Why’s my auto so itty-bitty?

ArtfulCodger · Jun 5, 2025

Weedly said:
If anything I underwatered while in the solo cup since I drilled holes in it and it was drying out much faster than I anticipated, which I’m sure could be causing this stunting as well. I wouldn’t say it was root bound on transplanting, but the roots were out to the sides, just not wrapped around it. I thought the transplant had gone great because the plant really took off for a week. Then—kaputz. I’ll know better next plant. Or I’m trying to figure out how to.

Over-watering is watering too often, as opposed to giving too much water at once. There's a thing I call "over-watering by under-watering," where you have to water too frequently because the volume given is too small. In an 18 ounce solo full of Ocean Forest (for example), a proper watering should take 5-6 fluid ounces of water. Like I said, I have no idea if any of this applies to your situation. Apologies if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

RoadKillSkunkHunt · Jun 5, 2025

Weedly said:
So should I be putting these plants in full sunlight right from the get-go even though the DLI will technically be too high? I do have shady spots in my yard. It’ll be in the upper 70s to mid 80s most days from here on out, except rainy days when I can bring them in.

Mine have never grown in the open air. They have always been inside a greenhouse which has UV protection through the polycarbonate panels. But yes, inside my greenhouse they never had trouble adjusting.

Weedly · Jun 5, 2025

ArtfulCodger said:
Apologies if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

Telling me stuff I think I already know is invaluable to me since most of the stuff I think I know, I don’t know if it’s true or not, and most of the stuff I know to be true is simply wrong.

Weedly · Jun 7, 2025

Well, it looks like if I can manage to keep her alive, I’ll get a minimum of nine buds off of her, which is just fine for a free seed and since she is so itty-bitty, I assume I’ll be able to reuse the soil, so alls well in the Weedly yard.
However, determined to get a better yield, I bought some more Ocean Forest and a pack of seeds and was given another free seed, so I plopped the free one in a plug and plopped the plug straight into the final container. It’s a 420 Fast Buds Strawberry Gorilla auto, so we’ll see if I can maximize potential on this plant. It’s not supposed to be a great big auto, but I’ll try to give it all it needs for a healthy and productive life and maybe it won’t be so itty-bitty. Now, if the weather would just cooperate.

Weedly · Jun 17, 2025

Now, another question about another itty-bitty auto. I planted a new seed in another pot and it broke the surface in just 3 1/2 days on 6/9. It grew a little, then just stopped. I tried to plant this one directly into the final container and since it was supposed to be a fairly big auto, I used the 10 gal fabric pot I had. After it came up it had a few good days, and then rain and humidity set in and I had to put her on a screened porch, so she didn’t dry out at all nor get much quality light.
My question is that since it’s supposed to go from seed to harvest in 10 weeks (I’m not sure how accurate that could be), and she’s already been alive for 1 1/2, would I be better off culling her and planting a new auto, this time in a cup to transplant? I think I’ve learned that the faster that water/dryback cycle happens the faster the young plant can grow. And it looks like I won’t be watering this one anytime soon. My urgency is that if I plant now, I could still get a mid-September harvest. My state only allows four plants per household, so I’ll have to cull her if I plant another. I’m a paranoid stickler and don’t want to stretch my nerves any more than I have to. Or does this amount of growth at 9 days not necessarily mean she’s going to be a very low yield plant?

DanielWesterfield · Jun 17, 2025

Weedly said:
This Northern Lights auto sprouted May 9th, so this is end of week 4 and I think it’s starting to grow pistils. My question is why is it so small? I’d like to plant another auto, but I’d like to know what to change first.
RQS Northern Lights auto
Sprouted in solo cup
Transplanted into Ocean Forest and moved outside 5/25
Immediately took off growing almost to size it is now in four or five days and then just stopped growing.
I’ve watered with plain well water ph’d to 6.5-7 twice when the soil seemed dry a couple inches down and the pot felt light. (I have a moisture meter coming today.)
Temps have been in low to mid 80s day and 50s at night. Hazy sunshine all day.
Leaves have looked perfectly healthy since the beginning when those lower leaves yellowed a little.
I’ve not been giving any nutes yet.
Data sheet showed plant was supposed to be 4-5 foot and give 6-8 ounces.
Where’d I screw up?
View attachment 2448489 View attachment 2448487 View attachment 2448488

I got some Northern Lights going.
I'll post a picture of my 14 outdoor autos after work. Your a month ahead of me

Weedly · Jun 17, 2025

DanielWesterfield said:
I got some Northern Lights going.
I'll post a picture of my 14 outdoor autos after work. Your a month ahead of me

Actually the plant above is a Strawberry Gorilla that popped its head on 6/9. That’s the one I’m asking about this time. The original post was about the NL that sprouted 5/9. I probably should have started a new thread.

Weedly · Jun 17, 2025

DanielWesterfield said:
I got some Northern Lights going.
I'll post a picture of my 14 outdoor autos after work. Your a month ahead of me

Oops. I see you were referring to the NL from the original post. My bad.
I would like to see someone else’s autos that are just a few weeks old. Thanks!

AKM · Jun 17, 2025

This second plant doesn't look too awful bad for 8 days old (June 9th - June 17th), if I'm reading that right. Looks a tad leggy, but could recover, I've seen worse! It's soooo hard to get good plants outdoors without every condition being perfect. But when they take off and get growing, you can get some really good weed. The stated grow times, are always under perfect grow-room conditions.

zbalata01 · Jun 17, 2025

Weedly said:
I was worried about this but I couldn’t fit the big pot in my tent and outside wasn’t fit for a seedling at all. If I do grow another, I’ll start it outside in the proper pot.

Also take a look at the pot size. I think you may be expecting more than what will grow in less than a 5 gal container. As roots need more space for your plant to grow big. My little autos on the wall will never produce what the ones in the 15 gal pots will.

AKM · Jun 17, 2025

These are Rocket Juice autos. All started 5/17 in 3” peat pots. Transplanted to either dirt, solo cup, or 5 gal pot when 2 weeks old on 5/31 Look at them now at 4 weeks and 3 days.

Weedly · Jun 17, 2025

AKM said:
It's soooo hard to get good plants outdoors without every condition being perfect.

I am learning this quickly—to go from a tent with hydro where everything can be changed and improved instantly to the outside where it takes ten days and the will of God just to make one small adjustment has a steep learning curve.

AKM said:
The stated grow times, are always under perfect grow-room conditions.

I’m hoping this little guy will veg for a little longer than slated because of the stunting. Or do autos flip to flower at exactly their schedule regardless of the health of the plant?

Weedly · Jun 17, 2025

zbalata01 said:
Also take a look at the pot size. I think you may be expecting more than what will grow in less than a 5 gal container. As roots need more space for your plant to grow big. My little autos on the wall will never produce what the ones in the 15 gal pots will.

I heeded the advice about not transplanting an auto and since this one was supposed to be a fairly large auto, I went directly into the ten gallon pot. I am finding that it never dries back though, so now the plant seems stunted and will never need a 10g pot. Kind of a fine line to tiptoe. Do you plant yours directly in the pot or transplant?

crabideau2002 · Jun 25, 2025

Weedly said:
This Northern Lights auto sprouted May 9th, so this is end of week 4 and I think it’s starting to grow pistils. My question is why is it so small? I’d like to plant another auto, but I’d like to know what to change first.
RQS Northern Lights auto
Sprouted in solo cup
Transplanted into Ocean Forest and moved outside 5/25
Immediately took off growing almost to size it is now in four or five days and then just stopped growing.
I’ve watered with plain well water ph’d to 6.5-7 twice when the soil seemed dry a couple inches down and the pot felt light. (I have a moisture meter coming today.)
Temps have been in low to mid 80s day and 50s at night. Hazy sunshine all day.
Leaves have looked perfectly healthy since the beginning when those lower leaves yellowed a little.
I’ve not been giving any nutes yet.
Data sheet showed plant was supposed to be 4-5 foot and give 6-8 ounces.
Where’d I screw up?
View attachment 2448489 View attachment 2448487 View attachment 2448488

Yeah for a May 9th germ date that is quite small, I germinated one three days after you and growth is a lot larger. But this could really depend on the strain and pheno of the plant. I did however do LST but really didnt start this until honestly late in my plants cycle being in early flower I would have liked to have started it a bit sooner. On the bright side for you it doesnt seem like you have many pests running around on your plant having a feast, I have been having a nightmare with earwigs and tonight I set out the soy and oil trap we will see if we catch any... My guess on why she is so small is possibly nutes or maybe over or underwatering can be to blame. Also I do not know what your soil is but It looks dense may want to fluff up that top layer a bit.

Aspect_Honest · Jul 9, 2025

GNick55 said:
yep,. and when growing with an organic medium than there’s no reason to be adding chemicals like ph up/down,.. the soil buffers the ph,..

What if your water is 8? My well water is hard as steel, ppm through the roof. I use citric acid to bring pH in around 6.8.

RoadKillSkunkHunt · Jul 9, 2025

Aspect_Honest said:
What if your water is 8? My well water is hard as steel, ppm through the roof. I use citric acid to bring pH in around 6.8.

The citric acid doesn't remove the calcium carbonate from your water. Eventually, you could be running into calcium lockout. If it were my grow, I'd consider filtered water. You can buy an RV water filter that threads onto a garden hose. It will filter sediment and drop ppm considerably. It's an inexpensive trick to help you deal with what could become a frustrating problem.

Bozzin · Jul 10, 2025

Weedly said:
This Northern Lights auto sprouted May 9th, so this is end of week 4 and I think it’s starting to grow pistils. My question is why is it so small? I’d like to plant another auto, but I’d like to know what to change first.
RQS Northern Lights auto
Sprouted in solo cup
Transplanted into Ocean Forest and moved outside 5/25
Immediately took off growing almost to size it is now in four or five days and then just stopped growing.
I’ve watered with plain well water ph’d to 6.5-7 twice when the soil seemed dry a couple inches down and the pot felt light. (I have a moisture meter coming today.)
Temps have been in low to mid 80s day and 50s at night. Hazy sunshine all day.
Leaves have looked perfectly healthy since the beginning when those lower leaves yellowed a little.
I’ve not been giving any nutes yet.
Data sheet showed plant was supposed to be 4-5 foot and give 6-8 ounces.
Where’d I screw up?
View attachment 2448489 View attachment 2448487 View attachment 2448488

I’ve had the same problem with my autos

Weedly · Jul 11, 2025

Well, it’s only 16 inches tall, but the whole plant seems to be nothing but bud now, so while I’m not getting half a pound like some growers, maybe an ounce or perhaps a tad more? Not very frosty, but it’s Northern Lights and only states to be 14% thc, which is absolutely fine, but maybe that explains the lack of trichs? Or perhaps the high 80’s heat? Regardless, well worth the learning experience and $20 of Ocean Forest, I guess. I’m looking forward to the smoke. I doubt I’ve ever had weed grown outdoors.

AKM · Jul 11, 2025

I planted 4 Northern Lights Autos from ILGM this spring in 3" nursery pots, transplanted to 5 gal pots at 3 weeks. Two of them are over 6' tall with fan leaves 10" across, but zero signs of flowering at 9 weeks now. The other two are about 4' tall, and started flowering around 6 or 7 weeks old. If they keep going, they should produce many ounces of bud, but of we get a rainy August, pretty sure they will all get moldy. Amazing how one strain can differ so much. Climate, soil, fertilizers, and genetics. I planted 4 Rocket Juice Autos from Phylos, all 4 look like clones, 32" tall with similar bud structure and super nice colas/flowers on many branches.

Weedly · Jul 11, 2025

Considering how well yours and others’ are doing, the only thing I think I did wrong was to transplant it into a ten gallon pot that I saturated beforehand and only had to water once or twice according to the moisture meter. I guess that water/dryback cycle needs to happen as often as possible in order for the roots to uptake the necessary nutrients/oxygen/water that they need. The plant was doing fabulous until about a week after I put it in that huge pot. I have three more in solos that I’ll put in 5 gals. I don’t have anything smaller.
A little at a loss here. I thought I was doing everything right. My hydro tent is booming.

Why’s my auto so itty-bitty?

Why’s my auto so itty-bitty?

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