Keep the soil moist or let it dry out?

Discussion in 'Growing Organic Marijuana' started by Dissec, Nov 3, 2012.

  1. #1 Dissec, Nov 3, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 3, 2012
    So I'm used to letting the pots dry out so the roots expand the most and then water. Synthetic nutes... sigh

    But then I was like oh shit wait you tard, you're growing organic you need to keep your soil moist for your microbes n such.

    In 7 gallon smart pots, just started flower ( stretch is slowing and buds are forming) if that matters.

    So people with more experience with organics, any advice?
     
  2. Consistent hydration is key - not wet, just consistently moist.

    J
     
  3. Going to Blumats for future grows, just for that reason....The air pots I use get more water runnig out the holes than goes in unless you water real sloooooow....Must be doing something right, pots are always light even after a watering but, the plants look good.

    It's mainly the course perlite that blocks soil from packing in the cones, but not an option when it comes to changing perlite so, blumats it is and one less thing to lose sleep over....;)
     
  4. what they said :)
     
  5. SIPs = $2 Troopfs = alot more

    Same idea, depends on your DIY skills.
     
  6. I'd consider sip's except I want to use the 3 gal air pots and don't really have the space in the GR for 5 gal sip's...Can get the blumats for 6$ ea but, will probably get the patio kit for 85$ just for all the xtra's BS to get set up....

    lol...It's only money...Everybody want's some and nobody got some....
     
  7. [quote name='"colafarmer"']I'd consider sip's except I want to use the 3 gal air pots and don't really have the space in the GR for 5 gal sip's...Can get the blumats for 6$ ea but, will probably get the patio kit for 85$ just for all the xtra's BS to get set up....

    lol...It's only money...Everybody want's some and nobody got some....[/quote]

    Then make an airpot sip? Most people use 1-3gal pots, not all SIPs are 5gals.
     
  8. [quote name='"SoooHaggard"']

    Then make an airpot sip? Most people use 1-3gal pots, not all SIPs are 5gals.[/quote]

    That's what I was thinking. You just need a shallow tray and some form of wick. You could cut out the center of that base and shove a soil wick in there or maybe tie wicks onto the base of the air pot.
     
  9. [quote name='"StickyFiskers"']

    That's what I was thinking. You just need a shallow tray and some form of wick. You could cut out the center of that base and shove a soil wick in there or maybe tie wicks onto the base of the air pot.[/quote]

    And just hook up a rez to the tray to maintain level, but that seems to go more towards wicking vs SIPs.
     
  10. lol...I'll go with blumats and save my energy for the garden. Sip's sound good but you know how it is once you got your mind made up.....;)
    Once blumats are dialed in they work pretty good with little maintenance.
     
  11. Thanks guys, I think I'll get some Blumats or something soon, until then I'll just make sure they stay moist.
     
  12. Never want to get bone dry but definitely want a proper wet/dry cycle to prevent a waterlogged medium which will cause problems. I usually watch the plant and will water right before it gets to wilting then it soaks up as much water as it can. Also if the top couple inches are dry and the pot feels light water it simple as that not really that hard just comes with experience.
     
  13. RichardDean, thanks for sharing your experience. I think if you read all the posts in this thread you'll see that we are talking about the ideal moisture level for an organic soil and all the living organisms in that soil. As it turns out, organic soil processes are carried out more efficiently in a consistently moist soil vs one that is allowed to dry out between waterings. Consistent moisture really brings out the full potential of an organic soil.
     

  14. For sure yeah sorry kinda chimed in before I fully read what the discussion was about. This is definitely something I have found to be true if using bottled nutrients it can get more dry but with full organics definitely better to keep moisture in there for the micro herd. Love sitting on this forum and soaking up any knowledge I can from all of you veterans of this area of gardening that sorely needs to be brought to the forefront of all agriculture. Only been messing with it for a couple years but really starting to get the hang of what's what. Definitely can be a daunting task for a beginner to wrap their heads around all organics entails but with constant research and experimentation it becomes very easy.
     
    • Informative Informative x 1
  15. #16 InTheGarden, Nov 4, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 4, 2012

    It seems like the hardest part of learning about organics for many gardeners is un-learning all the synthetic gardening stuff! Once you can let go of all the misinformation and synthetic growing practices, it gets a lot easier. Organic gardening condensed to a single phrase: keep the microbes happy (and think about things on their level). Hey- it's still one phrase, just a multi-part one. :p The best part about organic gardening is that there's always something new to learn and some new topic to research and try out. Right now I'm learning more about SIPs, rock dust, and botanicals (always learning more about botanicals)- next week I'll be into something new (maybe biochar, I want to learn more). :)
     

  16. The lust for knowledge can never be fully satiated. My way of describing organics is your giving the hard work back to mother nature where it belongs she knows much better than we do about what's going on behind the scenes so to speak. :)
     

Share This Page