Grow Journal
Welcome to my newest grow journal. This outdoor winter cannabis grow should be used as a reference for winter time growers in Southern California. Over the next two months, I will examine my winter grow so that you can use it as a reference when attempting your grow.
Outdoor Winter Cannabis Grow
Will cannabis grow in winter? Yes. Cannabis can be grown all year in most parts of California. Winter harvests are definitely more challenging when compared to summer grows because of powdery mildew and certain types of bugs. Over the next two months I will continue to update this grow journal with new information.
I started my winter grow on January 16th. My plant, Sherbert is a Indica dominant hybrid. I planted her in my favorite 20 gallon pot and recycled my soil. First, I emptied my pot and replenished my depleted fox farm soil with the nutrients pictured below.
A good friend of mine insisted that I should try his favorite fertilizer recipe for used soils. I saw what it did for his plants earlier in the year so I decided to give him a call for this experiment. We applied Crab Meal, Bat Guano, Bone Meal, Bat Guano, Kelp Meal, Neem Seed Meal, Azomite, and Great White Shark to replenish my soil.
Winter Grow Challenges
The first challenge is making sure my soil was good to go. As stated in the photo above, I used recycled soil for this outdoor winter cannabis grow. This is somewhat risky for a number of reasons, including pests and salt build ups. I don't typically recommend re-using soil, especially if you are a new grower. The risks are simply not worth it.
The second challenge this Sherbert will face is a lack of direct sunlight. This part scares me the most because January and February are usually cold and wet in Southern California. Cannabis requires a substantial amount of sun light to grow desirable buds and this experiment will do the opposite. The Sherbert will be place in a less than ideal location. My plant will be up against a fence that blocks all of the sunlight. But, as the days continue to lengthen, I anticipate that she will eventually receive afternoon sun light several weeks from now.
The third and final challenge this plant will face, is the time of year in which she will flower. Since she was planted after winter solstice, she will see a gradual increase in daylight (1 to 2 minutes per day). This doesn't seem like much, but it is my belief the plant knows the amount of light is trending in the wrong direction. Usually you want to decrease daylight when flowering.
Final Thoughts
This outdoor winter cannabis grow faces many challenges ahead. I seriously doubt the harvest will be worth it even though my soil is packed with organic fertilizers. The soil simply cannot compensate for the lack of sun light. The combination of shade, cold temperatures and some scattered rain will most likely result in a poor harvest. I will keep you updated!
Final Final Update: My harvest was small. Unfortunately, the plant never really took off because she was placed in a shaded area. She didn't really grow much at all and her buds were small. I think I would have had a better outcome had she received more direct sun light. If you are going to grow at this time of the year, make sure to grow in a location that receives plenty of sun light. To increase your chance of a successful harvest, try and grow in a area that receives light sun up to sun down.
8 Comments on “Outdoor Winter Cannabis Grow”
How did it go? I’m thinking about doing a winter grow
SoCal desert mtns- it’ll work as long as you supplement outdoor with periods of extended clouds with some lighting (100 watt in tent cover); seems leaves get more full and greener (Nitrogen availability?)….good point bout recycled soil…no bueno..just leave it for 3 yrs, adding organics. like crop rotation, it seems to get all right; what peeps forget is the inorganics taken up by plant and just gotta shovel some neighbor’s yard when they ain’t lookin! I have grown some 80’s high-altitude (3000 metres) seed from Kenya and seems good, although shorter even with sativa genes!
I planted my plant the end of July. The plant got pretty big. I used Rhino Skin and Grown Big and then added Big Bloom for about 3 months. But I do not think the plant was getting enough Dark time. Because once I started covering her up at night the flowers started to appear. Then it got to cold at night and the flowers did not get any bigger. But now that the weather is getting warmer the flowers are now getting bigger.
My question is will the flowers be ok? I am not sure how big they will get at this time but it seems they are growing. Am I wasting my time? I am also giving her Fertilizer and when I water the plant I am watching the PH to be sure it is between 6.2 and 6.6.
This is my first plant and I have spent so much time I hope it is going to be worth it.
Can you help me?
Just grew and harvested this week…….of course, the cold nights and warm daiz brought terpene levels up and plant color! There are very few species to ‘bug’ plants as much as summer…….maybe Gnats and White Aphids, but, diatom earth can easily solve that…..yield bout half as much………4 oz per 3′ plant…s’all good!
I started a seed in mid September from a plant called Ice cream cake. Supposed to be killer upwards to $3,000 a pound. She started flowering by late October so growth was somewhat subdued but she still grew to about 18 inches and bushy. I used new soil, fox farms and gave her bat guano and earthworm droppings big bloom fertilizer. I have a spot on an upstairs patio that gets direct sunlight most of the day. Just finished harvesting first week in December and although she only yielded two ounces, its pretty killer, great aroma and excellent euphoric high.
I have lived in NYC my whole life (I am 60), I moved to SoCal in 10/20. Trying to grow outdoors for the first time, I started seeds and raised Hindu Kush seedlings starting in March. In mid-May, I put the 18” plants outside with a Chili Verde clone that I bought from Sespe. I thought that the days were long enough and they were growing fast. Almost immediately they went into flower. Maturity took a long time and the yield wasn’t large, but the results were great. Curing took extra long. Now sure why. But the aroma and effects were fantastic. I think the strong spring sun is the reason for the awesome flowers. This year, I will start seeds in December and bring them outside to flower on March 1st. Then start seeds for an outdoor summer garden. Thoughts?
Plants will slow terpene and THC production naturally with winter rays of sun, so, just supplement with outdoor 100 LED during flowering…..have had Idyllwild 70’s Skunk#1 still go 6′ and produce 8-10 oz per plant and have amazing color and flavor….only challenge were root aphids I’d never heard of or seen before; didn’t wanna upset soil mocrobes with Neem drench, so just used Dr. Broner’s Soap…..worked wonders…
I have done winter grows in the San Jose area the last 3 years. I plant my seeds in the later fall and have a sunny, south facing, white wall where they are located. They don’t get much sun around the winter solctice, but when the sun gets higher, they really start to grow. Since the days are still short, they begin to flower quickly and I normally harvest at the beginning of May or so, before they go back to veg again. I end up with short, stubby plants that are loaded with large buds. It’s just fun to do and I get it free (I bred my own seeds, landlord pays for water). Then I start my normal summer grow/higher yielding garden. I’ve become self sufficient and make my own hash and edibles. The only thing I buy are cartridges, I don’t make those.