My soil seems to dry out very quickly. If I water (let's say 10 sprays from a water bottle) it makes it very damp on top, but within a few hours it appears to be mostly dry. Is this normal? If not.. what should I do? I tried watering it more, but it ended up curling my leaves down as a result. Also, I'm using CFL so I dont know if it's a heat issue.
if its seedlings your watering you just have to put up with it till they get bigger and the light gets further away ,i had the same problem but now its fine since they have grown bigger
i think its normal, im usin a 400 watt hps though and my seedlings are in little cups.....if i dont water it every 24 hours, the soil becomes dry as hell
You need to water your soil once until the water runs out the bottom of the container. That should be enough water for about a week. You dont need to water again until you can stick your finger into the soil down to the second knuckle and its dry, q-tips work for that too if your container is too small for your finger.
I pretty much agree with hootskers, except the part about each watering lasting a week. It could be shorter than that depending on your pot size, shape, soil mix, and other conditions. Even possible to be longer than that in a good-sized pot that is narrow and deep. Don't just mist the top of the soil, soak it good then let it dry out. Thiis encourages the roots to grow in search of water, establishing a stronger, fuller root system. If the soil is constantly moist you will retard root growth and promote root rot.