How long should i wait?

Well i just started my first grow almost 2 weeks ago, my 2 plants are doing very well and i'm using a flourescent light fixture with 1 gro-lux standard spectrum light and one cool white bulb. My plants are about 3.5-4 inches tall and i leave the light on for 24 hours right now.

My question is, when should i start putting the light on a timer for 12/12? I heard that it isn't bad to leave your lights on for 24 hours and it doesn't seem to be doing anything undesirable. I'm just not sure how long to let the plants grow before I want to let them flower.

And also one more question (noob) How long should i wait after the plants flower to harvest them? I was told that the longer you wait the better the weed is, but i don't want to wait too long. I'll keep reading and learning more, but any help would be much appreciated.

in veg plants should be on 18 on 6 off. then 12/12 for flowering. plants get all their energy during the day then grow at night

I just switched mine to 18/6. Someone gave a compelling argument and I went for it. I dont know when you go to 12/12 but for now you would be ok at 18/6 for veggin

Blazeftw said:

in veg plants should be on 18 on 6 off. then 12/12 for flowering. plants get all their energy during the day then grow at night

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plants can be on for 24 hours, i have good results with this. it's not a should matter, more like preference. as far as growing at night, when i did use 18/6, i never saw differences after nightfall.

You can flower your plants now, with a lower yeild, you plant will double to triple in size during the flowering(12/12) cycle. so you need to think about how much space you have.. most people flower when their plants have 4-8 nodes, or 12 inches tall. whichever comes first..

and about how long until harvest, well, yes they get better as time goes on, but they also will die and become not-so-worth-it.
the flowering cycle takes about 8-10 weeks, you want to harvest when 70% of the pistills have turned amber, meaning they have swelled with resin.

Good post russOr..

it depends on if you started with seeds or with a clone.
generally with a seed, you want to wait about 2 months from when it sprouts. that's about when you will get the # nodes that russor is talking about.
clones are a different story. clones are the same age as the mother that it has been taken from. you can begin flowering whenever you like with clones. it's more a preference of how much head room you have.

Blazian said:

it depends on if you started with seeds or with a clone.
generally with a seed, you want to wait about 2 months from when it sprouts.

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What no way 2 months and you will get a 2 foot plant and a whole batch of clones off the plant maby, but not to get 8-12 inches tall.

Question: has anyone ever tried to flower a plant with a shorter light cycle? like 8hrs on, 8 off, using 16 hr days? im wondering if creating shorter days could speed up the process. any thots?

Shorter days means much less potency. We want to give them as many hours of light per day, while still maintaining flowering. Stick with 12/12.