EZ GROW MARIJUANA GUIDE
you will need:
5 gallon buckets (pots). Each bucket must be punched out around the bottom in at least 4 places to allow drainage. Put 1-2" of rocks or broken crocks in the bottom of the bucket for drainage, then some plastic mesh like onion bag material on top of that, to keep the soil from washing out. Don't restrict drainage at all, because drainage is all important to your success. You also want heavy duty construction type 5 gallon buckets. Some from the food industry are good too. These type of buckets will slide easily on concrete and wood, yet they are stiff enough to be moved around without upsetting the soil in them. If they are black consider painting them white because the sun will heat them up quickly if they stay black, possibly damaging root systems, a big no-no. The five gallon buckets can also be wrapped in cloth or tin foil to the same end.
1.5 lb Miracle Grow all purpose plant food, blue crystals, one tbsp per gallon of water once a week.
2 gallons water with 3% hydrogen peroxide, use 4 tbsp of H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) per gallon of H20 (water). FYI -- Always let any chlorinated tap water breath in an open container for 24 hours to allow the chlorine to evaporate.
Ph test strips off ebay or from any chemical supply.
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Soil mixing directions: (Dependent on PH testing)
1 cubic foot of miracle grow potting mix per 5 gallon bucket (Per plant). NOT to confused with MG compost or any other mix. You want black chunks of humus with some perlite and little time release balls in it, not fibrous shavings and grindings. Stay away from anything with pine bark especially.
5-10 pounds of clean washed sand per pot
1 pound perlite per pot
approximately 1 cup of hydrated lime per pot, mix with water and apply as liquid, mix in soil well.
2 tbsp epsom salts per pot, add same time as lime mixture, in the same water.
Method:
1. You need good seeds or good cuttings/clones. You can buy seeds online. Steer away from the feminized brands and other types which exhibit odd characteristics, you want good hardy viable strains to produce good seed as well as good pot. You can use your own sweat as growth hormone on a cut clone stem, put it on the cut before rooting. You can use 1 tbsp hydrogen peroxide per quart of water as a mix to soak seeds in when germinating, the H2O2 makes germinating more productive. Many people germinate their seeds in paper tissue, keeping the seeds moist at all times, but not immersed. From germinator the seeds go right into their respective 5 gallon bucket, one or two per bucket. Also, on old seeds (Over a year old) you can improve viability by scuffing them in a matchbox lined with fine sandpaper. Shake the seeds around in the sandpaper-lined matchbox for a minute or so and it will scuff the hardened seed shells, allowing them to absorb water more easily. Last seasons seeds will not need this treatment, most of the time.
2. Many growers prefer a sterile soil to start, and it does help a lot. The miracle grow potting mix is usually pretty sterile, though on the first watering of your soil prior to planting, use 2 gallons of the water with hydrogen peroxide mixed in. Soak well. Use 2 gallons per pot. Her is where you also see if your buckets are draining well. Hydrogen peroxide is a great sterilizing agent, and used in the mushroom industry as well. The H2O2 turns to H20 but not before it kills any fungus or odd bacterias in the soil first. I like to water with this mix during the plants growth, about every month, it causes air pockets to form around the roots, allowing easier growth. My root systems have never been healthier. Some gardeners spray their plants foliage with this peroxide mix. When in doubt always try a little area before doing a big area. Some growers now use soil innoculants, which are symbiotic bacteria or fungus applications, and peroxide will probably kill them too, so beware that. It should be beneficial to sterilize the soil with hydrogen peroxide before adding an innoculant, just not after adding the innoculant.
3. Before mixing soil check the ph of the miracle grow potting mix, it is many times a 5 or 5.5, and if so it needs to go to a 7, though gradually. Add a few tablespoons of your soil mix to one cup of water, then dip the ph test strip in, and see what you get in color. Match it to the chart on the box. Also check your water source, it might be acid or even alkaline and affect the mix over time as well. If your soil is 5.0 or so, start by adding the lime and epsom salts to your potting soil, and when they are mixed test the ph again. You won't have to add any more epsom salts, that is to take care of a vital mineral needed by the plants but not supplied by the miracle grow fertilizer. You may have to add more lime to get your mix near 7, though you don't want to overdo it. Your Ph is critical to your success, and you will almost always have to adjust upward if you are buying soils. Red stems, yellow or necrotic leaves, and more, are almost always attributable to a Ph which is too low, and sometimes even too high.
4. By putting your plants in pots you are accomplishing a few things at once. 1. You are simplifying security, because you can lock your plants up at night. This is very important. I also have a live surveillance camera on my plants whenever they are outside, and the picture is on a screen on my computer all day every day. Weed TV, watch your plants grow. 2. In case of partial infestation of fungus or pests, single plants can be quarantined, and males too, when pollinating. 3. You are giving the plants enough root space to reach a good mature stature, in containers strong enough to protect the integrity of the micro-environment, i.e. the soil. 4. You are recycling. 5. You are protecting yourself from poisoned pot which is just part of the USA drug war, they bust big loads, poison it, and put it back on the street. Some makes people more susceptible to heart attacks, especially when tasered. Non-lethal weapons indeed. The American police state is a mafia in uniform. The American military is just one big drug cartel.
5. The more direct sunlight your plants can get the better they will grow. They need at least 5 hours of direct sunlight daily to grow well. Don't foliage feed or spray water on the plants when they are in direct sun though, it can harm them.
6. I use inverted wire-mesh waste baskets I get at the dollar store as cages over my plants when they are little and outside, until they are large enough the bugs quit bothering them. Keeps the cat out too, which is necessary as well, because he is a nosy little beast. Sometimes I just cut the bottom out of the basket cover and let the plant grow up through it. Malathion, and pyrethrin are used sometimes to control aphids or mites, and bugs can be a real problem. Don't spray your plants within a month of harvest though. Unless there is too much water in the environment bugs can usually be handled. Nicotine spray made from cigarettes and water is a good insecticide and organic. You can remove some pests by hand, and also remove blighted leaves as they happen, keeping whatever it is from spreading. Just take individual leaves if possible, don't remove any whole leaves or fan leaves unless absoutely necessary. Fungus can be treated with fungicide or sulphur powder in water. If there is too much rain causing bad things to happen, like bugs and fungus, you can bring your plants under cover because they are in buckets. I have had to do this more than once.
7. If the plants wilt they probably need water. Usually the 5 gallon buckets will hold water for 2-3 days at a time, though the plants in buckets need more watering than outside plants, as a rule. If a bucket drains well it is difficult to over water, just keep it around once or twice a week if possible. Larger plants need more water and will dry out their soil much faster than small plants. Small plants need to stay moist most of the time, at least around the surface and stem, until the root system becomes extensive.
8. When the plants begin to flower I sprinkle Miracle Grow crystals on the dirt surface around the plant, that way every time they get watered they get fertilized. That is not for everyone, and you can overdo it, so be careful, but the plant needs a lot more of certain things during flowering and the MG fert has it.
9. If you want seedless bud, then pull all the males up as they appear. They can be smoked. The males are the ones with the little balls. They will almost always flower first. If you want seed, save and dry a good male with well developed pollen sacs in an enclosed box of some sort, and collect the pollen from the bottom of the box when the pollen sacs dry out and burst. Apply to small buds at bottom of a female plant with a paintbrush. Don't overdo it or you will end up with pounds of seeds versus pounds of bud.
10. When mature, pull the plants up and hang upside down to dry for a week or more. You can tell when its time to harvest because the white hairs on the female buds start to turn brown or orange. When half of the plants white hairs are darkened, its time to harvest. Seeds take at least ten days and preferably 30 days to mature, once the plant is pollinated. Good luck. There is a ton of stuff on the net to help you along in your farming endeavors.
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