Indoor One or Two Plants in the Same Space???

[DirtyN0rth]

I have a couple of 37"x37" tents that I've been growing two plants at a time in. I use a 400w ballast with 400w HPS bulb on 50%. Initially, I started growing two plants at a time in these tents for a couple of reasons. First, I was inexperienced and figured if I lost one I'd have the other as a backup. Second, I started out with just one tent and I wanted to yield as much as possible. Well, I've got a few grows under my belt now and I feel pretty comfortable with my methods and the nutrients I use.

Here is my dilemma, I grow because I enjoy it and as a source of income. So, potency is obviously important but yield is as well. I am currently growing Auto Seeds Candy Kush which is a strain I think I"m going to stick with. Attitude claims that you can yield 350g's per meter which is pretty much the size of my tents. I would be more than happy to get 10+ ounces a grow. I've been strongly considering only growing one plant per tent rather than two (I use 5 gallon Smart Pots). Less nutrients, less soil, more room for one plant to grow. My question is, it possible to yield as much as I do with two plants? Will the one plant prosper and grow so much better on its own that it will yield as much as the two plants together?

The two Candy Kush's I have going now are really crammed together and I can't help but think they'd be better off in their own tents. I'm just worried that the yield will be so much less that my supply will no longer be able to meet demand. I end up with about one harvest every 45 days, and like I mentioned I'd like to get at least 10oz's a harvest. That's about what I'm getting with two at a time (over 4ozs a plant). But like I said I feel like there would be better air flow, light distribution, bigger better buds etc if they had their own tent to grow in. I also realize that every plant is different and some just aren't going to yield as much as others, which is another advantage of growing two at a time.

To sum all this up, one or two plants in the same 37"x37" tent... Is it possible to get comparable yields?

 

[Muddy]

One plant in a tent that sized seems to be a bit of wasted space and light. I run a grow box that is slightly bigger, about 40" square. I normally run 8 plants in 3 gallon pots. Average yield of about 2 oz. per plant, so a pound a grow. These are dwarf strains that generally range about 16 - 22" tall. Yes, it does get a bit crowded sometimes if the majority of them hit that 22" mark. With bigger strains in 5 gallon buckets I would probably go with 2 to 4 in that size area with the light running at 100%.

 

[late]

I have an even smaller tent, and in my last grow I was running 600 watts in a 2x4 tent.

You have the light turned down because of the heat? The rule of thumb is 50 watts/sq ft/ so
400 sounds about right.

IMHO, you need to get a closed hood, and run your ventilation through it. It's what I do.
Then you can run your light at 400 watts, which should give you better yields.

 

[DirtyN0rth]

Hmm... I see what you guys are saying. Actually, the 50% was more based upon 100w per plant (400w@50% = 200w for two plants...that was my logic anyways) ...which I read somewhere. That, and my yields have been good so I've never really considered upping the ballasts to 100%. How much of a difference is it going to make in terms of heat/electricity usage?

Oh... and I'll dig out the digital camera so you can get a visual on what I'm getting at in terms of room issues. My Pineapple Punch's are at Day 80 and my Candy Kush's are at Day 50 so it should give you a good timeline. Light's go out in the evening so I'll post the pics tonight

 

[late]

How much of a difference is it going to make in terms of heat/electricity usage?

Depends.

If you really want to know they sell little gadgets that tell you how much the device
is actually using.

 

[SkatterBrayne]

Running the lights dimmed changes the spectrum of the light, and is significantly inferior. Run the 600w at 100%.

You probably pay around 10 center per KWH hour. So running the additional 200w will cost you 2 cents per hour. Multiplied by what, 20 hours a day? 40 cents per day multiplied by a 90 day growing period. It will cost you like $40 to run your lights at 100% for the whole grow.
I guarantee your yields will increase by more than 3 grams, or whatever it would cost to cover the additional expense.

Easy peasy

 

[DirtyN0rth]

Running the lights dimmed changes the spectrum of the light, and is significantly inferior. Run the 600w at 100%.

They're 400w bulbs...regardless though I figured that running them at 50% didn't result in exactly 200w of output. Like I said I've had good results with 50%... So you're saying that the 50% doesn't just cut down the power but actually changes how effective the bulb is as well? I'd rather not turn them up unless it is definitely worth it (I've already got fairly high temps and I really don't want to jack up the electricity as it already causes some friction between me and my roommate). But, if it really is that big of a difference then obviously I would work it out. What about keeping them at 50% until flowering and then upping them to 100%? Anything to shave some cost...

 

[DirtyN0rth]

Here are pics of both tents

 

[SkatterBrayne]

It will negatively impact your spectrum of light running at 50%. I mistyped the 600w, I meant 400w. The math remains the same.

There are two major production constraint variables from an operational perspective (Not including skill, obviously). Square Footage, and Light Intensity. It is not wise business practice to seek savings in these areas in an economy of scale. A simple and basic statement of cash flows will show you.

That's all I'll say on that topic. Good luck

 

[DirtyN0rth]

Yeah... well I understood your statement I was just looking for a more in depth explanation.

E.g. The truth about dimmable ballasts...

Not to say that what this guy writes is gospel...but I'd just like some sort of testing / proof. It seems to me that in this case I'd be best off running them at 50% until Day 25 or so (flowering begins) then kicking them up to 75% or 100%.

But, none of this still really answers my question..if you look at the pics you can see that two plants are jammed in there. I could literally pull them out and they fit together like puzzle pieces. The left plant has much less growth on the right side, and the right plant has much less growth on the left side (where the two grow into each other). So I was just thinking that one plant on its own would fully occupy the space and yield about the same. But, with half as much soil, nutrients, water, etc... I was just wondering if anyone has actually yielded just as much with half as many plants in the same space.