Are growing autos worth it?

[Donny061]

Are growing autos worth it? A bit faster maybe but you can flower photos earlier than some ppl typically do if you want, right? So not sure what a big benefit that is.

You don't have to fuss with lighting schedules. But a timer is barely hard to set and cheap to buy.

Topping/FIMING them may or may not be wise and most say not to.

You can't clone them so I'm sure over time seeds get pricey. Although if you're growing top shelf then yeah the cost is clearly worth it but certainly not compared to cloning over and over.

Yields might be smaller but from my understanding progress is being made on this front.

Probably you are using more electricity since you never step down to 12/12 and run 18/6 throughout.

All of these things lead me to believe they aren't really worth it.

Except for one benefit I see: the ability to just put plants in and take plants out at whim and not have a veg tent and flower tent. Since there is no special light schedule this easily facilitates a perpetual type setup in the same environment simply by staggering the start date. This is the biggest benefit and possibly the only one I personally see.

Are they worth it? The reason I ask is because despite everything I just said they still appeal to me for some reason lol. They just seem.... easy... and fast. I'm not sure that is accurate though because can't you induce flowering at 3 weeks with photos? Aren't there photo strains that finish quick once flower has started? Are autos REALLY faster after all? Are they easier? Using a timer doesn't appear to be hard.

But in the back of my head autos still hold this appeal to me. Then I start thinking of the cost of the seeds over a year's time and then over 3 years time etc... running the light the 6 extra hours at all time compared to the 12 during flower for photos.

Is running a perpetual setup with autos in the same tent really worth it? Are they in fact somehow easier? Am I overlooking some aspect? And lastly why are they so appealing lol bc they still, after all of this, have an appeal to me.

Any thoughts would be welcome. Thanks.

[jerry]

To my knowledge, autos have the additional advantage of being able to absorb 18 hours of light energy even during the flowering period, which could hypothetically mean more bud growth in a shorter time, dependent on genetics and environment. Personally, I wasn't able to get as good yields from autos as I can with photosensitive with my grow space, since I need to do a lot of topping to maximize the area of my small tent. I also prefer to use hydro, and I really haven't been able to find much information about growing autos in hydro environments online.
I think autos can be quite good depending on your situation and the space you have to grow it, like how much space you have and if you can get seeds cheaply etc.

[BlueBudz]

I’m with you Don. But some people love em!

[Vitreous]

Donny, here is my take,
I have friends use autos and I say MEH, they seem to grow smaller and slightly faster, oh by a week maybe two, hmm they never have the yield.... and as a matter of fact neither the potency, when compared to what I do.
The way I see it the the flower cycle should be relaxing to a plant and not so rushed. Genetic or not. Look at it this way, a flower period can last between 7,8,9,10 weeks in hydro, so how can you see the appeal if you already notice the yield, based on the same flower periods!?
I don't see the value, in smaller faster plants, I want great results and I have the patience, because I have created a cycle and stick to it.
When you look at the cost of seeds, who cares, whether you move the product or not it pays for itself based on how much you would end up spending other wise on some street grade baggies.
I harvest 6 crops a year, 2 babies at a time and have more than enough material to do what needs to be done. Friends with autos seem to run short between each harvest. Need I say more!?

[Donny061]

How long do you veg on average?

[St.buds]

8 to 10 weeks veg for me depends on how much hieght u have to work with

[Vitreous]

Hi Donny, My veg goes like this, I start each counted week beginning on a Sunday. (weekends I get the most time to do water changes and maintenance).
I start the first week 0 Sunday germinating, after a few days the seedling begins.
Week 1 - Seedling - 18/6 lighting
Week 2 - Early growth
Week 3 - Mid growth
Week 4 - Late veg growth normally the plants are around 18 inches
Week 5 - transition into flower stage 12/12 lighting
I provide a solid 4 weeks of veg growth. the girls average 4.5' tall during flower harvest.

[Donny061]

Unless I'm tripping right now I thought for sure I posted this as a comment in the sticky thread, "what is your biggest question about growing?"

I even remember clicking in the thread the next day to see if anyone commented. Did my comment get removed and turned into its own thread?

Am I tripping? Sorry I'm still learning how to use this specific forum and the rules etc.

[9fingerleafs]

There’s not much traffic over there and probably was moved over here by someone

[OzBud]

I got 20oz of potent bud in 71 days from Auto Afghan Kush.


Total cost for grow: $466.60 (US$364.60) running 600W HPS 24 hours a day from seed to harvest

Yield: 567g / 20oz

g per watt (light draw): 0.9g per wat

g per watt (total tent wattage) : 0.8 grams per watt

Cost to produce 1g of bud: $0.80 (US$0.63)

Hash Stash 272g / 9.6oz of sugar trim and chopped up reject buds (too small, too airy, too lazy to trim). I'll be using this to make some dry ice hash when I get around to it.

[oldjarhead100]

hey Ozbud I have a question for you I started 7 tutkahamond seeds 2 are amazing the rest very short small plants haven't taken off yet is this usual to plant 7 to get 2 that are growing good?

[OzBud]

Hey oldjarhead100 If the genetics and environment are good I would expect better results than that. It could possibly be Pyramid Seeds, I shouldn't say anything bad about them as I haven't grown any of their strains but I'm yet to hear of anyone I know personally having great success with their strains. Some on here haven't had much luck and a few mates of mine (seasoned growers both indoor and out) tried a heap of their stuff outdoors a few years ago, both auto and photo with really poor results even though other strains around them were fine. said they'd never try them again.

[oldjarhead100]

OZbud you had mentioned that when I first said I was starting the tuts my friend grows hydro and he started 7 as well all of his seen to be doing great maybe they are just hydro seeds lol

[9fingerleafs]

In my opinion. Unless you are planing to grow outdoors and can’t control the hours of light then you should stick with photos. A lot more control and chances to learn than just “letting it do it’s thing”

[Potted]

I’ve found some of the autos just aren’t that stable....... one grows good the other same seed does not?.. it seams to be a role of the dice as to which u get

[9fingerleafs]

Some breeders are not very serious about hybridization and many are not even aiming to monocrop. Many just want to cross strains and release them with other name

[DoctorJohnson]

> Are growing autos worth it?
Why not try growing a popular auto to see?

> So not sure what a big benefit that is.
Simplicity. No blackout tent required indoors, predictable flowering outdoors. 24-hour light capability.

> Topping/FIMING them may or may not be wise and most say not to.
I always top my autos. You'd be a fool not to, they produce so much better. I usually just snip node 5 at about 21 days and I'm done.

> You can't clone them so I'm sure over time seeds get pricey.
True. But consider that one $10 seed can give hundreds of dollars worth of product and it's a wash as far as I'm concerned.

> Yields might be smaller but from my understanding progress is being made on this front.
An auto grown by someone who knows what they're doing can produce a lot of good weed.

> Probably you are using more electricity since you never step down to 12/12 and run 18/6 throughout.
I give my autos 24 hours of light a day from seed to harvest. A timelapse camera shows that they grow all day long, nonstop, so that electricity is going right into product and your done in 11 weeks. Plants don't need to "sleep," despite what people think and say. (You can veg photos at 24/0 too, BTW. Time lapse shows they boogie nonstop as well.)

> To my knowledge, autos have the additional advantage of being able to absorb 18 hours of light energy even during the flowering period, which could hypothetically mean more bud growth in a shorter time, dependent on genetics and environment.
Autos will happily "absorb" 24 hours of light a day, and grow the whole time. My understanding is that C. ruderalis evolved in the far north (Siberia is what I read) so growing for long days in a short season.

> Personally, I wasn't able to get as good yields from autos as I can with photosensitive with my grow space, since I need to do a lot of topping to maximize the area of my small tent.
I bow to your experience with both, but as I said, topping autos is a no-brainer. Chop node 5 and you're done.

> I also prefer to use hydro, and I really haven't been able to find much information about growing autos in hydro environments online.
They do just fine in hydro. They love hydro. They're just plants after all. They don't require some special mojo.

Hope that helps...

BTW, the plant growing downstairs at the moment is a photo, but I do think that autos have their place--for beginners or people who just want simplicity, certainly.

[Donny061]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts

[jak397]

Are growing autos worth it? A bit faster maybe but you can flower photos earlier than some ppl typically do if you want, right? So not sure what a big benefit that is.

You don't have to fuss with lighting schedules. But a timer is barely hard to set and cheap to buy.

Topping/FIMING them may or may not be wise and most say not to.

You can't clone them so I'm sure over time seeds get pricey. Although if you're growing top shelf then yeah the cost is clearly worth it but certainly not compared to cloning over and over.

Yields might be smaller but from my understanding progress is being made on this front.

Probably you are using more electricity since you never step down to 12/12 and run 18/6 throughout.

All of these things lead me to believe they aren't really worth it.

Except for one benefit I see: the ability to just put plants in and take plants out at whim and not have a veg tent and flower tent. Since there is no special light schedule this easily facilitates a perpetual type setup in the same environment simply by staggering the start date. This is the biggest benefit and possibly the only one I personally see.

Are they worth it? The reason I ask is because despite everything I just said they still appeal to me for some reason lol. They just seem.... easy... and fast. I'm not sure that is accurate though because can't you induce flowering at 3 weeks with photos? Aren't there photo strains that finish quick once flower has started? Are autos REALLY faster after all? Are they easier? Using a timer doesn't appear to be hard.

But in the back of my head autos still hold this appeal to me. Then I start thinking of the cost of the seeds over a year's time and then over 3 years time etc... running the light the 6 extra hours at all time compared to the 12 during flower for photos.

Is running a perpetual setup with autos in the same tent really worth it? Are they in fact somehow easier? Am I overlooking some aspect? And lastly why are they so appealing lol bc they still, after all of this, have an appeal to me.

Any thoughts would be welcome. Thanks.

i am growing now since last summer never and its all autos i am using and they were great to start me off and get bud quick and i keep planting every week till my grow space fills up but i think i will switch to photos they sound a lot cheaper to grow buying auto seeds adds plus i get mixed germination results

[jak397]

from my experience the best auto seeds are white widow from seeds man

[Donny061]

I just bought some seeds and I got both kinds. I will start with the autos and see how it goes. But I also got some photos as well so I can try them after a couple of auto grows