Will My Clones Start To Flower If I Put Them Outside? Outdoor Grow

[Maaaaurice]

i just got my rooted clones today and transplanted them into solo cups into ffof and have them under a 1000 watt mh on a 18/6 light cycle its currently march 5 and i want to put them outside in mid april my only problem is the max amount of light we get here in fontana, California (IE) is 13 hours would going from 18 hours to 13 hours cause flowering even if i do gradually move them into the outside over time? How can i stop them from flowering when i put them outside i want them to veg?

 

[3N1GM4]

you speak of the pompatus of love
I have no idea but I want to know the answer also

 

[Blaze]

There are a few way to go about it. The main concepts to remember is that you want to make sure your indoor light cycle matches the outdoor light cycle when you move them out. Also don't drop their light cycle too much too fast - I usually recommend 15 minutes a week as this mimics the natural light cycle.

Mid April is also much to early to put clones outside without supplementary light in most cases. For California May 21 to June 21 is what works for most strains and for most growers. Basically you need to make sure the days are long enough before they go outside - 13 hours is not enough light. Keep in mind that 13 hours is the same amount of light they would be getting in September - well into flower for outside plants. You need to be up around 15 or more hours of natural light minimum for most strains.

Genetics play a big part too, some strains can handle the transition more easily than other. General rule of thumb is that the longer flowering strains can go out earlier and are less prone to pre-flower, while the shorter flowering strains need to go out later and are more prone to pre-flowering. You will sometimes see people who put them straight outside from 18 hours and can have success but this is pretty risky and won't work a lot of the time.

If you start dropping them down 15 minutes a day now, your light cycle should match up by the end of May, which is when you would want to plant anyway. Hope that helps.

 

[Maaaaurice]

But the max amount of light is in june 15-26 which is 14:25 minutes then it starts to drop agian we dont even get to 15 hours out here is there another soultion can i put lights outside so they trick them to veg when its dark outside

 

[Blaze]

You still get about 30 min of light before sunrise and after sunset, so you should still be at around 15 1/2 hours of useable light at the summer solstice. If you can put light outside, that is a sure fire way to keep them in veg, as you can make the light cycle as long as you want. If this is an option I would recommend it as it eliminates a lot of guess work and other variables that could cause you problems.

 

[Blaze]

Also take a look at timeanddate.com, it can help you see what your light cycle is like where you are at. Look at the 'civil twilight' columns rather than 'sunrise' and 'sunset'.

 

[Seamaiden]

This is the tool I like to use: http://astro.unl.edu/classaction/animations/coordsmotion/daylighthoursexplorer.html

 

[GrowingGreen]

But the max amount of light is in june 15-26 which is 14:25 minutes then it starts to drop agian we dont even get to 15 hours out here is there another soultion can i put lights outside so they trick them to veg when its dark outside

Just put a regular light out with them on a timer to give them 18 hrs that'll keep the plant from switching to bloom

 

[Maaaaurice]

Just put a regular light out with them on a timer to give them 18 hrs that'll keep the plant from switching to bloom

what type of light would be best to put outside with them

 

[Seamaiden]

I use those solar landscaping lights so I don't have to worry about running yet another extension cord. You can bunch them if you're concerned about there not being enough light.

Others will use exterior fixtures with a CFL in them.

 

[Blaze]

I use those solar landscaping lights so I don't have to worry about running yet another extension cord. You can bunch them if you're concerned about there not being enough light.

Others will use exterior fixtures with a CFL in them.

I've wondered how well this would work. Running power to our outdoor site would not be practical. Those types of light just run the entire time it is dark though, correct? Or did you find some that can be run with a timer?

 

[Maaaaurice]

I use those solar landscaping lights so I don't have to worry about running yet another extension cord. You can bunch them if you're concerned about there not being enough light.

Others will use exterior fixtures with a CFL in them.

about how many watts would be good to trick the theres still light? im trying to figure out how much lighting i would need

 

[3N1GM4]

If you are just keeping them from flowering it shouldnt matter if they turn off or not.

 

[Seamaiden]

I've wondered how well this would work. Running power to our outdoor site would not be practical. Those types of light just run the entire time it is dark though, correct? Or did you find some that can be run with a timer?

Yes, they fade down, by about 4am or so they're dark.

about how many watts would be good to trick the theres still light? im trying to figure out how much lighting i would need

Oh gosh, I wish I could really say, it's been a few years since we bought them. They're just plain old cheapy solar-powered landscape lights, LED, very blue color of light. Enough light to help you see where you're going. I'm sorry I can't be more helpful, but let me see if I can find them on the Lowe's site. BRB.

Ok, this looks the closest to what we have, but ours came in packs of something like 8/pack, and were about the price listed. The way it's shown here it looks like you're buying one light for $22.

 

[Maaaaurice]

Yes, they fade down, by about 4am or so they're dark.

Oh gosh, I wish I could really say, it's been a few years since we bought them. They're just plain old cheapy solar-powered landscape lights, LED, very blue color of light. Enough light to help you see where you're going. I'm sorry I can't be more helpful, but let me see if I can find them on the Lowe's site. BRB.

Ok, this looks the closest to what we have, but ours came in packs of something like 8/pack, and were about the price listed. The way it's shown here it looks like you're buying one light for $22.

thankyou

 

[BudBogart]

But the max amount of light is in june 15-26 which is 14:25 minutes then it starts to drop agian we dont even get to 15 hours out here is there another soultion can i put lights outside so they trick them to veg when its dark outside

Yes, keeping a light shining on the plants to extend the light period will work just fine. Don't leave it on all night.

 

[MendoGiantZ]

I am vegging some plants out doors right now... I have a 50 foot long extension cord that has a place to screw in a light bulb every ten feet.. Im using 125 watt fluorescents that use about 32 watts of electricity.. It does more then the trick to keep them from flowering.... I have it on a timer--- It comes on at about midnight when most of the neighbors have gone to bed then it goes off at 630 am once it is light now.... The extra couples hours really help keep them vegging.... If you don't have a hoop house like the one in my picture... You could attach each bulb to a 8 foot T Post that you put in the ground right next to your pot (whatever size pot your using) if your using smaller pots one light could easily keep 10 or 15 plants from flowering and then making another area 10 feet down the line and put in another bulb... :) hope this helps--( you can get the extension cords at home depot)

 

[MendoGiantZ]

The yellow extension cord in the upper right is the lights that I'm talking about. Super easy they were about 60$ and the florescent bulbs were about 6 bucks each.

 

[GrowingGreen]

I am vegging some plants out doors right now... I have a 50 foot long extension cord that has a place to screw in a light bulb every ten feet.. Im using 125 watt fluorescents that use about 32 watts of electricity.. It does more then the trick to keep them from flowering.... I have it on a timer--- It comes on at about midnight when most of the neighbors have gone to bed then it goes off at 630 am once it is light now.... The extra couples hours really help keep them vegging.... If you don't have a hoop house like the one in my picture... You could attach each bulb to a 8 foot T Post that you put in the ground right next to your pot (whatever size pot your using) if your using smaller pots one light could easily keep 10 or 15 plants from flowering and then making another area 10 feet down the line and put in another bulb... :) hope this helps--( you can get the extension cords at home depot)

Ive been lookin for that string of lights that are hooked in series, do you have a link or where did you get those lights?

 

[GrowingGreen]

The yellow extension cord in the upper right is the lights that I'm talking about. Super easy they were about 60$ and the florescent bulbs were about 6 bucks each. View attachment 582290

Very nice brother im lookin for those same lights , your garden is looking real healthy brother