Tips on how to guerrilla grow

Want to learn how to guerrilla grow a crop like this? ... photo by CC user Freetoast on wikimedia

With your backyard garden lacking discretion from your nosy next-door neighbors, and not wanting to risk your utility company busting you due to the massive amounts of power that an indoor grow operation requires, you have begun to look into ways of guerilla growing cannabis, among other things.

With tons of land out of the way of the average person on a day to day basis, many choose to plant and reap their crop in places that are sight unseen for anybody but you (and those that might discover your spot by way of dumb luck). With that in mind, here are some tips on how to guerrilla grow…

1) Find a spot out of view of hikers, choppers and other interlopers

This is rule #1 of any guerrilla grow, as you are doing this because you can’t in the comfort of your own backyard. While it might be convenient to plant steps from the side of a trekking trail or along a power line corridor, it is inevitable that someone will see your plants at some point during the warm months of the year. By bushwhacking some distance off established trails, you’ll find a secluded spot where some random jerk can’t steal your crop, or where the law can’t confiscate it (or set a trap for you).

2) Prep your plants indoors during the winter

To set yourself up for success during the growing season, it is vital to start your seeds in flower pots during the winter months. Before bringing them outside in the spring, slowly acclimatize them to increased amounts of sunlight over a couple of weeks.

3) Don’t leave a trail to your spot and act inconspicuous in the woods

When heading out to your spot for the first time in the spring, act cool. Bring some binoculars so you can pass yourself off as a birder or a wildlife enthusiast tracking your favorite animal off trail if you end up running into anyone who might otherwise report you.

Starting from the first visit to your last, endeavor to take different paths in and out to avoid creating a trail that might lead poachers to your plant site.

4) Watch the weather through the summer

Droughts are deadly to many species of plants that you’ll be guerrilla growing in the wild. If more than ten days has passed since the last summer shower or rainstorm, you’ll need to visit your clandestine plantation to water them by hand. On this point, ensure that a river or lake is within a reasonable walk of your site to avoid carrying in jugs of H2o that might arouse suspicious.

5) Carry out your yield in opaque buckets

When the time has come to harvest the crop, think ahead before heading into the woods for the last time. You’ll eventually have to brave well-worn paths where you might run into members of the public, so conceal your yield by sealing them in airtight opaque buckets as you cart them out to your vehicle.