18/6 or 24/7

[fallen]

Which is better for vegging etc.prior to going 12/12
18/6 or 24/7

i'd say 18 hours light, 6 hours dark.

not natural to have 24 hours light

 

[OldSkoool]

Musta been a cosmic intersect of mind thought...I was going to ask the same question, a poll of sorts from the guru's like Urdedpal for my next grow. I started off 18/6, then switched to 24/7 at 8 weeks of veg. My one, and only female (oh dashed hopes for two ladies) is flowering nicey, white pistols multipling like crazy 13 days into the flowering cycle.

OldSkoool

 

[smoke one]

I Heard That If U Use The 18/6 Method Then The Roots Grow Faster

 

[bombtrak81]

i'd say 18 hours light, 6 hours dark.

not natural to have 24 hours light

Its not natural to grow inside with a Light...i use 24 a day and have no problem but either will work

 

[NoDirtWeed4Me]

Up untill a few months ago I always used 24/0 light for veg and never had any problems. Since I've switched to 18/6 I haven't really noticed any difference from when I was on 24.

 

[RangerDanger]

I've tried all kinds of light cycles.
I've found that weed grows fastest on a 24/0 cycle.

Imo, medium and nutes have more to do with root growth than light cycles.

 

[cannaking]

plants grow during dark cycle, if you watch them closly you will notice when the lights come on after a 6 or 12 hour dark cycle there will be a change. Light is the energy gathering time. 24hours of light is not only more expensive but less effective. If it was a fact that plants grew faster throught 24 hour light cycles then the the grow guides would say that. It is only those who do not know what they are into that go with that method. Not that they are stupid but just not familiar with plants. Too much water, wind, light co2 or anything will kill, stunt, or slow growth. It's that simple.

 

[NoDirtWeed4Me]

The grow book I have, "Marijuana Grower's Insider's Guide", does say that 24/0 light increases growth rates.

Page 57

"Garden's grown under 24 hours of light a day do grow faster than those under 18 hours of daily light; but for many growers the cost of electricity outweighs the increase in rate of growth. Other growers reason that, considering the cost of marijuana, who cares about electrical costs? If electricity costs are a concern to you, 18 hour light cycles are your best choice."

Source:
Marijuana Grower's: Insider's Guide
Author: Mel Frank

 

[RangerDanger]

Growing under a 24/0 cycle is not more expensive, because pot grows faster than under 18/6. The pot is ready for flowering earlier.
I've done side-by-side comparisons.

Compare your growth rate to mine: 2" rooted clone to 15" & bushy in 3 weeks under 24/0 @ 50 watts HPS per sq/ft.

 

[Torco]

my last grow i let them veg on 24/0 i think they grew faster, bigger and busher

 

[MadameCrash]

I think it depends on your environment. For example, my room has very low humidity - like 29% which is pretty low for the veg cycle. Add a fan to this, and the plants show some signs of stress under 24/0 light cycle. (leaves slightly rumpled, slower growth rate)

However, the same plants in the same room thrive in the same conditions under a 18/6 light cycle. They also use more water and have larger root systems than the plants grown under 24/0.

So I think it really depends more on your environment. Take a good look at your plants, if they are not growing one new node every 24 hours in veg try changing the light cycle and see if that makes a difference.

MC

 

[skatterbrayne]

I think it depends on your environment. For example, my room has very low humidity - like 29% which is pretty low for the veg cycle. Add a fan to this, and the plants show some signs of stress under 24/0 light cycle. (leaves slightly rumpled, slower growth rate)

However, the same plants in the same room thrive in the same conditions under a 18/6 light cycle. They also use more water and have larger root systems than the plants grown under 24/0.

So I think it really depends more on your environment. Take a good look at your plants, if they are not growing one new node every 24 hours in veg try changing the light cycle and see if that makes a difference.

MC

I agree

This topic is like many that pertain to growing MJ…..People are on two sides of the fence, and there is conflicting info everywhere you go.

In the Marijuana Horticulture: Indoor/Outdoor Medical Grower’s Bible, by Jorge Cervantes, pg 38 he states ….. “ further research shows that vegetative plants grow faster under 24 hrs of light." This is in agreeance with Mel Frank's writings.


Then, in the same book, on page 175
A paragraph reads:

"Some growers leave the HID on 24 hours a day. Marijuana can efficiently process 16 to 18 hours of light per day, after which it reaches a point of diminishing returns, and electricity is wasted."

And to take the point further, on pg 20 the book states that fewer hours of daylight (among other things, lower temps, nitrogen, etc) increase the number of females, and it gives a theoretical example of 14 hrs.

But we all know that other literature out there states that the sex of a seed is predetermined, and that environmental conditions only contribute to hermaphroditism, NOT determining sex in general.

And I’ve seen so many do’s and don’ts proved wrong, that I am thoroughly convinced that each grower needs to follow basic guidelines, but for matters like this should do whatever seems to work best for them, their setup and that particular grow/strain. There are too many examples of great results from either opinion to call either ineffective.

 

[RangerDanger]

Madame Crash, it sounds like you don't have enough flo-thru ventilation.
MJ needs lots of fresh air for optimum growth.
My indoor plants, under 24/0, show no stress and believe me, they have lots of root mass. I grow in an ebb n flo set-up, in 6" net pots with gro-rox. By the time I put them into flowering, roots are sticking out 6" in every direction with a large "mat" of roots on the bottom.

 

[smoke one]

what about a 10 gallon tub for a soil grow

 

[greenmonkey]

lets take a trip back to chemistry class, every chemical reaction has a limiting factor meaning that with one of the ingredients run out than the reaction wont happen anymore. same with herb, any limiting factor will slow growth down. so if you give the plant enough air and nutes then it will use all the light it can.