One of the hottest topics in U.S. politics today is the legalization of marijuana. Eleven states have legalized marijuana, and thirty more have either legalized medical marijuana and decriminalized the rest. Only ten states remain where marijuana is still fully illegal.
One of the results of these legalization efforts is that more and more people are starting to grow cannabis themselves. Not all growing operations are made the same, and one of the primary questions new growers have is whether to grow indoors or outdoors. Read on to learn more about indoor vs. outdoor cannabis growing and the pros and cons of each.
Why Grow Your Own Cannabis
The recent legalization of cannabis in some states has opened up opportunities for people to start growing their own cannabis. There are many benefits of growing your own cannabis, not least of which is knowing where it came from. You can guarantee the quality of the marijuana you’re using, as well as whether it’s organic and grown in a safe environment.
Having control over the growing process can also help you produce higher-quality marijuana. Cannabis is a finicky plant, and things like temperature, light quality, and humidity can affect your plants. If you grow it yourself, you can control all those factors to produce the best cannabis possible.
Pros of Growing Indoors
Indoor cultivation is discrete and has been the choice on many low-key growers over the years. Cannabis is relatively easy to grow either indoors or out, but there are a few advantages of growing indoors
One of the best things about growing indoors is an ability to control the growing environment. You can maintain humidity, temperature, hours of light, and all the other factors that can optimize cannabis growth. You can also have as many crops as you like each year and enjoy a shorter growing time.
Cons of Growing Indoors
Growing indoors isn’t all sunshine and daisies; in fact, one of the biggest problems is the lack of natural sunlight. For indoor cultivation, you’ll need to add lighting and ventilation solutions to make sure your plants stay healthy. It means a lot more initial investment than outdoor growing operations.
Indoor growing operations also mean greater upkeep than outdoor. You can’t let organic materials fester on the floor of your bedroom; it’s not good for your property values or your plants. Plus, depending on the size of your growing operation, you could be looking at a significant hike in your electricity bill powering all those lamps.
Pros of Growing Outdoors
Cannabis can be grown outdoors with simply sunlight and water. In legalized states, outdoor cannabis cultivation are required to be locked and access restricted. Outdoor cultivation has its own unique set of opportunities and challenges
Nothing can replace the power of the sun, and if you live in the right area of the world, you can more or less put the plants in the ground and let them do their thing. The great outdoors also provides more space for plants to expand, generating a larger crop. And some people feel that sunlight produces more flavorful flower.
Cons of Growing Outdoors
Just like tomatoes, there are plenty of pest who think your cannabis crop is delicious! Cannabis requires good soils and human assistance to fight off blight and pests, just like any other crop in an outdoor environment. Planting in a container with the right soils will help mitigate some of those issues, but your crop is still exposed to the elements.
Cannabis requires a lot of water to grow properly, and growing outdoors means you must rely on the weather to maintain your crop. A hard frost or a drought could cause you problems, as could a pest infestation or a downpour. If you wind up in a drought situation, you had better hope your crop is near a water source or you’ll find yourself lugging a lot of watering cans.
Getting Started with Each
Getting started growing cannabis indoors is no small feat. At the least, it means setting up heat lamps, arranging for some sort of ventilation, and getting a lot of containers. Ideally, you should set up a greenhouse to provide greater security and stability in the growing environment.
Setting up outdoors is a much simpler process, though, as we’ve discussed, it can come with its own challenges. You’ll need to prepare the soil and arrange for a water source if you don’t have one readily available. If you have any experience gardening or farming, this process will feel familiar to you.
Cost of Growing Cannabis
If you’re growing cannabis indoors, one of the biggest expenses you’ll face is artificial light and ventilation. You’ll need to have an adequate supply of both, and the LED lights that produce the most flavorful buds don’t come cheap. If you’re trying to convert an existing room in your house, it can also get structurally complicated to rerun ventilation.
Outdoor growing is a less expensive venture, but it does require more land, which may be a bigger initial investment. Assuming you have the space to grow, you’ll just need seeds and some basic gardening tools. You also spend some money on securing the crop and cultivation supplies if you want to optimize your yields.
Learn More About Indoor vs. Outdoor Cannabis
Whether you decide to set up an indoor vs. outdoor cannabis operation depends on your specific situation. If you have a large back yard or field and a ready water supply, an outdoor operation may be the best option for you. But if you’re living in a city or want more control over your growing, indoors could be worth the investment.
If you’d like to get more resources for your cannabis growing operation, check out our website at American Cannabis Company. We have information about licensing and planning operations in every state, as well as design and buildout services Learn more about how we can help you with cannabis cultivation and operational management.