I grew some for the 1st time ever last summer. I had 2 plants and they didn't do great but I got some very decent buds from them (free weed is the best kind) and am looking forward to giving it another go this summer.
For my first batch I definitely started them way too late. I think they were too young and fragile when the super hot summer weather hit; they got fried. I'm growing on my terrace. I'm going to start way earlier this year. Like in mid-March as opposed to June when I started last year.
I also had them in pots that were too small because everyone was stressing me out that if I put them in pots that were too big the soil would stay wet and get moldy but when I pulled the plants after harvesting them, the roots were really jammed in the pots; they needed a lot more room it seemed.
For this season I'm trying a new idiot proof food kit from a local grow shop. The guy said it's super easy and as long as I don't overfeed them and follow the schedule for the different steps, it's very easy to get good results. The first time around I was using compost and all natural shit trying to be all crunchy about it, but I don't think I have the time/energy/knowledge for all of that.
Anyone got any tips for an amateur?
STRICTLY OPINION FOLLOWING
As long as they're drinking enough and have established roots, late starts just mean less time to get big IMO. A temperate to scorching change may shock them a little, but if you're outdoor it's really just time you lose.
If you're really worried about pot size and soil moisture, go with cloth pots (smart pots, root pouch, etc.) and use coco coir as your medium. Cloth pots are great regardless because they help prevent root binding. The roots try to grow through pots and get trimmed naturally when they hit air.
Coir is great, especially if you're using bottled nutes. Well, bottled isometric salt nutes (the vast majority). Coir is "soilless" and technically considered hydro. You won't over water it, it drains fast, and you can use pots MUCH smaller than what you'd need for soil. If you run small pot coco, you're going to want to feed multiple times a day during flower, so unless you want to set up a simple timer/drip system, it's probably more work than you're looking for. They're also great because if you need to pot up because they're outgrowing smaller pots, you can just put your smaller cloth pot in a larger one with soil all around it and the roots will just grow through into the larger pot.
Regardless of your medium, keep your pots off the ground so they can drain well. A couple pieces of small pvc or something underneath work great. Using bottled nutes they're almost certainly isometric salt, and you need to worry about salt build up. When you feed/water, make sure that you feed until you get steady run off. 20% is the rule of thumb (you pour in 5 gallons, you want 1 gallon to pour out the bottom). Salts can build up and burn the fuck out of your girls if you aren't pouring to run off. Hopefully the schedule they give is a feed/water/water or feed/water/feed/water, and ideally your shop is good and wants to help, but grow stores and nutrient manufacturers want to make money, so they may have you using more nutes than needed. You don't need nutrients every time you water. Every other or every third should work.
I'm tired and rambling, but I just haven't gotten to talk shop in ages 😂