I will be starting to grow in a couple of weeks and will be leaving within the first few weeks of june. I will probably be in my last stages of veg or first in flower if lucky. I will leave for 9 days, I just found out.. is there anything I can do to make sure that my plant stays healthy?
you should be well enough along that if you give it a good soak it wont hurt it and should just be ready for a good feeding when you get back. only water though to avoid burning them
Alright, good to hear! How much should I put in? And how do I water a PC plant.. Im not too sure here.
not sure about that one. don't know pc grows. but you should water it till there is slight runoff imo
id just give it a massive soaking and leave an inch or so of water in the drip tray. it shouldn't harm it just once and just water well when you get back cus itll be bone dry
I dont really have anyone I can trust to help me with this, and no no one knows. Ill probably ask about it again once ive grown for a while and know more about it.. Is it even possible to have a dripper in a pc grow box?
Is this your first grow? IMO, you should wait till you get back to start. If the itch to get going is too much, water well before leaving, but DO NOT fertilize. And after you get back, I wouldn't fertilize too heavily. There should be plenty of nutes left in the soil by this time. You using FF organic soil, or regular? I don't even know if they make a "regular". This may also be of great help to you... http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-...annbs-self-wicking-smartpot-ghetto-setup.html
Yes, it will be.. Id rather not wait, as if I start now I might harvest around the beginning to mid of August I assume.. if I wait til I get back it would be the beginning of October :/ Im not sure what the soil is yet, I can tell you tomorrow. I think its regular. Thats a very interesting system.. so it could help moisture the plants while Im gone temporarily? Even though the system would be small..
It will work while you're away, it will most certainly work while you're around. It is the best way to water a potted plant that I've come across. And so simple. Be careful... you may be VERY surprised at the size of your plants after you return from your trip! If you go this route, plan for head room accordingly. Read as much of that thread as you can. People love this method, and it's fool (or noob!) proof as far as over/under-watering goes. It also fixed some serious humidity issues (too low) that I was having with my grow. Good luck! Maybe some pic's before you leave and after you get back? Peas, wak
Would it matter what kind of pot I use, or should I use a smartpot? And pretty much, from what Ive understood, you fill a tray or something of a sort with perlite, create a place for a cylinder to go connected to the bottom that you can fill with water, and keep the water level under the top of the perlite? Or can I fill that "reservoir" as high as I want? And I pretty much just put the plant right on top of the perlite, dont bury it at all?
You can use plastic if it has enough drainage holes so that there's a lot of contact between the soil and the perlite. This info is in the thread... please read more! If it were me (and it is), use a Smartpot. It's what I had to start with, and my setup works perfectly. I deal with 7.5 gallon Smartpots. So my reservoirs are quite large, around 15 gallons. You will not need one anywhere near this size. I don't do the cylinder thing. I found it to be unnecessary and a pain in the arse (as it tends to fill up with fine perlite), if you size your reservoir correctly. Pick a size that is just large enough to leave a gap, ~2", between the reservoir wall and the pot you want to use. What I do is water until the perlite absorbs enough water to get more solid, as a whole mass. Then I'll stick my finger or bamboo stick in it. It should leave a "hole" that you can look in and see where the water level is, in relation to the bottom of the pot. I personally leave some kind of air gap between the two surfaces (water/pot bottom), usually (I would guess) around just less than an inch. Most leave an air gap. Some don't. Opinions vary... You can find affordable reservoir containers at any of your local DIY stores and places like Wally-world and Targe'. Just measure the base of the pot you want use, and roll into the store of you choice with a tape measure. Clear/opaque containers are fine to use, BTW. Round is better for single plant systems, rectangular for multi-plant. And with round, you can size the res' smaller because you can push the pot all the way to the edge, maybe saving some $ on the smaller size. And yes. Just set the pot on top of the perlite. No burying.
all ya need is fish aline pipe to the bottle and a airline regulatoe and creatw a syphon effect and cloae thw regulator down to a drip so its posible os or good for the plant.....dunno or try auto pots they suto feed your plsnys ppl have good results
Oh alright. Ill probably buy a smart pot. A one gallon smart pot with foxfarm soil, if I were to plant my seedling in the one gallon pot initially would that be fine for the whole grow? I know this doesnt have to do with the topic title, but it was just a concern I have. Do I also have to water the smart pot doing this? And how deep is your reservoir in comparison to your plant? I may do the bottle thing, sealed with a couple holes in the side like a vacuum feeder because its short term. The air gap seems like a smart idea because ive heard bad things about putting the pot directly in water.. but thank you for your help!
My friend, I'm not flaming you so please don't be offended... but this is exactly why I suggested that you wait until you get back from your trip before starting your garden. You don't know what you're doing. Noobs like to plant seeds in pots that are way too big for newly sprouted seedlings. One thing that can happen is severe overwatering, resulting in very weak or dead plants. Another is sever stretching, regardless of how close you can get your light to the top of the plant. Going into the details is more than I care to offer, at this point. Always start seeds in small containers. 16 oz. beer cups are the perfect size, IMO. You can grow a very healthy 6-8" plant in one without having to worry about bound roots (do you know about that?). Then move up to the one gallon pot. And depending on your grow space, you may need to transplant one more time. I start in 16 oz. cups and transplant to 1 gal', then to 5 or 7.5 gal' for the plant to finish in. I don't understand your question pertaining to the depth of the reservoir in comparison to the plant? Can you elaborate? Please do more research. Spend the time between now and when you return from your trip learning the systems with which you're dealing. There are soooooo many factors that one must be AT LEAST familiar with in order to have a successful grow, indoors especially. Many of us on this forum are more than willing to help, but it is your responsibility to do most of the leg work yourself. We can't hold your hand through every step of the process. Help us help you. If I send you helpful links, will you read them? I mean REALLY read them? Peas, wak
I understand and take no offense. I know im a noob here, Ive been reading a lot on this forum for about a month now. I just got my grow box, I still have yet to order a ph tester/ppt/thermometer, yet the seeds as well. Ill also get a 1 gallon smart pot (have those red solo cups already!). By the depth, I meant say, with one of your 5 or 7.5 gallon containers, how many inches of perlite do you have or something along those lines.. Ive looked up bound roots.. definitely doesnt sound like I want that happening. I do have a lot of research still! I understand about not handing me everything, and I agree with you wholeheartedly. I will read the links, if you send There are many things I still have to look up about growing. I will get back from the trip 47 days from now. That is quite a long time..
I just noticed your screen name last night. Too funny! Maybe with a little learnin' you can change it to Cpt Foresight. If I'm understanding right, you're asking if the depth of perlite is determined by the height of the pot? If so, the answer is no. However, the deeper the perlite, the more water in the reservoir. The more water in the reservoir, the less you have to fill the reservoir. Ya' know? So make sure you read that Smartpot thread again. Not all of it, maybe just the first 4 pages or so. Watering is one of main problems that plague noobs. After transplanting into your 1 gal' Smartpot, this method all but eliminates watering woes. And for now, I would check out the "stickies" at the top of threads in any forum that interests you. I don't know if you know, but the "stickies" are threads that were very popular and got pasted to the top of the page permanently. They usually contain very important information that is specific to the thread title. Just pick one that has to do with something you've been wondering about. Now go read something... lol