Why did I get such a low yield?!

[respawned]

So I only got about 160 grams dried growing under two 400 watt hps bulbs in 4 bubblers. I planted 4 plants in each bubbler (16 total) and they grew like crazy so I was expecting more, at least 300 to 400.

Some more info, strain is ice, grown in 1 meter by 2.1 meter space with excellent ventilation and acceptable temps. Vegged for about 2 weeks under 400 watt MH, only real problem was nute burn which happened more than once. Also certain plants grew much quicker than others, basically taking over and stunting thier neighbours. I did chop a lot of lower branches before budding but there was still lots of stretching of and half formed buds that never saw the light.

I am making some changes for the next grow like adding a mesh for low stress growing and I also ordered some Misty and Chronic seed which are supposed to be good yeilders.

Our electricity where I live just went up 34% and is going up again by 40% so I really need to optimise, any advice or insight would be much appreciated.

 

[laserbrn]

Use a 600w lamp instead of two 400w's.

When I grew with 2x 400w's I used 10 plants. Keep the plants MUCH smaller and use more of them and cover a wider space. in a 1.2m x 1.2m space I was able to get 11 oz's out of 2x 400w lamps. It's a matter of filling it with a nice even canopy and cramming it in there. A screen will certainly help, but I think you'll use less electricity and increase your yields with less plants in the same space with a single 600w lamp.

I also grow in ebb & flow and can't really speak for the bubblers/DWC stuff though. Always seemed like more hassle than it was worth.

 

[monkeyinthemist]

what wattage were u using during flowering? 400w for 16 plants is low you should at least using 1000w hps ,but if you use this high of wattage you may need co2.

 

[MeisterYo]

Why low yield?

only real problem was nute burn which happened more than once. Also certain plants grew much quicker than others, basically taking over and stunting thier neighbours. I did chop a lot of lower branches before budding but there was still lots of stretching of and half formed buds that never saw the light.

 

[Green Cross]

10 grams per plant is pathetic

You probably harvested 5 - 6 weeks too soon.

Got any pre-harvest pics?

I get about 10 grams per watt - per month - but I include the weight of the trim, stems, and the used soil (still wet) in my final harvest weight lol

 

[greenlanter]

i have seen peeps grow 700 grms dry of budd of one plant ... using scrog plus co2 and pull and bent tecnique ... also if you stress ur plants yield may be afectrec but dude 16 pants , 100 plus grams no bueno... sit and reconsider where you went wrong and also look and study this art , i get atleast an o dryed per plant vegg one month and flower for two and a half ... 370 watts of cfls ...with sum lst and earth juice nutes ,vegg in hydro flower in soil all organic and with decent results ... see rosemans tutorial for bubleponics and read and absorb every word ... he knws his shit...

 

[laserbrn]

Right? I was thinking the same thing...10 grams /plant? How did you do that with 400w lights? There must've been some shit going on. I don't get anywhere near 1gram /watt (dried) as I'm attempting to do. But the #'s you are throwing out don't make any sense.

I don't even know how people can claim 1gram/watt dried, I gotta figure that shit out. 21 oz's off of a 600w light? How the fuck? Anyway, I digress...this yeild is really low and you gotta get it squared away.

I grew mine completely without effort this time. Didn't bother filling a canopy in or maximizing my space and I know I did better than 5 oz's with a 600w in half the space.

 

[respawned]

what wattage were u using during flowering? 400w for 16 plants is low you should at least using 1000w hps ,but if you use this high of wattage you may need co2.

I was using 800 watts for flowering and 400 for vegging.

 

[spike1499]

keep the nute temps in check. if there to high for to long you get poor bud growth no matter the lighting you use.

use 1 plant per 5gal bucket with dwc and you will get much bigger yeilds.

curuntly using 600w in 1mt sq with 3 buckets average yeild 3oz p/p dry without trim and popcorn they don't count.

growem green------------------spike.

the 3 pics are of 1 plant per pic in 1mt sq. veg for 2 weeks.

 

[respawned]

Use a 600w lamp instead of two 400w's.

When I grew with 2x 400w's I used 10 plants. Keep the plants MUCH smaller and use more of them and cover a wider space. in a 1.2m x 1.2m space I was able to get 11 oz's out of 2x 400w lamps. It's a matter of filling it with a nice even canopy and cramming it in there. A screen will certainly help, but I think you'll use less electricity and increase your yields with less plants in the same space with a single 600w lamp.

I also grow in ebb & flow and can't really speak for the bubblers/DWC stuff though. Always seemed like more hassle than it was worth.

Yeah I see that 600watt bulbs are most efficient but the thing is I only have 400 watt ballasts which I get for very cheap.

 

[respawned]

keep the nute temps in check. if there to high for to long you get poor bud growth no matter the lighting you use.

use 1 plant per 5gal bucket with dwc and you will get much bigger yeilds.

curuntly using 600w in 1mt sq with 3 buckets average yeild 3oz p/p dry without trim and popcorn they don't count.

growem green------------------spike.

the 3 pics are of 1 plant per pic in 1mt sq. veg for 2 weeks.

Here is a pic, (the only one I got) of the biggest plant. That plants' cola weighed in at 28 grams and it had lots of side buds as well, the plant that was behind it barely grew at all. Most of the yield came from 4 of the bigger plants.

 

[spike1499]

root space looks like your answer.

growem green---------------spike.

 

[respawned]

root space looks like your answer.

growem green---------------spike.

So you think one 45 liter tank per 4 plants is too little? Or I should grow smaller plants, that is what I am planning to do next grow. Maybe veg for one week only.

 

[spike1499]

hi respawned .
give smaller plants ago and see how you get on, i tryed 3 plants in a 25ltr with my early set up and got the same results as your self.

do you know what your rez temps have bin sitting at?

growem green------------spike.

 

[respawned]

hi respawned .
give smaller plants ago and see how you get on, i tryed 3 plants in a 25ltr with my early set up and got the same results as your self.

do you know what your rez temps have bin sitting at?

growem green------------spike.

The res temps have been quite cool, around 16 to 18 deg celsius.
I did notice the roots were only growing along the sides where the long air stones were placed, with no growth in the center, so I think adding more air stones will allow for more roots to grow. But I am definitely going to keep my plants smaller from now on.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[AFaQ]

You only vegged for two weeks u nute burned and u probably didn't flower long enough...u must not be that smart because every guide on this site says something about those things and you listed them all... Try search pls

 

[respawned]

You only vegged for two weeks u nute burned and u probably didn't flower long enough...u must not be that smart because every guide on this site says something about those things and you listed them all... Try search pls

Thanks for the input I vegged for two weeks in the bubbler and the plants were already 8 inches tall so there was no need to veg for longer, as it is the plants got too big. I did flower long enough, 9 weeks, about 10% amber trichomes. I burnt the plants twice with nute burn, once by accident (yeah it happens and this is my first bubbler) and once when my pump broke.

If you dont have anything usefull to say rather dont say anything.

 

[AFaQ]

Thanks for the input I vegged for two weeks in the bubbler and the plants were already 8 inches tall so there was no need to veg for longer, as it is the plants got too big. I did flower long enough, 9 weeks, about 10% amber trichomes. I burnt the plants twice with nute burn, once by accident (yeah it happens and this is my first bubbler) and once when my pump broke.

If you dont have anything usefull to say rather dont say anything.

8 inches isnt much
id say 12 at least to start blooming

 

[OregonMeds]

Need pictures to see what's wrong but I'm guessing you had your 400w lights a little too far away or something like that. But... If you have high electric costs a 600 or 1kw light would pay for itself instantly in both electric savings and mucho higher yield every single run. (Well a 1k would be slightly higher electic but so very worth the little difference from two 400's.)


400's just don't have the power to create weight like the larger lights. Two 400's burn way more power than one 600 but will always yield way less than a 600. Ditch the little lights and next time just post a journal with pictures along the way so we can advise as you go too.

 

[respawned]

8 inches isnt much
id say 12 at least to start blooming

They could have been a bit bigger, cant remember exactly and I never really measure but I know that they grew big, at least 26 inches tall. I'll attach the pic again, that bud alone was 12 inches long which is why I dont think vegging time was my problem here.