Just dive in

Getting into your first grow can be an overwhelming challenge from deciding how many you're planning to start with to how much power you have available for your equipment. My suggestion is that you begin by planting a cheap seed into a pot with soil. From there you will begin your journey of problem solving and learning. A lot of people like to tell others how to grow. Sure, it may work for them but your style and methods might not be the same. Consider taking the advice, but don't implement it right away until you know it will be a suitable fit for you. It is possible to get a decent harvest from your first grow. However, you can also drive yourself crazy trying to make it happen. In my experience, people that have a basic understanding of the plant and their own grow style have better success. It's a race. These are some of the things I would suggest starting with.

• How to germinate (sprout) a seed. It may not seem like much, but everything depends on it unless you grow from clones. It can be tricky at times to get things to work out and start. However, don't let failure discourage you. Figure out what went wrong so you can correct it and start again. It seems everyone has a different method for this. Find the way that's most appealing to you and give it a go. I have had the highest success with a seed starting kit (soil pucks and a humidity dome).

• Know how the cannabis plant works in the most basic of ways. Things like what causes it to flower and what it likes to eat or even the kind of cannabis (indica/Sativa). Consider growing some feminized autoflowering cannabis for your first couple grows because it's easier and faster.

• Know that soil is not just dirt, there's a whole universe of life in there. This will help you decide if you want organic or synthetic plant food and also the importance of something as simple as soil drainage can make or break a grow. I am personally fascinated by microbiology and how it works in the soil (the soil food web).

• How many plants do you want to grow vs. how many you can grow? (your space, time, skill and cost are factors that may limit you) This will help you figure out how big of a tent you need and how much light you need in it.

Your goal should be to control your environment so that it is right and consistent (temperature, humidity, and lighting). The rest you can learn on the go. There is a lot of theory when it comes to growing cannabis, but practical experience is crucial.

For my first few years and even now at times I get out a notepad and record what I'm doing so I can look back when things don't work out. This helps me correct things and know what I did wrong.

Most of all it should be fun, at the end of the day its learning something new so don't let all the information overwhelm you or you mistakes stop you. The success always makes it worth it