Outdoor plants way too small, best ways to increase size/yield

[Grow2BFree]

Hello, I'm new to THC Farmer forums, but not to growing.

I've had to take a break from growing for a few years, but now I'm back in it since January, been growing all year.

I'm mostly an indoor grower, had several harvests a few years back in mini growboxes, getting an average of 4-5 oz a harvest under CFL, great for a small box.

Well, this year, I've been growing ONLY outdoor, getting clones each time from another grower. It's a custom strain been cloned for over 2 years smokes great, however, as soon as I get the clone, and put it outside after a fresh transplant, it has a short fast growth spurt, then FLOWERS!!!! I tried other strains, same thing, autoflower. They don't get very big at all because of this, 1-1.5 feet tall at most, and small harvest, but the bud smokes REALLY good.

I've planted over 12 plants this year, and harvested all of them, they only flower for 2-3 months MAX, then they are finished, then I have to cut them soon at finish so they don't mold. I've planted in January, and as late as June, all the same, insta-flower, small size.

That's a problem, because I have to put many plants outside, just to get an ounce or two. Yet indoors, I can get over 2oz PER PLANT.

What do I do to increase yields now? I just got my inside growbox going again, so I'm going to VEG a few plants for a long time before putting them out, but is there another way to get big plants without putting big indoor plants outside?

 

[SCARHOLE]

Starting them outdoor is the most
Natural method.

Or

Veg em indoor under 16 hrs light, 8 hrs dark.
Them put em out in mid-late may when the light kind of matches this cycle.

 

[StickyBuds420]

yeah what scarhole said it sounds like you may be putting them outside before they are used to the light and dark hours and just go right into bud before you put them outside just make sure that they are on the same light to dark hours as everything outside.

 

[tèchnìquè]

start some seeds or get some small clones mid april. Start them outdoors so their always used to it but bring them inside for supplemental lighting at night to extend grow cycle. When the time is right crop them a couple times at the tops make it a nice bush, drop it in the ground in may in a whole or a big pot than feed it and love it BOOM! best thing you can do is give it room to grow, more roots = more fruits, I like to start seeds in typical red plastic cups with holes at the bottom for drainage than as soon as its somewhat established xfer to a 5 gallon bag than from there to the big one. I have started them in the bags as well with slightly better results:mad0233:

 

[500lbs Guerilla]

+1 to flowering due to light shock. Make sure the days are long enough when you put them out, and have the lights indoors matched in length and timing as close as possible to the outside light schedule. Under 16 hours of light and strains can start flowering indoor. If the difference in light is too big from inside to out, like from 24 hours of light to 16, the plant can be shocked into instantly flowering. Your plants aren't getting a growth spurt THEN flowering, they are going through the stretch phase that is initiated at the BEGINNING of the flowering stage. Your clones are flowering the instant you put them out there. Clones are more prone to this as well. Most young seedlings have a better chance of staying in a vegetative state.

 

[Purple Grapes]

Just put a somewhat strong flashlight on them at night for a bit and they don't flower.

 

[Grow2BFree]

Thanks for the tips, hopefully the next plants will be much bigger.

 

[wonderinalice]

i live in nor cal, and i know here if you plant outside before mid june, they will flower, then reveg, and flower again. Obviously slowing down the growth for about a month.

 

[Grow2BFree]

Well now since we are in fall/winter flowering season, I am using my indoor growbox to veg plants for the outdoors.

I want some bud ASAP at least by Christmas, so I put another plant out yesterday. I needed more room in my growbox anyway. I'll post pics when I get a chance, but the plant is LST bushy, 10 inches tall, 3 tops, and just transplanted from almost rootbound bottom of 1 gallon mil jug, so even though this plant is still kinda small, I figure it will be blooming while I'm still vegging bigger plants to put outside later.

I picked a custom spot I made by a swamp, where a huge pile of sand/dirt is 2 foot above peak water level, and potting soil is filled in the center of the pile. Also have a hole in the ground next to the pile for runoff water. The swamp water is all around it, and the sand drains well, so I'm hoping I will never have to water it, and also the plant will never get flooded as well being above the water level. I also planted a few other regular plants around it for blending in, and covered the dirt with leaves and sticks from the ground.

I hope this works better by giving the plant a better supply of water and gets it bigger.

 

[Grow2BFree]

The plant responded good to transplanting in my sand pile, new growth already, the pineapple sage test plant planted in the pile and the pot plant show better results than the ones just in the ground.

 

[East Coast Pro]

sure they weren't autos?

 

[Grow2BFree]

Guys, thanks for all your help once again. I realize now why my plants stay small.......

It's the STRAIN!!!!

I planted an unknown strain from some hydro that got purple and is growing faster with bigger and more buds. It was the SMALLEST of my plants, but already has more weed sitting on the branches than all the others and got big!!! DANK TOO!

The strain that won't get big - My Homemade "Candy" Strain plants stay small with really potent buds, and both finished early. This stuff tastes like hydro but was grown outside in the dirt, and that's why I like this strain so much. The BIG "Candy" plant made MANY small buds which have given me good smoke this month. I made some seeds of the "Candy" Strain that stays small so I can have sweet potent smoke that matures quick, and I'll be revegging my big plant strain that got purple after harvest to keep this strain too.

Thanks for the discussion, and sometimes the best answers can be found by growing more pot!!!