Planning First Outdoor Grow

Hi All -
I’m wiling away the winter hours dreaming about my first outdoor grow. I am looking at prepping five sites for five Gold Leaf plants. I intend to dig holes for 50L bags of soil as a first step… I’ll figure out the soil eventually but something sandy, etc.

What I am wondering about is companion plants. I am planning on planting clover around the base of the plant, and was thinking of adding in some other companion plants to help keep pests away (marigolds or something).

Do any of you use companion plants if planting in the ground, and if so, which ones? Why?

Also, how do you go about prepping your ground/soil? This is a new experience for me so I need to learn a lot (which is why I am doing my research now).

I intend to germinate and veg the plants inside for a few weeks then transplant them outside.

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This a pic of my back yard (more or less, I didn’t feel like actually going outside and taking a pic):

The edge of the yard there is the top of a steep, 20 foot or so hill. I own the woods back there too. I am thinking I will grow plants about a third of the way down the hill… dig it out, level it, reinforce it the New England way with some field stone… something along those lines.

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Beautiful. Will you get enough sun down there? Last year I grew tall sunflowers in a large circle around my one plant. But I don’t own any woods. :slight_smile: Keep the dream alive and share progress.

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That’s east facing so it would get direct sun from 10am until probably 7pm in the summer? Not sure… I’ll keep an eye out though. That’s far enough way that the house won’t block the sun, but I might have to put them near the top of the hill…

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If you have deer in your area , be careful with clover . Deer love clover . So do rabbits .:deer: :rabbit2:

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Hello there Bogleg.

My name is Jack and I’m from the North of Ireland.

It seems we have similar climate conditions right now :wink:

image

March 17th (St. Pats Day) is my start date for this years grow. Hopefully, with better planning and preparation I’ll get improved yields, quality and far less mould than my first attempts last year.

I’m going to try two distinctly different types or grow. Auto and Reg Fem.

5 Royal AK Auto seeds planted in 8 gallon air pots and kept under cover in the polytunnel until May then move them outside for the buds to finish. Harvest end of May.

3 Jamaican Pearl and 3 Frisian Duck Fems. Same deal as the Auto but move them out to the “stealth” grow sites in May. Then clone, top and train until the end of July. Harvest end of Sept beginning Oct.

If all goes well and I have a wee bit of luck… I should grow enough of the good stuff to last me all next winter.

That’s the plan.
It might not be the best plan,
But at least I have a plan.

Best regards and good luck,

Jack

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Sounds like a plan @jackowheelie! If you start a thread, I’d love following along!

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I got woods similar to yours in Missouri where I plan to grow my first plants outdoors7dc1a0f7fa985ddb3621f82165944ac9l-m26xd-w1020_h770_q80
I’m going to germinate indoors then transplant along a creek bed sometime after last frost in March, keep me posted on your progress

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I grow outside but I grow in 7 gal soft pots. I keep them behind a big flower garden. You have to plant things that keep the curtain up so to speak. Those small plants along the front turned in to 5- 6 ft tall plants.it filled in nicely over the summer. There are 8 plants back there… .

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Nice spot there squatch, along with the roses and sunflowers what’s the beautiful yellow flowers? Left middle of the bed.
@sasquatch

Looks like alcea (hollyhock)?

they are gladsI had some things planted that get about 4 - 5 tall and 4 ft wide. that just didn’t grow well last year… but they’re up already and growing fast! …
Rabbits like flower gardens better than pot

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There is a Holy Hock in the far right of the garden, but it didn’t grow well last year. but its up and going strong already

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