With autos, I try to start them wherever they're going to finish. For me that's 2 per Earthbox for 4 total in my tent. I plant direct to soil and let them do their thing. Lots of ways to do it though. You just got to remember that even photoperiod plants will go through some shock when transplanting. With autos, their life cycle is genetic and non light dependent, so they don't get any recovery time.