400w RDWC... Need advice for veg time.

Hi RIU ! I know this kind of question is tossed around all the time, But I was hoping someone could give me a good idea on how long I should veg these ladies for.

my set up consists of the following.
-400w hps w/air cooled hood
-rdwc system using general hydroponics nutes
-strains are..
1. Seedsman white widow
2. cheese
3. Seedsman skunk #1

I currently have 1 WW under one of my 400 watters working on week 6 of flower. and in my other box I have 1 cheese working on its 3rd week of flower. Both of which were vegged for 8 weeks. The problem I am facing is all the popcorn buds that seem to be impossible to avoid. even with extreme lollipopping and training. Honestly it is getting on my last nerve considering I can't break .35 GPW...

So basically, is there a better suited veg time and number of plants, training method (etc..) that might help increase yield...

What about 4 plants vegged for 4-5 weeks. Does this seem reasonable under a 400w?

Im really trying to reach a goal of .75 gpw. My ladies look extremely healthy in every way so It's gotta be an issue with the canopy. Any input is welcome

I've done 1 month DWC veg that filled the space (2'x2') a week or two after flower. Seems like longer veg times would = more branches and more spots for popcorn. I'm a newb so take my advice with a grain of salt, but it seems like in DWC a month veg time is pretty standard.

I vegged my Chem Dog 40 days. it was 2' tall and about the same width, very bushy, never pruned, it just bushed... Today it's starting week 7 of flowering, now it's over 5' tall and I've got a bunch of big colas filling in nicely and the lower branches and bud nodes are full of bud, I'm expecting 8z or more dried and jarred of this one plant. 400w HPS and RDWC (48 qt. cooler res.) I'll probably harvest around week 10 but it may go one more if necessary.

Bottom line, it's hard to say what's the best veg duration, too many variables, if you have a pheno that naturally bushes quickly and doesn't stretch too much, that's one thing, or you may find one that needs more time and pruning to bush out and naturally, if you're topping and pruning in veg mode, you'll need a bit more veg time to take advantage of the pruning.

Genetics and gardening techniques will determine the best veg time for any given plant, it's up to you to find the sweet spot!

If you have good genetics which it seems you do then it's your techniques like UVRay said above. Gardening techniques especially. Training and trimming the plant properly so that the buds get light is the most important thing. Picture's help a lot. Popcorn buds usually mean there not receiving enough light. How far is your hood from your plant or canopy for one ?

U must be doing something wrong bro because u should be able to hit a gpw the way u are growing or st least not much under
What are ur temps .ph.canopy temps.u train /top/fim do u use any boosters or just standard base nutes do ur girls eat all the nutes at the same rate of water eg the sweet spot not too much food not too little (your ppm/e.c gets consumed same rate as water) a lot of questions but all these things make a massive impact on yeild and once u start dialing them in you will see a big rise in yeild

I can't see ur plants but I'm guessing tall,top colas at about 3'-5' light set about 18" above that. My hatred for tall plants came from similar results. Top plants when they get 5-7 nodes, tie em down whatever to keep canopy under 1' deep, cutting clones from bottom to keep 12" or less canopy less than 12" from light. Get proper ventilation to keep canopy -80 deg. day temp. After 20 yrs with a 400 and a closet I have yet to reach gm/watt. It ain't easy anyone says it is comes nowhere close unless they count roots leaves and ashes. I'm shooting for a pound next run if I hit 7 oz with my next sour it seems possible.More plants less veg or less plants more veg manipulation is key.

herbbilly said:

After 20 yrs with a 400 and a closet I have yet to reach gm/watt. It ain't easy anyone says it is comes nowhere close unless they count roots leaves and ashes.

Click to expand...

*LOL* fucking funny!

I have always liked topping the hell out of m ladies. Along with a little lst'ing to keep an even canopy. But I think the canopies are just too deep for my 400w. I'm gonna have to go with a shorter veg time and hopefully see a positive difference.

By the way you can see some of my current grow here.
https://www.rollitup.org/dwc-bubbleponics/591207-rdwc-seedsman-white-widow-flower.html

Thanks everyone chiming in too, I appreciate it