Ok, I've noticed that a lot of people don't water their plants properly. Either they were never taught how, think they know but are doing it wrong, or whatever. I've seen plants die, or getting extremely sick from not enough water when watering. Even though their plant isnt under watered, the soil has plenty of moisture, but they are growing in a 5 gallon pot, and only giving their baby 1 gallon of water every time they feed. This can cause major problems. Lack of runoff, which leads to major nute build up, root rot, mold, extreme salt build up, oh problems, countless other things. And also people flooding their plants when they water cause a whole other set of problems. I'm not going into when to water your plants, if you haven't read up and gathered enough information in your studies to know when to water, stop growing now and educate yourself. I'm just going to tell you guys how I water, and I would like to hear how you guys water your babies. First off, I use 5 gallon dirt bags. For 5 gallon pots I use 3 gallons of water. (* when you water, a lot of times you'll get sink holes in your soil, so i use different sized jugs, so i can water more precisely. Also, plants can be difficult to reach in some places, so a smaller sizes jug can really come in handy *) The watering jugs I use are 1 gallon milk jug, 2 half gallon milk jugs, and 4 32oz (1qt) gatorade bottles. Which equals 3 gallons. I also suggest using a syringe to measure out your nutes. They are a dollar at Wal-Mart. I use one that is 1tsp. Get 1 that has ml marks on it. So if you get one that is 1tsp it should have 5ml marks on the side. This makes it easy to measure out your nutes. First I take the 1 gallon jug and gently pour around the stalk. Wait for the soil to settle and then do it again until I use the whole gallon. I cover from the stalk, extending about 3" outward all they way around. Next I use the 2 half gallon jugs. I take the 1st one and pour all the way around the outside covering the area I didn't get with the 1st gallon. Once the soil settles, I take the 2nd half gallon and once again gently pour all the way around the outside again. Then finally I use the 4 1qt gatorade bottles. Using 1 bottle I go around the inside again around the stalk. The 2nd bottle i go around the middle. The 3rd bottle i go around the outer rim. And with the 4th bottle i even out the soil, watering so i fill in any sink holes and water down and mounds that way have gathered. Hope this helps someone, or even saves a plant. I'd love to hear other watering methods.
Sorry it took me so long to attach a pic. But this would be the type of syringes I suggest. I would suggest the one on the right for 3 reasons. 1st its a tsp. 2nd more precise units of measurement on the side. 3rd look at the picture, notice how the one on the left has a rubber piece on the inside in the end of the piece that sucks up the water/nutes (its black), and the one on the right does not have the rubber piece its just a solid one piece on the inside. The reason the one piece makes a difference over the one with the rubber piece, is over time when using nutes, it gets in between the rubber and the piece its attached to, and eventually comes off getting stuck inside, and no longer usable.
do you think using so many difrent bottles and jugs to water 1 plant is nesessary ? i use 7 and a half litre watering can and water till run of and never had a problem !
Mainly in my veg tent where I use cfls. The lights are lower and the smaller jugs help. In the flower tent where the hps light is much higher, its easier to water all the way around. So ill just use 3 1 gallon jugs. But I definitely think 3 gallons if water for a 5 gallon pot is about right.
That's cool, sounds like you're very meticulous in your watering regimen. How often do you water, though, and when do you give your plant that amount of water? I know that I transplanted a clone into the same sized 3-gallon pot as its flowering mother, and then made the mistake of giving it the same amount of water as its mother. I ran into some serious over-watering issues and a slight mold problem because the roots weren't well-developed enough, so how much do you water them throughout the varying stages of their growth? Thanks.
Plants that are in the late seedling stage early veg do not drink much at all. I don't use 3 gallon pots. I go from a Dixie cup straight to a 5 gallon dirt bag once the plant is going for about 7-10 days. I'll post a pic below of a plant that I just transplanted from a cup to the 5 gallon bag. But to answer your question I water when it needs it. But in early veg about once a week. Throughout veg generally once every 5 days. And in flower generally once every 2-3 days, but I've had plants that needed water every other day in flower. But i find it important to use the 3 gallons every water. It really helps flush out the old and bring in the new.
Forgot the pic of how big I wait until I go from cup to 5 gallon bag. I recommend using mycos when transplanting, it helps the roots settle in to the bigger pot and doesn't slow down the growth.
i agree with you on 3 gallon for a 5 galloon pot i was just mithed at how many difrent jugs you were using but probablly my mistake !! i totally agree with what your saying about watering till run of as gets rid of any salt build up and yes i water in dirt same as you every 2 to 3 days apart from 1 or 2 that need it a day earlyer after 2 days . im sorry i jumped in without realy thinking about what you ment . was all the talk about all the difrent jugs used but now i see the point of your thread and i apoligize and want to say i agree with what your saying about watering well not giving a chance of salt build up or nute lock by a build up of nutrients !!! good thread it will be intresting to see how people water there diffrent ways ! peace and happy growing to you dude !
Honestly I would do 2. Smart pots, hydrofarm dirt bags, both drain very well. Go ahead and keep your soil clean.
this isn't rocket science, water when your plants need it. stick your finger in the dirt and if it's dry then water it
[QUOTE(* when you water, a lot of times you'll get sink holes in your soil...[/QUOTE] first of all, this is my first grow and my ONE plant is outdoors, in british columbia..in a large pot, probably 10gallons.. I just recently had this problem i believe..this is the second time it has happened now..soooo, (correct me if im wrong about topping plants) i went to top my plant about an hour ago so it will begin to grow outwards instead of straight up and only growing a set of leaves at each node..right? ( i just cut the newest node growing, it was not mature yet either) well i noticed another large sinkhole on one side of the pot..i took excess dirt of the top and filled the hole and packed it down.. this is the second time ive come to look at my plant and seen this. only the first time, about a week ago, it had two holes on either side of the plant. could this be because of insects, little animals or what tha fuck..?? i also began my plant in a mr noodles cup then filled my new pot with soil, transplanted the plant from the noodles cup and placed it in filling dirt around the rest of the pot. it seems that the sinkholes are always on the side of my pot where i put all the new soil when i transplanted. like as if the soil in the noodles cup was more dense than the rest of the soil..ill keep yall posted on my situation..maybe post some pics too. if ur confused on what im describing sorry..im quite stoned. but please HELP, josh.
Sounds like rodent to me, or a burrowing insect. You'll notice sink holes right after the water settles during feed. Unless it rained since you last looked at them.
dirt is not always even all the way around. id say its just the soil leveling itself out. i get tiny lil sink holes in my 1gal containers. there nothing. i can tell you the soil will not stay even. you will get uneven patches all over. its normal. now if you see borrowing, and a little head poking out, then you have rodents.