Flowering from seed

[Machi]

Hey guys, I was wondering if somebody can explained the benefits of flowering from seed. Obviously it's quicker, but what the difference in yeild? If you grow two straight into flower, is it the same as growing one but veging for eight weeks?

[the green meanie]

Haven't tried it personally. There's a dedicated 12/12 from seed section on here though buddy...

[TIKTOK]

I started flowering from seed last year and love it. The info on it was a bit vague so I did a FAQ and never got around to posting it. If any of it is wrong someone will point it out

12/12 from seed FAQ

Q. What is 12/12 from seed?

A. Usually a grower will germinate a seed, grow it for a while (the vegitative period) then reduce the light to 12 hours of darkness and twelve hours of light to force the plant to flower. "12/12 from seed" (or flowering from seed) is where the grower germinates the seed under the 12/12 light cycle so the seedling is being forced to flower from germination with no vegatative period.


Q. Why grow 12/12 from seed?

A. If you don't have room to grow large plants and/or don't have the space or budget for separate veg cabs growing 12/12 from seed is an option to consider. Also, if using as little electricty as possible is important, 12/12 from seed could be the way to grow as it cuts out longer vegging periods with 18/6 + lighting. Another reason for flowering from seed is simplicity: set your lights to 12/12 and leave them! Then you can germinate, grow and flower plants all at the same time in the same cab/tent. If you are organized there is no reason why you cannot harvest decent, multiple strain yields every month from a perpetual grow. One of the advantages of growing 12/12 from seed is that males often show their sex before the females and as soon as two weeks from germination in some cases but three to four weeks is more usual.

Q. How can a plant flower without a veg period?

A. A seedling germinated under a lamp on 12/12 does not start to flower immediately after it breaks the surface, there is a growth period of approx three/four weeks until the seedling reaches sexual maturity before it can grow flowers. So a plant with a flowering time of eight weeks will take eleven/twelve weeks to finish or eight weeks from showing it's sex, not eight weeks from germination!

Q. Is yield affected?

A. YES! A plant that has had a long veg period before flowering will always yield more than a plant that has been flowered from seed in the same set up. Experienced growers using the 12/12 method claim yeilds up to six dry ounces per plant but this is the exception rather than the rule. Yeilds of between two and four ounces dry are obtainalbe using the right strains. With the right combination of strain, light and nutrients etc you can grow good buds, but like all growing methods it takes practice and patients and has it's own specifices.

Q. Can I flower autos from seed?

A. NO! Any auto will grow under 12/12 light but it will not like it and will not yield much. There is no place for autos in a 12/12 from seed grow because they need more hours of light to grow properly.

Q. Can I flower rooted clones on 12/12 light?

A. Yes, rooted clones can respond well to 12/12 if they're the right strain for the job. You can take cuttings from your plants on 12/12 when they are large enough.

Q. Can I SCROG a grow with this method?

A. NO! SCROG grows require an extended vegging period to fill the screen, this is not practical when flowering from seed.

Q. Can I SOG a grow with this method?

A. Yes, SOG can work well with seeds or rooted clones straight to 12/12

Q. What strains work best?

A. Not all strains like to be flowered from seed. It's up to the grower to find out what strains work best, or experiment to find out. Bung any seed in a jiffy/pot under a lamp on 12/12 and it will grow but there are many variables that decide the end result. Sativa dominant hybrids will probably yield best.

Q. Indica, Sativa or Hybrid?

A. Indica strains work well because they can be kept short and bushy for restricted grow areas and will probably stop growing early into flowering. Sativas and sativa hybrids can be grown too but tend to grow more when flowering so more care is needed to keep them from stretching too much, especially if the grow area is restricted.


Q. Which nuterients work best for flowering from seed?

A. There is no best! Stick with your prefered nutes and what works for you. Use grow nutes until they show pistils then swap to flowering nutes.

Q. What medium works best?

A. Again, there is no best, only what you prefer and what works best for you. Growers who favour coco mediums and nutrients seem to get the best results flowering from seed but soil and hydro also work well.

Q. Will a 12/12 grow finish quicker than a convential grow?

A. Certain strains will finish faster but a race to the finish isn't a good reason to flower from seed, he idea is to produce quality buds in a perpetual grow.

Q. How do I start a seed on 12/12?

A. Pick a indica dominant strain that is known to grow well with this method and plant into a 7cm pot (or similar) of seedling compost and perlite and cover as normal. If you prefer other methods of germing/medium that's fine but the lighting must be 12/12 from the start. When the seedling(s) appear above the surface uncover and get your light down as close as possible. A 250w 6400k blue spectrum cfl will do the job nicely. Hang it just a few centimeters above the seedlings with a fan blowing gently on them. When seedlings are germed inside in a warm environment it makes them reach up to the light and getting the light as close as possible to the seedlings is the only way to prevent it. Lowering the temperature of the soil is also an option but will slow things down. The biggest mistake at this stage of the grow is not having the lights down low enough to the seedling. Do not spray or water too much or it will result in under developed roots. Excess heat and humidity can also cause things go wrong at this stage and caution is needed. HID lighting can be used but as with any growing method extra care must be taken with seedlings.

Q. Can I use feminized seeds?

A. Yes but they will not start to flower until they have reached sexual maturity, usually three to four weeks.

Q. Will I get more male plants if using reg seeds?

A. Less hours of day promote more fems, as does blue light and low temps, "aledgedly". Every regular seed has an equal chance of developing into male or female plant. In grows using reg seeds there are certain conditions that can encourage a bigger male to female ratio in the seedling stage like low humidity, low nitrogen, high Potassium levels, too much red light in the spectrum and environmental stress. All are easy to avoid but you will always get males when using regs.

Q. What size pots should I use?

A. Start in 7cm pots under a 250 blue cfl. Then pot up into a 150ml pot and leave under the cfl until pistils start to develop, then pot up again to 6 to 10 litre finishing pots. There are variations, some growers prefer to pot up straight to the final pot to avoid stress in extra pot ups, it becomes a matter of personal choice.

Q. What light is best?

A. As with all growing methods more lumens = more bud. Cfl's will work from start to finish but if you want bigger yields then HID is the way to go. A 600w set up in a 1.2m tent will give good results. Some growers reduce the light to 11 hours to speed up the flowering process and bring it back to 12/12 when buds start to form. Again, personal preference and grow restrictions prevail.

[Icon]

Great post TikTok
Ive no intention of doing it but im sure that will help those that do.

ATB
Icon

[GBK]

I wouldn't look back ever again, 12/12 from seed ticks every single damn box possible, I like the yeilds (For me small) I like the cost 12 hours compared to 24 for auto's.I can grow multiple strains at once,(They stay small) I love 12/12 im tempted to get 12/12 tattooed on my arse. I cant think of one single bad thing to say about 12/12 from seed

[paulie.sharkbreath]

yeah as i have closet grow and my space is 80cm x 50 cm x 210cm ill be going down the 12/12 route methinks i have a 600 watt dual spec hps and 125watt red cf also 2x 20 watt red cfl you think this is to much light for this space ? they seem to love it anyway nice grow diary btw love those purple plants m8

[GBK]

yeah as i have closet grow and my space is 80cm x 50 cm x 210cm ill be going down the 12/12 route methinks i have a 600 watt dual spec hps and 125watt red cf also 2x 20 watt red cfl you think this is to much light for this space ? they seem to love it anyway nice grow diary btw love those purple plants m8

If you can deal with the temps then go for it, Bleaching might be an issue, But that's something that you might have to live with, 600w is a beast in my books, I only use 100 HPS in a 40x 40 x 120cm and a 70HPS In a 30x 30x 60cm.I get the results i want, Lets hope it works out good for you too,All the best

[canine]

I started flowering from seed last year and love it. The info on it was a bit vague so I did a FAQ and never got around to posting it. If any of it is wrong someone will point it out

12/12 from seed FAQ

Q. What is 12/12 from seed?

A. Usually a grower will germinate a seed, grow it for a while (the vegitative period) then reduce the light to 12 hours of darkness and twelve hours of light to force the plant to flower. "12/12 from seed" (or flowering from seed) is where the grower germinates the seed under the 12/12 light cycle so the seedling is being forced to flower from germination with no vegatative period.


Q. Why grow 12/12 from seed?

A. If you don't have room to grow large plants and/or don't have the space or budget for separate veg cabs growing 12/12 from seed is an option to consider. Also, if using as little electricty as possible is important, 12/12 from seed could be the way to grow as it cuts out longer vegging periods with 18/6 + lighting. Another reason for flowering from seed is simplicity: set your lights to 12/12 and leave them! Then you can germinate, grow and flower plants all at the same time in the same cab/tent. If you are organized there is no reason why you cannot harvest decent, multiple strain yields every month from a perpetual grow. One of the advantages of growing 12/12 from seed is that males often show their sex before the females and as soon as two weeks from germination in some cases but three to four weeks is more usual.

Q. How can a plant flower without a veg period?

A. A seedling germinated under a lamp on 12/12 does not start to flower immediately after it breaks the surface, there is a growth period of approx three/four weeks until the seedling reaches sexual maturity before it can grow flowers. So a plant with a flowering time of eight weeks will take eleven/twelve weeks to finish or eight weeks from showing it's sex, not eight weeks from germination!

Q. Is yield affected?

A. YES! A plant that has had a long veg period before flowering will always yield more than a plant that has been flowered from seed in the same set up. Experienced growers using the 12/12 method claim yeilds up to six dry ounces per plant but this is the exception rather than the rule. Yeilds of between two and four ounces dry are obtainalbe using the right strains. With the right combination of strain, light and nutrients etc you can grow good buds, but like all growing methods it takes practice and patients and has it's own specifices.

Q. Can I flower autos from seed?

A. NO! Any auto will grow under 12/12 light but it will not like it and will not yield much. There is no place for autos in a 12/12 from seed grow because they need more hours of light to grow properly.

Q. Can I flower rooted clones on 12/12 light?

A. Yes, rooted clones can respond well to 12/12 if they're the right strain for the job. You can take cuttings from your plants on 12/12 when they are large enough.

Q. Can I SCROG a grow with this method?

A. NO! SCROG grows require an extended vegging period to fill the screen, this is not practical when flowering from seed.

Q. Can I SOG a grow with this method?

A. Yes, SOG can work well with seeds or rooted clones straight to 12/12

Q. What strains work best?

A. Not all strains like to be flowered from seed. It's up to the grower to find out what strains work best, or experiment to find out. Bung any seed in a jiffy/pot under a lamp on 12/12 and it will grow but there are many variables that decide the end result. Sativa dominant hybrids will probably yield best.

Q. Indica, Sativa or Hybrid?

A. Indica strains work well because they can be kept short and bushy for restricted grow areas and will probably stop growing early into flowering. Sativas and sativa hybrids can be grown too but tend to grow more when flowering so more care is needed to keep them from stretching too much, especially if the grow area is restricted.


Q. Which nuterients work best for flowering from seed?

A. There is no best! Stick with your prefered nutes and what works for you. Use grow nutes until they show pistils then swap to flowering nutes.

Q. What medium works best?

A. Again, there is no best, only what you prefer and what works best for you. Growers who favour coco mediums and nutrients seem to get the best results flowering from seed but soil and hydro also work well.

Q. Will a 12/12 grow finish quicker than a convential grow?

A. Certain strains will finish faster but a race to the finish isn't a good reason to flower from seed, he idea is to produce quality buds in a perpetual grow.

Q. How do I start a seed on 12/12?

A. Pick a indica dominant strain that is known to grow well with this method and plant into a 7cm pot (or similar) of seedling compost and perlite and cover as normal. If you prefer other methods of germing/medium that's fine but the lighting must be 12/12 from the start. When the seedling(s) appear above the surface uncover and get your light down as close as possible. A 250w 6400k blue spectrum cfl will do the job nicely. Hang it just a few centimeters above the seedlings with a fan blowing gently on them. When seedlings are germed inside in a warm environment it makes them reach up to the light and getting the light as close as possible to the seedlings is the only way to prevent it. Lowering the temperature of the soil is also an option but will slow things down. The biggest mistake at this stage of the grow is not having the lights down low enough to the seedling. Do not spray or water too much or it will result in under developed roots. Excess heat and humidity can also cause things go wrong at this stage and caution is needed. HID lighting can be used but as with any growing method extra care must be taken with seedlings.

Q. Can I use feminized seeds?

A. Yes but they will not start to flower until they have reached sexual maturity, usually three to four weeks.

Q. Will I get more male plants if using reg seeds?

A. Less hours of day promote more fems, as does blue light and low temps, "aledgedly". Every regular seed has an equal chance of developing into male or female plant. In grows using reg seeds there are certain conditions that can encourage a bigger male to female ratio in the seedling stage like low humidity, low nitrogen, high Potassium levels, too much red light in the spectrum and environmental stress. All are easy to avoid but you will always get males when using regs.

Q. What size pots should I use?

A. Start in 7cm pots under a 250 blue cfl. Then pot up into a 150ml pot and leave under the cfl until pistils start to develop, then pot up again to 6 to 10 litre finishing pots. There are variations, some growers prefer to pot up straight to the final pot to avoid stress in extra pot ups, it becomes a matter of personal choice.

Q. What light is best?

A. As with all growing methods more lumens = more bud. Cfl's will work from start to finish but if you want bigger yields then HID is the way to go. A 600w set up in a 1.2m tent will give good results. Some growers reduce the light to 11 hours to speed up the flowering process and bring it back to 12/12 when buds start to form. Again, personal preference and grow restrictions prevail.

After reading that am I right to say that 12/12 from seed isn't any quicker than auto's or vegging plant for 2wks then flowering for 7-8wks??????
I have an 2wk old auto and was hoping to put some 7-8wk flowering babies in beside it, switch lights to 12/12 and hopefully have them harvested at sametime, give a couple of days or 2. But thinking thats not possible now

[Grover]

Great FAQ TIKTOK, cheers boss.

I love 12/12 im tempted to get 12/12 tattooed on my arse.

F^%* that made me laugh. Go on GBK, do it lol

After reading that am I right to say that 12/12 from seed isn't any quicker than auto's or vegging plant for 2wks then flowering for 7-8wks??????
I have an 2wk old auto and was hoping to put some 7-8wk flowering babies in beside it, switch lights to 12/12 and hopefully have them harvested at sametime, give a couple of days or 2. But thinking thats not possible now

Some autos are quicker than others (e.g. Super Critical). As far as I know 12/12 is not suitable for all auto strains

[GBK]

Hey Grover, When i get it done your be the 1st to see it

PS: Check out what green house seeds say about the super critical auto, They say it can be done on 12/12, Not ever seen any breeders say that about autos.

[canine]

ok thanx, Think it'll be 12/12 (non auto's) i goto after this auto is done.