good deal, I can't wait to get everything set up and show you guys! Literally just need to wait until next week for some lava rock and then I am set to start mixing!
Where you gettin the lava rock? Pioneer sand has 3/4" burgundy lava rock that ought to work great and is real cheap. I've been using it in my SIP reservoirs.
yes thats where i was told by somebody else to go! i am around aurora i think the closest one with 3/4 size is in arvada? but i need to double check, should have my own journal thingy started around the beginning of next week
Merry Chistmas peace and love to everyone from the Silly Pharm! Silly Pharm http://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1349323-Silly-Pharm
Would a sip work if you just put a couple inches of perlite in the bottom of a smart pot, then your soil on top, set it in a cat litter box of water. This is my first sip and I was all for it until I saw people mentioning getting perlite everywhere when moving it. I didn't think about that. If needed I'll order more smart pots, I just don't have any available around me. I have hydroton and perlite on hand but not enough hydroton to do all my pots. I would rather not buy lava rock because I need to use what I have. I was given enough perlite for free to last me a long long time
That's why I went with a 5 gal. smart pot of soil inside\ta 7 gal. with Couple inches of Perlite. (Got a buttload of it too.)
I've got a four plant SCROG goin for my first grow, with each plant utilizing their own SIP. Got the idea from this thread so I thought I'd share. I have the ladies in 5 gallon smart pots sitting in 28L clear totes full of hydroton. About 6 weeks into veg I wasn't picking up the plants anymore and noticed that some roots were showing in the reservoir. Didn't think much of it thinking they would probably wither off from the light... But they didn't and now they have run their course through the reservoir and the soil lol. Plants seem to be healthy, so I'm no complaining. Has anyone else had this happen? About when I noticed them Couple weeks back 38 days into 12/12 My first grow journal: http://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1334153-First-Grow-4X4-Diy-Attic-Tent
Can't see the totes, but that's the setup. My first grow journal: http://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1334153-First-Grow-4X4-Diy-Attic-Tent
I know I said I wouldn't buy lava rock and use the perlite I had on hand but I failed.....they'll be going into 5gallon smart pots with bigger sip containers next. Just wanted to check it out 1st.
Got a question about the sip pics I posted above. In the top picture with the 3 seedlings 1 of them started showing signs of over watering. It was OK this morning but this evening I noticed it. I caught it in time and pulled it out so I'm not worried. My question is, is there a minimum size of a plant that should be in a sip? The other 2 and the larger plants in the 2nd pic are loving it. It was the smallest of the seedlings that started having issues. It was actually planted a week and a half after the other 2. My understanding was any size plant worked OK.
thanks, ya I figured that out for sure. All 3 of the smaller plants took damage, won't be doing that again at a small age not until at least till they're a couple months old from seed. 2 weren't bad at all, the smallest 1 is still questionable too if I'm keeping it. The larger plants are doing great in it. Lesson learned.
I just had to join this forum to show you all pictures of my implementation of this excellent technique. I actually post my grow journal on another forum, but I was so appreciative of this system that I felt compelled to share. I'm growing two massive autos in a tiny 1x2' closet, which made the basin choice challenging. I settled on two dish basins, lined with weed blocking fabric to contain the perlite and protect from the light, filled to the absolute brim with perlite. The 7 gallon geo pots sit right on top and the entire set up is easy to shift around when I turn them 1/4 turn each morning to maximize light access. Thank you so much for this idea. You have made my life even simpler than the living organic soil did. Watering balance can be such a challenge and this approach eliminates all the guesswork.
We have roots exiting the pot!!! After just 8 days I checked and found this today. The plants and pots are mighty heavy at this time so I haven't lifted them yet to check for more and break them off, but I'll be doing that in the next couple days. I'll be applying a SST in the next couple days (corn is sprouting now), so that will be a good time since I'll be doing that off the reservoir. I'm just rolling into the real growth spurt with these two, making this very well timed. This morning they both took twice as much water as previous mornings to refill the reservoir I take that as an indication that they're preparing to amaze me again. Both plants have shot up 4" in that time and are doing incredibly well. This system rocks, pure and simple. How easy is this? Soil that raises the plant and plants that water themselves. Thank you, thank you, thank you. This has made my first attempt at growing so easy others are envious. I'm doing my best to spread the news in my own journal. 💜
An interesting observation on the pots. When I ordered the Geo Pots I wanted two black ones. Because they only had one black 7 gallon on hand at the time they sent me two tan and the last black one. The black ones are slightly thicker and sturdier than the tan. I planted one in each to compare the differences. While the tan pot has roots shooting out all along the bottom edge of the pot, (see photo) there are no roots visibly exiting the black. The plants are so heavy now that I can't easily lift them, so there may be some underneath. The Buddha Magnum Auto in the black pot is consistently pulling up 2 cups of water more each day than the THC Bomb Auto sitting beside her, so I know the system is working smoothly. Apparently the black Geo Pots contain the roots better. Just an observation I felt someone might benefit from.
Welcome to GCO! SIPs are really easy huh! I think it's more of a timing thing, regarding root containment. If your running autos, your overall time from seed to harvest is relatively short vs. 6-8 months for a long winded sativa. I've never seen root containment in these fabric pots. I've run geopots and smartpots. What happens on the underside of the pot is roots grow down into the wicking media, unless you give them a 1/4 turn a day to prune any roots coming out at the bottom. I've simplified my original design for this very reason. I simplified it down to 2 10" wicking net pots and 4" corrugated pipe so I can get under the 35 gallon no-till geoplanters and clean out the roots after I harvest. This is prior prep for a new transplant, veg, and harvest.