Southern Colorado Outdoor

[orion6324]

Ok so I'm new to Colorado and as of this summer, I'm gonna be new to the outdoor thing. I have plenty of grows under my belt but ALL have been indoor stealth hydro ( I'm from back East).So I know nothing unless it's a perfect 72* and 40% humidity with added Co2, lol. My beans just arrived today and I'm gonna get em in the paper towel tonight and I have a few question for you CO outdoor peeps. I'm just south of Pueblo so keep that in mind as you answer and PLEASE if I don't think of something that you think I should know, chim in with it. So here goes.

1) When is it ok to put small seedling outside? Of course not when it's below 32 but will anything in the 40's-50's hurt them? Are the freezing temps gone for the summer?

2) What kind of nutrients do you guys find work best in this area?

3) If I put em out now, how big should my pots be so they can finish, 50 gallon? or more?

4) How often do you guys have to water here? If I'm growing 20 plants roughly how much water will I be using until they finish? On a well and have a cistern as well, so I think I'll be ok on water. Yes? No?

5) How about deer,Elk and other wildlife. Do they like the girls? What's the best way to keep em away other than a fence of some sort?

6) Puts the girls on a North facing slope? I've heard that anyway. As much sun as possible of course.

7) I've noticed some very hi winds around here. Should I try to keep em in an area to try and minimize any wind they might receive? Or will the winds only make em that much stronger and robust?

8) What kind of pots do you suggest? Or would digging some holes and filling it with a nice mix be better?

9) What kind of mix/dirt would you suggest?

10) That's all I have for some starter questions right now. If I missed anything, please fill me in. As I said, this will be my first outdoor grow. I'll be documenting on here from seed to harvest, wish me luck and thanks ahead of time.
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[Bradley_Danks]

You might consider digging some holes, filling with foxfarm, and watering in some organic all purpose fertilizer.

South facing slope gets the most sun here in Oregon...

I'm not from Colorado.

U might need a trellis with the high wind.

 

[Ingski]

Hey I'm from Colorado and have grown outside a few times before. I consider myself a "new" grower from a technical perspective but I definitely have some experience with our weather and growing weed in it.

1. I would usually move my plants outside a week or two after they sprouted. I never had any freezing issues in may or beyond, but it does depend on your elevation. They certainly don't like the cold, but the strains I had could handle 50.

2. At the time I used mainly fish emulsions and a few other hydro fertilizers. Look at the 'moonshine mix' and compare with soil mixtures on this site. Currently I am using that, and even though I am not far into my grow, a lot of research says I'm not doing too badly.

3. Not sure

4. When I was growing outside I would give my plants a good watering every couple of days. They don't mind getting a bit dry before the next watering if their roots run deep.

5. Yes they are a problem. Be afraid, be very afraid. I've lost many good tops to deer. Do your best to fence them off. Some critters will eat them anyway, circle of life. Do your best. I've heard some kinds of urine are useful to deter some hungry mammals.

6. We are in the northern hemisphere therefore we get the most sun on a southern facing slope. Kind of counter intuitive but think the sun is always around the equator, so it is in the southern direction.

7. Never had any wind issues, but my plants were always surrounded by scrub oak

8. I gradually moved to larger pots until a 5 gal, then I planted mine in the ground. I was just winging it though so don't listen to me here.

9. That moonshine mix looks good, but again, I just started learning about all this stuff.

10. Good luck! Let us know how things are going!

 

[Ingski]

might not be a bad idea to keep them in pots so if it gets really cold you can bring them to shelter/inside.

 

[jaytoker]

1. Check your last frost date or ask a local greenhouse/retail store when it's ok to plat chilli pepper seedlings outdoors.

2. Whatever you can afford. Personally I'm trying a new mix this year so I can't offer any specific advise. Generally though good organics mixed with local soil and coco coir.

3. Again it's your choice! Plenty of people grow decent plants in 5 gallon buckets although 30-50 gallon will provide much better results.

4. Depends on your specific situation. Soil conditions will very from place to place so, how often I water wont be the same as how often you have to. For me watering once or twice a week in drought conditions is enough.

5. Get some predatory animal piss at walmart to spray around the property.

6. Southern exposure not north

7. N/A

8. If you have the space planting in the ground is always the best option. However, air pruning pots are the second best option.

9. I suggess you do a ton of reading. I mean for fuck sake these are complete fuckin newb ass troll questions why am I even answering this shit.

 

[Jhhnn]

That's my home town, Pueblo.

The native soil can vary from hard layered clay to loess to decayed limestone to glacial deposits, depending. It's generally pretty lean & alkaline, so you want to till in peat moss & compost, either in holes or rows. Or use garden soil/ potting mix in pots, bigger generally being better. See how well you can dig in the area where you want to plant before making any decisions.It's quite arid, so you'll need to water often. Well water around there tends to be hard & alkaline, making calcium deficiency unlikely.

You'll be safe to start hardening off the seedlings in the daytime, put them out in a couple of weeks, for sure.

Growing outdoors isn't strictly legal in CO, nor is being over on plant counts, so know what you're getting into.