Autoflower Grow Kit Cannabis: Contents and Setup

Quick answer

An autoflower grow kit bundles the hardware for an indoor cannabis grow: tent, light, exhaust fan, carbon filter, pots, timer, and meters. Autoflowering plants switch to flower by age, not by day length. That means one light schedule from seed to harvest. Most autoflower runs finish in 8 to 11 weeks.

related article

What is in a kit

• Grow tent, 2x2 ft to 4x4 ft (0.6 m to 1.2 m)
• LED grow light, 100 W to 480 W, dimmable
• Inline exhaust fan with a carbon filter
• Ducting, clamps, and a speed controller
• Fabric pots, 3 gal to 5 gal (11 L to 19 L)
• Potting soil or coco coir, plus perlite
• Base nutrients, grow and bloom
• Timer, hygrometer, pH meter, and a 10 mL syringe
• Trellis net, pruning shears, gloves

Why autoflowers change the plan

Autoflowering cultivars carry Cannabis ruderalis genetics. Ruderalis comes from Siberia and other cold regions. Short summers there favor plants that flower on a fixed clock. Breeders crossed ruderalis with photoperiod cultivars to raise potency and yield.

read more

Photoperiod cannabis needs 12 hours of dark to flower. Autoflowers do not. You can run 18 hours on and 6 hours off for the whole cycle. Some growers use 20/4 or 24/0.

how to choose a cannabis grow kit

Light schedule and intensity

Growers use 30 W to 40 W of LED per square foot as a working guide. A PAR meter gives the real number. The target is a daily light integral of 30 mol to 45 mol per square meter per day. At 18 hours of light, 40 W per square foot lands in that range.

Container size and medium

Use the final pot from day one. Sow the seed in a 3 gal to 5 gal fabric pot. Autoflowers have a short vegetative window of about 14 to 21 days. Transplant shock in that window costs yield.

Soil pH target is 6.0 to 6.5. Coco and hydroponic media run 5.5 to 6.2. Add 20 to 30 percent perlite for drainage.

Water, feed, and airflow

Seedlings need little water. Give 50 mL to 100 mL near the stem, then widen the circle. Water when the top inch of medium is dry.

Start nutrients at one quarter of the label rate. Raise to half rate in week 3. Full strength burns autoflowers in most setups.

Size the fan to the tent. Tent volume in cubic feet divided by 3 gives the CFM for one air exchange every 3 minutes. Add 20 percent when a carbon filter is inline.

Temperature range is 68 F to 82 F (20 C to 28 C). Relative humidity is 60 to 70 percent in the seedling stage and 40 to 50 percent in flower. Humidity above 60 percent in late flower raises bud rot risk.

Week by week timeline

1. Week 1: seed in final pot, light 18/6, humidity 65 percent
2. Week 2 to 3: fast leaf growth, start low dose nutrients
3. Week 3 to 4: first pistils, flowering starts
4. Week 5 to 8: bud swell, steady feed, watch humidity
5. Week 9 to 11: trichomes turn cloudy, then harvest

Common mistakes

• Topping or heavy defoliation after day 21
• Pots under 3 gallons
• Full strength nutrients in week 1
• A hot tent in week 6
• Harvest on a fixed date instead of checking trichomes
• No carbon filter in a shared building

Harvest and dry

Check trichomes with a 30x to 60x loupe. Cloudy heads with a few amber heads is the common window. Dry at 60 F and 60 percent humidity for 7 to 14 days. Cure in jars for 2 to 4 weeks.

Legal note

Cannabis is Schedule I under US federal law. State rules differ. Some states allow home grows with a limit on plant count. Check state law and local rules before you buy seeds or start a grow. Grow kits ship as general horticulture equipment.