In this guide you will find useful tips for growing autoflowering marijuana indoors and outdoors, discover the best techniques for growing autoflowering plants.
Autoflowering cannabis is a particular variety of weed, which unlike the other two species, indica and sativa , is not photodependent. So despite the hours of the light cycle, autoflowering seeds produce plants, which will flower after a growth period that does not exceed 25-35 days.
As for flowering times, they range from 35 to 50 days. In conclusion, by growing autoflowering marijuana, plants can be mature and ready for harvesting, in a minimum of 65 days with the fastest varieties, up to a maximum of 80-90 days for the xxl autoflowering varieties.
Sales statistics in hand, without any doubt, it can be said that autoflowering seeds have far exceeded the sales of their feminized sisters.
This is due to their speed of growth and their small stature, which make them easily cultivable in gardens, balconies and low and narrow spaces for those who practice indoor growing. Nowdays, all seed banks have varieties of autoflowering seeds in their catalog such as: Dinafem , Sweet Seeds , Barney's Farm , Royal Queen Seeds , Sensi Seeds , etc.
If you are interested in learning more about the difference between feminized and regular autoflowering seeds, feel free to consult our article: Differences between autoflowering and regular feminized seeds
Auto flower growing guide tips
Cultivating autoflowering plants has for some years now become almost a trend in the circles of European growers. It will be for the ease, or for the small size, the fact is that everyone has tried to use this type of genetics.
In this article, let us try to understand the substantial differences and benefits of growing autoflowering cannabis compared to traditional marijuana plants .
As already mentioned above, the substantial difference is the non-dependence of the photoperiod. As mentioned, this expedient means that we would have rapid and immediate flowering even in periods of the year with increasing hours of light (eg February-July).
Nevertheless, autoflowering cannabis plants require different nutrients quanties than traditional plants. For example, since the vegetative phase is very short, nitrogenous fertilizers must be used in low quantity, as just after 25-30 days the food needs of the autoflowering plant change towards flowering.
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Furthermore, always considering the rapid growth and therefore rooting phase, pots over 15-18 liters are not recommended, as autoflowering marijuana would not have the time to propagate the roots completely in the root ball.
Another suggestion is not to make too many pourings. Automatic cannabis plants do not tolerate constant stress from transfers.
Outdoor autoflowering how to grow them
How to grow outdoor autoflowering plants? Let's start by describing the growth and flowering times of these cannabis seeds: In our latitudes, autoflowering seeds can befrom April, if the season allows it, while towards mid-August we will be able to germinate the last autoflowering seeds of the season.
The maturation times, as mentioned above, are determined not by the hours of light, but by the genetics of autoflowering marijuana that we cultivate. Usually indica-dominant genetics, such as cream caramel auto, are the fastest, being ready to harvest after just 60-65 days from germination.
While the more sativa strains, such as the autoflowering ak 47 marijuana and the auto xxl versions can take 75-90 days to harvest. The aforementioned periods for growing autoflower plants outdoors are closely linked to the seasonal trend.
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To be clear, the same plant cultivated from April to early June will never produce like the one germinated in mid-late May and harvested between the end of July and the beginning of August. This is because the two periods provide very different climatic conditions, from daylight hours to temperatures.
Our opinion regarding the cultivation of autoflowering marijuana is that they express themselves much better in outdoor cultivation. In fact, outdoor self-flowering plants are able to give their maximum expression with sunlight much more than with artificial light.
With autoflowering cannabis outdoors it is possible to carry out up to 3-4 cycles per season where the latitudes allow it, such as for example in southern Spain where the hot season lasts a long time. When growing autoflower outdoors it is good to ensure an average large pot. We can suggest at least 12-15 liter pots. which is not recommended indoors.
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Indoor autoflower growing times
Indoor autoflower growth and flowering times and the ideal hours of light for these genetics: For years now, many growers have preferred to grow indoor autoflowering plants, given the excellent organoleptic qualities and discreet production that the varieties of autoflowering seeds offer.
The maturation times are very similar to those of outdoor cultivation, but in indoor growing the flowering days are slightly longer, this is also due to the light source we have.
To grow autoflowering plants indoors, the hours of light must be set between 18 to 20 hours a day for the entire life cycle of the plant, from germination to harvesting. To learn more about scheduling daylight hours, consult our guide: Daylight hours in cannabis cultivation
The two schools of thought on the hours of light to be given to indoor self-flowering plants:
18 hours of light are considered canonical for the indoor cultivation of autoflowering marijuana , guaranteeing good harvests.
While the 20 hours are exalted by some growers as a panacea for a greater final production, many argue that after 18-19 hours of light the plant goes into stress, having very few hours of rest from its biological activities.
In fact, when growing autoflower plants indoors, electricity consumption must be taken into consideration, which is at least 1/3 higher than normal feminized plants. 18 or 20 hours for 60-70 days is much more expensive than 18 hours for 15-30 days of vegetative growth as in the case of normal or feminized plants. Choose the best lamp for autoflowering plants.
It’s possible to grow autoflower outdoor in the winter
A frequently asked question is whether it is possible to grow autoflower seeds outdoors in winter. Unfortunately the answer is no!. To grow cannabis, of any species or variety, a mild climate and longer hours of light, in the spring or summer months, are of fundamental importance for the growth and development of any type of cannabis plant .
Cannabis plants are so resistant that if grown in winter, they would go into a sort of vegetative quiescence stasis, which would stop its growth and then resume in the warmer months. So to grow cannabis outdoors you will have to wait for the right season. From the beginning of spring and it will be possible to germinate autoflowering marijuana seeds until mid-August. While growing cannabis indoors gives the possibility of producing autoflowering weed all year round.
How much is autoflower yield?
How much does a flowering autoflowering cannabis plant produce ? This is the most common question cannabis seed sellers get asked. The answer is not simple at all, as there can be many factors that can affect the right production of an autoflowering seedling during flowering.
How much weed does an indoor plant produce?
Let's say that an autoflowering, if cultivated with care, with suitable soil and the right doses of fertilizer, can produce an average of 30 to 40 grams.
While among the xxl autoflowering varieties there are varieties that can produce up to 100-120 grams, such as the famous Magnum by buddha seeds, or the xxl varieties by dinafem or sweet seeds. Unfortunately, all expert growers know of the inhomogeneity of the plants produced by flowering autoflowering marijuana , therefore the per capita production figures per plant are not to be considered guaranteed, even if we follow strictly all the cultivation rules. If you want to learn more, consult our guide: Cannabis flowering, how to deal with it without making mistakes.
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To test the flowering of autoflowers , some experiments were done on how to grow cannabis. Let's see in detail what it is: 100 plants of the same variety were planted, giving them all the same conditions, from the soil, to the hours of light and the same type of fertilization. At the end of the cultivation, completely inhomogeneous plants were found, with very different productions, specimens weighing 45 grams, others weighing 12, still others weighing 20 and so on.
Taking the average of the total harvest, we arrived at the figure of 20-35 grams for each autoflowering plant. So we could say that the limit of flowering autoflowering cannabis varieties is certainly the lack of homogeneity. For more information, consult our guide on harvesting and drying cannabis
Which tools i need to grow autoflowering strains
On how to grow autoflowering marijuana, you can buy an indoor autoflowering cultivation kit if you want to grow all year round, or an outdoor autoflowering cultivation kit to grow outdoors in the spring/summer period. As these plants will remain small, it is pointless to use large pots (over 15-16 litres). While we do not recommend small pots under 7 liters because the plants would produce early flowering.
Multiple transfers are not recommended, at most one in the full vegetative phase, but our advice is to germinate the cannabis seed and place it directly in the final pot.
Choosing a good potting soil is fundamental for growing autoflowering strains.
