lighting and feeding

If have the control over timing then the best time to feed is when the lights are on and preferably right after they come on. Two main reasons. 1) photosynthesis only occurs during the light period so that's when the plants engine is processing. 2) during lights on you should have great air circulation and air exchange occuring and this will help to dissipate the humidity and prevent fungal growth.

 

Short answer is "no" but read on.

One of the least expensive tools you can buy for your indoor grow is a bag full of bamboo skewers found at grocery and big-box retail stores. They're a couple of bucks for a whole bag of them. They come in handy for a lot of reasons and you'll find plenty of uses for them. One use for them is to check the moisture content deep into the soil. Yes, there are soil moisture meters you can purchase also so the choice is yours.

I use the bamboo skewer, stick it in the soil to the bottom of the container, pull it out and examine the skewer for moisture and soil sticking to the skewer. It's like baking a cake and using a toothpick to see if the inside of the cake is cooked through. Make sense? Others use different means; feeling the heft of the pot, moisture meters, etc.

Water absorption works off of hydraulic pressure. “spot watering” will only saturate the soil to the point that the volume of water applied can leach down. So, as an example, using a couple of ounces of water to “spot water” daily will only saturate the top layer of the soil leaving the bottom of the root mass dry. It is better to fully saturate the container every 2 – 3 days opposed to partially saturating the container every day. By fully saturate I mean until water leaches from the drain holes at about a 5% rate – meaning don't flood the container too much or you will be washing all the good stuff out of the soil! Always break up the crust on the top layer of soil before watering. Do this with your finger or a bamboo stick. This will prevent the water from “floating off” the top of the soil, running down the inside and straight out the drain holes. Water slowly versus applying all at once. And, as necessary, come back through and water again. The key objective is deep saturation with minimum run off. Play with it until you get your game dialed in.

Water is the transport vehicle the plants use to assimilate and transport nutrients. Lack thereof will cause problems. Too little and in severe cases the bottom roots will not receive any moisture and will die off. Again, it's better to water once very deeply every 2 – 3 days versus “spot watering” every day. One of the many great things about growing in soil is "forgiveness". Your plants will let you know when it's time for a drink. Don't overdo it or you'll drown them out. Depending on heat, humidity, growth stage, size of container, grow medium.... and on and on every 2 - 3 days should be sufficient (if done properly) for a 3 gal container. IMHO.

I hope this answers your question.

Happy growing.

 

That's pretty much a loaded question but that's ok. I seriously doubt if you will need to water every day. I am confident that you will never need to water twice a day.

Having said that, one should never say "never" right? Learn to "listen" to your plants needs. Learn to read the saturation of the soil using "the stick", a moisture meter, or hefting, or a combiniation of any or all three.

I think many would agree that less-is-more (sorry less) when it comes to watering. Some variables that will most greatly impact the need for more frequent waterings.

The porosity of your soil medium and it's ability to hold water - or not.
The physical size of your plant and it's growth stage (height, canopy, veg/flower)
The ambient room temperature, humidity level, and the amount of air movement

I'm not able to recommend a specific product versus another at this time but there are soil additives (silica gels) that can be used to assist with water retention/water release. Seriously, if one deep waters a 3 gal container of cannabis I would be bowed over backwards hearing that one had to it water daily. It would have to be very hot, very dry, and a whole lot of breeze going on to evaporate that much water. I don't think the plant would be able to transpirate that much water either... unless it's a tree!

Less is more. Check the soil condition. Do NOT over water. Deep water versus shallow water. Spend time in your garden and listen to your plants needs. Seriously, they will "tell" you what they need and what they don't tell you the GC'ers herein will be glad to assist you with. Happy growing and may your harvest be an overabundance of fruit my friend!

cheers!

 

Sounds like you nailed it!