3x3 -- methods and results

I'm curious about how others are using their 3x3 tents -- how many plants, what sized pots, training techniques, how long they veg, and what their results are? Mostly I'm wondering about optimizing the space and canopy for yield. I understand that genetics play the largest role in output, but that aside...

After a lot of experimenting, have you settled into a routine that you repeat?

I started growing year round indoor, then went to two winter indoor grows and a summer outdoor, now I'm just doing one indoor grow per year. That means that it really needs to count, I need to produce enough in one grow to last a whole year. My grows have become about simplicity, so I'm using FFOF soil or something similar, primarily time release dry nutes like Rainbow Pro or Happy Frog, and DIY COB lights (dialed in at between 35 and 50w/sf depending on circumstances).

I've done a half dozen grows in my 3x3, ranging from just one plant to 9 in 2 gallon pots. Here are two examples:

I grew one GG4 from a clone in a SIP (5 gallon fabric pot over 10 gallon res), veg'd for 7 weeks, had some issues with this grow and ended out with 6.8oz.


This is my current grow. I started with 7 from regular seeds, ended out with 4 girls in 5 gallon pots. I was really busy with other stuff during this grow and didn't trim enough, so I ended out harvesting the tops and defoliating and now I'm letting the bottoms cook a little longer. Currently the tops are hanging to dry and the bottoms are still under the lights, so I'm a couple of weeks from a final weight on this one.


Sorry for the blurry pics, my phone is dying.

What's your favorite set up in a 3x3?

Humanrob said:

I'm just doing one indoor grow per year. That means that it really needs to count, I need to produce enough in one grow to last a whole year

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The absolute most I can see getting out of there in one run would be a pound. That's really pushing it too. Will that last you a year?

Renfro said:

The absolute most I can see getting out of there in one run would be a pound. That's really pushing it too. Will that last you a year?

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I may break that, not by much. I'm thinking 1.5 gpw at 340watts.

Go vert. Canopy area goes from 9 sq ft to at least 12.

I've pulled 2 that were in 4in pots, 5 in 1.5 gals, 1 on a 4.5 gal. I have 2 4.5 gals left.
The larger pots veg longer and you gotta know the strains, I do multiple and planning with harvest times is challenging. I need to do better at putting the early harvest ones in the middle, so when they are cut, it opens things up.

This is my second run through on this system, I dropped the wattage and moved the pots around from the first run.

Renfro said:

The absolute most I can see getting out of there in one run would be a pound. That's really pushing it too. Will that last you a year?

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I wanted to keep this thread focused and simple, so I just kept it to the 3x3, I also have a 2x4. I'm growing in a partially converted garage, and if need be I can also grow autos outside the tent in the open room (I have a sub-panel in the garage).

I'm not sure how much we need anymore, because I was growing outdoors and I always had too much, so we have a freezer full of budder and hash and a ton of tincture. I would guess we need between 18-24oz to make it through a year. Last year between the 2x4 and 3x3 I netted under 14oz (x two runs), I'd like to do better than that this year. My first goal would be to get 8oz from each tent... that should be reasonable and hopefully reproducible.

SSGrower said:

I may break that, not by much. I'm thinking 1.5 gpw at 340watts.

Go vert. Canopy area goes from 9 sq ft to at least 12.

I've pulled 2 that were in 4in pots, 5 in 1.5 gals, 1 on a 4.5 gal. I have 2 4.5 gals left.
The larger pots veg longer and you gotta know the strains, I do multiple and planning with harvest times is challenging. I need to do better at putting the early harvest ones in the middle, so when they are cut, it opens things up.
View attachment 4282325 View attachment 4282326 View attachment 4282327
This is my second run through on this system, I dropped the wattage and moved the pots around from the first run.

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I've always been curious about vertical, I guess I'll have to check it out. I've rebuilt the lights for my tents about a half dozen times already, I suppose I can reconfigure them one more time. I would imagine it would work better in my 2x4 which is a Gorilla and is taller? The 3x3 is a Jardin.

Knowing the strains is so important. We're enjoying variety and I haven't focused on just one, but even in traditional horizontal growing some take better to scrogging, some can handle manifolding, others not so much. I've been growing since early in 2015, and I have so much to learn.

I had 5 different varieties.
I don't know that there would be enough distanance from the light to the plant in a 2x4. If you were going to do 1 big plant it might work but you'll be hard pressed to get great development down low on a tall plant.
pics from this run

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A lot less crowded this time.

SSGrower said:

I had 5 different varieties.
I don't know that there would be enough distanance from the light to the plant in a 2x4. If you were going to do 1 big plant it might work but you'll be hard pressed to get great development down low on a tall plant.
pics from this run
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A lot less crowded this time.

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I've seen some threads on this, it seemed like QB's are the most common lights used with vertical? Or strips? Part of what has kept me from trying it has been the idea of investing in more lights.

It is an interesting idea, I'll definitely keep looking into it.

Humanrob said:

I've seen some threads on this, it seemed like QB's are the most common lights used with vertical? Or strips? Part of what has kept me from trying it has been the idea of investing in more lights.

It is an interesting idea, I'll definitely keep looking into it.

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Hard for me to say what is most common, if I were starting from scratch Id probably go strips.
I dont know what brain fart I was having earlier but that 2x4 would work great for a stacked sip, I was stuck on the light being 4 ft wide, many strips come in a 2ft width.
This guy had a great idea for how to hang the light (he switched from liquid cooled cobs to strips)
http://www.rollitup.org/t/5x5-led-t-time-grow-time.949945/page-34#post-14737414

Humanrob said:

I've seen some threads on this, it seemed like QB's are the most common lights used with vertical? Or strips? Part of what has kept me from trying it has been the idea of investing in more lights.

It is an interesting idea, I'll definitely keep looking into it.

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The dirty little secret everyone likes to leave out with canopy size for vert grow is the DEPTH. Yes you get more sq ft but not necessarily more Cu Ft of nugs.
I'd stick with what you are doing with 4 plants and just focus on training to get buds in every sq in possible. (what I am also trying to get better at currently)
If you can hit 2oz a sq ft you'll be killing it. Forget all this g/w crap

OneHitDone said:

The dirty little secret everyone likes to leave out with canopy size for vert grow is the DEPTH. Yes you get more sq ft but not necessarily more Cu Ft of nugs.
I'd stick with what you are doing with 4 plants and just focus on training to get buds in every sq in possible. (what I am also trying to get better at currently)
If you can hit 2oz a sq ft you'll be killing it. Forget all this g/w crap

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I agree with you, for my purposes efficiency is not the measure, production (with quality) is.

I keep notes on my grows, and going back through them, the most weight I've produced was a bit over 14 ounces from my 2x4 which is about 1.75oz/sf (I've had the 2x4 longer than the 3x3). In that grow there were two bigger producers and two that didn't do as well -- if the grow had been two each of the big producers, I would have gone well over 2oz/sf. Another grow in there I had two plants, one produced 5oz the other 8oz, again it's so genetics dependent, if I had two of the larger producer I would have reached a pound. Ironically the one that produced 8oz was not a high my patient enjoyed, and the other was...

I'm always looking for ways to stretch my veg time without running out of space, getting a mature root system and big stems seems to be critical. And then there's genetics, we're all looking for the trifecta: weight, flavor, THC. The variations between strains, phenos, and particular plants is the biggest factor I've found, and often the biggest wild card. Because of that, I'm looking for the sweet spot with quantity of plants. I once did 9 in 2 gallon pots, but that seemed like more work and created more issues. Doing one big plant puts all my eggs in one basket, and that's too risky. As you said, I think 4 is a good compromise for the 3x3 in terms of averaging out genetic differences -- and maintaining some variety -- and having plants that can have the time and space to mature enough to become substantial.

I like the 2oz/sf goal, it makes sense.

Humanrob said:

I agree with you, for my purposes efficiency is not the measure, production (with quality) is.

I keep notes on my grows, and going back through them, the most weight I've produced was a bit over 14 ounces from my 2x4 which is about 1.75oz/sf (I've had the 2x4 longer than the 3x3). In that grow there were two bigger producers and two that didn't do as well -- if the grow had been two each of the big producers, I would have gone well over 2oz/sf. Another grow in there I had two plants, one produced 5oz the other 8oz, again it's so genetics dependent, if I had two of the larger producer I would have reached a pound. Ironically the one that produced 8oz was not a high my patient enjoyed, and the other was...

I'm always looking for ways to stretch my veg time without running out of space, getting a mature root system and big stems seems to be critical. And then there's genetics, we're all looking for the trifecta: weight, flavor, THC. The variations between strains, phenos, and particular plants is the biggest factor I've found, and often the biggest wild card. Because of that, I'm looking for the sweet spot with quantity of plants. I once did 9 in 2 gallon pots, but that seemed like more work and created more issues. Doing one big plant puts all my eggs in one basket, and that's too risky. As you said, I think 4 is a good compromise for the 3x3 in terms of averaging out genetic differences -- and maintaining some variety -- and having plants that can have the time and space to mature enough to become substantial.

I like the 2oz/sf goal, it makes sense.

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2 oz / sf is realistic and potentially repeatably achievable based on what the 1000W guys are doing in a 5x5 (2lb per light)
Veg 6, pick the strongest 4 and toss the other two or use them for clone material. I hear you on the eggs in one basket when growing on smaller #'s.
I have had the "if I only had 2 of these instead" many times
Unfortunately the varieties patients are gravitating to are not the heavy yields with big buds. Mort the small, super dense nugs that put your nose on alert when the bag first comes out of your pocket (not when opened).
Put your lights to the top of the tent if needed and go with 2 layers of trellis netting. It is a pain in the ass but seems to be the ticket for managing the canopy for yields

Well my crops were in multiples of 4x4 with 4 plants vegged from clone around 7 week, topped for 4 mains and super cropped and staked once put in flower to further spread out and fill 2x2 each plant, that seem to work really well and do about 2oz per square foot. Done a few scrogs too with one plant in every four and they only yielded about half oz to an oz extra. Apart from one time when I did a scrog with a 1.5ft x 2ft screen and pulled 9.5oz which was my best gpsf ever.
I now only have a 2x4 and im thinking when I add more tents I will use 3x3s but will just do the same top and super crop with less veg..

OneHitDone said:

Unfortunately the varieties patients are gravitating to are not the heavy yields with big buds. Mort the small, super dense nugs that put your nose on alert when the bag first comes out of your pocket (not when opened).

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That's very true, and since I will continue to shoot for variety I can assume half my plants will push to 2oz/sf, and half might only be 1oz/sf, so I'm going to be satisfied with 1.5oz/sf -- and the reality is that would be over 25oz which should be enough to last us a year.

OneHitDone said:

Put your lights to the top of the tent if needed and go with 2 layers of trellis netting. It is a pain in the ass but seems to be the ticket for managing the canopy for yields

Click to expand...

I've done a double trellis in the 2x4, and it's worked well. I can't really do it in the 3x3, my arms aren't long enough to reach the back of the tent effectively in order to trim and maintain them, so that tent will be 4 free standing plants. This time I used regular garden stakes and string to hold them up towards the end, with 4 in there they need to stay in their own quadrant anyway.

Most I've pulled in my 3x3 was 11oz. 600~ actual watts of cheap burple leds. Rdwc 2 plant sites, both plants mainlined. I've experimented with other methods and this worked best for me.. it's all about trial and error. Good luck!

I'm wrapping up my current grow, and it's looking like about 1oz/sf. The quality is decent but the weight is nothing to write home about. Better care, better genetics, and longer veg times next grow. I suppose moving forward this will be my quest -- fine tuning and optimizing the canopy for the highest possible quality and quantity. I guess that's everyones quest. My limitations are my inherent laziness and desire to keep things as simple as possible -- I'll stick with my COBs, my soil, my time release nutes, and see what I can do with them.

Humanrob said:

What's your favorite set up in a 3x3?

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I use a 2x2 ID flood table in my 3x3 and I love it. Flowered my last run with a 260w v2 qb board and got pretty close to a lb, 50% of that was fire ass flower. Standard flood/drain style grow, 5 plants.


Now I'm running it DTW style, 8 plants, same table, but I added 4 samsung F strips (mixed 3k/3.5k). I'm bummed with this one bc of the mid flower fox tailing - I'll run em till the end and just make due, but I'm sure my final weight will be higher on this round. This will be my last run in this tent, not sure how the next tent will look *yet.