How far apart should plants be from each other?

LOL! Bullshit. The standard accepted minimum watts per sq foot is 50, has been forever. I dont over think light, I am would not be stupid enough to waste 4 months on a run at 25 watts a square foot, thats idiocy. Why would you consider that?

OK. You're right. The rest of the entire world is wrong. Have fun living in fantasy land.

This is quite the pissing match.
A single 400 in a 4x4 would indeed grow pot. Would it be the frostiest, densest, most stoney pot this side of the Pecos? Probably not.
The minimum light recommended to flower under is only 2,000 lumens per foot squared. Median range would be 5,000 or so and light saturation occurs up around 7-8,000 depending upon strain.
Yes, a 400 will work, but it's not ideal. 2 400s would be much better.
Personally, if you already have the 400, I'd drop it in the middle and supplement white COBs around the outside and in the corners to get more even lighting.
Just my 2 cents

Man I love these threads, I run 38 watts per sq ft and 3600 lumens per sq ft (neither of which means diddle to the plants by the way) with T5 flouros 2 feet off the canopy no less and grow buds that bend branches every time lol

But to answer the OP's original question, plants perform best when not touching each other

RM3 said:

Man I love these threads, I run 38 watts per sq ft and 3600 lumens per sq ft (neither of which means diddle to the plants by the way) with T5 flouros 2 feet off the canopy no less and grow buds that bend branches every time lol

But to answer the OP's original question, plants perform best when not touching each other

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So if you had to jam 4 plants in a slightly overcrowded area would you trim them back as to not to touch at the start of flowering or what ?

THE KONASSURE said:

So if you had to jam 4 plants in a slightly overcrowded area would you trim them back as to not to touch at the start of flowering or what ?

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I would never jam or overcrowd and I don't trim except to take clones

RM3 said:

I would never jam or overcrowd and I don't trim except to take clones

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Planing huh ? getting them into flower at just the right time

I guess I`m not so good at that I veg up extras cos the other guy I work with is great at killing vegging plants then sometimes they all make it so some veg up for a pretty long time

I find I don`t get much from the lower branches but I`m probably over crowding them, probably why I get better buds when I cut off a load of the lower branches

federally keep them sperated by at least 20 feet. In Washington and Oregon its 25 feet

I jam 6 plants in a 3X3X5 tent with a 400watt MH/HPS and I usually get around 2.5-3 Oz per plant. I do lolly-pop the plants to keep most of the energy up top. It requires lots of good ventilation during flower to prevent any mold and fungus but it works out well for me. I usually use 3 gal fabric pots or grow bags. I like the square grow bags because you can squeeze them in easier.

Great stuff! So it actually looks as if I need to grow at least 6 or 7 plants, then in that case I would definitely need at least a 600 watt unless one would recommend 1000 watts or even two 600 watts; I would rather do it right the first time around and have everything I need for future grows. Looks like the ideal tent size would be 4X6, a little longer giving more room for extra plants. I figure if I'm using 5 gallon pots, seven plants; and only have the room to grow in for four months out of the year so would want to get a year supply in one batch for my medical needs.