Help. Can’t get the buds to look good. Every grow they end up very fluffy but no density at all. Still smoke well but would like to improve (if only for weight reasons as this grow only did 2.25oz). Any help is appreciated. Pics are what they look like compared to should look like.
Background: 32"x32" tent. Followed Fox farms cultivation nation feeding schedule. 18x6 for first 6 weeks then 12x12 last 6 weeks.
Plant 2 weeks b4 harvest
@Gaackk it comes down to the light for bud density, other things play a part but even if they are dialed in you need a good light
I am using spider farmer 1000w led. Is that not good enough?
That’s a 96watt led so no not a good enough light. Will it grow weed , yes as you can see. Will it be compact buds no.
When I was in a 2x4 I was running 300watts.
@Gaackk if you have the SF1000 then as @BigItch wrote that is really a 100watt light but if you have G1000W then you have plenty light …now you need to look at nutrients or environment or genetics
They got it right, light is a big deal! I’m presently running 300 w in a 3x4, and still not getting the dense nugs I’m after. Looking at getting better lights.
Agree with the others, a minimum 200 watts for that space. Most cultivators alter their feed schedule the first 3 weeks of flower with MKP plus reduced base nutrients 
From sprout to flip was 42 days? Use a similar timetable the with your earlier grows?
What time from flip to harvest? Also, first pistils to harvest.
Are you doing any training or growing mainly single colas plants?
How tall is your tent? I ask if height is related to short veg time.
A very ballpark - rule of thumb for watts per square foot is 35 watts for decent lights (diodes). Spider farmer is a solid light and the newer ones run better diodes than older models. Your 32x32" tent is about seven square feet. 100 / 7 = 14 watts per square ft. Less than half of what is needed for the total footprint. One plant directly under the light and kept small would be about right.
60in hight. 12 week total grow. Bruce Banner autoflower. Pistols showed around wk 5 I think and have assumed that is when it started flowering. I top once at 6th node usually around week 4. I end up with 14 total braches that have varying degree of buds on them. Does that help?
@Gaackk I had the same issue on my first grow. My buds looked and smelled great, but they were airy and larfy and it wasn’t a sativa. I realized I was keeping the light too high, I topped my plant this time around, fed her more nutes than I did last time and kept that light pounding on her this whole time. 18/6 light schedule. Right now the light is 7" from the top colas and 13" from the rest.if I evened out the canopy like I should have I would have the light like 6"-7" from the canopy. When the light is high or weak it’s gonna stretch the buds, and not let them get dense and compact. The light I’m using now is only 150 watts LED but u can get good results
I’m gonna go with not enough light. With good led light. Ie name brand ones look around 30w psf. Not bane brand shoot more for the 40 to 50 w psf ur gonna want atleast 300 to 450 w for that tent then will u have solid dense buds.
If pistols showed around 5 weeks, 7 weeks is on the short side for flowering. It may have been cut a week + early. But, you are the only one that knows based on what the trichomes looked like and what you were wanting.
60" tent is adequate but more discipline and training is needed in a shorter tent. Flat and wide is called for. With autos you have to get after it early and stay on it. Rather than topping I might try more LST. When topped, some veg time is lost waiting for it to recover. Possibly this time would be better used with more training.
I quit growing autos for that exact reason.
Your BB looks good. If you did the exact plant again with more light, I am sure you would notice a significant difference.
One other thing. You do not need to reduce light hours with autos. Furthermore, when you dropped from 18 to 12 during flower you cut the Daily Light Integral by 33%. That is a massive loss of light when the opposite should have occurred. I think a HLG 135 Rspec would pair well with your SF. After discount about the same $$ and has a little more red spectrum than the SF. Red is good during flower.
Good luck in the future.
DLI Chart - the decrease in DLI is due to decrease in light hours at flip. I and many others add light, increase power draw or lower lights to offset the DLI decrease.
HLG 288 quantum board spectrums
Just wanted to mention that if funds short for another light grow a single plant at a time and start another 3 weeks or so before first finishes. Drop that light on that single plant hard and new plant in a solo cup in light footprint. Cant always upgrade immediatly but can always adjust to what you have and get decent results. I have a few 100w boards and can single out 1 auto and get great results. Just an opinion. I understand the worry on " I cant upgrade now I am screwed" feeling.
I had a similar problem in my first grow with a 150W. I’m currently using a 240 Green Beams light - and my plants love it so much ordered a 2nd less than a week later, it should be here tomorrow.
So I’ll have 480 in my 3x3 which should be plenty (53w/sq ft).
Info on Green Beams:
The GB Series is an upgraded commercial grade full-cycle horticulture lighting solution.
Diodes - 576 top-bin diodes. Samsung LM301B and Epistar 660nm. Full Spectrum, which is ideal for all growth phases. Our light spectrum is tailored by 3000K warm white, 5000K neutral white, and 660nm deep red diodes to optimize growth.
Driver - 240W Meanwell HLG driver (the best Meanwell driver, as opposed to XLG or ELG).
Heatsink - 15mm thick, finned heatsink (compared to others, which are generally only 3mm). Made with 6063 aluminum, vs others that are made with 5052. 6063 allows better thermal conductivity = better heat transfer away from the diodes = greater efficiency and longer diode life.
Connection cords – All are IP 67 (waterproof and dustproof). 8 foot connection cord between heatsink and driver, which allows the driver to be mounted outside of a tent. Less heat inside the tent is highly beneficial.
Potentiometer for 0%-100% brightness adjustment.
Ideal for a 4 x 4ft vegetative area or a 3 x 3ft flowering area.
Unit comes with power cord, 4 stainless steel hooks and 2 adjustable rachet hangers for mounting.
Compare to HLG 300L Rspec. GB2 is nearly half the price. Currently $199, $17 shipping.
2.7 μmol/joule
Dimensions - 25in x 8in
I’m just sticking this out here - this is a quality light for around the same price I paid for a meh one. I left fine buying this instead of saving up for HLG.
I FELT fine. Sheesh.
