Okay, in my quest to find a good mother and possibly a father I went a little crazy. Think I might have germinated too many plants for the amount of light I have. Question is how many plants can you veg under 800 watts? I have a 400 watt MH (32,000 lumens) and a 400 HPS (50,000 lumens). Currently I have 39 plants and intend on weeding out the weakest ones that don't look like they are doing so good. Anyway just would like to know how many plants I could get away with before I kill too many or not enough?? I figure right now each plant is only getting 2,100 lumens each. Could I get away with some where around 3,000? Sorry about the crappy picture.
How big of a space are they in/will they be in? I've never really looked deeply into this, but it seems to me that it's more about the space you are growing in than the number of plants. At least, that seems to be case for a SCRoG, which is what I grow. Let's say you have a 4x4 area. In scenario A you have 10 plants. In scenario B you have 20 plants. I would think that all other things being equal (light output is the same), you will have a similar yield. But in A, you will get more per plant. Does that make sense? Seriously, cause I could be wrong here. If someone else wants to chime in, it'd be nice to have this idea validated
PowerSkunk I will share a couple of my thoughts on this matter with you to see if I can be of help in your decision making. First and foremost your plants will grow to the maximum they can influenced by the limiting factor imposed on them. For example, if CO2 is the limiting factor then additional light, water, nutrients or any other additive/amendement will not hasten new growth until the limits of CO2 are overcome. One can extrapolate 'the limiting factor scenario' with any one of the elements or environmental variables incorporated into photosynthesis. Plants will grow to the limits that are imposed. If growing in 5 gallon or larger containers and with a appropriately sized refelector one can grow four very healthy plants under a 400 watt light that could easily yield more in total harvest than if eight plants, for example, were grown in the same space yet using smaller containers so they would fit under the light reflection. If growing a SOG style (Sea of Green) using 1 gallon containers, for example, one might grow 8-12 (16) plants under a 400 watt light. So, it is hard to quantify "how many" because of; a) limiting factor(s), b) size of container, c) style of growing, and perhaps other considerations. For a 5 gallon or larger container grow it might be suggested to allow 5 square feet per container (2.5'x2.5') which will allow for plenty of air movement, canopy management, maintenance, and maximizing the high output of the HID lights. Any other limiting factor withstanding. It is very important that air circulate in, around, and through the canopy as much as possible in order to ensure CO2 availability and light penetration.
In a 4x4 tent ive had 64 plants in 2 ltr pots SOG stylee under 600w they where just over a foot tall single colas, I've also had 36 plants in 6.5 ltr pots under 600w veg that was when I was looking for a good mother plant I then flowered those under 4200w.. So to me it doesnt matter how many plants you have under a light as long as there is enough space for the plants if you get me EDIT: This was in COCO not SOIL... I'm new to soil and I've noticed you need much bigger pots for the size of plant than you would in COCO