ok cool. That makes sense. Thanks. Im trying to avoid rookie mistakes yet am limited on funding. Sounds like they are worth the investment. I grew some before most people here were even born but it was amateur and not very sucessful.
For personal reasons i want to wait until may to start this process. Thats gonna give me time to learn and make decisions about what will work best. Thanks to all who posted.