Most Cannabis growers want to learn more about how to have an excellent autoflower yield. Most of them may have talent, but they still need more information. It can be a serious shortcoming when it comes to the cultivation of auto-flowering.
Autoflowering strains are one of the fads in the Cannabis community as they flower in just a matter of a short time. Although they can finish quickly, it can give you a decent yield, which is contrary to the belief of many growers.
To identify the maximum yield of auto-flowering Cannabis, you have to know how things would work for them. It would take 2 to 3 months to wrap things up with this plant, but it won’t happen with just letting them grow.
Ways to Maximize Autoflower Yield of Your Cannabis Plants
1. Beforehand Preparation
It’s critical to plan the plantation when you grow autoflowers. You can think of what growing medium you will use, or you would settle for soil, soilless, hydroponics. You also have to pick the nutrients that your plants need.
Light systems and ventilation are things that need your attention. It’s all about setting up your grow room. You have to weigh things in advance as the clock ticks.
If you’re clueless about the essential things mentioned above, you are unfortunately not ready to grow autoflower seeds. Other varieties of Cannabis can give you time to prepare after you have sown the seeds, but autoflowers are exemptions.
With autoflowers, the time matters as you soak the seeds in the water. Before you do it, you have to think of the ventilation, lighting, container, medium, space, and grow room.
There’s also a need to look for auto-flowering with the highest quality. Even if you do all the necessary things properly, but what you planted is not for high yields, you will be disappointed with the outcome.
You can choose from an array of strains that are capable of XXL to L production. Choose the one that can fit the space that you have.
2. Transplanting Shouldn’t be Considered
Again, autoflowers don’t give you much time; neither they have leeway for some mending. That’s why it’s recommended that autoflowers should be in their final containers.
There can be a shock from transplanting that can stunt the plant’s growth. With autoflowers, a day or two of vegetation matters a lot as it can affect the amount of autoflower yield.
Never make a mistake of transplanting auto-flowering plants even just once. But if you still want to go for transplanting, see to it that you use a similar medium. When your seedlings are placed in a potting mix of coco coir and compost, they should be transplanted to the same exact mixture.
You have to water the container as the mix should be moist before transplanting occurs. If the soil is too wet or dry, it can hurt the roots.
The roots must start to fill in the container as you can expect that the soil drops in clumps while the roots get stuck with them. It simply asks you to wait for the plant with bound roots before you do transplanting.
You may feel dizzy of many possible complications, so it’s best to grow directly to final containers. You can go on your way to have a good yield with no hassle.
3. Containers that Drain Well Work Best
Containers should be proportioned to the plants’ size. Medium plants would be fine with 5 to 7 gallon-container while the large ones fit more than 11 gallons.
So it’s important to choose the containers that can also drain well. You have to choose aerated soil for your auto-flowering plants. Fabric pots provide good drainage.
4. Reduction of Nutrient’s Strength
Beginners would tend to feed their plants with tons of nutrients resulting in nutrient burn. Too much love can kill you. In terms of plants, too much care would damage them and, yes, even end their lives.
You ought to know that photoperiod strains have bigger roots compared to the small ones of the autoflowers. So you have to adjust the nutrients for the latter.
Take this measurement as an example. If the nutrient chart says ‘5ml per liter’, you have to cut it down to a half or a quarter, so it’s either 2.5ml or 1.25 ml.
But there are ravenous auto strains like Gorilla Glue and Tanie Matic. Don’t go with high doses of nutrients right away. You can experiment and observe first the reaction of the plants. You can start with half-strength then add a bit more based on how the plants react.
5. Being Attentive With the pH Level
pH level contributes to the possible autoflower yield. It’s a vital thing to watch over whichever way you plant your weed. pH level should be checked if your plants are growing through hydroponics, soil, or other growing media.
Some growers would blame nutrient deficiency with some damages, but it is actually because of pH level. The required level of pH is based on the growing medium and method.
Soil plantation would require the highest level as the pH should be around 6.0 to 7.0. The hydroponic system needs 5.5 to 6.5 pH, which is what autoflowers need too. There are no exact numbers, but the average is from 5.5 to 6.5 pH.
When pH drops below 5.5, the plants will be incapable of absorbing magnesium and calcium, no matter how you feed them with these nutrients. It would be a similar condition when the level goes beyond 7.0.
The plant won’t be able to recover if the pH level is not correct. If there’s nutrient deficiency, the plant can’t work on developing a high yield. Checking the pH level is a way of maintaining the health of autoflowers.
6. Something With Light Cycle
One of the impressive traits of autoflowers is that it can survive in any condition and environment. They can grow even if they only receive 12 hours of light from seeds to finish time.
However, autoflowers prosper within 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness. Some cultivators give them around the clock light, but it deprives the plants to take a rest just like what humans need. Somehow, you can get a good yield, but it’s much better with 18/6.
Although autoflowers grow with any light cycle, the light source matters as they prefer LEDs and HPS over fluorescent and CFL. LEDs in the full spectrum have the best provision that autoflowers like.
Better lumens enhance the yield. But if you can’t afford it, CFLs are fine, and they work well during vegetation.
Some autoflowers grow outdoors, and they receive 12 hours of sunlight in a day. You may be wondering if it’s enough for them. Sunlight is the most powerful light source, and it’s stronger than the man-made light. So growing auto strains is an advantage when you want a favorable autoflower yield.
7. The Right Training Method for Autoflowers
Not all training methods work for autoflowers due to time restriction. The high-stress method only works well with photoperiod strains, but it doesn’t with autoflowers.
Growers need to apply Low-stress training for autoflowers. It is the method that the stems are being bent so the light can get to the lower part of the plants. It’s suitable for autoflowers as they develop single, huge cola, and the rest of the stems would let popcorn buds grow.
LST is done after topping, which is a way of cutting the main stem’s tip. It is a way of forcing the plant to grow more than one cola.
FIM can also be done with autoflowers. It is cutting only some parts of the tip and not the whole part.
Autoflowers respond well with either LST, topping, and FIM. But you have to make sure that the plants are healthy enough to handle possible stress. If the auto strain is unhealthy, it’s not good for training as it doesn’t have much time for recovery.
When the three methods are done to your auto-flowering plants, the result will be pretty awesome. You can do it during the third or fourth week as it is time that the strain starts to flower.
Leave your autoflowers untrained if you’re unsure of its condition, whether it’s healthy or not. Let it flourish by itself or feel sorry if you damage them.
Final Words
You can let auto strains grow by themselves since they can withstand any condition and environment. They finish faster than the photoperiod, and they are space savers as they grow into compact plants. These are some of the advantages.
Although it only grows into a small plant, it’s still possible to have a high autoflower yield. You only have to practice the tips and advice that were mentioned above. Growers should know the importance of time when they want to achieve a bountiful harvest.
0
