hole size?

[phatnuggetz]

Hello im getting a late start digging some holes in my backyard and wanted to know how big I should dig my holes, how deep and wide? im loking to grow them as big as I can. Also the soil in the backyard is what my friend called bad top soil, will this affect my plants? thank you!

 

[Denial N Error]

Alright I will give this a shot..

There are many variables as to hole size. If this is your first outdoor grow, I would suggest going small, 4-5 gallon holes, and lots of strains. Find the strain that works best in your area. I'd run 10-12 strains in 4-5 gallon holes, expect 3-4oz per female in this type of setup, if you get 8oz awesome, if you get a pound, superb... Break up the surrounding soil , dig out a good 5 gallon hole, and replace with good soil, I like a good organic mix, Pro-Mix HP/EWC/Perlite/Blood/Bone/Kelp/Greensand/Gypsum.. and make sure to break up the outer edge of your hole so it mixes in good with the native soil ..

I do know it takes a while to fine tune your outdoor, I still have many seasons to go to figure mine out, if I had the choice I would run from clone, from a proven outdoor strain.

From seed is tough, thats why I recommend starting small, I dont know if you're going from clone or seed, if you are going from seed, go small, like I said, 4-5 gallon holes, and try to do a few different strains, it will help you figure out for next year what is best, then you can upgrade hole sizes and focus on one or two particular bombass outdoor strains.

Just my 2 cents.

Pz

 

[Aeroguerilla]

dude the deeper the holes the better!!! and you should go get your self a few bricks of promix 30$ a piece i would also purchase some espoma garden tone mix in a little of that.. dried blood is a must, keeps away deer DONT USE BONE MEAL attracts animals

 

[fisher15]

Actually you'd be better going wider than deep, as mj roots like to spread out as to anchor the plant. Too deep and you can run into root rot. Probably too late this year to matter, but you can use the holes next year- I'd dig them 2 x 6. Have dug 4 x 4's and IME wider and shallower works better. And one per hole, let them blow up... Good luck.

 

[FirstTracks]

I'mno expert on hole size, but aeroG. is a little off about the deep holes. according to silverback, a well respected outdoor grower, cannabis plants really don't drop roots more than 2ft vertically into the soil. It is actually much more important to dig a wider hole.

Many people recommend a 3x3 hole 2 ft deep as a general hole size to grow large plants.
Starting right now, with anything less than 100% sativa, something 2x2x2 should be plenty for you to grow something nice and big.

you don't need to have completely different soil throughout the hole either. You could do something like mix a couple a 1.4cu ft bags of peat moss into a 2x2x2 hole, a couple small bags of perlite, a cup or two of dolomite lime, and whatever nutrients you wanted to use.

Never hurts to mix in some EWC (earth worm castings). If in the US, you cna get cheap bags at wallyworld, something like 20lb bag for $3 or $5.

 

[Mrs.Babba]

fisher is right...the roots like to spread out more then go deep. our spot isnt all that deep..maybe 2 and half feet deep but the roots can spread wayyyy out.

 

[UnknownProphet]

mine normally go about 3x3x3 (about 1 meter squared) some a little bigger but my biggest plant last year came from a hole about 2x2x2. Yield on that one plant was a little more than 1 lb. 2 oz.


Although this late in the season I don't think you need to go all that big.


Good luck regardless.

 

[JOE CHRONIC]

Hello im getting a late start digging some holes in my backyard and wanted to know how big I should dig my holes, how deep and wide? im loking to grow them as big as I can. Also the soil in the backyard is what my friend called bad top soil, will this affect my plants? thank you!

I have been digging pit holes in the backyard for the last 5 years.
Take a look at my post to get some ideas... http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=122797

 

[phatnuggetz]

Thank you all for your great advice! I think im going to dig a 2 feet deep 4 wide holes for my medical garden. i plan on going to get moms at a club in the bay area, hopefully they have them. I should start a new grow log shortly, thanks all!

 

[Guest]

It seems im probably in the minority here, but my holes are 18" w X 12"d. I grew up a farm boy and i don't know of any crop that needs to be plowed deeper than 12" and im not even sure a farmer can buy a plow that plows deeper than 12". Corn, sunflowers, hemp all does just fine with an 8" plow share.

This plant is growing in a container 12" deep by 12" wide (5 gallon bucket). It finished another foot taller and wider.




The nature of the adjoining soil can influence the size of my hole. If its mostly rock or heavy clay and i know the plant cant leave the initial planting hole, then it will be big enough to hold 15 gallons of soil.


Thats my thinking anyway. Plus, im lazy and i have lots of other shit to do, seedlings cuttings... it never ends.

 

[blackone]

It seems im probably in the minority here, but my holes are 18" w X 12"d. I grew up a farm boy and i don't know of any crop that needs to be plowed deeper than 12" and im not even sure a farmer can buy a plow that plows deeper than 12". Corn, sunflowers, hemp all does just fine with an 8" plow share.

Are those holes filled with soil you brought to the place, or amended native soil?
How much are you getting on average per plant?

 

[Guest]

blackone, i use single plant sites in rugged spots as insurance plants and if i have to go through all of that work of carrying in dirt, i want it to be worth it. I only grow whoppers, 2-3 lber's in carry in sites and thats why i said 15 gallons of dirt. Just one big plant in a very difficult spot where digging is hard, picking out one rock at a time, steep and a tough carry. Really, as little as 5-7 gallons would be okay for a smaller stature plant.

Sometimes i do buy store bought and pour it in a hole because its the easiest way. In fact, one 64 quart size bag of Miracle Grow is the perfect size to raise up a 20 ozer. I feel its worth the $12 for the bag. I have 4 holes this season that each was filled with a bag of MG simply because the steep slope i was growing on didnt have much soil. I picked the rocks out of a 2'X 16" hole and poured in a bag and now I have a whopper Dr. Atomic BB jam growing amongst the tough brush that grows in rock.

Just as often however, i will go to a river bottom or wooded depression where the weeds are tall and the dirt dark and loamy and fill up 3-5 gallon buckets. Dry it a litlle, add a couple gallons of compost and dump it in the hole. I carry it in in sacks.

If ive done my planning, i can carry it in over winter and have it ready for spring. I found a spot the other day that is really to0 steep for deer and critters and nobody would ever go there. Its tough, but by fall i hope to have the hole dug and then start packing in 5 gallons at a time until its full. I can use that site year after year once its built. In fact, thats how i grow. I have 40 such holes in tough spots that ive developed over time. Once the initial hole work is done, its like milkin a cow.

 

[mahuta]

hi silverback, what about for a plant from some of the kc brains strains? i've heard they have a very vigorous root structure. i've ordered some kc 33,mango and bahia black head. what size hole would you recomend for a strain such as these.

 

[jakeh]

blackone, i use single plant sites in rugged spots as insurance plants and if i have to go through all of that work of carrying in dirt, i want it to be worth it. I only grow whoppers, 2-3 lber's in carry in sites and thats why i said 15 gallons of dirt. Just one big plant in a very difficult spot where digging is hard, picking out one rock at a time, steep and a tough carry. Really, as little as 5-7 gallons would be okay for a smaller stature plant.

Sometimes i do buy store bought and pour it in a hole because its the easiest way. In fact, one 64 quart size bag of Miracle Grow is the perfect size to raise up a 20 ozer. I feel its worth the $12 for the bag. I have 4 holes this season that each was filled with a bag of MG simply because the steep slope i was growing on didnt have much soil. I picked the rocks out of a 2'X 16" hole and poured in a bag and now I have a whopper Dr. Atomic BB jam growing amongst the tough brush that grows in rock.

Just as often however, i will go to a river bottom or wooded depression where the weeds are tall and the dirt dark and loamy and fill up 3-5 gallon buckets. Dry it a litlle, add a couple gallons of compost and dump it in the hole. I carry it in in sacks.

If ive done my planning, i can carry it in over winter and have it ready for spring. I found a spot the other day that is really to0 steep for deer and critters and nobody would ever go there. Its tough, but by fall i hope to have the hole dug and then start packing in 5 gallons at a time until its full. I can use that site year after year once its built. In fact, thats how i grow. I have 40 such holes in tough spots that ive developed over time. Once the initial hole work is done, its like milkin a cow.

Silverback,
I am loving the 64 qt moisture control miracle grow. Of all my methods the dug hole or better yet the completely hollowed out stump hole filled with one of these 2 cubic ft bags of prefertilized water retaining soil has so much going for it.
1. simple- dig or find hole and drop in bag. They are light as well if they have not gotten rained on.
2. stealthy- no pot
3. cheap- $12 for idiot proof just add water dirt and a $5-8 feminized seed.
4. productive-my plants in these holes look better than anything else(minus wilting due to opressive heat and humidity ) but hopefully they will get used to it.
I had the luxury of seeing someone with close to 30 yrs experience doing nothing but organic. The plants looked great but it takes tons of trips hauling all kind of heavy crap. Due to experience he is ahead but his holes have 2-3 hours of labor and mine have 1 or less. That being said I feel great about my plants in comparison. All my holes have girls. All his have girls but they were covered to force flowering and now are confused and stunted going back into veg. If he would have had my feminized seeds and not slowed them down I would love to see where he would be. We argue-discuss organic vs chemical but for someone with limited experience a $12 15-17 gallon light bag of dirt (just add water) will give you a much better chance at success and he even admits that. I did buy the miracle grow organic bag but that plant in that hole was crap compared to the other. If they would only dehydrate them and compact them like a 5kg coir bale that would be a dream.
later

 

[blackone]

If they would only dehydrate them and compact them like a 5kg coir bale that would be a dream.

Definitely... I take it miracle grow is peat based like most potting/planting soil?
Rehydrating peat takes some time but outdoors that's not a problem as long as you're in an area where you can count on rainfall (Or even absorbtion from surrounding soil) to do the job. In some cases it might require another trip to the spot and you wouldnt be able to go in, dig holes and plant at the same time but then again it's probably preferable to let the hole sit for a while first.

 

[C3RTIFI3D]

Dig big holes!

 

[blackone]

The first spot I made this year was a 2*2m bed - amended with composted horse manure, spent soil and lime - tilled in to a depth of 20cm.
Then when I put in the plants I also made seperate holes - maximum 30*30 cm - that were mostly just native soil (very rich, looks like pure humus, native vegetation includes lots of stinging nettles) mixed with a little extra compost, spent + fresh soil and lime. I don't even think lime is required here because I don't see any signs of acidic soil but I mixed it in just in case - it also has magnesium so can't be all wrong.
I planted pretty close because I'm fairly late - hoping for perhaps 12-15 females to yield 100 grams each.

My other locations don't all have the same super soil - some of them are pure clay so probably need a little more work, deeper holes and more amending. Also there are signs of acidic soil (blackberry, moss) so the lime is definitely a must. Good thing is now I have a real spade to work with instead of a small trifold.
Still I'm out pretty late so I won't be making any 15 gallon holes - again aiming for 100 gram plants but a lot of them so I probably won't be making holes any larger than 30*30*30 cm. Perhaps I'll try a hole or 2 completely filled with storebought soil but the plan is to use mostly native and amend.

 

[Guest]

I often buy my Mg, dump it out when i get home, squirt water on it and then let it redry. This conditions it a bit and tempers the tendency for the soil to repel water as it tries to do when its bone dry..

 

[blackone]

Thanks. I also saw Jorge Cervantes recommending using a surfactant - might be worth it if it can save you a trip.
I don't have any access to a grow surfactant though - I'm wary of experimenting with dishwasher surfactant, soap etc...

 

[smokeymacpot]

in clay soil, how many plants could i put in a 2ftx2ft wide 1ft deep hole containing 8or 9 gallons of peat. should i go deeper? ssince no roots will ever break into the clay, its really thick!
or what other hole sizes could i use?