Words and images by Dutch Passion
Auto MAC #1 was grown indoors by a seasoned Dutch Passion grower known as The Artist. He is a quality-focused grower specializing in small homegrown plants using fine-quality cannabis seeds.
| Grow Light: | SANlight Q6W, 215W LED light |
| Light cycle: | 20 hours of light, 4 hours of darkness |
| Grow techniques: | None, other than defoliation and lower branch removal |
| Grow medium: | 50/50% mix of lightmix and coco substrate |
| Nutrients: | Bio Rhizotonic root stimulator, BAC grow, bloom, and PK booster. Biotabs were also added to the soil as a bonus |
| Containers: | 22l Air-pot |
| Dry yield: | 90g |
“This was an indoor grow done during spring and early summer 2023. Previous loft grows conducted during winter caused some issues with low temperatures. I hoped this grow would offer better conditions, but unfortunately, the last few weeks of this grow saw some high temperatures in June. To my relief, the Auto MAC #1 breezed through the higher-than-preferred temperatures and delivered a large plant with a pleasingly heavy harvest. Potency was epic; they were possibly the most potent buds I’ve ever grown. It was an easy grow with little to do. Auto MAC #1 was grown naturally, without any significant use of cannabis high-stress training or low-stress training techniques. A few lower branches were removed alongside lower leaves. This approach allows the best yields as plant biochemical energy targets the blooms.
As always, I took lots of pictures, and I hope you enjoy seeing this grow as much as I enjoyed the cultivation!”
Auto MAC #1 germination
“I planted a couple of Auto MAC #1 autoflower seeds. Both germinated quickly using the direct-in-soil method, which seems the most natural and hassle-free way of germinating cannabis seeds. The better-looking seedling was chosen for the photography.”
Week 1
“Nothing much to report. Just steady growth during the cannabis seedling stage.”
Week 2
“This seedling was growing the fastest and looked the best. So I put this one in front of the camera. As usual with Dutch Passion cannabis seeds, progress was steady with no drama.”
Week 3
“Strong stem and vigorous growth. Beautiful, ridged leaves. Temperatures are ideal, reaching 26 degrees while lights are on, and 18 degrees during dark time.”
Week 4
“Strong main stem, healthy development. Side branches are growing well. At this growth stage, I often ‘feel’ I should be busy doing something for the plant. But the Auto MAC #1 has left me nothing to do except occasional watering. It’s looking like a straight-forward grow, but there is still a long way to go.”
Week 5
“From weeks 4 to 5, you can see fast growth upwards and laterally. You can see the flowers forming and the side branches skyrocketing towards the top. This is the period of maximum stretch. I adjusted the hanging height of the LED lights to ensure that the upper branches didn’t experience damaging/stunting light-intensity levels. It’s convenient to see the side branches catching up with the height of the main central bloom. That will make the future blooms roughly equidistant from the LED, all at/near optimized light levels. If all goes well, the canopy will emerge with a flat SCROG-like appearance. Let’s see how the coming week or two go.”
Week 6
“Apart from the main cola, all the side blooms are approximately level. When it comes to autoflowers, this is how I love them to develop. It makes for a perfect distance between the LED and the bloom tops. The plant height at this point is about 75cm, and these genetics deliver very conveniently formed plants – not too small or stretchy. All the Dutch Passion autoflower seeds I have grown have developed similarly. Expect a chunky main bloom surrounded by a ring of side blooms. When the canopy of blooms is at a roughly even height, without any work from me, it makes cannabis growing embarrassingly easy. Especially with the slow-release organic nutrients from BioTabs – that largely replaces the hassles of manually feeding with mineral/bottled nutrients.”
Week 7
“Strong flower development with many yellow/white pistils at the moment – what do you think? Looks great. The size will probably reach about 80-85cm. In my opinion, that’s the perfect size for an autoflower in an indoor grow tent. Overall, I’m thrilled with the easy way this grow is going. No training/branch tying was necessary, and I still have a flat canopy of blooms. Who said growing your cannabis was difficult? All the leaves are also looking super healthy and green. That’s the benefit of slow-release organic nutrients. No burnt leaf tips!”
Week 8
“The side blooms and the main cola are swelling up nicely. Cannabis seems to grow so well under LED—beautiful yellowish-looking flowers. I’m super happy with the results so far. What a great aroma, too. That’s one thing I do love about the better USA cannabis genetics – loud and pungent aromas. I just hope the buds keep swelling for the last few weeks. Fingers crossed. It’s all going so well so far. The buds and sugar leaves are covered with cannabis trichomes.
These buds are already looking like they are going to pack a punch. The aroma is gathering pungency, and the buds are getting big!”
Week 9
“The pistils are now turning brown. Buds are swelling up even more. The plant structure is done growing, but the buds will only swell up more in the coming weeks and become more resinous. Feeding is stopped, and only water will be given for the last 2 weeks. Auto MAC#1 is living up to her hype. The quality looks top shelf; with any luck, this will be around 100g of dry buds. For me, with a smallish tent/LED, that’s quite an achievement. Still, a couple of weeks to go; enjoy the pictures so far!”
Week 10
“We’re moving slowly towards the end. The flowers are a very nice size and are also quite firm. These are going to be special! It’s nice to sit and spend a few minutes admiring the bloom development in the cannabis flowering phase; maybe I will take a few more pictures, too. It looks like the harvest is going to be a straightforward and quick one. These buds look like mini-apples ready to be picked! Trimming will be easy on these chunky buds. Simply beautiful. The buds are not yet in the jars, but already I feel that this is an extraordinary strain, and it has given me an easy grow with hardly anything to do other than strip off a few lower leaves and branches.”
Week 11
“The buds are pretty much ready, and they look great. White pistils are still growing on the buds, but these are mostly newly formed calyx growing on top of the old ones. This seems like the right point to harvest; I don’t think another week would deliver significant yield gains. The Auto MAC#1 has a heavy main cola; it’s been a while since I saw one so plump. I’ve only got some minor picking and trimming; this will be one of my quickest harvests with any luck. All in all, this strain has made for another easy, low-maintenance grow.”
Auto MAC #1 harvest report
“Trimming and harvesting this autoflower was a pleasure, super-fast and quick, just as I expected. The entire grow and harvest of this autoflower was a joy from start to finish. It was super easy—a solid, healthy-growing autoflower with a perfect structure. Complete with ready-to-go frosty nuggets.
After drying, I had 90 grams of resinous, nice-smelling quality cured buds from the single plant. I can honestly say that this has been my easiest Dutch Passion autoflower grow EVER! Even the trimming (one of my less preferred aspects of cannabis home growing) was a breeze.
11 weeks from autoflower seed to harvest means it was a fast grow. And almost hitting a 100g harvest (I ended up with 90g) ensured there were no disappointments with yield. This is a solid producer of top-quality buds. XXL yields await those with bigger containers, more powerful lights, and a bigger tent than mine. My friends invited themselves around for a smoke test, and we were all impressed.
Potency is right up there on par with my best grows, even those from feminized cannabis seeds. Giggles and munchies with a soothing body effect follow a powerful euphoric blast. Relaxing and great after a busy day. This strain is a real stinker. I was smoking some in the back garden, and my friends could smell it before they got to the front door.”
Bonus information, tips, and recommendations
As always, quality LED and possible UVA/UVB supplemental lights deliver the best spectrum. Growing in large (20-30 liters +) aerated containers is another top tip, ensuring you have the correct light intensities throughout the grow.
Use hanging height recommendations from your LED manufacturer but remember to combine this with your observations/experience to ensure that your plants remain in the optical sweet spot from cannabis seed to harvest.
Though easier said than done, avoiding over/underfeeding your plants reduces stress and optimizes their growth vigor in both the vegetative growth phase and the cannabis bloom stage. Slow-release nutrients such as those from BioTabs have helped countless growers avoid the headaches sometimes associated with traditional bottled nutrients.
Auto MAC#1 seeds are produced using the latest Dutch Passion professional selective breeding techniques in combination with lab-proven high-grade parent genetics to deliver stable, consistently excellent results. If you want to upgrade the quality of your autoflower harvests, then Auto MAC#1 is currently among the best autoflower seeds you can buy.
