Idk where to start. (If experienced please read)

448

New Member
I am 18 and still live with my parents in Indiana. So weed is still illegal here and my parents know I smoke but don’t want me to grow in the house. It is my dream in life to become a master grower and legally sell weed but I have no idea where to start. I know I just have to buy a seed and start growing but idk if I should start off in Indiana or just move to a new state where weed is legal and just pretty much start my life over and once the weed is grown I don’t know how I would legally sell it. So pretty much all I want is for someone to inform me on the basic steps on how to start a business growing weed and where at in America would be the best option to grow weed for some who has lived in Indiana his whole life and is close to his family. I know very little about growing weed and would also like to know good books or other good sources of information on how to learn how to grow and become a master grower.
 

coreywebster

Well-Known Member
You can start with learning basic botany and understanding plants as a whole.

Here is a list of hundreds of free weed books in PDF format. Maybe try The grow bible first.

https://catnews.org/FREE Pot Books/

Growing weed in the US for profit is only getting harder, take my advice and learn a trade and don't rely on been a grower as a long term job. Always have a plan B,C and D the more strings to your bow the easier life is.
 

Herb & Suds

Well-Known Member
I am 18 and still live with my parents in Indiana. So weed is still illegal here and my parents know I smoke but don’t want me to grow in the house. It is my dream in life to become a master grower and legally sell weed but I have no idea where to start. I know I just have to buy a seed and start growing but idk if I should start off in Indiana or just move to a new state where weed is legal and just pretty much start my life over and once the weed is grown I don’t know how I would legally sell it. So pretty much all I want is for someone to inform me on the basic steps on how to start a business growing weed and where at in America would be the best option to grow weed for some who has lived in Indiana his whole life and is close to his family. I know very little about growing weed and would also like to know good books or other good sources of information on how to learn how to grow and become a master grower.
Stay in school get a botany degree and you will have no trouble working in the industry
No shortcuts are available
 

Blue Pirate

Well-Known Member
I am 18 and still live with my parents in Indiana. So weed is still illegal here and my parents know I smoke but don’t want me to grow in the house. It is my dream in life to become a master grower and legally sell weed but I have no idea where to start. I know I just have to buy a seed and start growing but idk if I should start off in Indiana or just move to a new state where weed is legal and just pretty much start my life over and once the weed is grown I don’t know how I would legally sell it. So pretty much all I want is for someone to inform me on the basic steps on how to start a business growing weed and where at in America would be the best option to grow weed for some who has lived in Indiana his whole life and is close to his family. I know very little about growing weed and would also like to know good books or other good sources of information on how to learn how to grow and become a master grower.
That was the nicest gift you could've given anybody; The gift of Knowledge: Live long and prosper Brother!!
 

hanimmal

Well-Known Member
I am 18 and still live with my parents in Indiana. So weed is still illegal here and my parents know I smoke but don’t want me to grow in the house. It is my dream in life to become a master grower and legally sell weed but I have no idea where to start. I know I just have to buy a seed and start growing but idk if I should start off in Indiana or just move to a new state where weed is legal and just pretty much start my life over and once the weed is grown I don’t know how I would legally sell it. So pretty much all I want is for someone to inform me on the basic steps on how to start a business growing weed and where at in America would be the best option to grow weed for some who has lived in Indiana his whole life and is close to his family. I know very little about growing weed and would also like to know good books or other good sources of information on how to learn how to grow and become a master grower.
You are in a position that you can take your time to set up your life for the next 50 years right now.

Not knowing what your situation is, I am just going to assume you are not ready to go to a 4 year degree right off the bat to get a science degree.

So I would start by finding a local harborist/greenhouse/farm to start working at. Depending on where you live, there should be a few community colleges you can inexpensively take a couple classes in botany/science/math to get yourself acquainted with plants, while you develop a resume.

Then you can either finish up with a degree in plant sciences/botany where you are at or move to a new state to work in a grow facility while you earn a degree in that place.

If you are looking more immediately, set up an indeed.com account and do searches for cannabis jobs throughout the country and start filling out applications (google something like 'how to write a resume strait from high school' for help there).

Edit: If you take shortcuts, and get popped you might make it harder than it needs to be. It is almost fully legal.
 

bsett

Active Member
71 year "Old Fart" here. My advice is just start learning how to grow. I mean anything. A organic vegetable garden is a good place to start. The truth is if you can grow good healthy tomatoes you can grow pot. Also while doing your veg garden read up and practice a little organic composting. By getting your hands dirty in this manner you will get a sense of what "good soil" feels like.

I was fortunate that when I was young and wanted to get into growing I had a friend living in Humbolt that need help. Already knowing how to transplant and work the soil was a big plus.

Also getting your education in first will allow for other options down the road. I took a course in contemporary horticulture which comes in real handy when trying to understand plant physiology.
 

Skunk Baxter

Well-Known Member
It's tough to get where you want to go starting from where you are. Indiana is a pretty 17th-century state; you do not want to get busted there. It can ruin your life in many ways, and a felony conviction for growing weed can make it impossible to work in the legal industry in other states or countries.

It's one of those things where there really are no easy shortcuts; if it were that easy, everyone would already be doing it.

Since Indiana is illegal as hell, at some point, following your dream is going to require leaving Indiana. The question is, do you go now and start from scratch in a legal state out west, or gain some experience first and then take that experience to a legal state and use it to get in the door out there. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

If you go now and move to say, Colorado, you're going to be competing for the same beginners' opportunities that a million other kids from all over the country are moving there to chase. Most of them have at least some experience under their belt, and they're still having a tough time making it. You might want to do some research (if you haven't already) on marijuana migration into legal states, and how hard it can be to move out there and start from square one all on your own.

But if you stay in Indiana, you're faced with either breaking the law to get your experience, or getting your horticultural experience in non-cannabis industries. But at least you have the safety net of living with your parents while you work in a nursery, or whatever. By the way, do they know about this goal? Are they supportive? Would they help you out with some money to move and get started?

Keep in mind that the legal cannabis industry is becoming so mainstream and corporate, general horticultural experience is increasingly useful as a starting point in the industry. As far as the horticultural field is concerned, it's mostly just another plant. If you know how to work in a nursery or a greenhouse, you're a big step ahead of a kid who moved to Colorado after doing two or three 1-plant grows in his closet.

One other thing to consider... what part of Indiana are you from? Michigan is going to be somewhat legal by next year, so you might be able to get established there without having to move far. Or, you might be able to catch on with a commercial hemp farm in Kentucky. It's just general farm work, but you're farming weed. Have you considered those ideas?
 

growingforfun

Well-Known Member
Thank you everyone you’ve been a huge help!
Trouble is your pretty late to the game. Places it's legal growers are a dime a dozen and there isnt much money left in it. It's going to cost around 10k or more to have a profitable grow.

And it isnt as simple as walking into a dispensary with your 10 lbs and walking out with 10k. Theres expensive lab testing that needs done first.
And nearly every dispensary has more growers trying to sell to them than they could ever buy from so they arnt giving new growers a shot.


What's more likely is you'll get lucky and get a job trimming. This is a shit job that pays about what fastfood does.


I know I sound like a huge downer but I've had SO MANY very experienced and amazing grower friends get beaten to a pulp by the legal market. I just dont see a 18 year old who's never grown making it
 

DCcan

Well-Known Member
What's more likely is you'll get lucky and get a job trimming. This is a shit job that pays about what fastfood does...I just dont see a 18 year old who's never grown making it.
Just stay out of the dead end labor pool. Trim , retail sales/operations, greenhouse labor.
Get a technical job that they really need. Enviromental controls, testing services, HR/safety/compliance specialist. HVAC never goes out of style and is easy to get into.

Several service divisions for cannabis industry are springing up, servicing extraction and trim machinery,air handling, pumps as well as environmental services and design. GrowGeneration is one such outfit. SEC filing shows that as their long term goal, running service divisions out of their retail locations
These companies are going to explode as thousands of acres come online every year. You're just in time, not too late.

These are high dollar jobs. Just use your day job cash and experience to fund your long term goal of a grow op. Licence fees, security, facility maintenance, rent ,labor ,tax....I'd just stick to the service side and "growing for fun" 8-)
 
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After the 1st of the year, it's going to be legal in Illinois, so that might be an option for you? Next state over. Being a master grower is not an easy task, and it's not something everybody can attain. The plants talk to you, you just have to learn their language. Understand that they are the true master, we are just growers.
 

thefatpenguin

New Member
1.pick a strain you want to grow
2. decide if you want to go hydroponic or dirt
3. find out best environment for that strain
4.figure out and setup your growing space
5 modify setup to fit strains best environment as best as you can
6.find a feeding schedule for that strain
7. grow your weed

best learn by doing. what you see and hear from others will only be a guideline to follow. go grab some seeds and throw it in a pot. try not to let it die. hopefully you'll get some good puffs in the end. AMEN
 
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