After following the first steps of her outdoor grow, it’s about time we introduce expert grower Sista Mary to you. She’s been around long enough to grow weed at Black Belt level, but she is pleasantly modest about her achievements. In her current Growing Guide, she is happy to share her knowledge with newcomers figuring out how to start growing cannabis. Veteran growers may want to pay attention too, however, because chances are you’ll learn a nifty trick or two from the blogs of Sista Mary…
Table of Contents
Natural Plant Magic
Let’s be perfectly clear: we’re not dealing with some amateur wisecrack growing her second batch of average-grade weed here. Sista Mary is no commercial grower, sure, but she has more than enough experience to make any professional blush. Over the past decades, she has refined her techniques to perfection, although her affection for natural, organic growth casts ‘perfection’ in a different light. To Sista Mary, true perfection is not to be found in neat rows of expensive grower lamps. For her, the unmatched beauty of natural plant power is where the real magic happens when it comes to growing cannabis.
A World Of Cannabis Nuance
Sista Mary describes herself as a 100% natural woman. She is all about outdoor growing, because that’s where nature can run its own course to give her cannabis crops the plant power she’s after. Her love for the weed sprouted from smoking it, which she’s been doing all of her adult life. By the time she was in her late twenties, though, she noticed how new and more potent strains got her too stoned for her own liking. When discussing her options with her vendor, she was told to just put less weed in her joints. She was certain there was more to it than just dosing, however, so she set out to explore her options. Soon, she got into homegrowing, discovering along the way that there is a world of nuance out there for anyone willing to give growing weed a try.
How Not To Grow Weed
Before growing her own plants, Sista Mary had been cutting crops for others to earn a little money on the side. It showed her exactly what she didn’t want to do with her own plants. “You wouldn’t believe what some of these people were adding to their buds to make them look or feel more potent,” she asserts. For indoor growers, pests like spider mites are almost impossible to avoid without using pesticides. Outdoors, you can use natural remedies, but not so indoors. But the problems with industrial-scale growing didn’t stop there. In the race to get more THC into new strains, certain growers tried to fake it. They made entire harvests appear to glitter with THC crystals. “It wasn’t just chemical fertilizers or growth boosters either. At any rate, I soon decided I would use techniques that stay as close to nature as possible.“
No Stopping Sista Mary
Once she got to her first cannabis harvest, there was no stopping Sista Mary. “I wanted to try everything I read about or saw other growers do. I read just about every book I could find on the subject and traveled to remote spots in Spain and Jamaica. There, I saw what climate conditions and the lay of the land can do for natural cannabis growing. I still use these examples for inspiration, although I obviously have to deal with Dutch conditions here.” At any rate, watching the different approaches to outdoor cannabis cultivation across the world only strengthened her belief that natural is the way to go.
Working With Nature
“If you grow your weed outside, you’re going to have to work with nature. You can’t force nature to do what you want. When a storm is coming, you’ll have to protect your plants. If you get a hot summer, you’ll need to water them more often. Or you could cover the top soil with some straw to trap the moisture.” That’s your first organic growing tip right there. Follow Sista Mary’s Growing Guide and you’re bound to get many more.
Advice For Future Growers
When asked for her best advice for future growers, Sista Mary is resolute. “Patience. Having patience is the biggest virtue for any grower. Don’t rush it, and whatever you do, don’t do it for quick profits. It’ll only end in tears. Beyond that, the trick is to just give it a go and see how far you get. Choose fast and easy Autoflower seeds to begin with. Don’t be afraid to try – just get growing.”
Her second piece of advice is a more personal tip. “Whatever you do, do it with passion. Try to work from your love for plants and gardening, even if you don’t know anything about cannabis. It’s not difficult, but always remember that you’ll need good genetics. Invest some money in good seeds and let nature do the rest. Every single seed is an individual. It’s living nature, so you’re not getting any guarantees. Don’t fool yourself by hoping for huge harvests, top yields, or extreme THC percentages.” And with these encouraging words of grower wisdom, Sista Mary returns to her little girls. To stress their individuality, she has called her latest plants Theresa, Hilda and Caroline. The THC sisters, that is.
Curious to find out how Sista Mary’s Skyrocket Seeds are coming along? Follow her Growing Guide on the Amsterdam Genetics blog, and while you’re at it, why not get yourself some world-class cannabis seeds to give homegrowing a go?