Sea of Green -vs- Fewer bigger plants - Which one produces the most?

What's the most effective way of growing large amounts, I always thought it was SoG with no veg time, just flower, but someone said it's not. So once and for all, WHICH is the most effective? If you have larger plants, then surely the lights cant penetrate to the bottom leaves?

Say if you wanted around 200-250 ounces a month.

SoG or fewer bigger plants?
 

trichlone fiend

New Member
...to get the most weight per bulb, would be to grow vertically and to grow large mature plants. This allows all of the bulbs light to be directed towards the sides/upper parts of the plants, penetrating all those lower buds ( this takes alot of room and alot of lights) view video, and notice where the bulb is located and how the plants are positioned from the bulbs.
...if your bulb is positioned horiziontally, many 1/2 plants (sog) for max yield. ( The light only penetrates about 12" deep into your canopy)...you can view my journal in my sig to view my 1/2 plant scrogs ( I yield 1+ lb per 600w HPS)


[youtube]R3IYLv7jwYg[/youtube]
 

Xare

Well-Known Member
If you can eliminate downtime between crops they are the same.


But if you have to veg your larger plants under the HPS lighting for a week or two you are slipping behind the turn around speed of a no-veg sog.
 
...harvest everyday???? So, you move one plant in all stages of your sog everyday? Sounds like work.
He means, you have different 'stages' so you harvest every week or so.. and it wouldn't be 1 plant, it would be more like 4-5 plants. It wouldn't really be work because you have to do it all anyway, might as well spread it out..

I still don' know which is the best, someone says SoG, someone says growing bigger plants..

@trichlone

1lb per 600 watt?

SoG = two 1000W lamps, give 20 ounces every two weeks = 80 ounces every 2 months = 0.04 Ounces Per Watt Every month = 1.13 grams per watt EVERY TWO MONTHS. (No veg)

1lb, 600 Watt = 0.75 grams (Not less than two months)

I don't know what timescales you have on yours but I can't see it yielding more than 80 ounces every two months with two 1000Watts..

I could of calculaed something wrong..

I still think SoG is the most effective, can anyone prove me wrong? :p
 

Bulldog73

Active Member
I may be able to help here with some real world numbers. I am just finishing running a SOG with a plant density of 3 plants per sq ft under 2 600 watt HPS lamps. I harvested one plant that was a runt today (one week early). The runt is about 1/3 - 1/2 the size of the rest of my plants.. Keep in mind, this is with 3 days veg after transplant and that is it.. Otherwise this is just straight 8-9 weeks flowering depending on strain. And all bud produced is top cola super large dense nugs... I just cut and pasted this from a thread I have on my grow.. Hope this helps..

So I harvested the one runt I had a week early (today). This plant was less than 1/2 the size of the rest easily.. I had to pull it out as it never kept up with the canopy.. So I kept and flowered it to finish.. So I harvested today.. It was one cola but it was so dense that I broke it up as I was afraid of mold. I couldn't get inside the buds and remove the stems of the fan leaves and I was afraid they would rot and be a start for mold. so I broke it down.. These buds are SO DENSE!! I weighted this out wet and it was 52 grams.. So I am expecting just over 1/2 ounce. If that holds true and I estimate conservative side I get.. 30 plants that are at least twice this size in an area of 9 sq ft under 1200 watts.. So 30 plants at 1 oz per plant (twice the small one I just harvested and this is extremely conservative), So that gives me 30 oz's plus this 1/2 so 30.5 ounces 869.25 grams, so I get .724 grams per watt. Now this is an extremely conservative estimate. But even then, this is all top cola bud!! I think a more accurate estimate will be using 1.3 oz's per plant which will give me: 1126.5 grams or .939 grams per watt. So if this is what I wind up with next week I will be pretty pleased. I want to run another crop under the same conditions and this time give each plant 1 sq foot and allow for a bit of branching and compare the harvest to see which SOG method is more efficient and which one produces better overall quality.. I am thinking that this method with tighter plant spacing does as all the buds are simply top center colas that are the most dense swollen nugs you have ever seen.. I am pretty happy with this as this plant I just harvested was not even 1/2 the plant of the rest of the crop..
 
I may be able to help here with some real world numbers. I am just finishing running a SOG with a plant density of 3 plants per sq ft under 2 600 watt HPS lamps. I harvested one plant that was a runt today (one week early). The runt is about 1/3 - 1/2 the size of the rest of my plants.. Keep in mind, this is with 3 days veg after transplant and that is it.. Otherwise this is just straight 8-9 weeks flowering depending on strain. And all bud produced is top cola super large dense nugs... I just cut and pasted this from a thread I have on my grow.. Hope this helps..

So I harvested the one runt I had a week early (today). This plant was less than 1/2 the size of the rest easily.. I had to pull it out as it never kept up with the canopy.. So I kept and flowered it to finish.. So I harvested today.. It was one cola but it was so dense that I broke it up as I was afraid of mold. I couldn't get inside the buds and remove the stems of the fan leaves and I was afraid they would rot and be a start for mold. so I broke it down.. These buds are SO DENSE!! I weighted this out wet and it was 52 grams.. So I am expecting just over 1/2 ounce. If that holds true and I estimate conservative side I get.. 30 plants that are at least twice this size in an area of 9 sq ft under 1200 watts.. So 30 plants at 1 oz per plant (twice the small one I just harvested and this is extremely conservative), So that gives me 30 oz's plus this 1/2 so 30.5 ounces 869.25 grams, so I get .724 grams per watt. Now this is an extremely conservative estimate. But even then, this is all top cola bud!! I think a more accurate estimate will be using 1.3 oz's per plant which will give me: 1126.5 grams or .939 grams per watt. So if this is what I wind up with next week I will be pretty pleased. I want to run another crop under the same conditions and this time give each plant 1 sq foot and allow for a bit of branching and compare the harvest to see which SOG method is more efficient and which one produces better overall quality.. I am thinking that this method with tighter plant spacing does as all the buds are simply top center colas that are the most dense swollen nugs you have ever seen.. I am pretty happy with this as this plant I just harvested was not even 1/2 the plant of the rest of the crop..
Thanks, that helps a lot, I think SoG is the most effective, when you grow bigger plants the plants wastest energy on leaves, and growing where as with SoG it's a much better bud to rest of plant ratio..

Those numbers are pretty impressive though, 1gram per watt around every two weeks..
 

homebrewer

Well-Known Member
What's the most effective way of growing large amounts, I always thought it was SoG with no veg time, just flower, but someone said it's not. So once and for all, WHICH is the most effective? If you have larger plants, then surely the lights cant penetrate to the bottom leaves?

Say if you wanted around 200-250 ounces a month.

SoG or fewer bigger plants?
The most you're ever really going to produce is 1 gram per watt. Some strains and grow rooms are better suited for certain growing styles and techniques. So there is no answer to your question.
 

Bulldog73

Active Member
The most you're ever really going to produce is 1 gram per watt. Some strains and grow rooms are better suited for certain growing styles and techniques. So there is no answer to your question.
That is absolutely not true. I can produce one crop under (3) 600 watt HPS that will do more than 1 gram per watt. So I can produce (rough numbers rounded down in my exact set up that I run all the time).. 66 plants each producing 1.3 ounces in SOG in a 3x6 tray in a 4 x 8 tent. So 1.3 ounces = 37 grams So 66 plants x 37 grams per plant = 2442 grams in the harvest. 2242 grams from 1800 watts = 1.35 grams per watt....... And I assure you that this is a conservative estimate. With the right strain (like Chronic), I can do 1.5 ounces per plant in the same set up so when I run the whole thing in The Chronic I get 1.57 grams per watt.....
 

naturalhigh

Well-Known Member
sea of green or big plants? they will produce the same ..however one will take longer to veg..the bigger plants.as the SOG and have quick 60 day turnaround times...but your using higher numbers.... 120 plants in a 4 by 8 table veged 4 days flower for 56..or 4 to 10 large plants vegged for a month...will fill the same area..however the sog will be more effective in placing the light to the canoply more evenly...
 

homebrewer

Well-Known Member
And I assure you that this is a conservative estimate. With the right strain (like Chronic), I can do 1.5 ounces per plant in the same set up so when I run the whole thing in The Chronic I get 1.57 grams per watt.....
Yeah, you're right, it's an estimate. Weigh out your TOTAL actual crop, dry, instead of taking the yield from one plant and multiplying it by the number of plants in your room.
 

Bulldog73

Active Member
Yeah, you're right, it's an estimate. Weigh out your TOTAL actual crop, dry, instead of taking the yield from one plant and multiplying it by the number of plants in your room.
Wow.... You need to read the whole post.. I do this cycle all the time.. This is an estimate of this particular crop not the method as I do the method all the time.. Any other part of the post you aren't understanding??
 
wow man, 1.5 ounces per plant every two months @ 4 plants per sq feet!?

That is awesome, with a big space you could grow massive amounts. Biggest problem is electricity though, 1800 is OK, I think if you go higher than that it will get suspicious ;)

@Punky, That first pic is a piece of art IMO! :)
 
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