auto flower seedlings, how soon can I put them outdoors?

Scorpio21

New Member
I started some auto flowers by seed (don't know the strain) 8 days ago. I planted them directly in the dirt. Out of the 5 only 2 have sprouted, is there any hope for the other 3? With the same seeds I sprouted 5 seeds using the paper towel method and 5 directly in the soil and all 10 sprouted, so IDK what is going on this go around. It's been almost 3 months since I used to seeds for the first time, can seeds become old that fast?
It's the 8th day of the 2 that sprouted (pictured), and I just put them outside. Can they be outside? I'm afraid of them getting to hot and dry outside. It's summer time in Colorado so I don't have to worry about it frosting at night.
My plan is to grow outside. Is this a good month for that? They will probably take 2-3 months, finishing sometime in Sept if everything goes well.
 

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1sttimeguy

Well-Known Member
- Put them outside out of the direct sunlight.

- Those are stretchy as hell. Bury the stems about 3/4 the way up, they SHOULD NOT look like that.

- What is the grow medium they are in? They certainly don't look as healthy as they should.

- Less water
 

Scorpio21

New Member
- Put them outside out of the direct sunlight.

- Those are stretchy as hell. Bury the stems about 3/4 the way up, they SHOULD NOT look like that.

- What is the grow medium they are in? They certainly don't look as healthy as they should.

- Less water
Thanks, when can they go in direct sunlight? They are stretchy.. i think it's cuz I had them in the dark too long. I buried them as much as I could (fill up the cup 100 percent), i wasn't able to do 3/4 but close. They are just in organic soil, I can't remember the brand. I'm new at growing. What do you mean less water? I'm not watering them that much, every couple days. What do you suggest? Do you think the other seeds are going sprout at all?
 

azryda420

Active Member
The sun right now isn't going to be nice to a seedling. And furthermore those types need a peek of at least 14 hours of daylight for outdoor vegetative growth.

You chose the wrong time to start growing autos outdoor.

:(
 

Vindicated

Well-Known Member
I put them out when they are a month old, because the pests I'm fighting against the most are grass hoppers and field mice. If I had a cold frame Id put them outside immediately. The trick with putting them outside is to do it slowly over a few days.
 

Vindicated

Well-Known Member
I think he'll do fine. These plants only need six hours of direct light (full sun). Use mulch and common sense. Protect them from pests and the weather and they'll grow out nice.
 

azryda420

Active Member
These plants only need six hours of direct light (full sun).
Peep the ones I posted in outdoor show and tell 2013. They get almost 10 hours full sun and they just don't fill out.

I don't want to put dreams down. But Auto's SUCK! lol I'm on a rampage over these.

The thing that is stupid is how an auto takes so long and gives you results that are not worth bragging about.

I wouldn't show my autos to my best friend even for small talk or entertainment. They're ugly.
 
Lots of hate here on autos, but I will tell you the first thing you did wrong was sprouting them in those tiny cups. Auto roots work fast and when they hit an impediment, they say to themselves "Well, that's as big as I can get." Unfortunately, for you, auto roots don't dig deep, they dig sideways just below the soil. The plants are stunted and likely not worth it unless you are just going to run them outside. They won't cover electricity indoors.

Anyone telling you that they only need six hours of direct light has never grown an auto to full potential.

After germing (ie the seeds cracked) in Rapid Rooters, I seeded all of them into five gallon buckets before the roots began to grow. All nine autos are kicking ass right now and never saw anything but full sun. If you live in the northern hemisphere and you were sidetracked or delayed during early spring, autos are the way to go--your only way to go.

You can do it. The plants will do it for you. Just pop the seeds into rapid rooters or soil and mist lightly every six or seven hours. Done.

Meantime, those plants are wrecked. Toss them and focus on better prospects. You still have time, if you have auto seeds lined up right now.
 
There are too many contradictory opinions on here. Placing them out of direct sunlight will only further the stretch, for goodness sakes.

"When I put them out they are a month old," Seriously? WTF. They start flowering at about three weeks. Give them full sun straight up. Research Ruderalis. Christ. WTF is wrong with people--they just comment on shit they know nothing about these days?

Blanket statements like "Autos suck. Im on a rampage about these." are ridiculous. Autos grown with care outproduce photos based on seed to harvest and come close in potency to almost every strain out there. All this hate. Yuck.

Maybe you shouldn't show your autos because you don't understand what you're dealing with, man. If your autos are unsatisfactory, then that's pretty much on either the grower or the seedbank... NOT THE STRAIN.

A lot of us are pulling two to seven zips per auto, so your shame is personal not related to strain. Pull two quality zips in 60 days from a photo--seed to harvest--and then your criticism will be heard. Until then, seriously... it's not the plant... it's you.
 

LoRd MeGaTR0N31

Well-Known Member
I put my Auto Red Poisons and Critical Jack outdoors in 14.5 hours of direct Sun when they hit the 2nd node. They took off on the 2nd day being out.
 

Scorpio21

New Member
Lots of hate here on autos, but I will tell you the first thing you did wrong was sprouting them in those tiny cups. Auto roots work fast and when they hit an impediment, they say to themselves "Well, that's as big as I can get." Unfortunately, for you, auto roots don't dig deep, they dig sideways just below the soil. The plants are stunted and likely not worth it unless you are just going to run them outside. They won't cover electricity indoors.

Anyone telling you that they only need six hours of direct light has never grown an auto to full potential.

After germing (ie the seeds cracked) in Rapid Rooters, I seeded all of them into five gallon buckets before the roots began to grow. All nine autos are kicking ass right now and never saw anything but full sun. If you live in the northern hemisphere and you were sidetracked or delayed during early spring, autos are the way to go--your only way to go.

You can do it. The plants will do it for you. Just pop the seeds into rapid rooters or soil and mist lightly every six or seven hours. Done.

Meantime, those plants are wrecked. Toss them and focus on better prospects. You still have time, if you have auto seeds lined up right now.
Hey, yeah I know you're not suppose to transplant autos, but I live in an apartment complex, and I'm going be growing outside at one of my friends place an hour and half so I had to start them in little cups. The seeds were pretty much free so that's why I'm using them. I messed up the autos i'm doing now (growing them inside) stunted them hard core.. prob going get a gram or two.. most expensive gram or two ever!
 

Scorpio21

New Member
The sun right now isn't going to be nice to a seedling. And furthermore those types need a peek of at least 14 hours of daylight for outdoor vegetative growth.

You chose the wrong time to start growing autos outdoor.

:(
I'm new to growing and if I could do things differently I would. I did things ass backwards.. I started my growing indoors (my place is sooo hot cuz of the lights). I didn't have a place to grow outside until now, so I thought why not take the advantage of it now?
 

Scorpio21

New Member
I put them out when they are a month old, because the pests I'm fighting against the most are grass hoppers and field mice. If I had a cold frame Id put them outside immediately. The trick with putting them outside is to do it slowly over a few days.
Damn, I didn't even think about insects or mice! The place I'm putting them at is in kinda in the country. And I'm only going be able to check on them about once every 2 weeks. I'm going have my friends water them. So what kinda barrier should i use?
 

Scorpio21

New Member
There are too many contradictory opinions on here. Placing them out of direct sunlight will only further the stretch, for goodness sakes.

"When I put them out they are a month old," Seriously? WTF. They start flowering at about three weeks. Give them full sun straight up. Research Ruderalis. Christ. WTF is wrong with people--they just comment on shit they know nothing about these days?

Blanket statements like "Autos suck. Im on a rampage about these." are ridiculous. Autos grown with care outproduce photos based on seed to harvest and come close in potency to almost every strain out there. All this hate. Yuck.

Maybe you shouldn't show your autos because you don't understand what you're dealing with, man. If your autos are unsatisfactory, then that's pretty much on either the grower or the seedbank... NOT THE STRAIN.

A lot of us are pulling two to seven zips per auto, so your shame is personal not related to strain. Pull two quality zips in 60 days from a photo--seed to harvest--and then your criticism will be heard. Until then, seriously... it's not the plant... it's you.
Yeah my auto's didn't produce shit, but I'm not blaming it on autos.. I know I did a lot of things wrong (hindsight), and it might be the strain too.. but either way I wanted to give it another try. Plus growing outside is no cost to me, so why not do it?
So currently they are outside but in the shade.. i buried them more because the stems stretched so much. When can i put them in direct sunlight and how often should i water? I live in CO and the dry is pretty dry.
 

Scorpio21

New Member
Yeah my auto's didn't produce shit, but I'm not blaming it on autos.. I know I did a lot of things wrong (hindsight), and it might be the strain too.. but either way I wanted to give it another try. Plus growing outside is no cost to me, so why not do it?
So currently they are outside but in the shade.. i buried them more because the stems stretched so much. When can i put them in direct sunlight and how often should i water? I live in CO and the dry is pretty dry.
whoops i read it wrong.. okay so they should be in direct sunlight correct?
 

Vindicated

Well-Known Member
When you go looking at plants at places like Home Depot or Lowes you'll notice every plant has a label that tells you the feeding requirements and whether it requires full sun, partial sun, indirect / shade, and etc. Some people get confused about what full sun actually means. All it really means is the plants requires at least six hours of direct sunlight. Morning sunlight is the best because it's full spectrum yet it isn't as strong or hot as it would be in the afternoon.

If cannabis (sativa, indica, etc) was sold commercially the tag would say it requires full sun.

As for transplanting an auto, the danger is cutting up the roots. When I you damage roots the plant stops focusing on leaf development and uses its energy for root growth. For the plant this makes total sense. For the grower who is after max yield this is a problem. But transplanting is usually a last resort anyway so if you have to do it, do it carefully and understand that there are risks.

As for autos vs the regular India or sativa, for me, being in a legal state, autos aren't worth growing outdoors. Indoors autos have their place, but outdoors autos are to small for my taste. I don't view them as weaker. It's purely a yield issue. As for feeding, autos are actually easier because they are lighter feeders. I grow in raised beds and don't worry about fertilizer. The organic matter in the soil bed will provide autos with everything they need.

In a 4x4 ft raised bed six inches high, I can grow 12 autos (one plant per square foot). If soil is new and rich in organic matter I don't add fertilizer. I always rely on a soil sample to tell me if, when, in and how much to fertilize. Add drip irrigation or use a soaker hose and a timer, water twice a day, check for pests every morning, spray with ice cold soapy water when pests are present and in three months harvest. Remember other a lot to mess up. Only problem is in California 12 plants is over the limit. So one Sativa per bed, feed twice a year, and I'm good. Yield is about 3lbs. To Setup another raised bed and fill it only cost me around $40. I often run 4-6 beds, but I always need help come harvest. Big yield but it's a lot of work to handle on my own.
 

Scorpio21

New Member
When you go looking at plants at places like Home Depot or Lowes you'll notice every plant has a label that tells you the feeding requirements and whether it requires full sun, partial sun, indirect / shade, and etc. Some people get confused about what full sun actually means. All it really means is the plants requires at least six hours of direct sunlight. Morning sunlight is the best because it's full spectrum yet it isn't as strong or hot as it would be in the afternoon.

If cannabis (sativa, indica, etc) was sold commercially the tag would say it requires full sun.

As for transplanting an auto, the danger is cutting up the roots. When I you damage roots the plant stops focusing on leaf development and uses its energy for root growth. For the plant this makes total sense. For the grower who is after max yield this is a problem. But transplanting is usually a last resort anyway so if you have to do it, do it carefully and understand that there are risks.

As for autos vs the regular India or sativa, for me, being in a legal state, autos aren't worth growing outdoors. Indoors autos have their place, but outdoors autos are to small for my taste. I don't view them as weaker. It's purely a yield issue. As for feeding, autos are actually easier because they are lighter feeders. I grow in raised beds and don't worry about fertilizer. The organic matter in the soil bed will provide autos with everything they need.

In a 4x4 ft raised bed six inches high, I can grow 12 autos (one plant per square foot). If soil is new and rich in organic matter I don't add fertilizer. I always rely on a soil sample to tell me if, when, in and how much to fertilize. Add drip irrigation or use a soaker hose and a timer, water twice a day, check for pests every morning, spray with ice cold soapy water when pests are present and in three months harvest. Remember other a lot to mess up. Only problem is in California 12 plants is over the limit. So one Sativa per bed, feed twice a year, and I'm good. Yield is about 3lbs. To Setup another raised bed and fill it only cost me around $40. I often run 4-6 beds, but I always need help come harvest. Big yield but it's a lot of work to handle on my own.
Thanks, that's really informative. I have 3 gallon pots (cloth bag type) so could I put two auto flowers in one pot?
 

azryda420

Active Member
When you go looking at plants at places like Home Depot or Lowes you'll notice every plant has a label that tells you the feeding requirements and whether it requires full sun, partial sun, indirect / shade, and etc. Some people get confused about what full sun actually means. All it really means is the plants requires at least six hours of direct sunlight. Morning sunlight is the best because it's full spectrum yet it isn't as strong or hot as it would be in the afternoon.

If cannabis (sativa, indica, etc) was sold commercially the tag would say it requires full sun.
I work there. And you are correct. Some people think full sun is exposing a tree in the middle of a yard to 14 hours of solid light. It's not the case. I tell people full sun can even mean planting it in the shade but if it's exposed in the am and the pm and gets 6 hours. it's getting "Full Sun".........
 
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