The Proper Way To Water A Seedling In A Large Final Container

Matto835 said:
So I have been following your advice and the plants seem to be in good shape, I'm just wondering does this method work for auto flowering or is it only for photos? Seeing as the growth of autos go at a rapid rate.
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Hi @Matto835 , welcome to the forum!
Yes, I actually wrote this guide with the growers of auto's in mind.
 
Emilya,

I'm grown my first three plants (Dark Angel strain) in three gallon cloth pots. I bought five gallon cloth pots for my next two. After reading this thread, I see that was a mistake.

I then purchased a pair of one gallon pots. My plan is to start the next two in these and then transplant them to the five gallon pots.

Does this seem a good way to go?
 
Doctor Trevor said:
Emilya,

I'm grown my first three plants (Dark Angel strain) in three gallon cloth pots. I bought five gallon cloth pots for my next two. After reading this thread, I see that was a mistake.

I then purchased a pair of one gallon pots. My plan is to start the next two in these and then transplant them to the five gallon pots.

Does this seem a good way to go?
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I think that is an excellent plan! Please let us know what you think after you have had a chance to compare methods.
 
I just wanted to sure regarding the size of pots.

I'll have a journal for them.

Thank you!
 
Thanks for this final-container watering guide!

I've been following your original watering tips, and the plants seem to like it! It also feels right to me, which has to count for something even though I'm not a plant :D

There is one thing I'm uncertain about, and that's how wet the soil should be initially, when you plant the seeds.

So far I've had fairly wet and heavy buckets, a bit over 3 gallons - not soaking, but good and moist - and they take ca. 3 weeks to become dry and light. I do spray a little water around the seedlings as the soil top layer starts to dry, and start a little watering with a reduced nute mix 2-3 weeks in. I suspect my plants are not growing as vigorously during that first month as some others that I see on here. Thus I'm looking to optimize the soil conditions and feeding schedule those first weeks. The soil is peat/sand/lime gardening mix precharged with NPK nutes and with compost and perlite added by me.
 
I no longer soak the soil prior to planting the seeds... I want to show the seeds the path I want the roots to take. i start with a mister, spraying around the small plant twice a day. Some of that water goes down deep, and I want the roots to chase that water all the way to the bottom. Then I am also misting out to 3x the diameter of the plant, enticing those top roots to follow that water too, out to the outer edges. With an already wet container, it is not possible to steer the roots like this in the beginning, and I believe that the lack of forcing the roots to grow in different directions does slow down initial growth.
 
Emilya said:
Once you get into bloom, it is time to change your watering strategy.

From then on your goal is not building roots, it is time to really start using the roots that you have carefully built. Your goal at the end of stretch should be to start pumping as much water/nutes into the plant as it can take. I typically will force a plant that is perfectly happy with a 3 day wet/dry cycle into an every other day watering all during bloom... and with the roots you have forced the plant to grow in Veg, they will be able to take just about as much water as they did in 3 days, if you have done this correctly.

Good Luck and Good Grows!
Emilya
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I am putting together an water controller (programmed timers) based plan for the girls in bloom.

When watering a plant with what I hope is well developped roots, is it still useful to water slowly?
How do you feel about a timer doing: 1 qt - pause - 1 qt - pause - 2 qt - pause - water to runoff?

Would you still recommend a taste of water to keep the topsoil moist in bloom?

If you had the opportunity to water until the top inch is moist 6 times a day, would you:
Water once every 4 hours day or night?
Water every 2 hours beginning just before artificial dawn and ending a couple hours before artificial sunset?
None the above?
Something different?


The veg water controller plan will be simpler, timed pure water moistening cycles 24x7, supplemented by hand water and fertlization soaks on a pot lightness basis. I can program an almost infinite number of start times with some creating plumbing(or custom automation) for an affordable price.

If I run 20/4 light dark cycles, how many times a day would you recommend a few seconds of micro sprinkling?
 
Emilya,

Really enjoying these water tips. It has been very educational and inspiring as someone who is attempting their first grow.

Made a mistake of going from solo cup to a 10 gallon smart pot a week ago using mykos. They are only 3 weeks old and seem to be growing and healthy albeit slowly.

I have only been misting it heavily covering the top soil with a hose. When would be a good age to saturate the soil?

They are outside full time

Any tips would be appreciated. :)
 
Abstrakt said:
Emilya,

Really enjoying these water tips. It has been very educational and inspiring as someone who is attempting their first grow.

Made a mistake of going from solo cup to a 10 gallon smart pot a week ago using mykos. They are only 3 weeks old and seem to be growing and healthy albeit slowly.

I have only been misting it heavily covering the top soil with a hose. When would be a good age to saturate the soil?

They are outside full time

Any tips would be appreciated. :)
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You should always saturate (water to runoff) the new container upon transplant so as to merge the two soil regions. After that first full watering, they you will go to the staggered partial watering model, until the lower part of the container finally is used up. It will take around 3 complete wet/dry cycles before you will be able to do away with the 2 stage watering.
 
Radogast said:
I am putting together an water controller (programmed timers) based plan for the girls in bloom.

When watering a plant with what I hope is well developped roots, is it still useful to water slowly?
How do you feel about a timer doing: 1 qt - pause - 1 qt - pause - 2 qt - pause - water to runoff?

Would you still recommend a taste of water to keep the topsoil moist in bloom?

If you had the opportunity to water until the top inch is moist 6 times a day, would you:
Water once every 4 hours day or night?
Water every 2 hours beginning just before artificial dawn and ending a couple hours before artificial sunset?
None the above?
Something different?


The veg water controller plan will be simpler, timed pure water moistening cycles 24x7, supplemented by hand water and fertlization soaks on a pot lightness basis. I can program an almost infinite number of start times with some creating plumbing(or custom automation) for an affordable price.

If I run 20/4 light dark cycles, how many times a day would you recommend a few seconds of micro sprinkling?
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It is a myth that our plants, even in organic grows, need to stay moist during bloom. Although bloom is the time to push water at them, there still remains the need to get oxygen down to the lower roots periodically. So while most of the time we are pushing water as fast as they can take it, I feel it is important to also let them dry out about every 3rd watering, just to reactivate the roots.
As far as watering slowly, that is always helpful, so as to get the max water absorption into the organics in the soil... I wouldnt change that method at all.
Considering an ability to supply a little morning rain each day just to moisten the top 3 inches... I can see how that might be very beneficial... maybe not every day.. but 2 mornings out of 3? Let me know how this goes, please. I do not like the idea of constant moisture being supplied every few hours... that is just asking for other problems to set in.
 
Emilya said:
You should always saturate (water to runoff) the new container upon transplant so as to merge the two soil regions. After that first full watering, they you will go to the staggered partial watering model, until the lower part of the container finally is used up. It will take around 3 complete wet/dry cycles before you will be able to do away with the 2 stage watering.
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Thank you SO much. I just saturated it for the first time this morning using your step by step watering process. Making sure to give the edges the most water.
 
Good morning Emilya. First off I would like to say thank you for this write up. I have been following along your watering technic for a while now and this time you have laid it out very concisely. Although hydro is my game I am about to try a couple plants outdoors this summer. My plan so far is autos in ten gallon Geopots filled with pro-mix /perlite and using Mega Crop along with your watering plan. I have built a four x four x seven foot green house for them to protect them from heavy summer rains and later on some nasty early fall storms. Right now it is full of tomatoes and peppers but that will empty out in the next week or so. My choices are Gelato and Alaskan Purple so one of each. Do you think that starting the seeds in paper towel and then planting would slow down the fast growth of the autos? And will water training in a ten gallon produce a bigger plant then say a five gallon pot, or is the plant size predetermined by genetics.
Joe :peace:


ps. Congrats on the new digs. :woohoo:
 
bluenoserjoe said:
Good morning Emilya. First off I would like to say thank you for this write up. I have been following along your watering technic for a while now and this time you have laid it out very concisely. Although hydro is my game I am about to try a couple plants outdoors this summer. My plan so far is autos in ten gallon Geopots filled with pro-mix /perlite and using Mega Crop along with your watering plan. I have built a four x four x seven foot green house for them to protect them from heavy summer rains and later on some nasty early fall storms. Right now it is full of tomatoes and peppers but that will empty out in the next week or so. My choices are Gelato and Alaskan Purple so one of each. Do you think that starting the seeds in paper towel and then planting would slow down the fast growth of the autos? And will water training in a ten gallon produce a bigger plant then say a five gallon pot, or is the plant size predetermined by genetics.
Joe :peace:


ps. Congrats on the new digs. :woohoo:
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Thanks Joe! Good luck with your outside autos! I don't think the paper towel method of starting is going to slow down the autos any... use what you know best. Autos, since they are genetically moving so fast, don't have enough time to really do a 10gal pot justice, and I am not convinced that a 10g is going to produce much bigger of a plant than a 5gal would do in the same time period. I have been proven wrong many times before though, so I am open to the 10g being better, especially outside... but I remain a bit skeptical.
 
Emilya said:
Thanks Joe! Good luck with your outside autos! I don't think the paper towel method of starting is going to slow down the autos any... use what you know best. Autos, since they are genetically moving so fast, don't have enough time to really do a 10gal pot justice, and I am not convinced that a 10g is going to produce much bigger of a plant than a 5gal would do in the same time period. I have been proven wrong many times before though, so I am open to the 10g being better, especially outside... but I remain a bit skeptical.
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Ok, and thanks for the quick reply. Paper towel it is. I will let you know how the ten gallon plays out. All new learning curve for me. :peace:
 
Emilya,

I've been watering my two new girls, Taija and Stacy (Dark Angel strain), as per your instructions. I planted them in one gallon smart pots and sprayed them several times a time. Today, they both broke ground.

I'll be spraying for a few more days before I switch over to a watering can.

When should I start feeding them nutes?

TIA
 
Doctor Trevor said:
Emilya,

I've been watering my two new girls, Taija and Stacy (Dark Angel strain), as per your instructions. I planted them in one gallon smart pots and sprayed them several times a time. Today, they both broke ground.

I'll be spraying for a few more days before I switch over to a watering can.

When should I start feeding them nutes?

TIA
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whenever you like. Don't listen to the bro-science, specializing in negativity, crowd that tells you 1/4 strength nutes are the way to go... the seedling feeding charts were not drawn up based on a whim, trust them. These plants will adapt to many of the challenges we set before them, including, I command you to grow fast--because I am giving you nutes.
 
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