Starting home cultivation is a dream for many people who are interested in having the ability to provide medicine for themselves. It can be a very rewarding hobby as well. Unfortunately, the Cultivation of marijuana at home has been illegal for most people in the past. Thankfully, due to the grassroots efforts of IM 26 and progressive-thinking politicians, the laws have been opening up to allow medical marijuana patients and caregivers to legally grow medicine in their residential homes in the great state of South Dakota.
LEGAL CONCERNS
The first thing you want to do when starting home cultivation is to check the local laws in your area and make sure you are not putting yourself at legal risk. For South Dakotans, acquiring your Medical Marijuana Card with home cultivation or registering as a medical marijuana caregiver are the only options to legally have a home cultivation. Operating within the law should be something that every cultivator strives to do. The idea behind home cultivation is about improving your life, having legal troubles will not do that! Remember to always operate your cultivation within legal limits. Also just being private about it, in general, tends to be a best practice too.
You can get all the information you need to get a South Dakota medical marijuana card here.
CHOOSING WHERE TO GROW YOUR CANNABIS INDOORS
Deciding where to set up your garden is going to be crucial to your cultivation experience. Choose a location picked out where you can have easy access, yet still hidden for privacy. Common cultivation areas include basements, garages, sheds, workshops, and spare bedrooms. It does not have to be a large space but it’s best to have enough space for your plants along with extra room for storage and working. This will allow you to keep all activities in one spot without spilling into other areas of the property.
Understanding the indoor grow environment is another key factor in choosing your cultivation space. Different spaces will have different environmental challenges. Basements typically have the best environment for indoor cultivation and require less environmental maintenance than a garage or outbuilding. For a better understanding of the indoor environment, I highly recommend you read this article.
Apply For Your Medical Marijuana Card Online Today!
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LEARNING TO CULTIVATE CANNABIS
Learning to cultivate can be difficult. With the large variety of products and growing methods, how can you decide on just one? It’s all about finding the path on your growing journey. Certain methods and systems work better in specific situations. It’s best for you to determine what is going to work best for you and your cultivation space. This can come down to choosing between hydroponics and organic soils. Beginning an organic living soil grow is extremely popular these days and can be easily done indoors. Hydroponics has been the main choice for indoor cultivation over the last several decades. Understanding the different hydroponic systems and how to operate hydroponics will be crucial during this decision-making time learning how to cultivate.
Understanding the difference and benefits between soil and hydroponics will help you determine the best option for you. After choosing your path I recommend heading down to, or calling, your local South Dakota hydroponic store to see what products are available. They should be able to help you get a system designed to your needs and get you set up for success on your first round of cultivating.
BUDGETING A HOME CULTIVATION
When starting your home cultivation, setting an allowable budget to get the proper equipment for your space will be crucial to your garden’s success. A good beginner budget to start home cultivating is around $1200 to $2000. Typically with this budget you can get all the equipment needed to start growing and have the results you are looking for in a 3×3 or 4×4 tent style grow. This will include your tent, light, exhaust fan, intake fan, carbon filter, soil, pots, nutrients, light timer, and watering tools.
It is important to pay attention to the quality of the equipment you purchase. Setting your budget too low and getting only the lowest cost equipment will result in failures and unexpected expenses in the future. Don’t fall for the reduced price tent kits, they are not worth your time.
KNOWING HOW TO GROW
Now you have all the equipment and you just need to understand how it all works. The resources linked in this article are a great basic understanding of the environment and how to operate hydroponic equipment. This is why buying from your local hydroponics store is so much better than purchasing online. They will be able to help you understand assembling the equipment, mixing your specific nutrients, when to water, and many more things. How To Grow in Rapid City is there to do just that. Stop in or call them anytime at 605-348-2358.
For a more detailed understanding of cannabis growing and the plant’s life cycle, I recommend books. Authors such as Greg Green, Ed Rosenthal, and Jorge Cervantes have excellent books that will teach you everything you need to know about growing, harvesting, and curing cannabis.