Anyone have any experience growing autos outside?

Seawood said:

I’ve tried autos multiple times outdoors. Yields were crap (1- 3 zips), terps lacking, temperamental, lower potency, airy buds, mold issues due to high summer humidity. I don’t see the point unless you are way north and have no choice. I’ve come to the conclusion that anything crossed with Ruderalis is sub-par. I’ll never grow another one, inside or out. The return on investment just isn’t there.

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RandMGrower420 said:

I recently picked up some auto seeds and wanted to start a new grow. I’m currently in the beginning of spring where I’m at and thinking of doing an outdoor grow. Only problem is the research I’ve done on autos outside is pretty inconclusive. Some people swear by autos outdoors others say to never do it. Just wanting to get some answers or just the general experience you had with autos outdoors. I have the plants starting indoors under an LED and was thinking about just letting them veg complete before putting them outside. Tbh I’m pretty clueless when it comes to autos and outdoors lol. Any answers would be appreciated. Thanks

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Week4@inCharge said:

Kinda of related, I started a few Autos inside and one (Cream Caramel) was just not wanting anything to do with growing right, all twisted and alien like. Took her outside and started using aquarium water instead of the bottled water. and...
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Humanrob said:

I started with photos outdoors, now all I grow are autos outdoors. Where I live the summers are pretty dry, but the fall can be wet and cold, so with autos I'm done before that weather arrives -- without a sealed greenhouse or light dep. If you need pounds, then stick with photos, but with 4 outdoor autos I can harvest enough to take some of the pressure off of winter indoor growing. Depending on whether they are in pots or in the ground and what kind of weather we had, I average about 3-5oz per plant. That's enough for me.

Just like photos, you need to do some research and find strains that are mold resistant. They do have an added complexity with their veg time being built in, so there is less recovery from setbacks, and for instance since they are cold sensitive they can get stunted if you put them out too early. It's like anything else, it can take a season/year or two to figure out what works for you. For my climate and needs, I'll never go back to photos.

Here's some pics...
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Week4@inCharge said:

I'll be happy if mine come out like that. Everything seems to be coming out ok, save one of the ladies have some uninvited guests that love to eat away at her leaves. I look under there and don't see nothing. Hopefully the predatory critters I dumped couple days ago take care of whatevers eating her.

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Humanrob said:

Those pics are from 2020, one of my better summers, those plants pulled mostly 5-6oz each (they were in the ground, it makes a big difference). Last summer I switched to growing in pots, we had a brutal heat wave, and I was testing growing in a partial structure, and cool wet weather came in fast at the end of the summer. That's all to say, I lost some plants to mold at the end and others did not hit their full potential. Those factors diminished the harvest, plants that finished well produced around 3-4oz, ones that were stunted or had parts with mold cut off came in lower, mostly around 2oz.

As far as bugs go, the only one I've had to deal with so far is moths/worms, so I grow under netting, but that's a whole other conversation. There are a lot of factors at play outdoors, results can be hit or miss... but when it goes well, it's really worth it.

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Week4@inCharge said:

Understanding why some would rather grow indoors with these Autos, more control of the DLI. Mine are about a foot high and now flowering. So they might grow another foot before Harvest?
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Humanrob said:

No doubt, there is way more control indoors. I've had one outdoor plant (Mephisto Walter White) hit 11oz, and a Blueberry that was 1.5lbs. I've never gotten more than 4 ounces from an auto indoors, so for me that's the difference in the potential, but not every summer has the right combination of warm and dry to get optimal results.

As far as yours go, it seems that the number of hours of direct sunlight, the temperature (and very importantly, overnight lows), and the genetics are the key factors in determining size. Also, obviously; pot size, medium, nutes, etc. How many hours of direct sunlight do they get, and how many hours a day are the temps over 70º where you are?

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Week4@inCharge said:

Maybe 6 or 7 of direct lighting. Probably should move the whole thing to get more. And temps over 70, probably 20 hours over 70. Coachella Valley, low desert weather.

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Humanrob said:

Nice! Sounds like you are in a good place for growing. I get about the same amount of sunlight, but springtime here can be cold at night (and throughout the morning) for young plants, so depending on the year, that starting point will determine the final outcome's potential regardless of how warm the rest of the summer is. I've thought about building a true greenhouse, but have ended out leaning more towards grow techniques that adapt to the environment I have.

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