Ever since I was 18 I wanted to grow marijuana. Fresh out of school, I found a seed and had a little plant, it died after a few weeks. Apparently plants don't like living in closets with no light. I figured I would try it again when the time is right.
So I moved to Ecuador 4 years ago and the time was right. I scrounged up some more seeds and took my little 3" sprouts near a river I liked and cleared away the brush. At this time my biggest concern is that someone would find them, report me, deport me or put me in jail. So keeping it hidden was of the utmost importance. I had done no research, I just knew that marijuana comes from seeds, seeds need water to grow and I wanted my own gorilla garden and free weed. I was so proud of those little plants, I would come see them every week and track the growth progress. After 2 months I decided to move and I would dig up 1 of the plants and take it with me. I ended up with a tiny harvest, maybe a few grams, but I grew it and I was proud!
I moved again. This time to a more tropical climate. I was sure to move to a place that I could grow without fear of anyone finding my plants. So I live off the beaten path. I came down with 6 seedlings and high hopes for growing the best stuff I could ever dream of. This time I did some research, watching YouTube videos and learning from the pros. I soon realized that I was even better off than I thought! I had more or less hit the marijuana jackpot just by moving to Ecuador! You see, marijuana plants need 12 hours or less of sunlight to go into flower(budding) stage. Being on the equator that's exactly what we get. 12 hours of light everyday without fail, all year long.
So what I would have to do is build a small box with CFL florescent lights. I picked a light wood and built a 3ft x 3 ft x 2ft box, installed a 6" computer fan and a wooden dowel to hang the lights. I installed a light timer so I could keep a steady 18 hours of light(for vegetation stage) on my plants. The metal screen helps keep the plants under even light for faster growth. I spent about $120 on the whole set up with my electricity increasing by about $15/month. I get all the weed I want for $15/month! That feels good to say!
The plan was to grow the plants as big as I could indoors and then transfer them outdoors when I want them to start into flower stage. But before I do that I need to make clones for the next batch. Confused yet? Clones are an exact replica regrown from the "mother plant". I will make 3-4 clones just in case some don't survive in the tender stage they are in.
So it's like this:
2 months indoors from baby plant
2 months outdoors in flower
6 harvests every year and I always have at least 2 plants growing, 1 in "veg" state and 1 in flower state.
If there are any first-time growers reading this, here's a few tips, no matter what part of the world you're in:
Your plants need to breath - get a small fan to move some air around if you are growing indoors.
Transplant your plant to a bigger pot once the total volume of you plant is double the size of the pot that it's in - usually every 4-5 weeks until it's in flower mode. I start with a 1 quart pot for seedlings, then to a 1 gallon pot and finally to a 4 or 5 gallon pot where it will stay until harvest.
CFL lights are cheap and easy to find, that's what I use but there are many other choices of lights to buy.
Know how many hours of sunlight you have available and what time of year is best for flower stage and vegetation stage.
Auto-flower strains are easier and faster to grow.
Thank you for reading and Happy Growing to all!!