A grow tent is a great option if you want to get started on indoor gardening but have limited space.
But before buying a grow tent, you need to find the right size for your setup.
What size grow tent you get depends on many factors, from your chosen plant to the available space to your budget.
Let’s look at everything you need to know to get the right size grow tent for growing plants indoors.
Factors to Consider to Choose the Right Grow Tent Size
A grow tent gives you full control to create the ideal growing conditions for plants.
You control everything from the light to the humidity. With grow tents, your plants are protected from the weather changes and pests like spider mites.
But to ensure your plants’ growth and maximize yield, you need the right size grow tent.
There’s much to consider when it comes to finding the ideal size for your indoor garden:
1) Space Needed per Plant
Before buying a grow tent, you need to ask yourself, “How much space do I need for growing plants indoors?”
The space needed for your plants AND equipment (e.g., humidifier, etc.) will help you determine how big or small your grow tents should be.
It’s recommended to have 2×2 feet of grow space for every adult marijuana plant within a grow tent.
Grow tents on the market come in different sizes to fit various amounts of plants.
Assuming you’re using 3 or 5-gallon grow bags, there are recommendations regarding how many plants you can put inside a certain size grow tent.
The 4′ x 4′ and 4′ x 8′ are some of the most popular grow tent sizes, which can house 4 to 8 plants on average.
Serious growers also combine different size grow tents to separate plants in different stages.
If you’re growing cannabis plants or tall plants, you should account for overhead grow tent space. The standard 80-inch height of 4′ x 4′ grow tents is a practical choice in this case.
2) Grow Tent Humidity
When it comes to growing marijuana plants, humidity control is CRUCIAL for their growth and development.
If the air is too dry, the plants will wilt, but too much humidity can result in molding or rot.
Humidifiers are essential equipment to ensure the right humidity levels in your grow tent. As such, you need to have extra space for a humidifier in a grow room.
Clones require as much as 70% of humidity as they primarily absorb water from leaves.
Cannabis plants in the vegetative and flowering growth stage only need about 50% humidity.
3) Grow Lights
The type of grow light you intend to use also affects the grow tent size you should get.
Generally, the taller the grow tent, the more space you have for plant growth.
To account for plant height, the grow light should be placed at a safe distance.
If you plan to use a high-intensity discharge light, you will need a grow tent that is 6 feet tall at the minimum.
On the other hand, you can get by with a 4 feet-tall grow tent if you’re using a fluorescent light.
4) Size of the Pots You’ll Use
Most growers use 3-gallon buckets or grow bags to cultivate their greens, but there are also other sizes to accommodate different-sized cannabis plants.
A 3-gallon grow bag is 23 cm tall and 27 cm in diameter.
The plant’s branches will inevitably grow outside of the grow bag, which is one factor to determine the growing space.
If you want to grow four plants in 3-gallon grow bags, you should set aside around 18 inches of grow space for each.
Using a small bucket to grow smaller plants can give you more space to place MORE grow bags. Meanwhile, large plants mean fewer buckets.4 plants can grow comfortably in a 4′ x 4′ size tent, giving a comfortable growing space with enough room for the necessary equipment.
5) The Plant You’ll Be Growing
Cannabis plants come in different sizes, which is something you need to consider when looking for the right size grow tent.
Whether you want to cultivate large or small plants, both can give you excellent results.
Although you can only grow a few tall plants in a single grow tent, it also has its advantages:
- Less time and effort to maintain a single plant
- Larger, more potent bud sites
- Fewer plants mean less cost
- Good option if there is a legal requirement to the number of marijuana plants you can grow
Smaller plants also provide certain benefits:
- A short growth cycle means more harvests
- Requires minimal pruning
- Requires less soil
- Requires less vertical space
You can even control how large your plant will depend on your training method (e.g., Sea of Green (SOG) grow).
The type of plant you want to grow also affects how many cannabis plants you can fit in a grow tent.
6) Whether You Want Multiple Tents or Multiple Chambers
Multi-chamber grow tents have separate compartments to segregate your cannabis plants for the propagation, vegging, and flowering stage.
They are convenient for keeping a constant harvest. However, there is less space for vegging plants.
Multiple grow tents are a better option to ensure a BIGGER yield.
You can cultivate clones in a propagation grow tent and then have a separate one for harvest. It helps keep a constant supply of flowering plants.That said, having multiple grow tents means greater expenditure for fans, lights, and ventilation.
7) Your Budget
There are many grow tents available on the market at various price points.
A budget-friendly option can be as low as $90, while mid-range grow tents tend to be priced around $200 on average.
If you want the best features that can last for many years, a high-quality grow tent can cost as high as $1,000.
High-end grow tents have more components, such as duct ports, carbon filters, easy-access windows, and more.
However, there are great value buys that perform well at half the price of top grow tents.
What Size Grow Tent Do I Need?
For an indoor gardener who already knows how many plants they want, the next step is determining what size grow tent is best for the job.
Let’s cover the most common tent sizes and how many plants these tents can fit:
Grow Tent for One Plant
You can comfortably grow a single plant in a 2′ x 2′ grow tent. Many growers use 3′ x 3′ and even 5′ x 5′ for one plant.
To guarantee many buds, you must trim and stress train your plant.
With this setup, you would want the plant to grow wider than taller to maximize the space of larger tents.
Grow Tent for Two Plants
Many growers recommend using 2′ x 2′ square based grow tents for two plants, but rectangular grow tents may be more practical.
A square grow tent means the plants are placed diagonally with space for equipment like grow lights and humidifiers.
A small square base tent is good for growing smaller plants, but any bigger tent would require at least a 3′ x 3′ grow tent.
With a rectangular grow tent, each plant can have its OWN square space.
A 2′ x 4′ grow tent can fit two medium-sized plants, while a 4′ x 8′ is ideal for larger plants.
You can grow two plants in a large-size grow tent up to their ultimate height.
Grow Tent for Four Plants
The recommended grow tent for 4 plants is typically 4′ x 4′, which gives each plant a 4-square grow room.
You can also grow four plants in a 3′ x 3′ grow tent, assuming you’re working with small plants.
Some growers even use 2′ x 2′ tents, but they can only grow enough to have one bud site.
Grow Tent for Six Plants
With six plants, rectangular grow tents are best. 4′ x 6′ grow tents are ideal for medium size plants.
The more common option is a 4′ x 8′ grow tent, which gives your plants more grow room.
Using the Sea of Green (SOG) growing method, you can fit six plants in a 2′ x 3′ grow tent. On the other hand, a 10′ x 10′ tent provides enough grow room to house six HUGE plants.
TRIVIA: The SOG method is a growing technique to create a higher yield in a limited space.
Grow Tent for Ten Plants
Many growers use 5′ x 10′ grow tents to grow ten 4-square-foot plants.
This option gives plants plenty of room to grow and enough space for equipment like grow light and duct ports.
8′ x 6′ grow tents can also work, though this size is not as common. You can also check out 10′ x 10′ tents if you want to grow larger plants.
With SOG growing, you can fit 10 plants in a 3′ x 3′ grow tent.
Grow Tent for 12 Plants
Similarly to the 10-plant setup, 5′ x 10′ and 8′ x 6′ grow tents are great choices.
If you want to have a bigger growing space, 8′ x 8′ and 10′ x 10′ grow tents leave more room for a carbon filter and additional duct ports.
4′ x 4′ grow tents are ideal for SOG growing.
Tips to Making the Most of Your Grow Tent
Even if you’ve found the perfect grow tent, there are still ways you can maximize your growing area.
See how you can improve your grow tents:
Use Horizontal Stiffeners to Strengthen the Tent’s Side Walls
If you don’t have enough room in your grow tent, you can extend the walls and use horizontal stiffeners.
Pull the canvas tight and expand the growing space up to 30cm. Each wall is now extended by 7.5 cm.
Increase Tent Height
The size of a grow tent should leave space to keep the plant height at a safe distance from grow lights.
Increasing the height of your grow tent can be done using height extenders.
Having adequate overhead space ensures that you don’t shorten the growth cycle of your cannabis plants.
Control Plant Growth
To make the most out of a small grow tent for 4 plants, you also need to manage the height of your cannabis plants.
Let’s look at some of the methods you can use to give more room to larger-sized plants:
Use a Smaller Grow Bag
One way to prevent plants from taking up too much space is to use smaller grow bags.
A smaller grow bag means a smaller area for the root system to grow in. Opt for a 3-gallon grow bag instead of a 5-gallon bag.
Alternatively, if you want one or two mature plants that grow to their ultimate height, a 7-gallon grow bag allows roots to spread.
Top Your Plant
You can cut the top portion of the plant’s primary stem with pruning shears to decrease the plant height.
It also helps diffuse hormones to the lower parts of the plant and aid in stimulating bud production.
Low Stress Train the Plant
Another way to decrease the plant’s height is to bend and tie down the larger branches to the side of the grow bag.
Plants naturally grow towards the light source.
If you have 4-foot-sized plants, the middle, and lower bud sites most likely won’t receive as much light as the top.
As a result, there’s less yield. This method allows light to filter to ALL parts of the plant.
Don’t worry because the branches will readjust and grow upward with time.
Switch Your Cannabis Plants to Flowering Phase at the Right Time
When your plants reach half their maximum height, you can change the light cycle from 18 to 12 hours.
It’s a good rule of thumb if you want to keep your greens the right size for your grow tent.
They will keep growing during the flowering stage without the need to take out the pruning shears.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you want to know more about finding the ideal size grow tent, below are related questions that can help you:
Does My Grow Tent Need a Humidifier?
A humidifier is a KEY component for any indoor growing setup.
Humidity control prevents mold and mildew from developing in your plants. You need to reserve at least 12″ x 16″ space inside the grow tent for a humidifier.
Does Growing More Cannabis Plants in One Grow Tent Give Higher Yield?
You WON’T get a better yield by overcrowding pots in a single grow tent.
Putting too many plants in a tent can stunt their growth, which means a lower yield. Sometimes, you can get more yield from fewer, larger plants.
Remember, getting the best yield is a combination of the right grow tent and the right number of plants.
How Do You Set Up a Grow Room Area?
When planning for a growing room, you need to answer the question, how much space do I have available?
Before purchasing a grow room, we recommend drawing out a blueprint of the grow area you want. It will help outline EVERYTHING you need to make sure that it is functional.
You’ll need a breaker to power the grow area and all electrical equipment. Check that no unnecessary appliance is attached to the breaker.
The watering process should take care of the water run-off and refilling reservoirs.
When you’ve settled on the utilities and location, you need to:
- Calculate the overall cost of the accessories and equipment, e.g., grow light, humidifier, and ventilation fans.
- Clear the area of non-essential items that won’t be used for the growing room, e.g., rugs, curtains, tables, etc.
- Make sure that you can keep the growing area clean and sanitary.
- Find a location or storage room for plant nutrients, spare grow light bulbs and other tools.
- Set up the grow room. Make sure that the grow bags or buckets are evenly spaced.
- If you intend to draw air from an external source, a port or window on the roof is more convenient.
- Place the grow tent near the exhaust location or ventilation.
What Is the Best Grow Tent?
The best grow tent for your indoor garden setup largely depends on the number of plants you intend to grow.
There are several grow tent options from trustworthy brands that let you create the ideal growing conditions for your greens:
- Gorilla Grow Tent – One of the most highly recommended grow tents on the market. Their tents are known to be incredibly durable and well-built.
- AC Infinity – With heavy-duty tents that don’t compromise on quality, AC Infinity delivers some of the best products in the industry.
- Mars Hydro – For quality tents at an affordable price, Mars Hydro offers a great line perfect for beginners and hobby growers.
- Vivosun – You can trust Vivosun for remarkable and reliable grow tents that are easy to use, even for novice gardeners.
Conclusion
With so many grow tents available, finding the right one for your indoor gardening setup can be challenging.
Before buying a grow tent, consider the number of plants you want to grow, your available space, and your budget.
Remember, it’s always better to go for a bigger-sized tent if you have the chance!
With these guidelines, we hope you can make an informed decision on the ideal grow tent for you.
