It seems that every grow guide I find is littered with qualifiers . This is especially true with outdoor grow advice because all of us have different "grow rooms". Even within a relatively small geographical area, micro-climates abound that defy conventional wisdom. Advice that begins with "for most people", "ordinarily", and "try to" is so common that the words lose their meaning, and there is no way to know how things will work for you until you've actually been there, done it, and have the T-shirt.
Recently I read a post by someone who planned a massive outdoor grow effort. Since I have a few tattered T-shirts, I was amused by their optimism. It then occurred to me that maybe that guy lived in some strange place like California, where the laws of nature and physics no longer apply!
It is about 100 degrees outside right now, and it hasn't rained in over 3 weeks. Supposedly, we'll get some in a few days.
With this heat, even a relatively small plant needs about 1/2 gal of water / day just to survive. In order to keep it prospering through this drought, I need to double that amount. Plants that are already 5' tall need 1 1/2 - 2 gallons, and as they grow and time wears on, the requirements go up.
Advice like "Try to find a place near a water source like a creek" should read, "Don't even try this unless you have a creek within 50' of your patch". I use cisterns and 5 gal buckets, have a water source within 100 yards and I'm still working my ass off hauling water for 30 plants in 3 patches. If nature doesn't help me out soon this summer is going to get ugly. Large scale gardens require large scale water moving and distributing.
I can't imagine how 1 guy could handle even 100 plants under these conditions without a creek, pump, and tubing.
Animals:
If you grow in the woods anywhere in the south you must protect your plants from rabbits, rats, deer, and armadillos. ONE rabbit will eat an entire garden in a few weeks. He'll come back every night or two and cut down at least one plant. Armadillos are compulsive diggers and will dig anywhere you do. They won't eat the plant, just dig it up and trample it while they root around underneath. They come back every night.
Fencing must be secure and tight to the ground. Deer can be warded off with a number of strategies posted by others elsewhere.
Unless you are a migrant worker, or have spent time on a chain-gang, the effort necessary to dig ONE 4'x4' hole in the ground will probably shock you. Try it in hard dry Alabama clay when it's 105F outside. 10 would make you consider another line of work real quick. I use 25 and 15 gallon nursery pots, and haul 35# pro-mix bags to fill them (3/4 to 2 1/2 bags per pot depending)
Of course, all the other crap needed to put all of this together has to be carried through thickets of briers and wait-a-minute vines also, all without leaving a trail.
One good thing about it is the exercise. I make several trips per day with a 5 gal bucket of water in each hand (dont forget the lids.) Getting them through the brush without breaking a branch or stepping on a plant is alot of work.
It is better to take really good care of 10 plants than to half-ass 100.
Recently I read a post by someone who planned a massive outdoor grow effort. Since I have a few tattered T-shirts, I was amused by their optimism. It then occurred to me that maybe that guy lived in some strange place like California, where the laws of nature and physics no longer apply!
It is about 100 degrees outside right now, and it hasn't rained in over 3 weeks. Supposedly, we'll get some in a few days.
With this heat, even a relatively small plant needs about 1/2 gal of water / day just to survive. In order to keep it prospering through this drought, I need to double that amount. Plants that are already 5' tall need 1 1/2 - 2 gallons, and as they grow and time wears on, the requirements go up.
Advice like "Try to find a place near a water source like a creek" should read, "Don't even try this unless you have a creek within 50' of your patch". I use cisterns and 5 gal buckets, have a water source within 100 yards and I'm still working my ass off hauling water for 30 plants in 3 patches. If nature doesn't help me out soon this summer is going to get ugly. Large scale gardens require large scale water moving and distributing.
I can't imagine how 1 guy could handle even 100 plants under these conditions without a creek, pump, and tubing.
Animals:
If you grow in the woods anywhere in the south you must protect your plants from rabbits, rats, deer, and armadillos. ONE rabbit will eat an entire garden in a few weeks. He'll come back every night or two and cut down at least one plant. Armadillos are compulsive diggers and will dig anywhere you do. They won't eat the plant, just dig it up and trample it while they root around underneath. They come back every night.
Fencing must be secure and tight to the ground. Deer can be warded off with a number of strategies posted by others elsewhere.
Unless you are a migrant worker, or have spent time on a chain-gang, the effort necessary to dig ONE 4'x4' hole in the ground will probably shock you. Try it in hard dry Alabama clay when it's 105F outside. 10 would make you consider another line of work real quick. I use 25 and 15 gallon nursery pots, and haul 35# pro-mix bags to fill them (3/4 to 2 1/2 bags per pot depending)
Of course, all the other crap needed to put all of this together has to be carried through thickets of briers and wait-a-minute vines also, all without leaving a trail.
One good thing about it is the exercise. I make several trips per day with a 5 gal bucket of water in each hand (dont forget the lids.) Getting them through the brush without breaking a branch or stepping on a plant is alot of work.
It is better to take really good care of 10 plants than to half-ass 100.
