# Daylight hours in my area



## TexasMonster (Mar 17, 2010)

Ok, I found the sticky thread that has a link to a site that will show you what your daylight hours are going to be like through the season. It looks like I will get no more that 14 hours of daylight in June and July with it starting to fall in mid July. 

hxxp://ptaff.ca/soleil/?lang=en_CA

I think I read here that grass needs at least 15 hours of light to be in "veg".

So, am I a now go for outside grass that is not an auto variety or am I not understanding the daylight hour thing?


----------



## clanchattan (Mar 17, 2010)

you'll be fine to grow outside. my plants usually start flowering in august some time and since i usually grow indicas, cause of my shorter season, im usually harvesting a 50/50 clear/amber plant in mid october. i get them in the dirt around may 1 because im at the northern part of zone 6. depending on what part of texas you are in you could put them out at a much earlier date. there is bound to be some outdoor folks here that can give you the lowdown on when you are good to go.


----------



## TexasMonster (Mar 17, 2010)

clanchattan said:
			
		

> you'll be fine to grow outside. my plants usually start flowering in august some time and since i usually grow indicas, cause of my shorter season, im usually harvesting a 50/50 clear/amber plant in mid october. i get them in the dirt around may 1 because im at the northern part of zone 6. depending on what part of texas you are in you could put them out at a much earlier date. there is bound to be some outdoor folks here that can give you the lowdown on when you are good to go.


 
I am in zone 9. I have some started already in little cups. I will probably plant them out on Good Friday (April 2nd) I would love to hear from outdoor growers in my zone.


----------



## Diversified (Mar 17, 2010)

If by your nic you are in Texas, I am about 150 miles north of you. Mine are going in the ground on 4/20. Mine have been sprouted in cups for about a week now.


----------



## TexasMonster (Mar 17, 2010)

Diversified said:
			
		

> If by your nic you are in Texas, I am about 150 miles north of you. Mine are going in the ground on 4/20. Mine have been sprouted in cups for about a week now.


 
So, April 2nd is a good time for me then. 

      ... *4*th month
       ....*2*nd day
  201*0*


----------



## Diversified (Mar 17, 2010)

What I've done is check the average temps and hours of daylight for the next couple of weeks. The temps look safe by 4/20 and there will be roughly 14 hours of daylight. I mixed soils from my outdoor planting area with compost, etc... and and started my seeds in that. Then I set my timer on my lights for the number of hours of daylight for 4/20. That way when I put them outside they will be used to that soil and hours of sunlight. I would think 4/2 should be safe for you but I would check to make sure your average night time temps are at least 45 degrees.


----------



## Hick (Mar 18, 2010)

> *I set my timer on my lights for the number of hours of daylight for 4/20.* That way when I put them outside they will be used to that soil and hours of sunlight.


important if you're putting them out this early on, to impede the onset of early flowering.
Harden them off to sunlight before permanently putting them out, and make "sure" it's after your areas 'final frost' date


----------



## dman1234 (Mar 18, 2010)

Texas only get 14 hours of daylight in july?????

i did not know this.


----------



## TexasMonster (Mar 18, 2010)

Thats what the sunrise/sunset chart says. The best one (I found it here in a sticky) for me seems to be 

hxxp://www.sunrisesunset.com/calendar.asp

That one gives you a monthly calendar. I printed out the rest of the year. In each spot of the calendar it gives you the eggzact sunrise time for that day and the eggzact sunset time for that day.


----------



## Hick (Mar 18, 2010)

TexasMonster said:
			
		

> Thats what the sunrise/sunset chart says. The best one (I found it here in a sticky) for me seems to be
> 
> hxxp://www.sunrisesunset.com/calendar.asp
> 
> That one gives you a monthly calendar. I printed out the rest of the year. In each spot of the calendar it gives you the eggzact sunrise time for that day and the eggzact sunset time for that day.




it also gives "twilight" times, which is where your "ours of light" should be determined. ...IMO


----------



## TexasMonster (Mar 18, 2010)

Hick said:
			
		

> it also gives "twilight" times, which is where your "ours of light" should be determined. ...IMO


 
I guess I need to learn what that is all about.


----------



## leafminer (Mar 18, 2010)

TM, I am on the other side. Similar climate and similar daylight times.
I find that indicas are useless in summer. Outdoors they don't get sufficient light hours to veg properly. By midsummer the temps are so high they die off. 
What you want is to be growing some good sativas that are perfectly adapted to the zone. I have given up battling the summer and so now I grow indicas over the autumn-spring period using the grow room to veg them and the greenhouse to flower them, and raise sativas in spring to grow and mature outdoors in summer and crop them in autumn.


----------



## Hick (Mar 18, 2010)

> 21
> 
> Twi A: 4:20am
> Twi N: 4:58am
> ...


theres the quote for El paso TX..June 21...
"twilight" is from dawn till dusk, rather than 'only' the hours the sun is up beyond the horizon.
"A" (astronomical twilight) is from 4:20 am (how convenient)
to 9:54 pm.. or "almost" 18 hours of daylight. Absolutely, positively sufficient hours to veg' an indica strain.


----------



## TexasMonster (Mar 18, 2010)

I've got some in cups now that are a couple weeks old. I dont know their breed though. I figure when they get the alternating nodes I will photograph them and I will get yall to help me choose the right one. I would like to raise one Indica and one Sativa.


----------



## leafminer (Mar 18, 2010)

Hick said:
			
		

> theres the quote for El paso TX..June 21...
> "twilight" is from dawn till dusk, rather than 'only' the hours the sun is up beyond the horizon.
> "A" (astronomical twilight) is from 4:20 am (how convenient)
> to 9:54 pm.. or "almost" 18 hours of daylight. Absolutely, positively sufficient hours to veg' an indica strain.



Unfortunately that is not the problem. Indicas will not tolerate 46C in the shade. They die. They're not suitable for this zone except as an indoor winter grow.


----------



## Hick (Mar 19, 2010)

leafminer said:
			
		

> Outdoors they don't get sufficient light hours to veg properly..


..just sayin'... 
  46C is pretty warm .. (115F)  and "in the shade" as well..:holysheep:..  but I have _seen_ indicas that did ..pretty well.. in pretty consistant 100 temp's.. 
certainly NOT _ideal_ conditions for sure. 
I like your 'utilization' of the gh for flowering ..... brilliant!


----------



## mojavemama (Mar 19, 2010)

Wow, I sure would like to follow this grow, Texas. I'm in a similar climate to San Antonio, in terms of temperature, but it's much more arid here in the Mojave. San Antonio gets approximately 29 inches of rain a year, and we average about 2-4 inches a year. 

The extra humidity should be helpful in San Antonio. I grow indoor-outdoor in both pots and 4 cubic foot rolling garden carts. I grow mainly Indicas, and  they are way, way too broad-leafed for this intense heat and aridity. 

I've found I can make it work but it is a LOT of work--it requires adding humidity (spritzers or 3 inches of gravel with water under pots) and during the hottest part of the day, when the sun is most intense, using shadecloth and also moving plants into the shade, right on the edge of the light. 

Nothing can survive here except cacti and extremely small leafed plants during the heat of summer, so I augment the sun with T5 HO fluoros, bringing the plants back inside at night. 

I have found that Sativas handle the heat and aridity much better than the Indicas, because the leaves are much slimmer for transpiration. But I need Indicas for pain relief and sleep, so I keep experimenting to find how I can best utilize what Hick calls, "The Great Metal Halide in the Sky" and still keep the plant roots from boiling and the leaves from turning crispy. 

Since I don't grow directly into the ground, my pots are white, so they won't get so hot, and I also harden the seedlings gradually to outdoors, over two week's time. 

Have you ever considered growing in a large rolling cart? It allows you to grow broad-leafed plants much easier when you can move the carts as needed to get a bit of shade, or to get them out of the rain (not a problem we normally encounter here!). And, during night time, you can bring them inside your garage or indoor veg area under fluoros.

I've attached a photo of my rolling carts, and you can see they are Indica plants, 4 per cart.


----------

