Light vs yield question (Autos vs photos, 18/6 or 12/12)

[Rifleman]

I am running two autos beside two photo plants. I've been considering switching from a 16/8 to a 12/12 schedule to start the photos flowering. The autos are almost 40 days old , and according to breeder info have another 3 to 4 weeks. My questions to those who might have the experience are; Will I sacrifice my auto yield by switching to 12/12 now? If so by what percentage would you guess? Or would the 12/12 be better for my autos since they seem to need the dark period to grow and repair just like we do? (600-750w hps, hydro)

I appreciate all comments, especially from those that might have experience in this issue. Pics on page 5 of my journal are the latest (last Fri) if you want to take a look.

Thanks

 

[exile19]

Read Autoflower Pro's and Con's?, decreasing light I think will decrease yield, grown autos like the low care you have to give them.

 

[BuddroGreen]

I'm not an expert on Auto's but from all the articles and posts all over the internet forums I've read is that 18-6, 20-4 is the best light cycle for yield for auto's, more leaning towards 20-4

 

[Rifleman]

Reckon I'll just run with them as is. It's working so far.

 

[Rodrigo]

Taking into consideration that auto's yield is very low, whatever decrease in yield you might experience (I don't believe you will) is probably not going to be more than 3-6 grams, maybe 8 if they are big and actually have a decent yield (over 45-50g).
Have you grown those autos before under 18/6 from start to finish? If you have then you have a benchmark on normal yield for that strain.

I think you should focus on your photo plants, if they are ready to flower then go for it and let the autos follow suit. As I said before, IF you experience a decrease in yield I don't think it will be over 5g.

Hope this helps.

Good luck and happy growing!!

 

[Rifleman]

Taking into consideration that auto's yield is very low, whatever decrease in yield you might experience (I don't believe you will) is probably not going to be more than 3-6 grams, maybe 8 if they are big and actually have a decent yield (over 45-50g).
Have you grown those autos before under 18/6 from start to finish? If you have then you have a benchmark on normal yield for that strain.

I think you should focus on your photo plants, if they are ready to flower then go for it and let the autos follow suit. As I said before, IF you experience a decrease in yield I don't think it will be over 5g.

Hope this helps.

Good luck and happy growing!!

I haven't grown any, ever. Haven't been able to find anyone that has grown this strain either. I definitely have two different phenos going, one short and fat, and one twice as tall but not as fat. I've started supercropping the photos now to spread them open. I should have been training them all along but I didn't. I might veg them under the screen for a few weeks after I pull the autos. I'm having fun, learning, and taking copious notes for comparisons to later grows.

 

[Rodrigo]

Well, all I can tell you is that in my experience, unless you have a lot of space and not so much resources or time to care for a full photo system, autos are not worth the trouble. Whereas I normally get from 55-75 gr per photo plant, I've never gotten more than 11 from an auto, they're just not worth it, regardless of strain or phenotype.

As I mentioned before, you should use your photo plants as guides on how to proceed, the autos will keep doing their stuff regardless of what you do what you do with the light schedule or nutrient intake and won't get very big or bushy.
The photo plants, on the other hand, will keep growing and growing and you have to remember that most strains get at the very least almost twice as big when you switch them to flowering.
So if you wait until your autos are ready to pull and THEN switch your lights to flowering for the photos, then they may have gotten too big and overload your available space. This may cause you problems controlling the environment, not enough light will reach the bottom branches (which will lead to a lot of popcorn), when the tops are too far from the base it makes it difficult for the plant to get water and nutrients up there, this will definitely affect overall yield and may very well affect the quality of the medicine, not only because less good stuff will reach the tops, but also because the plant uses too much energy to move things around instead of concentrating its energy on growth and flowering.

cheers.