At what point in the Veg do you transport?

Theres nothing wrong with either of those options, the thing you want to avoid is waiting too long if you decide to use smaller cups first.
They also have things called "peat pots" that are really cheap, and allows the roots to grow through it, so you know when you put them in the buckets because youll start to see roots grow through it, and you can put them straight into the buckets without having to take the dirtball out.
P.S. 3 gallon ones are too small, id go with atleast 4, but might as well do 5 if your going to go that far.

 

Those buckets at home depot are probably 5 gallon. And when you get them drill plenty of holes in the bottom for good drainage. I also put a couple inches of perlite at the bottom of my buckets to help out too. Could use gravel, but the perlite is lighter, which is better, as you'll read in a minute....
Also in my opinion, as well as many others as you'll probably see, it's better to put your germinated seed in a bigger container, but not directly into a huge 5 gallon bucket. 1st off you won't have to use as much soil. Second, it's easier for the roots to travel that shorter distance to go get their food, and water. In a smaller pot your plant will establish a nice full root system, then you can repot into the 5 gallon bucket.
Do not be afraid of repotting. There are plenty of "How tos...." around with good instructions. It's really easy, and will not cause yoour plant much stress if done carefully.
Lastly, do not use the finger method to test the moisture of your soil. Especially if you end up using the buckets. It's very easy to feel that the top layer is dry, when there is still plenty of water for your plant left in the container. Then if you water more, you will run into more serious issues, such as overwatering and rot. I always go with the weight. Just know what your bucket feels like when the soil is completely dry, and when it is completelt wet. Then by lifting it up you will know if it needs watering, or if it can go another day or two. It takes a bit of practice, but trust me it's better!
Phew, sorry the post ended up so long, but I've been away, and haven't got to write any replys for a few days. Guess I got a bit excited. Anyways, hope all this helps. Peace man!!

 

It's pretty much common sense. If a plant looks too big for it's container, than it probably is. (Hydro is an exception) 10 in pots will be perfect. I think a good rule of thumb would be somewhere around 1 gallon of growing space per 6" of plant height. I've seen some huge plants in 5 gallon buckets, but I keep my plants around 2ft or so in 3.5 gallon buckets, and they are just fine. Good luck man, and keep us posted.

 

yep, great post.

WhatCounts-
if you decide to get 10" x 10" x 10" pots like the ones I've got which are a square design you can have 4.33 gal volume or 1000 cubic inches of soil.

http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/112623-what-volume-bucket-10-a.html

 

Mango-
Where'd you find those pots? I looked at a bunch of online places, but couldn't find any that were that size......

 

hi fatbob,

they are made here in Australia, by a company called Decor. I picked them up at a hardware shop.

"Decor Garden 250mm 'Terrace Plantpot' *111718 terracotta" (they also have green ones).

'Decor is a registered trademark and Terrace is a trademark of the Decor Corporation Pty Ltd'

I have re-measured the 10-in pots and must pass on revised measurements. they are 10" across the top on all four sides which includes the extreme outside lip at the top of the container. but where the soil actually starts/ends from inside the container (ie subtract plastic thickness + upper lip), at the top of the pot is:

8.5-in

where the soil actually starts/ends from inside the container (ie subtract plastic thickness - but there's no lip at the bottom of container), at the bottom of the pot is:

6.75-in. (the container tapers inwards a little from top to bottom vertically-top is wider than bottom).

so the 10-in is not actually net soil volume, it was a quick measurement from the top of the container, and the container is narrower at its base slightly; it's basically square vertically but it tapers a little from top to bottom.

I'm not enough of a mathmetician to work out the precise soil volume but it's probably going to reduce 4.33 gal a little to make it more like a bit under 4 gallons or something based on the design of the container. This is still fine for me though I'm not sure a plant needs much more space in 3 months of growing.

decor make a size up from this though in exact same square pot design and I'm guessing it is probably about 6-7 gal in volume. I didn't buy these but could shoehorn about 3 into my grow space if I wanted instead of more of the 10" containers. still efficient to place into the area.

http://www.decor.com.au/

thjeir website seems crap but you can email them for further info and if they can deliver to you. you won;t find details on their site about the containers specifically. they are nice soild containers and I got some extra before worried that if I didn;t they would discontinue the design and if one broke or something I would not be able to replace it.

I don't think you need to drill holes in them the drainage is ample with a big radial hole pattern. let me know if you would like to see a picture of the container, they are neat.

 

Easy rectangular pots = plastic kitty litter bins. I use the super-sized ones that held about 40 lbs of kitty litter, which works out to about 4.5 gallon pots and no wasted space in the pot's footprint. I have a cat so needed the litter anyway, that's like getting the pots for free.

It's better not to transplant little sprouts into such big containers because when you water big containers the water will go to the bottom but the plant's roots aren't down there yet, so the plant could get dried out. You could water more often but it's harder to gauge when the plant needs water, so you could still end up underwatering or more likely end up overwatering.