Auto-Flowering heathens, educate me please.

Still new to growing, first grow...completed, not very sucessfully, second underway. My little ones are about 2 months old, and I'm about to kick them over to flower. Got to thinking about what I know about auto flowering strains...not much. I know the entire point of an auto is a speedy harvest, and I see seed banks touting 60 & 65 days to harvest. I'm stumped by a review on growers choice seeds. The poster said that in just 5 months, well you read it.
So, I ask "What the hell is the point?!?" My regular bag seeds take that long!

Seems it's not a "true" autoflower. Breeders can exaggerate or report when grown in optimum conditions. We say "from seedling to harvest"....~85 days, etc. Try another time growing autos. We send an AUTO GROW GUIDE to ensure a positive experience.

Good luck!

Johiem said:

So, I ask "What the hell is the point?!?

Click to expand...

With autos, you can grow successively, about every 25-30 days during your grow season to have a near perpetual harvest May-Sept, depending on climate/latitude. Autos have their place...more than a niche`.

Don't think I'm not interested in them, I most certainly am. I'm an indoor grower and i do have a few ladies going right now, (photoperiod, I'm about to start flowering) and i read of a guy that threw a few autos in with his girls and harvested the autos twice before his photoperiod girls were done. If the average turn around is under 90 days and i can get both sativa and indica style strains then, I'm game. I just don't want to invest more resources without the expected return.

Just like with every other plant nothing is set in stone with autos. They aren’t guaranteed to be faster and aren’t likely to be as potent. Especially the faster part if you get into autos that have sativa in them. I’ve seen people grow autos that took 6-9 weeks to begin flowering, and another 9-10 weeks to complete flowering.

If you want to get the most out of auto flowers indoors you need to run them on longer light cycles, many people use 20/4 or even 24/0. This increases your lighting cost just to possibly get similar yield and quality as a photo plant.

You can run photo plants 12/12 from seed if you want them to grow and flower as fast as possible. They will grow very similar to an auto, and will flower as soon as genetically possible.

You also can’t clone autos. So if you find a plant that is dank and grows well you have no way to save it. You just have to start again from seed and hope for a good plant.

See those are some of the things that hold me back from taking the plunge. I'm about to try the straight to 12/12 with mimosa sprout to see what happens. She (hopefully) just erupted from her coir and my others are ready to switch in a couple days. Also, if I can take a sprout straight into flower what kind of nutes would i use? I'm in DWC.

Johiem said:

See those are some of the things that hold me back from taking the plunge. I'm about to try the straight to 12/12 with mimosa sprout to see what happens. She (hopefully) just erupted from her coir and my others are ready to switch in a couple days. Also, if I can take a sprout straight into flower what kind of nutes would i use? I'm in DWC.

Click to expand...

It will veg for several weeks until it’s genetically mature before starting to flower. So you should treat it like any other seedling and just grow it healthy. Starting with veg nutes until it actually begins to flower.

Thundercat said:

Just like with every other plant nothing is set in stone with autos. They aren’t guaranteed to be faster and aren’t likely to be as potent. Especially the faster part if you get into autos that have sativa in them. I’ve seen people grow autos that took 6-9 weeks to begin flowering, and another 9-10 weeks to complete flowering.

Click to expand...

Started this Amnesia auto (Seed Stockers) in February, it's about 2 weeks into flower now ...... according to the instructions 4-5 weeks left.
I have no idea what it'll do, or how much it will produce but it's already frosty all over and 1+m tall.
It's been in my tent on 18/6 with my photo plants.

sarahJane211 said:

Started this Amnesia auto (Seed Stockers) in February, it's about 2 weeks into flower now ...... according to the instructions 4-5 weeks left.
I have no idea what it'll do, or how much it will produce but it's already frosty all over and 1+m tall.
It's been in my tent on 18/6 with my photo plants.
View attachment 4513096View attachment 4513097

Click to expand...

Nice plant! It looks like it will fill in nicely with some buds . I would almost bet money that it’s going to need more then 4-5 weeks to finish though. It’s just now getting started flowering, don’t rush it or really pay any attention to the breeders time frame. That time frame is only supposed to be a loose guideline, not a set in stone harvest point.

buy "good genetics" from "reputable breeders" This is your best bet. most auto will go from seed to harvest in about 10 weeks give or take a week or 2. However you will occasionally run into a runt... or you may occasionally run into an "auto" that doesn't "auto". I grew 8 plants outdoors last summer. 8 of them finished around the week 10 mark. one of them was about 3 weeks later... and yet another was on week 16 and still looked to have at least a few weeks to go. It never finished because it ran into mold issues with cool wet fall weather. I don't believe it was an auto. I think it was a photo seed.

Well, I did it. Bought some seeds from what I thought was a "reputable breeder", not having much luck. Out of 9 seeds so far, only one has made it out of the coir. She seems to be doing ok but she is only 2 weeks old. Once she gets a little bigger I'll post some pics.

Plants are way tougher than we give them credit for. Female plants will grow pollen sacs when buds are left to "over-ripen " on the plant as a last ditch effort to reproduce in absence of a male, known as rodelization. Obviously not the preferred method , but it happens and novices will label these as hermaphrodite. Also, I harvested a outdoor grow of Auto Blueberry OG Ghost , trics were right, fan leaves yellowing ,etc. 75 days from seed I harvested mid July and cut stalk down to 4 - 6 inches and left 2 small leaf sites.....plant continues to impress me as it is still growing not dead,WOW. I also have a outside grow of a Photoperiod Colombian Sweet 3wks from germ.....I like going outside the norm so she's getting 10-14ish hours of sunlight which some growers saying that she won't produce . Once again I'm amazed at the power that plants have going against what we have come to deem as "normal". .....nothing fancy , just old fashioned growing outside the box.

So, what does any of this have to do with auto flowering vs photoperiod? I fully understand "rodelization", didn't know there was a term for it. I always referred to them as panic nanners. the seeds are are feminized though. No, nannering is not true herming.

Kinda only saying that you can basically grow under any conditions auto or photo ..... Ive done both, autos are great stealth plants but photos can finish just as fast on a 12/12......some folks get wrapped up in veg stage. I like submitting my plants to new possibilities , good or bad just to see what a grower can get by with at home, minus the hype . So IMO if scheduling isn't an issue then I would go photo on a 12/12.

Scheduling is only an issue in the finance department. Thefastesr I can get a few girls to harvest, the less my wife and I spend at a dispensary.
I've also tried skipping the veg state, not happy with it, after 6 weeks of 12&12 with very slow growth I revegged her. She is just now 3 weeks into flower and I'm happier with her..

Johiem said:

Scheduling is only an issue in the finance department. Thefastesr I can get a few girls to harvest, the less my wife and I spend at a dispensary.
I've also tried skipping the veg state, not happy with it, after 6 weeks of 12&12 with very slow growth I revegged her. She is just now 3 weeks into flower and I'm happier with her..

Click to expand...

Good quality autos on 24/0. Don't do them on 12/12, it's a waste.

Yeah but tryingto find decent seeds without spending an arm and a leg is a big challenge.

I've run autos with photos alongside for 15 years. Potency has come a long way with autos and a "well grown auto" can equal a good photo. Of course I grow everything on 12/12....no where does anything say (other than opinion) that autos REQUIRE more....only that they can handle it. I've never had yeild increase the same % your costs will to run 24/0.
Autos have their place in a timing system as most are around 70-80 days from seed...and gives me something to smoke while the photos finish.

That's pretty much what I'm shooting for, have a few autos running at staggard times, while my photo girls grow up. Trying for a continuous harvest.

Johiem said:

That's pretty much what I'm shooting for, have a few autos running at staggard times, while my photo girls grow up. Trying for a continuous harvest.

Click to expand...

I'm constantly rotating plants for a staggered harvest. As I harvest 2-3 every 2-3 weeks, I'm constantly filling the space with fresh healthy ladies. Germing 2-3 every 2-3 weeks is my habit. Having a separate vegging area makes it a bit easier although my flower tent gets a little packed. Been doing it this way for 15 years...Oh yeah, does seem some friends visit bout every 2-3 weeks. Kinda think it's the weed and not my company.

I'm at the point where I need to move 2 more into the flower tent but about the only room I have left in there is for the fan. And the oldest one is still 4-6 from harvest.