I have a bunch of auto seed and figured I might try some of them. I’m thinking of doing 7-10 gallons ,or maybe some 3 gallons. Or maybe keep them in #1s. I really have no idea. I normally start in #1s and move up to 15s. I’m in peat. Will be using Megacrop or Mills, probably. How would you approach?
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Good topic, I’m definitely popping one more round before winter and am super curious
The hardest part to me seems to be figuring which one wants to get big, if that makes sense.
I think there’s something to the tap root having plenty of room to go deep, but idk, never tried tall skinny vs same volume wide pot.
Seems like a general rule of thumb might be as below, so it is above, size wise. I’m no expert though. At a certain point you will reach the point of diminishing returns with pot size tho, 3g is my sweet spot.
There’s quite a few auto growers/breeders here that’ll chime in better
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Going over 3 gal had no point with my autos,the time Is Just not enough,they’ll veg for 30 days-40 at maximum.That Is my experience with soil.
With Coco,I go 1 liter pots and have huge auto plants.
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I recently got some 3gal air pots from the thrift store. New, 6 for $5. I have some autos I want to run too. Maybe these have a use now.
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If you re in soil I think It Is the max I would go,and a good type of pot for Faster soil dryback
If you’re in Coco,I recommend organic mixture/treat It like Living soil adding something to the mixture.
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I’m assuming peat based, not just peat?. I run a peat/perlite mix for my photos. Any deficiencies that come up, I cause, not the soil.
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Just keep in mind the air pots Will allow for faster drying of the substrate,that means more fertigation events,that leads to more O2 to roots=faster growth rate
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I’m watering something every day. Not a big deal. Might be a good way to get a feel for the air pots. The size seems to fit into my program.
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Forgot to say welcome @Foetidal . Got anything interesting for us besides Autos? We like our pets too. Got any?
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3-5 gallon max, but usually no more than 3. 
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For autos I typically start in a Solo cup, then move to a 3 gallon fabric pot.
I agree with that in general - 3 gallons will work just fine… but I ran a Mephisto CannaCheese in a 6 gallon Octopot (6 gallons of soil in a fabric bag, sitting atop a 6 gallon nutrient reservoir) and it yielded over 13 ounces of dried flower. She was a BEAST!!!
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Nice job there.
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either 3 gallon or 5 gallon - work best for me in re-guards to yields many auto breeders recommend 15 gallon then over 1lb yields are common (Gnome Seeds and Speedrun Seeds (Mutant seeds)
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When you say common, how common? Any good documented grow journals you’reaware of @hawkman ? I know decent auto yields are possible, likely going to get better. Maybe? I’ll put some energy into them at some point. I see them being something good to get my wife growing.
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Ive seen never done autos get huge with hydro or coir grows. I’m guessing because the roots have more room and less constrictions like soil. Also can’t get more nutes with coir since water/dry cycle happens more often. That’s just a conclusion I’ve come to researching autos. Please correct me if wrong I really want to understand if my logic I’d flawed. I haven’t grown in these mediums but have researched.
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My buddy grew 4-5 footers pretty consistently in coco a couple years ago before he stopped growing autos, I think there’s something to that, and @BU2B grows some behemoths too,
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Autos in a 1gal pot will usually stay small and cute. They are fun to grow that way, but don’t expect giant plants or giant yields.
2 to 3 gallon pots the plants can get big, and depending on the genetics, you might get some huge ones.
Also, stunted and dwarfed autos can happen occasionally with any breeders beans. It’s in their DNA and sometimes it just happens no matter what you do.
But I agree with others above. Containers over 3 gal is probably wasted on autos. Over 5 gallons is DEFINITELY wasted.
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Here’s roots from a double grape in a true five gallon bucket. Fwiw
And one of the last pics I took of up top
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When our state went medical and I started growing legally I settled on hydro. I figured if I was going to do it I may as well invest the time and energy and get the biggest bang for my buck. It’s a 5 hour round trip drive to the nearest dispensary.
Coco - which qualifies as hydro and hydro specifically has many benefits, not the least of which is accelerated growth. This is due to both oxygenation and readily always available nutrients. Roots in hydro never stop growing unless o2 pruned by a cloth bag or octapot. When growing photos this means your plants can get bigger during the same period in hydro than they would in soil or dirt. Bigger plants in 8 weeks of veg = bigger and more flowers in the following 8.
This is especially important when growing autos for both the same reasons. Your auto is triggered by time not photons. 4-5 weeks of growth during veg for an auto in any hydro medium (followed by 8 weeks of flowering in hydro) pretty much guarantees a larger plant - which in turn will yield you a larger harvest.
All of that being said, any bud is better than no bud and autos are some of the most visually stunning cannabis flowers you can find. Small or not
It used to be that photos were always more potent than autos, but I’m very happy to report that “it used to be”. These days the only difference is you pay for the beautiful flowers by receiving about ¾ of the yield in what seems a whirlwind grow 
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I was just hanging around, and I wasn’t going to get all “I heart hydro” but he’s right you know.
I grow in 5 gal bucket DWC and it’s beast bushes all the time. Hempy buckets and coco people just make me wanna… push them, just a little. To me, and I’m an asshole, of you’re going to go to the trouble of coco or perlite or some other inert media, why not skip it. Put that plant right in the rez.
Do hold on to your butts. Autoflowers are whirlwinds and hydro is quick. You’re growing hand to mouth, mistakes are quickly realized. But it’s a fun way to grow.
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