by Nebula Haze
You can grow cannabis indoors or outdoors. Some people will use a mixture of the two and grow their plants indoors during the vegetative stage when they need constant light, then transport them outdoors when they are ready to start flowering and only need 12 hours of light a day. Another popular variation is to use a greenhouse, which is a structure for plants that lets sunlight in but offers protection against bugs, rain, and cold. In some cases, grow lights can be used in a greenhouse to supplement the light or for a longer growing season.
Growing Cannabis Outdoors
Major Considerations:
- Grow area must avoid detection for several months by potential thieves
- Grower must have easy access to grow area and should be able to visit at least once a week
- Convenient source of water nearby
- Area should be well-lit by the sun and optimally have strong, direct sunlight from at least 10am-4pm (more is better)
- The climate should have a warm growing season, the longer the better
- Cannabis must be planted in the spring and produce one crop a year that is harvested in late autumn
- unless growing with autoflowering strains
- Longer grow time than indoors because indoor cannabis growers don’t have to wait for autumn
- Potential interference from bugs, animals, flooding, thieves, and other uncontrollable factors
Benefits:
- Can be the easiest grow method since marijuana plants need less tending in a good natural environment
- Cheapest to start (can be as simple as putting cannabis seeds in good soil)
- No electricity needed though you may need to haul water if it doesn’t rain
- Cheapest maintenance costs since there is free light and ventilation
- Often bigger plants with bigger yields than indoors
Pros
- Cheap (no electricity or special equipment to buy)
- Low maintenance (if you have a good environment)
- Huge yields in a sunny spot with good care
Cons
- Worry about thieves
- Smells can be overpowering
- May need to haul water
- Weather can be bad
- Bugs, deer, or other pests
- Contaminants from nature (dust, pollen, bug poop, etc.)
Growing Cannabis Indoors
Major Considerations:
- Must have enough room to grow indoors and be able to avoid detection
- Start-up costs can be high depending on the setup you choose
- Maintenance cost (electricity and nutrients) can get expensive depending on the overall grow system and number of plants
- Must have good ventilation and keep grow area clean with fresh air
- More upkeep than growing cannabis outdoors because you’re in charge of providing everything (mother nature doesn’t help)
Benefits
- Shorter grow time (with autoflowering plants you can harvest in under 3 months, while photoperiod plants typically need about 4 or 5 months)
- Easier to be discreet and stealthy about growing (no one is visiting your grow site indoors)
- Ability to control all aspects of the environment to produce more consistent quality bud
- Not dependent on your climate or place in the world
- Can harvest many crops a year, including in the winter
- Less likely to suffer problems from bugs, pests, etc
- Able to grow plants around your schedule, instead of relying on the seasons
- Many growers believe that indoor buds are the highest quality buds. In medical states, indoor buds are sold at much higher prices than outdoor buds.
Pros
- Faster harvest
- Better quality weed
- Less likely to get bugs
- Grow any strains (not dependent on climate)
- Consistent harvests
- Up to 4 harvests per year
Cons
- Setup can get expensive (though there are cheaper options: here’s how to grow cannabis for $130 plus seeds)
- Must pay for electricity to power grow lights
- Must water plants (no rain) and make sure water doesn’t get all over your floor
- Need to create a light-proof grow space so plants can have dark periods (unless growing with auto-flowering strains with can grow under any light schedule)
- More time consuming than outdoors because growers typically check on plants daily
Grow lights take electricity. Luckily new-school LED grow lights like the Spider Farmer SF-2000 don’t take a lot of electricity
If you want to kick the yields up a notch and don’t mind spending a bit more and dealing with some extra heat, go for the HLG 350R!
There’s a lot to consider. If you have a suitable outdoor grow space for cannabis plants and are free for the summer, you should give outdoor growing a go even just for fun. But for anyone who can’t grow outdoors or would like to grow the best quality weed, you probably want to grow your plants indoors.
Learn how to grow weed in 10 easy steps
Jump to…
More On Growing Indoors vs Outdoors
The Basics of Growing Marijuana
Which Are The Best Strains For Beginners?
7 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me When I First Started Growing Weed
How Long Does It Take to Grow Weed?
