I planted two pairs of seeds 20 days apart because I thought that the first two weren't going to make it. They did, with a vengeance. All in a small grow space. Do I wait for the younger to grow up, or flower the older two before they run the risk of becoming root-bound? The growbox has a small footprint..; 2'x2'x4'. I can probably fit four 1-2 gallon smart-pots in there. Admittedly, the two older ones are in single gallon pots for now. I am going to transplant those two into double gallon smart-pots this weekend; once the height between the two pairs is moderately comparable. I transplanted the smaller two last night to 2 gallon pots.. Do I wait 2-3 weeks to flower and run the risk of the older two becoming root-bound or do I flower now and have the smaller of the two come out with low yields? This is them today: Yeah, the one in the back is a bit heat stressed. I'm putting in a fan this weekend.
Your job as a grower is to husband the plants as in care and tend them so avoid any rootbounds from the outset, 20 days or 3 weeks is no biggy, move the taller of the plants further from the light, allow the smaller ones to catch up, and yes you may have to adjust 'Your' plan and relocate or better build a bigger unit ..consider?