Keep them under 24/0 or move to 12/12?

[Justa6655321]

What do you guys do when flowering starts?

I would think 24/0 would be best right?

 

[raz1012]

I assume your talking about autoflowers. Some say 24/0 is best but I never saw much of a difference between 24/0 and 18/6(except that the electric bill was lower and some strains get a fatigued appearance at 24/0). So I would go 18/6 the whole way through if I were you.

 

[SpaDeKo]

Give it 18/6.
The plants probably needs some "rest" in the dark period.

 

[J-Blunt]

ive heard 20/4 from alot of ppl actually...even some breeders recommend it

 

[Justa6655321]

The problem is.....I have a veg room i keep 24/0 and a flowering room i do 12/12 - hps only in the flowering room.

 

[bromhexine]

might be beneficial to switch the veg room to 20/4 ive read that especially with non af plants they need some dark period for certain functions. then you can slip your autos in there too

 

[*mr.mike*]

might be beneficial to switch the veg room to 20/4 ive read that especially with non af plants they need some dark period for certain functions. then you can slip your autos in there too

...Old wives' tales.

 

[DIRT DIGGLER]

I grew auto aks on 24/0 and I will be going 18/6 or 20/4 this time around.
I think they needed some downtime,I was expierenceing some bleaching problems. also I think the dark period is when the root system goes into overdrive,although I could be wrong about this. also with a dark period it will allow some of the heat to dissipate from my grow during the hot summer afternoons and give my ballast a break.

 

[mklod]

...Old wives' tales.

I have heard that this is false, but no one in my experience, has backed up the claim that a dark period is unnecessary. Indeed, even Mdanzig, if I recall correctly, says his plants love 24/0.

However, I came across a post defending the idea that plants do in fact need a dark period. That person listed these links that scientifically bolster the claim that dark period is critical:

ttp://www.biology.duke.edu/bio265/zhangmin/Aboveground.htm

ttp://oasd-ebi.das.bnl.gov/Modelling/respirat.htm

ttp://www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/content/abstract/107/2/421

ttp://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1075536

ttp://www.pnas.org/content/98/5/2479.full


If you take the time to actually go through, read, and comprehend any of them, they show a pretty clear answer - it isn't an old wives' tale for nothing.

 

[Botanist]

24/0
No need for down time. I do it all the time. I have no problem. You only have so much time to grow an auto. Why wast it in the dark? Some plants of all kinds need down time to trigger different stages of its life. Auto's do not.

 

[mklod]

Well, in addition to the scientific literature I posted, I have some recent experience with autos that leads me to believe, even without the science behind it, that these plants do better with some dark period (Lowlife auto hindu kush). The limited time that autos take to finish includes their growth during the dark period, when plants are still active and growing. They don't cease or slow growth because lights are off for four hours a day.