I live in New England but way north of massachusetts and I know plenty of people who grow normal bud up here outdoors. Just get a hardy northern strain. But it is great to grow some auto's to have a smaller harvest in July, and then do another round for september or october. That way if something goes wrong with your big 'uns, you'll at least have a bit of personal smoke for a while. don't expect great yields with auto outdoors though, maybe half an ounce to an ounce per plant. Whereas if you start a good hardy hybrid indoors and plant it outdoors in may at a foot tall, and all goes well, easily expect to pull a half pound off that lady, if not considerably more. My friend grows his own strain that he bred and he trains it to grow sideways in his yard and usually yields 2-3 pounds in early October. Good luck!