Diff's Indoor Auto Grows (2020)

Been around RIU since 2009 (off/on). I've been growing for 2 years now w/ nothing but Fastbuds autos. Tried Girl Scout Cookies, Gorilla Glue, Green Crack, Blue Dream and Six Shooter last year (all FBs autos). Figured i'd start a new journal for this years grows. Here's a quick run down of my setup and what strains i've chosen for this year.

4'x2'x5' tent
150w HPS, 600w LED (20 on/4 off)
4'' exhaust fan + 4'' carbon filter
4'' intake fan
3 small fans inside tent for circulation
window unit inside room to help control temps
Soil (Ocean Forest, Happy Frog, Perilite mix)
Strains: Girl Scout Cookie (x10), Northern Lights (x3), Strawberry Cheescake (x3) *all auto feminized*

The 150W HPS is new to the tent this year. I'll be running 4 girls per run. Will be happy if I can get 6oz per run (should get more than that if everything goes right).

Here's some pics of the GSC girls from last year! Fought some pH/drainage issues in 2 seperate runs.

Day 21 (Girl Scout Cookie x1)
Germination stage (Girl Scout Cookie x2, Northern Lights x1, Strawberry Cheesecake x1) *ALL AUTOS*

Things are moving along well. I've installed my 150W HPS, which is a huge upgrade from the LEDs. Producing a lot of heat right now, so i'm testing some different things out today. I have a window A/C unit in the room, but am trying to use it the least amount possible.

3 fans inside tent for air circulation
x2 4'' intake fan exhausting outside tent

Day 22 (GSC x1)
Germination stage (GSC x2, NL x1, SCC, x1)

The GSC exploded with growth overnight, my guess from the added HPS light. Temps have been steady between 78-82, RH holding at 35%.

Nice nice nice!

Day 24 (GSC x1)
Day 2 (GSC x2, NL x1, SCC x1)

Much needed rain today!! Our RH has been horrible, it was nice to see RH at 45%!!!!! Haven't seen that since October. I'm sure the girls will enjoy the spring time weather that is headed this way.

Big GSC girl is thriving under this HPS! I'm trying to avoid stretching by keeping her 6-12'' away and keeping an eye on temps. While i'm gone at work I raise the light to 12-15'' away. Once i'm back home i lower it to 6-8'' and turn the window A/C on. My 24 hr high temp is 84 with a low of 77. RH in the past 24 hr range from 24%-45%. Haven't watered in 4 days, but the 3 gallon pot is still heavy enough I can wait a couple more days.

All 4 of my seedlings have broke soil!! The Strawberry Cheesecake was the first yesterday while the other 3 poked out this morning. For now they are directly under a 300W LED and 12'' away. The big GSC is centered under the HPS for now.

Day 26 (GSC x1, BD x1)
Day 4 (GSC x2, NL x1, SCC x1)

I had a Blue Dream Auto that had a very rough transplant (root mass fell apart) that I thought wasn't going to make it. 10 days after transplant it looked exactly the same. But it has finally started growing. It is just as old as the GSC, but it is much further behind. Blue Dream auto is already one i've had to go almost 90 days!! This one will probably take 100! GSC is a consistent 63 day harvest for me.

Second batch is doing well except for the NL. For some reason it doesn't have any leaves growing out, just the two cotyledons. I'll post a pic, it's the bottom right solo cup.

GSC/BD (day 26)




GSC/NL/SCC (day 6)

Two on the left are GSC, top right Strawberry Cheesecake and bottom right Northern Lights (all autos). second pic is a closeup of NL

Day 27 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 5 (x2 GSC, x1 NL, x1 SCC)

I'm going to try out some LST with the older GSC. Got me some safety pins and pipe cleaners. I bent her over and we shall see what happens. I've never done anything to my girls, just let them go freely.

NL seedling seems to be growing it's first set of true leaves. They are small, but I see a difference this morning. Hopefully that doesn't effect my yield too much on that girl, I was hoping for some good NL smoke (never grown it before).

TheDifferenceX said:

Day 27 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 5 (x2 GSC, x1 NL, x1 SCC)

I'm going to try out some LST with the older GSC. Got me some safety pins and pipe cleaners. I bent her over and we shall see what happens. I've never done anything to my girls, just let them go freely.

NL seedling seems to be growing it's first set of true leaves. They are small, but I see a difference this morning. Hopefully that doesn't effect my yield too much on that girl, I was hoping for some good NL smoke (never grown it before).

Click to expand...

Hello mate I’m also doing Girl Scout cookies by fast buds but this is my first ever autoflower grow and I don’t know if I have made a mistake by listening to others on here I topped them and lst them I think I have slowed them down there on day 38 and no signs of flowers yet

new grower rory said:

Hello mate I’m also doing Girl Scout cookies by fast buds but this is my first ever autoflower grow and I don’t know if I have made a mistake by listening to others on here I topped them and lst them I think I have slowed them down there on day 38 and no signs of flowers yet

Click to expand...

Thanks for stopping by. I don't use any techniques on my autos, but i know Topping is not a good idea.

Day 33 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 11 (x2 GSC, x1 NL, x1 SCC)

Transplant day for the smaller ones. Putting two of them in 3 gallon grow bags. The other 2 are going in a self watering plastic pot. I have 2 that are not doing very well (GSC/NL). The other GSC and the SCC are looking nice and healthy, def ready for the transplant. I will be putting both those two in the 3 gallon grow bags. The other two unhealthy looking ones are going in the self watering pots. I'm running into a shipping issue with Amazon so I had to use what was available to me at home.

Bigger ones are doing well. The LST experiment with the GSC was short lived. I waited til after she had done most her stretching, so i was a little late. I didn't see much change so i unpinned her and she is growing normal. BD has finally started taking off, but it is a very small plant for 33 days. I don't care how big she is as long as she produces some decent smoke. I have had 0% success with this strain.

I'll post some pics after i get done repotting.

Day 48 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 27 (x1 GSC, x1 SCC)
Day 1 (x1 GSC, x1 NL)

Sorry for the lack of updates. With the world going into full "panic" mode i've had to work a lot of hours.

Lost the NL, she just never recovered from the seedling stage. Also lost the GSC that was struggling along with the NL. Not a huge loss, but i went ahead a popped another GSC and another NL. Just potted them this morning.

I've started giving the older plants a 1/4 tsp of Tiger Bloom to go along with the 1 tsp CaMg and 1 tsp Big Bloom.

I will say this. The 150W HPS has made a HUGE difference. The plants are praying towards the light daily. I've got them about 12-14 inches away from the lights. Continue to use the x2 300W LEDs as well. To control temperatures, i've been running a window A/C at 74 degrees all day. Quite a bump in the electricity bill, but i should see some greatly improved results with my girls in terms of overall health and yield.

Day 49 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 28 (x1 GSC, x1 SCC)
Day 2 (x1 GSC, x1 NL)

Seedlings are having a hard time shedding their shells. I misted them with a spray bottle this afternoon and will do so a few more times tonight, try to soften the seed up. They have poked up out of the soil, so hopefully the little girls will just do their magic. If not, i'll have to perform another surgery. I've done so many now (where I had to remove the seed, very tough to do without killing it) that it doesn't seem too hard, but I still would prefer not to have to do it again.

Watered the 7 week old girls today. Added 1 tablespoon of Big Bloom, 1 teaspoon of CaMg and 1/2 teaspoon of Tiger Bloom. This will be the second to last feeding for the GSC. She will be done in 2 weeks time, so I will probably feed one more time and then begin with just water. The BD will go 2 extra weeks, so I will probably feed 2-3 more times with her. They both look great, the 150W HPS has made a HUGE DIFFERENCE. Combine that with the window A/C running to help temps and ALL the girls look healthy. GSC is smelling AWESOME with some nice buds starting to form. BD is just as tall, but has more small bud sites as it's a sativa dominant auto.

Second batch is 4 weeks old today. Watered these girls yesterday giving them everything except the Tiger Bloom. I'll wait another 2 weeks before I introduce that. Strawberry Cheesecake is just as tall as the 7 week old girls. GSC is night and compact..

Here's a pic of the garden. Top left if Strawberry Cheesecake, just as tall as both 7 week old girls. Bottom left is the 4 week old GSC, with an extra crate underneath it to even canopy. Top right is GSC and bottom right is BD. The two on the right were just watered so they are bit droopy.

Day 55 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 34 (x1 GSC, x1 SCC)
Day 6 (x1 GSC, x1 NL)

Seedlings sprouted just fine this time. I misted the seed shell with a spray bottle for 2 days and they eventually fell off. They are doing fine, which is nice because I lost the first Northern Lights freebie. This one made it and I have 1 left + 2 Strawberry Cheesecake freebies left. I'm thinking about germing one of each today.

Some observations on the Strawberry Cheesecake Autos (Seedsman), WOW it smells! It has a very strong smell, similar to the GSC in terms of odor. It also is a tall ASS plant! It's only 5 weeks old and it is taller than the 55 day old girls. It's the only one that doesn't have a crate underneath it now, it's sitting directly on the floor.

55 day old GSC is getting very, very RIPE! About 8 days to go and it will be time for CHOP CHOP!!!

Day 57 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 36 (x1 GSC, x1 SCC)
Day 8 (x1 GSC, x1 NL)

Everything is looking great! 150w HPS has helped tremendously. The older GSC is getting some ROCK SOLID nugs on her. It may not be the biggest yielder, but the buds it does yield are going to be dense and sticky as hell. The BD is still going at a slow place, but I do notice some changes as the pistils are starting to multiply on the bud sites. It should have about 13-20 more days to go, so i'll just ride it out and let her finish. This is BY FAR the best looking Blue Dream auto i've had at 57 days old. Every other time the fan leaves died, half the leaves started to twist and die and the finished product was not high enough THC % to do much for an avid smoker like myself.

SCC is 28 inches tall, which is very tall for an auto. The 36 day old GSC is just as tall as the older GSC/BD. That shows the difference in the HPS light. The 2nd round has had the HPS it's entire life so far. The first round went 3 weeks with just LEDs.

Little ones are doing just fine. Watered them finally today for the first time. I have them in some self watering plastic pots i'm going to try and use this run and see how they work. I love the grow bags, but I have these on hand and I'd like to give them a shot. They seem to be doing just fine so far.

I've also germed another Northern Light (NL) and Strawberry Cheesecake (SCC). The root is starting to pop out so they will be potted tomorrow.

Day 58 (x1 GSC, x1 BD)
Day 37 (x1 GSC, x1 SCC)
Day 9 (x1 GSC, x1 NL)
Day 1 (x1 SCC, x1 NL)

Ordered another 150w HPS yesterday, on sale for only $65!!!! Paid $80 for the first one, so i jumped on that deal real quick. After seeing the difference after adding the 150w HPS, I've decided to retire my 300w LED's. They've been used for about 1.5 years @ 24/0 lighting. They are rated for 50,000 hours, which seems like a lot. I've used about 15,000 hours, so i will keep them around for emergency. Might build some sort of seedling box and use the two LEDs for seedlings until they get to about 10-14 days.

That will give me 300w HPS for a 4x2 tent. They should cover a 2x2 area EASY each. I'll pack 6-8 girls in there @ various stages. Staggered plants will create harvests every week or two.

Potted the seedlings this morning. Soil was presoaked yesterday, so it's moist enough for probably 10 days. I'll keep the two pots in the bathroom for a nice dark, cool environment.

Everything else is going great. Few spots here and there on a leaf or two, but nothing major and nothing to be concerned about this late into an auto flowers life. All the tips are still green and nothing is curled, twisted or rusty.

Do want to note that all leaves are dark green. I'm def on the high end of Nitrogen intake. The stems on the oldest GSC/BD are dark reddish/purple. Usually a sign of too much, which would make sense considering the dark green leaves. The two 37 day old girls that are in MG Moisture Control have lighter green leaves. Could be a sign that Fox Farms Ocean Forrest soil will be retired from my grows. It's twice as much as the MG.

Top left = Strawberry Cheesecake 37 days
Bottom left = Girl Scout Cookie 37 days
Top right = Girl Scout Cookie 58 days
Bottom right = Blue Dream 58 days