Big Bud autoflowers were developed in the 1980s. This cannabis strain has legendary high yields both indoors and outdoors.
Big Bud is an indica variety capable of producing massive buds with few leaves – a feat unmatched by other types of cannabis.
The Big Bud is a moderately tall cannabis strain which grows an average of 30 to 78 inches tall. Expect a yield of 3 to 6 ounces of usable cannabis per square foot after a flowering period of 7 to 9 weeks. Because of its indica lineage, it delivers a relaxing, full body high.
The following grow journal documents a grower’s attempts at cultivating the Bug Bud auto strain indoors using LED lights.
Grower: Tio Hector
Location: NA
Yield: 253 grams (dried)
May 7th
When this grow journal starts, the plants were already 5 weeks into their veg period. The following details should help catch you up.
The plants are in soil which is a mix of sphagnum peat, worm castings, perlite, and dolomite lime.
They are currently under 2000W LEDs. So far, they’ve only ever received water and tea mix composed of Mexican Bat guano, Peruvian Seabird guano, earthworm castings, and molasses.
The Big Bud seeds were germinated on March 26th and were transplanted into 4-inch pots on April 2nd. They were transplanted to 2-gallon pots on April 9th. Here is all 12 of them after their first veg feeding on April 14th! No signs of stress at all!
On April 15th they finally had some LST. They won’t be topped though.
By April 19th, their growth speed have picked up significantly.
A week later, even the runt from the middle of the bottom row is starting to catch up to her bigger sisters.
Before April ended, the results of the LST have started to show.
And by May 2nd, the house had its own jungle!
More LST was done today as well as some trimming to get some light on the lower vegetation before switching to the 12/12 light cycle.
May 13th
Switched to Bloom tea. The first feeding for the Bloom tea is made of 1/3 cup Indonesian Bat guano, 1/3 cup Peruvian bat guano, 1/3 cup earthworm castings, 5 tablespoons molasses, and 5 gallons of water. Before pouring feeding the plants, allow the mixture to aerate for 24 hours.
May 21st
At the rate they’re growing, the room is getting pretty crowded.
May 23rd
Unfortunately, the slow progress is caused by fairly high temperatures. Now that the temperatures are under control, the girls have started to flourish.
May 26th
And here are a few shots of the buds which are starting off nicely.
May 28th
Rearranged the grow room today to allow more space between the plants and to provide better light penetration. The LED panel is now 36 inches above the plant tops. They’re being fed every 3 days now.
June 10th
The feeding schedule of once every three days is doing wonders for them. They haven’t had any toxicity or deficiency issues. Here are some photos of them and the grow room with 6 plants left.
Wondering where the others are? The other plants were taken out of the grow room to be grown outdoors.
June 13th
It’s been fairly hot and humid for the last 5 days and the room has stayed between 22 and 25 degrees C. As a result of the heat, the plants are consistently taking in 1500mL of tea every 3 days. No signs of any problems so far.
Did a bit of trimming and things are still looking pretty good.
June 23rd
The girls are still doing well and coming along as they should. The buds have improved greatly since the last update.
July 16th
The Big Bud growing indoors are filled with clear trichomes at this point! It won’t be long before they produce monstrous buds with awesome full body highs.
July 20th
Trichomes are starting to turn milky. The last nute feed was tonight and from now on until harvest day, they’ll get nothing but pH-balanced water.
Tried to get a shot of the crystals but the buds weren’t that big although they are dense and quite heavy. By the end of this grow process, you would know how heavy they weigh.
August 2nd
The chop is finally over. It’s drying time now.
August 12th
Drying is done! Now is the time to cure. 6 plants came to a total of 253 grams dried!
Grower: Tio Hector
Location: NA
Yield: 253 grams (dried)
This is a pretty decent yield but for Big Bud, it can be even better.
Because of its short flowering time, Big Bud will benefit from cannabis cultivation techniques to produce 12 to 20 ounces of bud per square meter. Big Bud is compatible with hydroponics and the Sea of Green (SoG) methods of growing.
Another thing which could have been modified in this grow journal are the lights. The ideal grow light for multiple plants needs to be more powerful than 2000W LEDs.
Having a tent with an interior reflective surface also ensures that more light reaches the hard-to-reach parts of the plants as they grow.
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However, to truly unlock Big Bud’s potential and turn the plant into a monster, consider moving it outdoors.
While this cannabis strain can handle most types of climates, it thrives the best in warm climates with plenty of sunlight. Harvest usually comes in October and you can expect 25 ounces per plant.
When grown outdoors, Big Bud needs plenty of attention to help camouflage it.
It can reach heights of 5 feet or more. Hence it will benefit from early topping and bending to help promote a more horizontal growth from an early age.
Despite the massive buds, expect its thick stalks to be able to hold its weight. However, be mindful and ready to support it using tension wires or strings.
Have you ever grown Big Bud cannabis before?
Happy growing!