Newbie question about auto flower and possibly growing outdoors

[bibsoconner]

Hi, I'm a complete newbie and my first attempt with photoperiod seeds was a disaster! See my other posts for a good laugh or to send condolences. The general consensus seems to be that I made multiple errors. However, when it came to the light I was using (BLOOM PLUS LED Grow Light BP 1000W (which I'm told is really 90W??!!)) the advice was all over the place in terms of it being too close to the plants (burning) or too far away (plants get leggy).

My question is: In order to keep things simple would I be better getting some auto flower seeds and growing outside only. That removes one variable (artificial light) from the equation. It probalby also removes the ventilation (not enough breeze) variable. Then I could concentrate on not over watering (suggested also in my previous thread) and nutrients. I'm in coastal southern california so I suspect low temps are not a problem. The coldest it gets at night is about 50F and if there really was a threat of colder temps, I could bring them inside (under the light if necessary!). I don't know however, if there is enough daylight right now. I realize that auto flower doesn't need 16 hours, but I suspect it needs more than 12? Another option would be to save the seeds until (which month?) later. I have done some research and see that growing outside might give lower yields and/potency. Are those the only downsides? I'd rather sacrifice yield and get something successful under my belt!

Related question: I get to pick a pack of 5 seeds from seedsman (some of my previous seeds didn't germinate) but only from their own brand:

"In these circumstances we can offer some seeds from our own brand - Seedsman.
http://www.seedsman.com/en/cannabis-seed-breeders/seedsman
Please head to our website and choose 1 pack of 5 Seedsman Seeds. Let me know the seeds you want and I will get these sent out as soon as possible for you."

I was going to pick an auto flower, but let me just generally ask which you think is the most idiot proof, easy to grow seed. I prefer sativa/hybrid but again, at this point I'd rather just have something I could label as a success.
Any tips for a newbie are much appreciated. From my last disaster, it seems like OH, PH meters would be useful. And "nutrients" although I never got a specific recommendation. FWIW, the soil is FoxFarm Ocean Forest, which I was told would be all I need (as a beginner), and I wouldn't need to add stuff.
I'll close by saying that for something that is called "weed", I'm finding it very frustrating to grow!

 

[mysticepipedon]

I don't think autoflowers are really easier to grow than photos, so if you've still got more photo seeds, practice with them.

If you're in the northern hemisphere, winter is on the way. Growing outdoors might not be a great idea, but you should be a better judge of that than I am.

Moving plants in and out of the house is almost always a bad idea. People often bring pests in that way. If it's warm enough to grow outdoors where you live, just keep them outside.

 

[Shaded_One]

You'd want to be about 24-36" away in seedling phase

 

[Buzzzz]

Hi, I'm a complete newbie and my first attempt with photoperiod seeds was a disaster! See my other posts for a good laugh or to send condolences. The general consensus seems to be that I made multiple errors. However, when it came to the light I was using (BLOOM PLUS LED Grow Light BP 1000W (which I'm told is really 90W??!!)) the advice was all over the place in terms of it being too close to the plants (burning) or too far away (plants get leggy).

My question is: In order to keep things simple would I be better getting some auto flower seeds and growing outside only. That removes one variable (artificial light) from the equation. It probalby also removes the ventilation (not enough breeze) variable. Then I could concentrate on not over watering (suggested also in my previous thread) and nutrients. I'm in coastal southern california so I suspect low temps are not a problem. The coldest it gets at night is about 50F and if there really was a threat of colder temps, I could bring them inside (under the light if necessary!). I don't know however, if there is enough daylight right now. I realize that auto flower doesn't need 16 hours, but I suspect it needs more than 12? Another option would be to save the seeds until (which month?) later. I have done some research and see that growing outside might give lower yields and/potency. Are those the only downsides? I'd rather sacrifice yield and get something successful under my belt!

Related question: I get to pick a pack of 5 seeds from seedsman (some of my previous seeds didn't germinate) but only from their own brand:

"In these circumstances we can offer some seeds from our own brand - Seedsman.
http://www.seedsman.com/en/cannabis-seed-breeders/seedsman
Please head to our website and choose 1 pack of 5 Seedsman Seeds. Let me know the seeds you want and I will get these sent out as soon as possible for you."

I was going to pick an auto flower, but let me just generally ask which you think is the most idiot proof, easy to grow seed. I prefer sativa/hybrid but again, at this point I'd rather just have something I could label as a success.
Any tips for a newbie are much appreciated. From my last disaster, it seems like OH, PH meters would be useful. And "nutrients" although I never got a specific recommendation. FWIW, the soil is FoxFarm Ocean Forest, which I was told would be all I need (as a beginner), and I wouldn't need to add stuff.
I'll close by saying that for something that is called "weed", I'm finding it very frustrating to grow!

Northern Lights is pretty good one to start with.

 

[caliOF]

I just had a decent autoflower outdoor run. My first. I had two failed attempts with autoflowers which made me gun-shy. This year, I knew I would be traveling in September and October. No good way to handle a photoperiod run. So I ran autoflowers, not really expecting too much. I consider it a success when I can give excess bud to friends. It was a success! The biggest problem with autoflowers is if you mess up, they stunt, and you might just get a few grams. Failure is learning. The biggest thing, don't overwater. Wait till the soil is warm. Also low humidity is an issue where I live (NorCal SacValley), so I needed to increase humidity for the seedlings with a cut plastic milk jug on each plant. We had over 100* temps for long periods, so it's kind of a wonder they did as well as they did. By the way, the seeds were from one of my previous screw-ups. I had pretty much given up on some stunted plants a couple of years ago. They were mixed in with my herb garden, and on an automatic drip. I ended up with a male that pollinated two of the females, before I chopped him. They were probably not even 10 inches at harvest. Just a few grams, but the plants gave up nearly 40 seeds, which gave me this first successful autoflower run! I now think I will do photoperiods exclusively inside. Next year I will be doing an autoflower seed run combining my seeds with new genetics to see what I get, and just phenohunting the progeny for the next few years. Have fun with it!