Hey @RustyW1988 , first and foremost, welcome to the forums. There is a wealth of information on here and I can see that @MidwestGuy and @Growdoc have already jumped in. Both of them are very seasoned and well respected growers. The reading suggestions given are spot on. The Marijuana Grow Bible is a classic and filled with tons of good information. Jorge Cervantes is another living legend that has a warehouse full of grow information in print, online, and YouTube videos as well. For some more fun stuff, look in the Bud of the Month categories so you get an idea of what can be achieved.
30,000 foot level overview advice, don’t get overwhelmed. Start easy and work your way up. Some growers want to start with the intent of doing the best, the most, the greatest top-of-the-line grow ever produced. Like anything else, time, mistakes, trial and error, and experience is what will get you there. I always equate it to that some people want to jump the Snake River on a motorcycle like Evel Kinevil tried. But they’ve never even kickstarted a bike before.
That said, it’s actually pretty fun and easy to get started. You can have a decent crop on your first run if you are willing to approach it with a little humor and openness to learn. You will hear a lot of varied opinions, some very contradictory. You will have to find what works for you. Some people say to completely stay away from any Miracle Grow soil. But then someone else will post a grow journal with 6-foot, really bushy plants using Miracle Grow Organics… go figure…lol. But start simple and then try new things to figure out what works for you and your grow cycle. My advice? Try a decent soil (usually anything good for tomatoes will be good for cannabis) in a fabric 3-5 gallon bag. I would start with an Autoflower variety seed if you haven’t picked any yet. They are not good for stress training, topping, or a bunch of other things that you can do to photoperiod plants, but again, start easy and gain experience first. Might I suggest that you look in the White Truffle Community Grow files that is just finishing up now as well as their separate White Truffle Chat? The Grow section will show a weekly update from seed germination to harvest with 2 pictures every week from every person involved in the Community Grow. Great way to time lapse a full grow and get an idea of the grow and the challenges that everyone faced as well as the results. The “Chat” section is where people can post more pictures and get input and commentary from everyone, even those not involved in the grow. I am involved in the Godfather OG (GFOG) Community Grow and Chat section as we were tasked with a different growing set than the White Truffle group. So be sure to check that out as well. There was also a Purple Kush Grow and Chat that was an indoor grow only, so another good group of posts to look at. So, that’s a great place to start. Once you get through some of that, check back in as I’m sure that you will have more questions. It’s ok, we have more answers…lol. This will be fun, I promise. Lots of great growers on here (not me) and a wealth of experience.
BTW, you didn’t happen to be at the ILGM Grow Club LA event? Your profile picture looks like a couple of the wonderful people that I met there. Anyway, have a great day and looking forward to you having some fun.
Here’s a link to a student growers group on here. Be sure to join up! @Olaf.ILGM