# How much weed does one plant produce?

> One indoor cannabis plant produces whatever its share of the canopy yields: roughly 100–500 g of dry flower per square metre of canopy in controlled trials, depending mostly on light. A single plant filling a 60 x 60 cm (2 x 2 ft) tent at moderate light gives about 40–180 g (1.5–6 oz). Per plant is a poor measure: yield follows canopy area and light, not plant count.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/how-much-does-one-plant-yield.html
- Topic: Basics · Type: Numbers
- Evidence: Grower practice · Status: Draft: awaiting expert review
- Full article: [Your first grow: a plan from seed to jar](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/basics/first-grow-guide.md)
- Also asked as: Yield per plant indoors | How many ounces per plant? | Average yield for a first grow | How many grams does one plant give?
- Updated: 2026-10-31 · Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay Knowledge Base (genetixbay.com/knowledge)"

## Short answer

One indoor plant [yields](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/yield.md) its share of the canopy. Controlled trials measured roughly 116–519 g of dry flower per square metre as light rose from low to very high, and 500–750 g/m² in well-run rooms at 750–900 [µmol/m²/s](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/ppfd.md). One plant filling a 2 x 2 ft (0.36 m²) tent typically gives about 40–180 g (1.5–6 oz). *Grower practice* arithmetic on *Supported* trial data.

## Why

Light drives yield. In one trial, dry flower rose in a straight line from 116 g/m² at 120 µmol/m²/s to 519 g/m² at 1,800 µmol/m²/s [1]. Another group measured 500–750 g/m² at 750–900 µmol/m²/s [2]. Cultivars and growers differ, so treat these as research-room numbers, not a promise.

[Plant count](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/plant-count-limit.md) splits the canopy, it doesn't add to it. Higher density raised yield per area but lowered yield per plant [3]. One big plant and four small ones can fill the same tent.

[Root volume](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/pot-size.md) and feeding set how fast a plant fills its space. Doubling pot size raised biomass by about 43% on average across many crops [4], though frequent feeding lets small pots punch above their size.

## The numbers

Yield per plant ≈ [canopy area](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/canopy.md) the plant fills × g/m².

| Canopy per plant | At ~120 g/m² (weak light) | At ~300 g/m² (moderate) | At ~500 g/m² (strong, dialled in) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.36 m² (2 x 2 ft) | ~45 g (1.5 oz) | ~110 g (4 oz) | ~180 g (6 oz) |
| 0.72 m² (2 x 4 ft) | ~85 g (3 oz) | ~215 g (7.5 oz) | ~360 g (12.5 oz) |
| 1.44 m² (4 x 4 ft) | ~175 g (6 oz) | ~430 g (15 oz) | ~720 g (25 oz) |

1 oz = 28.35 g. Figures are dry, trimmed flower.

## What to do

1. Measure your canopy area, not your plant count.
2. Measure light at the canopy; it is the biggest lever.
3. Train plants to fill the space evenly ("tuck, don't pluck").
4. Plan a first grow on the weak-to-moderate column, and log the real number.

## Common mistakes

- Quoting yield per plant without the canopy area or light.
- Adding plants instead of filling the canopy with fewer, trained ones.
- Weighing wet buds; [wet weight](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/wet-weight.md) is roughly four to five times dry.

## Related

- Full article: [Your first grow](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/basics/first-grow-guide.md)
- Answers: [grams per watt and per square foot](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/grams-per-watt.md) · [plants per tent](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/how-many-plants-per-tent.md) · [increasing yield](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/how-to-increase-yield-indoors.md)
- Article: [PPFD and DLI by stage](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/environment/ppfd-dli-by-stage.md)
- Terms: [yield](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/yield.md) · [ounce](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/ounce.md)

## Follow-up questions

**How much does an autoflower yield?** An autoflower usually yields less per plant than a photoperiod, because it has no extra veg time, but it can match photos per square metre per year. A small auto in a 2 x 2 ft tent might give 30–100 g. The GenetixBay founder's best elite auto gave about 340 g (3/4 lb) in under 80 days, a ceiling when everything goes right, not a typical result.

**Do more plants mean more yield?** More plants raise yield per square metre only up to a point. Controlled research on drug-type cannabis found higher planting density increased yield per area but lowered yield per plant and made cannabinoid content less uniform. Two to four well-trained plants usually fill a 4 x 4 ft tent as well as many small ones, and stay inside legal plant limits.

**Does a bigger pot give more yield per plant?** A bigger pot gives a bigger plant within reason: across many crops, doubling pot size raised biomass by about 43% on average. But root volume isn't everything. The GenetixBay founder has grown over 4 oz (about 115 g) from a 16 oz cup using high-frequency fertigation. Feeding frequency trades against pot size.

## Sources

1. Rodriguez-Morrison V, Llewellyn D, Zheng Y. 2021. Cannabis yield, potency, and leaf photosynthesis respond differently to increasing light levels in an indoor environment. Frontiers in Plant Science 12:646020. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.646020
2. Westmoreland FM, Kusuma P, Bugbee B, 2021. Cannabis lighting: Decreasing blue photon fraction increases yield but efficacy is more important for cost effective production of cannabinoids. PLoS ONE 16(3): e0248988. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248988
3. Danziger N, Bernstein N, 2022. Too dense or not too dense: higher planting density reduces cannabinoid uniformity but increases yield/area in drug-type medical cannabis. Frontiers in Plant Science 13:713481. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.713481
4. Poorter H, Bühler J, van Dusschoten D, Climent J, Postma JA. 2012. Pot size matters: a meta-analysis of the effects of rooting volume on plant growth. Functional Plant Biology 39(11):839-850. https://doi.org/10.1071/FP12049