Scouting for new sites

[D.S. Toker. MD]

I lost 3 of my sites to the law and 1 site to claim jumping bushwackers last summer, so im out trying to find replacement sites for about 15-20 plants. My truck gets 10 mpg so i have a 15 mile limit. I like to case the joint before planting there to see who lives around there, who comes and goes, etc.

My favorite spots are steep, southern facing slopes. Deer, rabbits and other critters are mostly grazers and dont spend much time on steep slopes. People like cattle tend to follow the easier course so these spots dont get passers by. There's often not much soil so I have to "build" a hole but....Since cold air drains to the lowest point, slopes are warmer in the fall to help with mould

I look for spots, even if small, that are grown over because of fallen trees/ logs, rocks and plant just 1, maybe 2 big plants. I like old farm dumps where tractors, combines, cultivators get dumped when they quit. Its usually a grown up depression and filled with copperhead snakes that get against the warm metal at night. Watch it.

Cedar and pine thickets are common here and make good sites.. On hilly ground there can be hundreds of acres of 6' -10' cedars seedlings. Theyre evergreen so theyre green in Oct which helps with stealth. - Because you cant see above them and they all look alike, you can get lost! I have to carry my compass. I like Blackberry patches. Blackberries have similar needs to cannabis and they grow together well. Corn and soybean fields can offer opportunity.

MACE! Ive had to start carrying key chain mace because of the coyote packs,(and occassional bear). Theyve gotten big with 15-20 animals and seem to be more aggressive. I do a lot of my work at night or in the pre dawn. I cant be fighting off critters in the dark


Im not the only one out scouting. What kind of places are you guys looking for? Tell us about your expeditions.

 

[Leroy Brown]

I'm in a much more urban (well, suburban) enviro than you. I love drainage ponds that are about 8 years old, they have perfect cover, are 100% fenced in, usually 6+ foot fence to jump And nobody ever goes in them to do any kind of maintenance or clearing. It's really just a matter of finding one with the right amount of sunlight, cover, and access, which isn't easy, probably why I didn't hit any up last year but this year it's on!

Last year one of my favorite spots got ravaged by slugs & written off, on a whim I went there at the end of august. When I went back there it was a nightmare getting through all the thorns, had to wear a coat on a 90* day and throw my water filled backpack ahead of me to mat it down enough to make it the next couple feet. Stumbling on to an 8' female made it worth it, it was my first 8' girl, was probably 10' @ chop I'm going to absolutely blow it the fuck up there this year with 50+ clones & heavy applications of Iron Phosphate pellets at the beginning of the season. Perfect soil that needs nothing but loosening during planting & water crystals + Espoma plant-tone & then one or two fert app's late in the season @ the onset of flower.

I have some other favorite places but they are covered in Julians thread nicely

Access wise I like spots where I can park & walk my dogs several times without feeling suspicious.

 

[LazLo]

Leroy
Suburban areas are tough to find decent growing spots. The retention ponds in the "burbs" in these parts are owned by Canadian geese year round. And they are vicious!

DS
The biggest obstacle to finding grow sites for me is access. For 50 miles in any direction, the land is FLAT. And no waterways other than "cricks" and ditches that dry up by July. Driving on gravel country roads stirs up dust that can be seen from the next county. Two of my "fishing" spots are long gone and I'm left with 600+ acres of protected dense primary oak forest. Scouting is no longer for spots, it is for potential growers/rippers. Like being a forest warden.

Biggest threat for me are the deer. And then the bunnies. My only defense is deer netting anchored around my plot(s). Can't use much in the way of organics 'cause the coons dig for their treats. The coyotes aren't in large packs yet. I wear a lifeguard whistle around my neck but someday I may need mace.

 

[:-(]

Hi DS,
I'm scouting the pine tree forests 'round here. I've already claimed 2 spots in the middle of blackberry thickets.Any opening in the forest looks good to me. Sometimes the soil is rich with composted leaves, and sometimes it's red clay that's hard as a rock. I'll probably be dragging some 5 gallon buckets to some of these spots. Ultimately, I'm in search of a good creek to plant near with some of that awesome river soil. Right now the closest creek is a 2 mile hike into the thicket.

sadsmiley

 

[Jaymer]

I'm sometimes left with a Mr. Rogers glow getting out to find new spots I always go out at night and am instantly reminded "I really need to do this more often". There's a golf course running through my back yard and it's good for driving and hunting for golf balls and now I can spot for places to pop a plant or two. It's that killer feeling literally crawling through a rabbit hole wondering what's on the other side and the shrubs opening up to a perfect mini secret garden. One large crater like chamber with a small hole in the wall leading to another smaller one, both begging for one to two hundred plants to cover. Sounded too good to be true so understandably there's an airport about a mile away with small planes and an obese looking black hawk helicopter lingering daily and student pilots gotta get them hours : / It was an unbelievable find and is worth considering just for the fact of not having to walk over any pavement or pass under any streetlights to get there. And then breathing in those fuely blueberry gum buds........ es fetist.

 

[stratmandu]

My last spot is too dang far away, so this year I'm looking closer. I like an area to have 3 ways in and out, not enough acreage to attract deer hunters, far enough away from neighborhoods and roaming/dirt bike riding kids. I'm also looking for a swamp. I do a lot of canoeing and have found a few promising areas with no other access. I use a public put-in but have a private take-out down river. Obviously I can't load the canoe up with bales of promix, so this year for amending holes I'm using coco bricks, with a bag of Esp Biotone, a big cup of dolomite lime, some Azomite, and a box of bat guano per hole. Simple is the theme for this year.

I also started a compost pile with some good chicken poop and aged manure I obtained locally off CL. I will blow up the old spot with freebie seeds, but I am not hauling water like I did last year; I'm going to try DS' technique of using the unamended soil with just lime and ferts to see what happens. Its very sandy so I will add some compost.

I will continue to wage war with the damn deer and will be using cages for the first few weeks. If I can get them to 4' they usually will make it. I also have my eye on a certain corn fields with river access, but have never grown in corn before - this is feed corn that isn't cut until late Oct or Nov. Good luck to all!

 

[D.S. Toker. MD]

Hey

Leroy, i used to work for a developer, and when a residential developer buys a piece of property, they push all of the trees and bushes from the front part of the property to the back corner, then they develop the front 1/2 and make some money before they have to pay the cost of disposing of that material. Usually, that area will be overgrown with trees and logs. Look for new residential developments and see if its doable.

I hear you on the organics Lazlo. The quickest way to loose every plant you have around here is to throw a little bone meal or chiken poop in your planting hole..Grow Over! Flat ground can be challenging, from wind to being seen from 2 miles away,. Single plants in fence rows?

Blackberry's are good spots Sadsmiley. I hunt for blackberry patches. They dont like cold air and wont grow where it settles, plus they like rich, slightly acidic soil. Add 1/2 cup of lime to each planting hole and it will increase growth even more. That clay soil is nutritious and as long as it doenst retain water, it can be modified easily - add l1 cup of lime/ 1 gallon of perlite and 2 gallons of compost 2 each hole and work them in as soon as you can work the ground.

Hey Jamer. I have 2 plants on a golf course. When the built the course, they pushed any trees and brush into a depression and then built the course around it. I get out in the middle and plant 2 whoppers and ive harvested them every year for years. Its funny because each plant has 50 golf balls laying around them! I go to them at night and take a small bucket with some night crawlers that i bought at wal mart.. If questioned, im hunting night crawlers, see, ive already caught these!.

Hey stratmandu. I load my boat up at night when nobody's on the water. I think ive whipped the deer and groundhogs.

 

[:-(]

Good info DS. You guys ever tried scouting in areas where they do tree harvesting? I've seen a few places where they cleared all of the trees a few years ago and now the sapplings and shrubs are grown up so thick it's almost impossible to navigate through. The only problem will be clearing an area big enough to get light. I thought about using containers, but getting out there to water them will be a pain in my ass. If anyone's tried planting in these areas, your input is valued!

 

[hamstring]

I'm in a much more urban (well, suburban) enviro than you. I love drainage ponds that are about 8 years old, they have perfect cover, are 100% fenced in, usually 6+ foot fence to jump And nobody ever goes in them to do any kind of maintenance or clearing. It's really just a matter of finding one with the right amount of sunlight, cover, and access, which isn't easy, probably why I didn't hit any up last year but this year it's on!

Last year one of my favorite spots got ravaged by slugs & written off, on a whim I went there at the end of august. When I went back there it was a nightmare getting through all the thorns, had to wear a coat on a 90* day and throw my water filled backpack ahead of me to mat it down enough to make it the next couple feet. Stumbling on to an 8' female made it worth it, it was my first 8' girl, was probably 10' @ chop I'm going to absolutely blow it the fuck up there this year with 50+ clones & heavy applications of Iron Phosphate pellets at the beginning of the season. Perfect soil that needs nothing but loosening during planting & water crystals + Espoma plant-tone & then one or two fert app's late in the season @ the onset of flower.

I have some other favorite places but they are covered in Julians thread nicely

Access wise I like spots where I can park & walk my dogs several times without feeling suspicious.

Vary very nice exactly what I look for not the spot but the technique.

Has to have an entrance and exit strategy that works or I don’t care how good the spot is. Early in my career I grew around a drainage pond and was able to harvest first season but next season I was ripped. Also I do think they mow around these in my area every few years. Don’t take that as fact I am not sure but think I have seen it done. To make sure see if you have any 2inch saplings that should be a dead give away that they don’t keep up with maintenance.

 

[NPK]

I used to drive past a very promising spot for awhile last year. I kept thinking how much I wanted to go back for a closer look and finally, six months later, had the time to do that over the long MLK holiday weekend. The place is kinda far afield for me, about 20 miles from home, but offers so much I'm willing to make the drive.

The spot has excellent sun exposure and a deep creek running through. The soil around this creek is loose and sandy; holes practically dig themselves. I dug up a fair number of worms with a small shovel. One could go down this creek for quite a ways, planting a clone or two every fifteen feet in the sides of the banks. I'm wondering if I can transport 40-50 plants and do the very thing. The water is RIGHT THERE, and the hike in easy. Just pondering the most efficient way to transport that many small plants....

Also, the area is completely fenced off (there's an easy-to-hop chest-high fence), so deer wouldn't be a problem. I imagine rats might be though, and humans too, judging by the amount of garbage around. The discards I saw did look old and sunworn. Even if there are visitors, who's to say they'll even see the plants? All I need is a fast-flowering strain and 50-60 days. I'm willing to chance it.

I want to do a late winter grow. The winters here have been mild enough in late February to pull it off, I've done it successfully a couple of times now. The plants start flowering the second you put 'em outside because the days are still short, and stay short enough through the end of April. There are plenty of nice days, but it's still not the time of year most people would go traipsing around a creek.

Like I said, the soil seems fertile but very sandy. I plan to amend with a mix of coco coir and 10-10-10 slow-release ferts, and maybe some kelp meal.

 

[LeenieBean]

Learn something about hunting in your area. Its a VERY good idea to read up on information about how to hunt those animals. I found someones clone cups this year on the trail that a very large buck travels every day between his bedding area and his food plot. A hunter will find those tracks, and he will find your plants if you leave your damn cups out. Even worse security risk, I could probably find this individual if I wanted to as his plant strains came from a very specific breeder. Don't choose strains that turn purple in the fall. They stick out like a sore thumb.

chest high fences won't stop a deer. The can jump very high. Little tip someone gave me, use a bar of irish spring soap (or any other strong smelling soap) and shred some pieces off around your plants. Deer don't like the smell of soaps. Why hunters use odor block spray on their clothes, and take a shower without soap before hunting. However, if you piss there, it will probably only incite them to piss where you did. They use urine to communicate with each other. its like a signature "I was here" and "Me too, I see you were here today this morning!" rabbits and mice? rub the irish spring bar into the lower stems and trunk of your plants. They don't like the taste of soap... who would blame them?

 

[Jaymer]

I still haven't been out much to find any new spots, it kinda suxks how I'm somewht paranoid just being out and about but if 'm looking for a plot I don't even wanna be around in the daytime and nightime is only good if you know where your going. This one site I found was beautiful though, lots of thick shrubs to where not even the smallest deer would want to go and the middle was open with somewhat of canopy cover going and a lake on one side for water. I'm going out there to build a fort and a lake jump if it ever gets warm again.

 

[Deft]

claim jumping bushwackers

Who found the wrong kind of nugs and kept them I guess

I never tried the burbs even though that's where I used to live. I always make my way to a nearby national forest and find a place with limited access and a lot of land people do not venture into often.

Finding a combination of light and water is the tough part for me. Where there is light there is no water and where there is water trees shade everything.

 

[moondawg]

Ive been driving past a spot that looked like a great spot for a couple of years, so this week i walked it. It seems somebody else thought it was agood spot to because i saw where 4 plants had been planted!!!

 

[paladin420]

good stuff. I'll add heavy fence flat on the ground to stop diggers.and if you anchor it,it may stop deer from pullin your gurl out when they try a taste. Found a real nice local eco-system. We call em cranberry marshes. Waist high bushes,spagnum moss scattered trees some scrub pine.Very open ,wet,and very little travels there. Cut a hole in the moss add smart pot with app.soil plant baby gurl. nutes can be hard to add as you rarely need to water - I've gone soft (legal) so I am passin on what I've learned in 30+ years,allegedly.
Check my posts if you can, I'm startin to repeat myself.

 

[WasntMe]

good stuff. I'll add heavy fence flat on the ground to stop diggers.and if you anchor it,it may stop deer from pullin your gurl out when they try a taste. Found a real nice local eco-system. We call em cranberry marshes. Waist high bushes,spagnum moss scattered trees some scrub pine.Very open ,wet,and very little travels there. Cut a hole in the moss add smart pot with app.soil plant baby gurl. nutes can be hard to add as you rarely need to water - I've gone soft (legal) so I am passin on what I've learned in 30+ years,allegedly.
Check my posts if you can, I'm startin to repeat myself.

question... don't the cranberry bogs get flooded and tilled around late Sept for harvest? When I was younger I was always too nervous about all the action around my local bogs at that time to try planting there.
or are you talking about something else entirely?



Are any of you hunting locations in true urban areas?
got any tips for urban hunters?
Since the economic downturn there has been many lots untouched for a few years but public proximity makes me too nervous to do any more then a "overgrow seed bomb" in those areas.

 

[Jaymer]

Are any of you hunting locations in true urban areas?
got any types for urban hunters?
Since the economic downturn there has been many lots untouched for a few years but public proximity makes me too nervous to do any more then a "overgrow seed bomb" in those areas.

I needed to clear out underneath a huge vine covered spot for a natural scrog (It looks like a sail boat sail going from the top of some pines down to 8ft wide at the ground and underneath is room to compost or add buckets and there's palmetto's on the backside blocking it all in) it looks like a natural shelter but there isn't any sunlight in there so I want to drop a few plants through and either plant them in the ground or tie the buckets right to the vines letting the plants grow into it for a screen of green.

This place is noisy one thing I learned is in the dead of night everything seems twice as loud raking/digging so I ended up out there cleaning it up in the middle of a storm and it worked perfect. Nobody's going to hear rustling and if someone does happen to be outside they're too busy trying to get out of the rain to hear or notice you clearing. Just wear a hoodie, don't let the rain bother you and don't go when it's super cold leave a heater on for when you get back.