UK outdoor strain discussion?

[DocLeaf]

Autoflowering strains are too easy,, just chuck em in some soil and forget about em for 60 days .. lol

Holland's Hope is also a reliable plant under glass

But the best "outdoor variety" for us is the one that readily takes too our outdoor soil,,,

LLP's Psychosis Sister (male) grew well ,,,,, jah bless :friends:

 

[Ch@ppers]

Hello all!

cork144, the project which you speak of (to gather, select and develop suitable genetics) has been in the works for bloody ages now.

Firstly, if you wanna have a look here: http://icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=134103 you'll find the 2009 UK Outdoor thread, started back on Overgrow in 2002 it's been a valuable resource for both experienced and inexperienced UK outdoor growers.

Some of us on there have been battling the elements for literally years...I myself have been going since 1995/1996.

May I just start by adressing a few things you said, firstly about "mold resistance" (post#18)

There is no such thing as mold resistance. Seriously, people go on about it all the time like it's some genetic thing that you can isolate by selective breeding. The fact of the matter is, if you have thick buds which are not easily ventilated and the humidity levels get too high, your buds will rot.

"Mold Resistance" is a myth, plain and simple. What you want are buds that are not too tight and allow airflow. Leave the dense buds indoors under HPS and a nice big fan where they belong...outdoors you need those buds to breathe.

That means for the very best outdoor results, use sativas! I shit you not! People tend to be scared of sativas because some of them have ridiculous flowering times (100 days or more) but those are extreme sativas. There are plenty of early/quick flowering sativas out there.

That's not to say you can't grow those crazy long flowering ones...a few years ago I harvested a bunch of sativas well into November! They'd put up with all kinds of awful weather but because they had such wispy buds, they were fine!

Anyway, Lebanese sativa is very early (finished by mid-late September) but is a bit mild in the smoke dept. I've had some great results using Leb x Kush which finishes late September/early October and has great potency.

Hollands Hoop/Hope is no longer a viable choice. I was a fan back in the mid-late 90's but they've gotten later and later and now finish too late to consider. Blame bad breeding or global warming, it's irrelevant.

If you can get hold of a pure Durban Poison, it's a winner! F1 crosses with Skunk#1 or whatever are also reliable but the pure Durban has a high and aroma that is sought after worldwide.

Guerilla Gold...I've had some good results and I've had some crazy shit happen too. They're generally early but you can get short ones, tall ones, thin ones and fat ones. There's people out there working on stabilising various traits but I'd think twice before putting your faith fully on it's shoulders.

Enough about particular strains, we can compile a comprehensive list later, let me continue with how outdoors in the UK is extremely possible if you just use your head...

You seem to almost overlook autos, big BIG mistake!

I planted my first outdoor autoflowering plants back in March, I planted more in roughly 3-week intervals and have been harvesting and smoking extremely high quality marijuana all through the summer.

I've been smoking AK47, Matanuskathunderfuck, Blueberry, Diesel and Haze (amongst others)...all grown outdoors in the UK. Can you do that with non-auto versions? Not a chance! To overlook autos in favour of risking your entire seasons work to the elements is just crazy.

Growing in pots instead of directly in the ground can also help your chances of a successful harvest. Pot-grown plants tend to flower earlier than their ground planted sisters and you have the added benefit of being able to move pot grown plants under cover if necessary. I've even seen guerilla growers use large buckets instead of ground planting.

Greenhouses are not the answer to our prayers. Year in, year out I find myself explaining to greenhouse growers why their plants went moldy. Airflow is the key! If moist air idles around your buds then they will mold. Plants grown in greenhouses and conservatories need a breeze just like outdoor plants do so a fan is an essential bit of kit.

So there you have it, "my two cents" as our brothers across the pond would say. I'm sorry if all that info feels a bit rushed but I'm a bit pushed for time right now.

To recap, here's my tips in condensed form:

Grow in containers whenever possible.
If growing in a greenhouse or conservatory...VENTILATE!
Start autos early in the season and plant fresh ones every few weeks.
Get your hands on early, sativa dominant varieties.
Don't believe everything that a seedbank tells you, their advertised harvest dates can be wildly inaccurate.
Get yourself over to the UK Outdoor 2009 thread, everything you could want all in one place!

And finally, some bud porn (outdoor UK obviously)

But of course, if the weather is kind then you can get away with almost anything!

Ch@ppers

 

[Gene-weaver]

Can someone give me an amen! Nicely put ch@p!

 

[Hurley]

i really love outdoor

 

[cork144]

thanks for the reply ch@, alot of great info there.

durban has been on my mind also, aswell as Guerilla Gold, but ive never seen Guerilla Gold about anywhere,

as for acclimatizing a strain for mold resistance, i knew mold is pretty much due to bud dencity, so not using the seeds from the females that mold, would probably be moving away from the indica dominance.

I have some new sativa beans in my possesion, sams original haze X skunk#1 and OJD's titanium, im thinking about crossing maybe the OHxSK#1 with a indica dom plant and select on from there.

edit; been looking about and ive decided on some early misty and durban poison seeds, ill try and pick some more strains up before next season

 

[Buffoonman]

I'm finding this year not to bad for mould so far. Has anybody tried that spray that supposedly kills mould.
Went out on a mission last night nipping off buds at midnight in the pitch black. Surprising what you will do for a spliff. It was still stronger than the local dealers weed even after being dinged in the microwave.

 

[ChaosCatalunya]

Top post Ch@ppers, so true. My pot grown Quick Mist crosses finished really early, worth checking out the Mighty Mite crosses too.

In general older plants tend to "semi auto" flower more than younger ones ....from what I have seen, from now on I will start all outdoor plants on the 15h light they will get when I plant them out, I think they were the earliest of all.


Cork, my THunk has only just gone into flower, in Spain, I will be lucky to get a smoke for Christmas....what you really, really want is Easy Sativa.

 

[Blimey]

Has anyone tried Sensi's Mexican Sativa outdoors in the UK? I'm 40 days into flowering some indoors at the moment, and I'm quite impressed with her so far, especially for 20 quid a pack. If she smokes well, I might try a couple outdoors next year....if I can find the right spot...

 

[daddy fingaz]

Has anyone tried Sensi's Mexican Sativa outdoors in the UK? I'm 40 days into flowering some indoors at the moment, and I'm quite impressed with her so far, especially for 20 quid a pack. If she smokes well, I might try a couple outdoors next year....if I can find the right spot...

not grown her myself but know of growers who have and always pop a few out, not the most potent but none the less its a sativa dom that finishes outside in the uk and produces well, get on it!!

 

[Blimey]

Thanks for the heads up, Daddy, I'll make a few F2's in the meantime.

I've also got some Free Tibet in the towels at the moment - I'm thinking that might also be a possibility for the unpredictable English summer.

 

[mcherbie]

Such a shame, it's barely even rained here either.

Barely rained in the south west? It didn't stop raining in June/July/August lol

 

[bens lab]

Barely rained in the south west? It didn't stop raining in June/July/August lol

Well, recently since they've been in heavy flower. Most of September was dry I think, was quite warm here, in cornwall.

 

[spiritual g]

make sure you are away from towns and light pollution ,choose a south facing shaded spot and you are good to grow any of the early strains,if you are "down south"you could even try strains like skunk 1 or its pheno cheese as they seem to be successful in certain areas.

peace

 

[marijuanamat]

I'm very suprised knowone has mentioned Biddy Early,she's by far one of the best plants i've grown outdoor UK and theres some very early phenotypes that start flowering mid june if started in march ,i'd class her as a semi-autoflowering plant,there are some later phenotypes that start flowering early aug and are ripe late sept to mid oct,the flavour/aroma is sweet candy hash and the buds are of medium density with large calyxes and a real potent high leaning more to the sativa side of the spectrum.
I've only seen a slight bit of bud rot once and that was in a greenhouse with very high humidity,outdoor i've not seen the slightest bit of rot.

Heres a few pics from last season........

http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17755
http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17764
http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17774
http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17758
http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17757
http://www.icmag.com/ic/album.php?albumid=1775&pictureid=17756

 

[Scrogerman]

'Guerilla'

'Guerilla'

Hey U.K,

Got my eye on "Speed Devil" (Auto) from Sweetseeds, She is a 7 wk'er(total Grow time approx) Looks like it could be a winner outdoor,here's wishing. Unreal production indoor according to sweetseed's spes' 350-450 p/m on an 18-6 light cycle. sounds promising me thinks for outdoor next year. wish i had a secret greenhouse somewhere. I think she would respond well to our early summer light cycle which aint far off that beginning of June. 5 wks flowering-got to have a crack at her. Food for thought!!

'Peace&Respect' - 'Scrogerman (uk)'

 

[Scrogerman]

'By the way!
'Lovely Work "MarijuanaMat!! they look fantastic!!!!!!
Peace-Out

'Scrogerman'

 

[harold]

i forgot about biddy early...nice pix