Auto SFV OG seed to harvest grow report

Auto SFV OG cannabis seed to harvest timelapse video

Auto SFV OG germination

An Auto SFV OG seed was germinated. The damp cotton cannabis seed germination method is a particularly reliable way to germinate your cannabis seeds. Within a couple of days the Auto SFG OG seed had sprouted and the cannabis seedling stage had begun.

Auto SFV OG week 1

The autoflower seed germinated and shed her shell. I had little to do other than occasionally mist the seedling as she emerged. I was surprised by the initial growth vigour of the Auto SFV OG seedling. A good omen, I was already excited by these genetics and their supposed ability to deliver rock-solid 20-25% THC levels.

Let the grow begin!

Auto SFV OG week 2

This is one of the fastest growing autoflowers I’ve seen in a long time. From the start she took off like a rocket, growing faster than most autoflower strains I’ve grown in the past. Already I get the feeling that Auto SFV OG has potential.

Auto SFV OG week 3

By week 3 the Auto SFV OG had already grown into a nice sized plant. Leaves are looking healthy, temperatures are in the ideal range, 18-26°C (64F-79F). I’m not planning autoflower topping (removal of the growth tip). Rather, I will leave her to grow in the natural way.

Along with the slow release BioTab nutrients this should make for a low-maintenance grow. I’m not wanting to get over-confident, but this is already looking like a good grow.

Auto SFV OG week 4

My Auto SFV OG plant has just reached 40cm and she looks like she’s not stopping any time soon. The first signs of flowering can also be seen. She has a very nice open structure, not too many leaves either – I’m impressed so far.

I’m pleased with the lights and nutrients – in the ‘goldilocks zone’ – nether too much light/nutrition nor too little. Auto SFV OG is thriving. If this continues, she should produce a well-proportioned plant with every chance of an XL harvest.

Auto SFV OG week 5

The Auto SFV OG has grown to 75cm, that’s about 35cm of vertical growth in a week! She is looking to be a very large specimen with a more sativa-style of growth – long slender branches reaching up high. Yet the leaves look more like a hybrid / indica type of plant.

The plant is large but not stretched or spindly – again I am impressed and hoping not to get too carried away with the potential of this lady. This is when I noticed the aroma really ramping up in pungency. That’s not too unusual with the better-quality autos.

But Auto SFV OG is kicking up quite an impressive stench considering we are just at week 5. It’s funny how much you enjoy the grow when everything is blazing along perfectly!

Auto SFV OG week 6

Just look at her go! Long branches are covered from top to bottom with pre-flowering buds. She is starting to take up a lot of space, but she looks to be a rewarding variety especially for those that prefer growing a smaller number of XXL yielding plants.

I had a good quality 215W LED grow light and a large air pot for this grow. In the future I may repeat this grow with a larger container and higher wattage LED, I suspect I could fill a 1m x 1m (3ft x 3ft) grow tent.

Again, the aroma was more powerful than with most previous autos. Open the tent for just a moment and the smell seemed to waft around the whole house. I always keep a spare carbon filter just in case. I wondered if I would need it.

Auto SFV OG week 7

The buds are gaining some weight and really swelling at this point. She is also reaching her final size just over 1m in height. The aroma is smooth soft scent, which is actually quite pleasant.

Reaching the 1m mark just 7 weeks after autoflower seed germination is really impressive. Stretch is now virtually stopped and the buds are piling on weight. As well as the great aroma, plenty of resin production is underway. Assuming no disasters strike in the next few weeks, this grow is now becoming one of my most memorable.

I’m glad I allowed her to grow naturally without any training. It’s made the grow very straightforward. Most of my visits to the tent are just to stand and stare at the blooms. It’s been an embarrassingly easy grow to produce such a stunning plant.

Auto SFV OG week 8

Due to a European heatwave (June 2023), temperatures are getting way higher than I would like. This is the first problematic period of an otherwise easy grow and I don’t have air-conditioning.

During the final 3 weeks temperatures are peaking at 35°C (95F) inside the grow tent. The lowest temperatures during the ‘lights off’ period are about 25-27°C (79F). At night I fully open up the attic window to let cool air flow in, but it’s only reducing temperatures slightly.

The main cola is developing into an impressive looking bloom, it’s like a skyscraper built from buds! Hopefully the yield and quality won’t be compromised too much by the heat wave.

These are hybrid genetics so I’m hoping that the sativa content will allow the plant to cope somewhat with the hot conditions. Maybe I will need to think about air-con in the future if central Europe continues to get these punishing tropical summer conditions…

Auto SFV OG week 9

The blooms have now evolved into an impressive size, with lots of thick buds. Plenty of hairs (pistils) have turned brown. Ripening is underway and despite the permanently hot conditions the Auto SFV OG is pushing ahead and not struggling too much at all.

At this stage, I started flushing the cannabis plant, feeding only with pure water. Some lower branches are bending down from the weight at this point. Although I didn’t apply any training techniques on this grow, I realised that some form of plant training could really allow this strain to deliver bumper harvests.

Some of my buddies grow with coco fibre and cannabis hydroponics. I wondered what Auto SFV OG could deliver in those conditions.

Auto SFV OG week 10

The branches are now fully covered from top to bottom in glimmering trichomes. The main cola is absolutely huge. For sure this has got to be one of the biggest autoflowers I’ve grown.

It actually has some branch-breaking similarities to the Auto Glueberry OG parent genetics which were used when creating this autoflowering version of San Fernando Valley OG.

What a great aroma! Squeezing the buds between my fingers releases a long-lasting skunky scent. Just brushing the blooms with my forearms leaves me with a personal San Fernando dankness. Despite the misery of a heat wave, I really don’t think quality or yield has been severely affected. At this stage I am grateful that the grow got off to such a smooth, vigorous start. The finish isn’t far away…

Auto SFV OG week 11

I feel it’s time to harvest. The plant has been flushed for 2 weeks with only water. Branches are hanging down due to the weight. I could let it ripen another week and I was severely tempted to do just that.

In my experience, Dutch Passion’s autoflowers continue to swell in size and increase in stickiness if you leave them an extra week or two beyond the ‘normal’ harvest date. But with the unrelenting high temperatures showing no sign of stopping I did not want to stress the plant any longer.

I decided this grow had gone really well, apart from the heatwave in bloom and figured there was little point in risking another week in the scorching tent. The aroma was at its peak, a sublime skunky dankness with some old-school Amsterdam funk mixed in for good measure. I had no complaints and decided to get the scissors out. In truth I was desperate to sample the buds as well.

Auto SFV OG harvest report

Harvesting was quite some work, taking more time than I had planned, and I stank afterwards. It was the only part of the grow that required any serious effort from my side.

It takes time to trim all the buds from plants of this size. I always try to do a professional job, trimming the buds individually.

I take pride ensuring that all the small leaves that stick out of the buds are cut off. I wish it took less effort though.

I had a lot of long, bud covered branches to trim. The stench and stickiness were in a different league to many of my previous harvests. You can definitely consider this autoflower to be a very large yielder.

Unlike other XXL autoflowers, it didn’t require a 12-14 week grow cycle, that’s a real plus for me. If you want a fast XXL auto then this would currently be my top recommendation, especially if you don’t want to compromise on potency or yield.

After 11 weeks she was good enough to harvest. I also grew a second Auto SFV OG plant with similar results (only slightly smaller) in a 22l pot instead of a 30l pot.

Smoke report:

Auto SFV OG gets a 10/10 rating from me. Potency was mad, my friends and I loved it. This helped empty the jars much faster than normal! That’s the sign of a great strain.

With THC levels approaching 25% a little went a very long way. Smoke a bit too much and this lady knows how to put you flat on the sofa, dribbling with fantasies of takeaway food and other things…

Yeah, yield was obviously above my expectations as was the speed of the grow cycle. 110 g from a single plant in 11 weeks was impressive. We are thinking about putting 4 or 5 of them in a 1.2m x 1.2m tent in the future with much more light next time, maybe 500 W of LED and larger containers too.

I feel sure that a ½ Kg haul should be possible this way with very little effort and work. Aroma was also top shelf. Dutch Passion measured her with over 1% terpenes in the dry buds, that’s twice the typical average. She smells like an old school stinker that is for sure.

Auto SFV OG ticked ALL the important boxes for me. She’s definitely one of the new high-THC autoflower seeds which can more than hold her own against the best feminised cannabis seeds in terms of raw potency. Yet with a connoisseur terpene profile and blooms so heavy that they literally cause the branches to bow down under their own weight. Consider supporting branches to prevent them collapsing if you can, perhaps I should have.

All in 11 weeks from autoflower seed to harvest. You don’t need to ask… for sure, I will be growing this one again!

Bonus information, tips and recommendations when growing Auto SFV OG

Seeds from the USA Special cannabis seed collection, like Auto SFV OG, carry the genetic potential for exceptional results, especially when grown under optimised conditions.

If you want to extract every drop of potential from these cannabis cup winning seeds we fully recommend the use of good quality LED grow lights. All the best manufacturers provide detailed recommendations for hanging heights/intensity at each stage of plant growth.

Supplemental UVA/UVB lights allow extra cannabinoid production in the cannabis trichomes and a richer terpene profile. They are recommended to all serious growers alongside LED. Anyone still using HPS grow lights will notice an immediate step-up in quality when upgrading to LED. The plants will also enjoy cooler temperatures.

Do what you can to keep the grow room temperatures within range. Usually around 25°C (77F) is a good target temperature. Where possible avoid the 30°C+/90F temperatures seen on this grow. Grow room air-con, though undeniably expensive, is increasingly one of the top wish-list luxury items for serious growers seeking consistent excellence even from a mid-summer grow.

Use of aerated grow containers such as air pots or felt sacks allows vigorous growth of the cannabis roots, essential for overall plant vitality.

Whilst it’s easier said than done, avoiding the stunted growth that comes from under-feeding and over-feeding your plants is also essential to bag killer results. Use of slow-release organics, as used in this grow, is an easy way of largely by-passing these issues altogether.

As The Artist noted, when conditions allow, some growers like to experiment and allow their auto an extra 1-2 weeks to fully ripen and reach maximum weight. Many say this allows extra yield, stickier buds and a heavier effect.

Anyone seeking to expand their auto knowledge when growing autoflower seeds may wish to check out the following article….

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How to grow autoflowering cannabis seeds, pro tips and expert advice