How Much Will I Yield?

SmokeyMacPot

New Member
How Much Will I Yeild?
"I have XXX watts...how much will I yield?" or "How can I get bigger yields?"

A common inquiry. From ambitious new gardeners and for good reason too. But, this is really a loaded question that doesn't have a definite answer. It seems one of the first assumptions by new gardeners is that loads of light automatically equals loads of buds. Unfortunately, it's just not that simple. Yield is equally contingent on a number of factors; light, temperature, humidity, water, nutrients, CO2/ventilation, genetics, etc. Think of it as an engine, with each factor of cultivation representing a single piston, sure the engine will run if some of the cylinders are misfiring or not firing at all, but to yield the most power from that engine, all cylinders must be firing in sync and at maximum capacity.

Temperature. Most cannabis plants will slow or cease growth when temp's get above 85F, or below 65f. Optimal lights-on temp for most strains is about 72-78F, with 5-10 degrees cooler during the dark period being a good rule of thumb.

Humidity. Cannabis does best around 45%-55% RH (relative humidity).
During veg and late flower, however letting it drop lower during the final two weeks of flower is advised, as it will help prevent mould problems.

Water/moisture. Cannabis generally doesn't like "wet feet", or a soggy environment, so it's very important to have a fast draining soil/soil-less mix (or well aerated solution in a hydro garden). Wet or damp conditions can also lead to mould problems during flowering.

Nutrients. Cannabis will require a variety of nutrients at varying NPK ratios during its existence. NPK stand for; nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K)-the three major nutrients used by plants. Simply put, your plants will need a fertilizer with more N than P and K during vegetative growth and fertilizer with more P than N and K during flowering. Using any well-known quality fertilizer applied per instruction @ ½ strength is a good place to start. Organic, chemical, or somewhere in-between is another choice to be made and is a totally personal one. There is a plethora of fertilizers on the market, but the best fertilizer is the one that's used properly.

CO2/ventilation. Plants require CO2. There is sufficient CO2 in our atmosphere to support massive bud growth, but when growing inside you must either have adequate ventilation (the volume of the room exhausted at least once/5 minutes) to ensure that there is a constant supply of fresh, CO2 enriched air or one must have supplemental CO2, which requires higher temp's and more nutrients to be utilized effectively.

Light. Typically, the more the merrier, but more light will create stronger water, nutrient, and CO2 demands on the plants. You must also have the proper spectrum of lighting as well as a means of efficiently reflecting as much of the light as possible into the garden\'s canopy. The norm is to use more bluish light (Metal Halide, cool-white fluorescents) for vegetative growth and more reddish (High Pressure sodium, warm fluoro's) light for flowering. Though it's possible to grow great buds under fluorescent lighting and a few will even argue their superiority to HID's, most indoor growers use High Intensity Discharge lights such as MH and HPS, and many use fluoro's for vegetative growth and HPS for flowering. It's very important to have the light as physically close to the canopy as possible without burning the foliage and still allowing for even coverage.Many new growers believe that "Droppin the light" closer to the plant will be beneficial. Besides heat stress, the bulb puts out radiant energy that causes leaf burn (Note it is possible to complete a grow using just HPS or MH)

Genetics. Its an easily overlooked factor. Some strains simply have the potential to yield more than others. Having a heavy-yielding strain doesn't automatically equal big yields, either. It only means that the potential for heavy yields is there. The grower must provide the optimum environment for that particular strain in order for it to be able to reach it's yield potential, and each strain has slightly unique requirements. Also, within a strain there are usually several phenotypes, each of which will exhibit unique characteristics which is to say that some pheno\'s of a particular strain will weigh more than others.

Plant/root/container size. Obviously, the longer a plant is veg'd, the bigger it will get and the more it will yield. Almost always overlooked because they're unseen are the roots. Root mass is directly related to bud production. Simply put, the more roots you have the more bud you will (potentially) have. Be sure to always allow plenty of space for the roots to grow and spread out, even more-so in soil A general rule of thumb is 1 gallon of soil for every foot of plant height.

System.
Scrog/Sog/Vertical gardens
These systems have a higher g/w/time yield than comparable large plant system over the same time period.

Grower's skill. Growers can add yield by: using additives (like B1, kelp, enzymes), foliar feeding, and topping/FIM/

In addition. Tricks like keeping nutrients and the air temps warm during night cycle can help final yield. Although it's a topic of hot debate, it's generally thought that any system that supplies the roots with maximum oxygen (aeroponics) would outperform a system that restricts 02 input such as (soil).
So, as you can see there's much more to yield than throwing some plants under tons of light with tons of nutes. Before one becomes too concerned with yield, one must first learn how to grow plants well, learn how to "listen" to the plants and give them just what they need. It's best to start with simpler methods, in fact, I think the simpler method is always the better one. Learn how to grow strong, healthy, fast-growing plants and the yields will come.

Author: Sun is Shining
 
not necessarily, I have just put a plant into 12/12 cycle and I expect upwards to 10 -12 ounces from it. I supercropped the crap out of it 2 months ago when it was about 2 months old from seed. I have it under a 600 watt hps moving on a track.
 
Not if he vegged it 4 months under a big light lol. That would be a pretty good-sized plant.

Scrog?
 
It's best to start with simpler methods, in fact, I think the simpler method is always the better one. Learn how to grow strong, healthy, fast-growing plants and the yields will come.
Best advice for all new growers K.I.S.S.
SmokeyMacPot summed it up above nicely. Thanks man.
 
To: SmokeyMacPot

Hi,

"Grower's skill. Growers can add yield by: using additives (like B1, kelp, enzymes), foliar feeding, and topping/FIM/"

Would you consider Spray-n-Grow an additive to help increase yield? I use different fertilizers. I bought Alaska Fish and I thought about buying kelp or seaweed to go along with the Alaska but when I read the specs, I thought I was wasting my money, so I didn't buy it. Any suggestions?

I've read alot of things about spray-n-grow. I'm trying not to kill my plants with kindness buying over doing it. I feed them with Jacks Classic 20-20-20, black strap molasses, supernova 1-1-1, Miracle Gro Organic Choice Plant food 8-0-0, seabird guano 10-10-2 and Alaska Fish 5-1-1 (only every 3 weeks). I have some earth worm castings but I haven't given it to them yet. I bought Earth Juice 0-0-10 but only gave it to them once. I think I shouldn't have bought this product.
 
Reading this, I remember an old hippie freind saying he smokes his buds with his ladies for CO2, now I dont have time to be at home smoking with my babies(as much as I would love to just chill in the G room) so whats an efficient source of CO2?
 
I'm ripping this from Mel Thomas. However, I've found it to be a fairly accurate gauge over time. As pointed out before, though, there are a great many factors that influence the outcome. This assumes that you are doing a "good" job however...

SOG/single stalked plants ((grown small & crowded together)) = appx 10-14g per plant (I've seen it down to 7g per for a purple variety & 3.5 when something went horribly wrong)

Large indoor bush/tree ((assumes good genetics)) = appx 250g per plant (this must be very difficult to do...?)

Medium indoor bush of Shiva Shanti = appx 125-150g per plant (probably best goal within limits)

2 plants per square foot average ((smaller overall, but not SOG)) = appx 14-20g per plant

ScROG ((depending upon size/how elaborate)) = appx 20-70g per plant

Outdoor Indica = up to appx 1lb per plant

Outdoor Sativa = up to appx 2lb per plant

These are all dry-finished weights & assumes everything is done properly & with love. As you can see, ranges are substantial. Nonetheless, I've found these no to be fairly accurate/helpful. Hope this helps. Best all!
 
Reading this, I remember an old hippie freind saying he smokes his buds with his ladies for CO2, now I dont have time to be at home smoking with my babies(as much as I would love to just chill in the G room) so whats an efficient source of CO2?

I would think that since your friend is getting CO along with the CO2, along with a bunch of "tar" substances that are contained within the smoke and which will eventually coat the leaves (and thus hinder transpiration)... that this would be a bad idea whether you had the time or not.

Only efficient source of CO2 that I know of for a GR is a bottle, regulator, and controller.

Then there are the "fizzy-tabs," dry ice, fermentation buckets and the like.
 
Efficient work or goal achievement is not just more for less. If you brew your own beer, you run a tube to your grow. To create ethanol for extractions of great potential and demonstrated medical value, you could brew to distill whatever. If you have a lot of corn, you could get all that and auto fuel too with supplemental sideline CO2 available. If ease and precision are paramount, bottled gas and the gear do it. We replace nature when we supply every need of our cultivation, but should be open to natures' help when available. Modern air has a lot more CO2 than preindustrial air for the most part. If you close your grow you must scrub the air, affect control of temps and humidity and affect control of oxygen and carbon dioxide. And move it around nicely. In a big productive closed growroom, the gas units with heat removal by water look like da kine.

PG
 
I have a high yielding pukka armaggedon crop on go and can expect upto 1000g per sq/m. But again its all about giving your crop the best growing environment possible. The pukka seed company state 350-1000g per sq/m so there is quite a huge margin there.:cool:
 
Back
Top Bottom