Accurate Information About Autoflowering Plants

  • Thread starter Seraphim19
  • Start date
  • Tagged users None
Midwestjay

Midwestjay

3,355
263
whitebob said:
hi guys i joined up after reading through this entire thread, and wanted to jump in and ask a quick question.. as you seem to be the oracle, I've been growing for a couple of years, autos and regs, but starting to focus more on the autos as i think they great fun to grow. I'm growing a couple of northern lights x big bud at the mo. they look awesome but just want to know what ec values everyone is using throughout there grow.. i understand each strain is different. but any ball park figures would be great... growing in auto pots in coco 60 /40 with gh 3 part. and magne cal. canna rhino and cannazym. 600w hps chilled nutes to 18degrees c. 6inch fan out / 4 inch fan in loft grow...
currently mid flower and I'm running them at between .8 and 1.0. just want to get the most out of them.. any help would be great... sorry for jumping in....View attachment 615386View attachment 615387
Click to expand...
Watch your ppm after it drinks a couple gal. If the ppm goes up from where you started you're probably too high. If the ppm drops you're probably low. I like mine to stay the same as ppm drops or close to it. For a plant that size I'd prob be in the 700ppm range or so 1-1.2ec or so.
 
whitebob

whitebob

945
243
Midwestjay said:
Watch your ppm after it drinks a couple gal. If the ppm goes up from where you started you're probably too high. If the ppm drops you're probably low. I like mine to stay the same as ppm drops or close to it. For a plant that size I'd prob be in the 700ppm range or so 1-1.2ec or so.
Click to expand...
thats where I've had her.. thats good to know.. thankfully got my res pretty dialled in keeping it constant, had to with the amazon system.. ph is about 6 pretty constantly or just below, ec at 1, chilled to 18 degrees. when would you recommend starting to reduce the food down or should i give her all she's got till i start to flush her.. also with regards to pk I've been loosely following the lucas formula, in that I'm not using the grow part of the food.. I've just upped the bloom but not added a bloom boost as the boost i have has the same pk quantities as the bloom part of my nutes... is that about right. cheers mucker :bored:
 
Midwestjay

Midwestjay

3,355
263
whitebob said:
thats where I've had her.. thats good to know.. thankfully got my res pretty dialled in keeping it constant, had to with the amazon system.. ph is about 6 pretty constantly or just below, ec at 1, chilled to 18 degrees. when would you recommend starting to reduce the food down or should i give her all she's got till i start to flush her.. also with regards to pk I've been loosely following the lucas formula, in that I'm not using the grow part of the food.. I've just upped the bloom but not added a bloom boost as the boost i have has the same pk quantities as the bloom part of my nutes... is that about right. cheers mucker :bored:
Click to expand...
I usually push them right up till the last week-10 days. Then start to pull it back depending on how much the leaves are fading. If they are fading fast I haven't been over feeding and doesn't need much of a flush. If it's still perfect green then she needs cut back for 10-14. Flush the last few.
 
EventHorizan

EventHorizan

15,707
438
Seraphim19 said:
ok guys I am back with the first installment of this thread and seeing as you want the best out of yours Tnelz I will start with a quick explanation of the lifecycle of auto flowering plants and then move on to the best growing methods.

LIFECYCLE OF AN AUTO

A common question I see is when to switch autos from veg to bloom. Many people are under the impression that as soon as they see the first flowers it's time to switch. Perhaps a little explanation of the life cycle of autos will help to clarify this.

Weeks 1 - 3. Once you've started your seeds and they break the surface of the soil, they are in their seedling stage. The first set of leaves to appear will usually single fingered, followed by a second set that may still be single fingered or perhaps 3 fingered. Once that second set appears growth will start to accelerate as the new leaves provide more photosynthesis. This process will continue, more new leaves, faster growth. Depending on the type of soil in use, mild vegetative nutes can be introduced at week 2. By week 3 most plants will start to show their sex. Males will start to produce pollen sacks and females will display pistils.

Weeks 4 - 6. The plants are now entering a pre flowering stage. During this time the plants should exhibit explosive growth, often as much as a new set of nodes and 1" vertical growth a day. This is the time when they will gain most of their vertical height. Many people make the mistake of switching from vegetative to flowering nutrients at this point, assuming that since they see flowers it must be the proper time. This is incorrect. If the switch to flowering nutes is made at this time the vertical growth will stop and the plant will put it's energy into producing buds. If you need to keep your plants small, or want them to finish earlier, they by all means switch nutes at this point. But if you want to get the most out of your plants continue feeding vegetative nutes until you see the vertical growth slow and stop. Depending on the strain that will usually be sometime during week 5 or 6.

Weeks 7 - 9. By now vertical growth has stopped and the switch to flowering nutrients has been made. The buds will start to fill out and put on weight, becoming hard and tight. Pistols will start to change from white to brown, orange, red, etc. By now the plants will also have developed a strong smell. Toward the end of this phase the large primary and smaller secondary fan leaves will begin to turn yellow. This is an indication that the plant is moving toward the end of it's life.

Weeks 10 - 11. At this time flowering nutes should be discontinued and only plain pHed water fed to flush the remaining nutrients from the soil and improve the taste. Yellowing of the fan leaves will continue as the plant draws the stored energy from them. Eventually they will die and fall off. By the time that the smaller leaves that come from out of the buds will also start to turn yellow. Then it's time to harvest.

I know that many of you are thinking that the seed bank said the plants will finish in 8-9 weeks, so why are you saying they take 10-11? The claims made by the seed banks are somewhat deceptive. If you switch to flowering nutes at week 3 or 4 the plants can finish in the times the seed banks say but they will remain small and not reach their full potential yield. Years of growing by myself and others has shown that autos do best if you follow this time line.

Of course, there will always be variations depending on the strain, the environment, nutrients, etc. This information is meant to only serve as a general guideline.
Click to expand...
Well damn I just asked this question 5 mins ago... Maybe I should practice what I tell my employees, Don't ask, go look for yourself.... Thanks for the Answer!
 
EventHorizan

EventHorizan

15,707
438
Seraphim19 said:
Now I have talked about the lifecycle of an auto lets get to how best to grow them

I wont bore you with the simple stuff like germination the only thing I will say on this subject is its best to start them in their final pot as autos don't like to be transplanted, or rather they don't like their roots disturbed.

So lets say you have germinated your seeds and they have broken ground.
The first thing to note is that Autos are very sensitive to nutrients compared to photo period plants. So lets go through the correct way to fertilise them.

Here is a feeding schedule for autos using bio bizz nutrients

View attachment 365805

As you can see for the first 3 weeks there is very little in the way of nutrients, this is because at this age they burn very easily.
The main thing in this time period is root stimulator, as there is a very short veg cycle this helps the roots to get a good foothold and increases the overall growth of the plant.

Once you start to introduce nutrients it is best to start with a quarter of the recommended dose and then slowly increase it to 1/2 - 2/3 of the recommended dosage.
Click to expand...
Have you used the flora grow, micro, and bloom? and if you have, how would you recommend the feeding schedule with it?
 
whitebob

whitebob

945
243
bloody nanner on my auto flower... only one week to go so hopefully won't be an issue... little fuckers...:mad::mad::mad:
 
Midwestjay

Midwestjay

3,355
263
Ok y'all i do this every time. I say I wanna go photo then I start running some then I feel like I'm stuck in fkn slow mo... Can't wait to run some more autos. Got these two Dinafem auto og beans I'm ready to pop. I've learned a lot about this strain, between growing it once and a buddy growing 2. I'm ready to rock these.
 
EventHorizan

EventHorizan

15,707
438
str8smokn said:
Sorry I didn't see this until now..
I run Autos on a 20/4 light schedule.. If indoors..
STR8
Click to expand...
Its cool bro... I know now a lot of things are a matter of opinion. I got my lil skunk auto at around 3 weeks now. Got my delicious candy started now too and around 12 days. Gonna let that photo veg the whole time them autos are going and then flip it...
 
20160801 221122
20160801 221200
20160801 221059
str8smokn

str8smokn

8,036
313
EventHorizan said:
Its cool bro... I know now a lot of things are a matter of opinion. I got my lil skunk auto at around 3 weeks now. Got my delicious candy started now too and around 12 days. Gonna let that photo veg the whole time them autos are going and then flip it...
Click to expand...

That's what I've done, run your veg while you flower your Autos.
and it's all upto you for light schedules 20/4--18/6 of course the more light the better the buds will be.
STR8
 
Midwestjay

Midwestjay

3,355
263
str8smokn said:
That's what I've done, run your veg while you flower your Autos.
and it's all upto you for light schedules 20/4--18/6 of course the more light the better the buds will be.
STR8
Click to expand...
To an extent. Some strains get stressed at 20 to 24hrs of light. I usually run 18 but been running 16 lately. No bad side affects at all.
 
Midwestjay

Midwestjay

3,355
263
I learned with my first auto, they can be grown just like a photo with great results, only side effect I had in dwc was the plant size was maybe 10-20% smaller, but buds werent affected. Actually the only auto that finished under 12s was one of my best looking autos. Just a lil bit smaller. It was Advanced seeds Biodiesel mass
 
EventHorizan

EventHorizan

15,707
438
Midwestjay said:
Rolling right along.
Click to expand...

I have had hiccups, and I have made mistakes, but I am learning!
str8smokn said:
That's what I've done, run your veg while you flower your Autos.
and it's all upto you for light schedules 20/4--18/6 of course the more light the better the buds will be.
STR8
Click to expand...
I am running them at 18-6 right now. When I switch out my MH FOR MY HPS, when should I switch and what kind of effect will the hps have on my photo in veg?
Midwestjay said:
To an extent. Some strains get stressed at 20 to 24hrs of light. I usually run 18 but been running 16 lately. No bad side affects at all.
Click to expand...
On my GH 3 Part nutes I have been feeding at mild veg at 1 to 1 to 1 ratio, at half strngth. It calls for 5 ml of each, but I have only been giving them 2 1/2 ml of each and 2 ml of cal-mag. My question is this. Should I move to aggressive veg at 3 to 2 to 1 ratio at half strength? So that you understand my thinking here, let me explain. I read somewhere that the secret to autos is to make them veg as long as you can. So that is what my goal is here. At 1 to 1 to 1 ratio its getting bloom nutes at same strength as grow. With the 3 to 2 to 1 it would be getting significantly lees bloom nutes. Am I thinking right or have I read so much that I have confused myself? I respect both of your opinions even if they are different.
 
EventHorizan

EventHorizan

15,707
438
str8smokn said:
The only thing that might change for the photo plants under HPS is they will start to get taller/ bigger node spacing. That's where training comes in handy,
Topping,tieing down,pinching. Whatever your madness is.
STR8
Click to expand...
When should I change out my MH for HPS? And what can I do to keep them (Autos) in veg for as long as possible?
 
str8smokn

str8smokn

8,036
313
Everyone is different.
You can't keep a auto in veg..
What I do is feed veg thru to the 2nd week of flower then I start to mix it up.
I feed 3/4 veg 1/4 bloom for week 2/3
Then 1/2 veg 1/2 bloom for week 3/4
1/4 veg 3/4 bloom for week 4/5
Full bloom for week 5/7
Then flush for 7/8
This way she keeps growing while blooming ,the last 2 weeks are full bloom to tighten them up.
This Seraphim19 technique that he showed me. I like it,all of mine have been atleast 3' to 3.5' tall which is perfect for me.
STR8
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Top Bottom