Collectivise Guerrilla Growing knowledge

[llama farmer]

I am interested in conducting a small Guerrilla grow this season and rather than start simply another thread I thought we could use this as a medium for compiling helpful knowledge for beginners as the forum seems to just be full of random questions. Input from everyone is welcome and as we go I will edit the original post and use categories for interesting help, questions, facts, tips, etc.

 

Planning

 

* The first tools I have found useful is a combination of the online street directory from whereis and google earth - These two combined give you a fair idea of where both dirt roads are and what are potential walking tracks, bush tracks, fire breaks, etc.

 

* Once you have chosen an area to your liking research it! - Google first, wikipedia if possible, many areas come up with local private or shire run tourist information and some things you may have to go through conservation, wildlife, and other .gov websites to find information. Get a feel for what goes on in the area, traffic, seasonal events, popularity, etc.

 

* Once you have researched an area to your liking think about it! - What make of car do you drive? What is the closest public attraction? What is the closest inconspicuous parking?

 

* What specific outdoor activities are conducted in the area? Is it popular for fishing? Kayaking? Is it indigenous land for camping? Is it so isolated as to attract the interest of scientific research?

 

Questions

 

* What types of locations might look excellent to beginners but may in fact hold unforeseen dangers?

* What is the traffic, care taking and other wise, in national parks? Can anyone walk all areas of a national park?

 

* What driving distances should one work with?

[~sawyer~]

Nice thread, the Guerrilla growing sub-forum is in need of something sticky.

 

It's important to mention that there are many, many ways of growing. No two methods will be the same. The purpose of this thread should be to give you some basic guidance and get you thinking of what might work best for you. Don't be overwhelmed by all the information put forward, growing can be a simple, straightforward and rewarding experience

 

After identifying a suitable site using online tools like Google Earth or Whereis your next step will be to check it out in person. There are lots of things to take into consideration when selecting a plot including:

 

Aspect - For us Southern hemisphere growers, a north facing aspect is ideal for maximum sun exposure. Tall trees can block sunlight and inhibit the growth of your plants.

 

Soil - Australian soils are generally deficient in certain nutrients essential to plant growth. These soils may need some sort of improvement through the use of fertilisers or conditioning agents. Check the soil at you location. Does it look healthy? Does it have good water retention properties?

 

Water - The biggie, this one can make or break you. Plants need water to carry out basic metabolic functions. Without water you're in trouble, and your plants won't thank you. Are there any natural watercourses near where you are intending to grow? Can you pump water from there?

 

Don't forget that in some states, an access pass is sometimes needed to enter national parks. Look out for snakes too, especially as you will be growing in the warmer months when they are more active.

 

Questions:

 

Will you be growing in the ground or perhaps in pots?

Will you have to cart in your own water?

[llama farmer]

Aspect - For us Southern hemisphere growers, a north facing aspect is ideal for maximum sun exposure. Tall trees can block sunlight and inhibit the growth of your plants.

 

Soil - Australian soils are generally deficient in certain nutrients essential to plant growth. These soils may need some sort of improvement through the use of fertilisers or conditioning agents. Check the soil at you location. Does it look healthy? Does it have good water retention properties?

 

Water - The biggie, this one can make or break you. Plants need water to carry out basic metabolic functions. Without water you're in trouble, and your plants won't thank you. Are there any natural watercourses near where you are intending to grow? Can you pump water from there?

 

Aspect - Line of sight! What can you see from your plot AND where can you see your plot from? Are there elevations above you? At what distance and to the human eye do your plants become indistinguishable to the surrounding plants? Try to imagine a birds eye view - Will your plot stand out from directly above?

 

Water - If you choose a pump and pipe delivery method hide your pipe as best as possible but not at the cost of obviously disturbing the area, i.e. Several logs and rocks etc standing out because they form a sort of line or pattern. Retract your pipe at least 30m or more from the waters edge as the most likely event is that it will be seen at that end. Does your water source exist in the peak of summer? It may be a flowing river off shoot now but in the middle of Janurary at 42 degrees will you find yourself suddenly 800m away from the trickling end of it? Is the area dense enough to camouflage and store a water tank for a drip system?

 

Questions:

 

Will you be growing in the ground or perhaps in pots?

Will you have to cart in your own water?

 

A follow on question and one I would actually like someone to discuss or answer - What is the most inconspicuous way to grow? This will obviously differ from terrain to terrain but for example

 

In ground, several rows two dozen or more a patch?

In ground, single row, half a dozen?

In ground, individually, pairs, or half dozens closely scattered within meters of each other and amongst other bushes?

 

Soil

For row methods - Will you dig up a foot of soil and mix in a pre-made soil recipe to account for the present poor soil quality?

For individual methods - At what point will you transfer plants to the grow area? Will you just dig a large hole for each and fill with a soil recipe?

 

Gambling

 

Do you put all your eggs in one basket?

Hypothetical - If you want to grow two dozen do you divide it by two or three? How far are these grow areas apart? Walking distance? Short driving distance? Another well planned plot 150km in another direction?

 

Security

 

What methods can be used to see if there has been activity in your area? thin weak strings at shin height? Inspection of surrounding area? Do a Google for some intro basics to track reading - What kind of evidence are you leaving behind?

Edited June 23, 2009 by llama farmer

[~sawyer~]

Pest Control of both vertebrate and invertebrate animals. Depending on your location, known pests may include kangaroos, wallabies, goats, ants and termites. A young, crisp cannabis plant can make a tasty meal.

*Ants and termites can be controlled with readily available pesticides.

 

I've never had a problem with large vertebrate herbivores, perhaps somebody else can chime in with some details on chicken wire fences, barriers etc...

[Horndog]

Hey,

 

I have grown outdoor for about 6 years. Guerilla style. Managed to work with a mate who i trusted and we ended up setting up two patches to grow in. I had a mate who grew shiteloads of plants on his property and he told me to never grown in lines because they stick out like dogsballs on infrared detectors on helicopters, weed apparently gives off a heat signal, minimal about the size of a small animal at budding time, hence a line of animals looks suspicious.

 

We dug into the soil in one location and was very dry, found a north facing aspected slope amongst pine trees, within about 20min walk from a track that led back to a street that gave us access. From here we carted in 36 x 2m high 3x3inch timber posts with one sharp end (cut by circular saw) and a stack of chicken wire.

 

Thumping these bad boys into the ground 1m apart (by 4 obviously) and then sizing up a round of chicken wire to encompass the cage, and painted them brown with outdoor paint (on both sides), to not be obvious with that metal glint in the sunshine. Doing this over and over, once the paint dried tacked them into the timber posts leaving on side open for entry. Then did the top half the same for full coverage up and also a small cover over the top, so basically we have a fully enclosed cage (9 of them to be precise). With soil dug up we put medium sized pots (not the giant ones) with the bottom cut out and filled the soil, ground with potting mix and water crystals and ferts.

 

- the open sides on the cage were just tied off with the metal edges to the other side, so they could be undone at any time.

 

This technique was the most efficient as those damn possums would eat anything and find a way into anything. I ended up putting rocks all around the base because they would push under and get into the cages and destroy the plants obviously. Now when i check on them all i see is bent in tops where they have been sitting on top of the cages wondering how to get in. Believe me, if there is a hole they will get in there and eat the weed. lost quite a few this way.

 

Now the only problem I have is controlling the growth as 7ft by 1mx1m means the plants have to be topped and tied down for the crowns not to be eaten when they grow close to the edges, those possums love weed.

 

Note whilst hammering the timber posts in and banging the chicken wire into the timber makes noise, we were in a remote section and undertook this during windy days so noise wouldn't be obvious from the trees wailing about.

 

What we ended up with was camo'd cages 7fy by 1mx1m and had some excellent grows in them, all days sunlight hidden amongst pine trees and natural bush, i swear you could barely see them.

 

The hardest and most difficult part was carting the material in at night and not being seen, this was hell guerilla with stealth.

 

The second grow spot was alot easier and required less of our stealth abilities.

 

anyway, thats how i did it, i planned and executed my gorilla patch and its been safe ever since.

 

Also the route in always changed, never took the same track twice so there was no track to follow. And the cages are spread out in the most random order over a large area. just me and my mate who know where they are...

 

cheers.

happy growing.

[raven6]

great post guys...looking to do some more outdoor growing this summer, very interesting read....I love the stealthy aspect of this side of growing MJ.....and it always seems to taste better than hydro too!

[CannabisMan]

the nbest thing i ever used to warn away preditors of my lov;ey babys was an old mans tale it seemed to work.

 

You need the scent of man around your grow area to warn of other animals i used to regularly urinate around the plants and grow site. seems to work well

[potrocket]

thanks great tips ! Edited July 29, 2009 by hazedaze

[chucko]

dog hair, human hair and mothballs also helps keep the critters away. Theres shitloads of roo, wallabies and possums around my way, ive never bothered putting chicken wire or anything over the tops of my cages and i havent lost a plant yet

[bush buggered]

Hi all.. Been growing in the bush for 35 yrs. Where i grow now, there are wallabies every where. If i put in ten patches of 3/4 plants in each, the wallabies might have a nibble on a couple. But nothing that matters. I don't use fences. When i was using fences in years gone by, i burnt the chicken wire with petrol then wet it. instant rust brown. It still lasts for a couple of years despite the rust. Its very hard to find a spot where the soil,light,water and stealth are all there for you. Sometimes you gotta forgo one of em. If you find the perfect spot on a map, then google earth it, then you think thats the spot for me. When you get to it, some novice has stuck two scrawny plants there before you... Done that a couple of times. When you do finaly find a spot, then you gotta carry in, literaly tons of stuff..Then when thats all done, if you got no water where you are [ and quite often you havent]. Then it really starts.. Then after crippling work for 8 months, some arsewipe pinches it. Easy as, eh!!. Next thing you know your pushing 60yo.. and still doing it..Cheers all.. Good thread...b.b.