I'm planning a guerilla grow outdoors, and only aiming to visit the plants once a week for watering unless there is a drought or emergency. When feeding it nutrients diluted to the proper strength how often should I be using the nutrient water vs. regular water during flowering and the later stages of vegetative growth while only watering once a week?
you could fert every other watering... and once a week is fine if in the ground.. in pots maybe a little more
When the plants are young they will need to be fed more often than once a week. You might want to water every 3-4 days when they are young, once they are pretty big, they should be able to handle themselves, then you can water once a week.
Id agree to start out watering them every 3 days when they are small and putting in your nute teas every 3rd watering then see how they look from there and then you can spread out your watering times.
I'd say Give them nutrients every other watering, but if your going to grow, try visting them more than once a week, do it atleast 2-3 times a week, ust incase something goes wrong and you can catch it early, for example, somethings been nibbling at your plants....... fucking deer ate mine last year >=[. it was shitty weed anyway, but back to the original subect, everyother watering should be good, and if your going to water once a week, use moisture retaining soil or moisture retainign crystals in your soil. and lining the hole with clay or burlap and newspaper works too
Louddog, the first week, you need to have them close. They just need 2-3 hours of direct sun light in 1st week. Then for weeks 2-3-4, leave them in solo cups and place them in a crate you attach in a tree, bush. That way they are protected from animals stepping on them, slugs, wind and rain (don't place them too high and in windy place). Use copper rings always and slug repellant in first weeks. At 1 month, place in ground. Use hunting repellants, and pee arounnd spot on trees. I start light ferts after 1 month. Then 1 every three waterings. Give them a little bit flowering nutes in veg. and vice versa. In pots, use less nutes (more root burn in pots). Don't use water crystals etc... if your region gets rainy in Fall (mold). Mulch, perlite, vermiculite are better for that and all organic. Make sure your soil mix has a granular structure (not too sandy or clayey) if this is in the outback. Add compost and manures to amend all soils.
Thanks everyone for all the replies and help. I'll start off watering every 3-4 days and see how it goes from there. And corto, thanks for the tip about putting them in a crate in a bush or tree. I was going to put a cut up beer can around the base of my plant to try stopping the slugs but this sounds like a much better idea until it is grown a little more and has a better chance to survive. One thing I don't understand about your post though is are you sure I should give them some flowering nutes during vegging and vice versa? I'm sure you know much more then I do on the subject so I'm only asking because I don't understand. I was under the impression that during vegging you wanted the N levels to be higher then the P, but if i give it flowering nutes during veg wouldn't that be bringing the P levels up and messing with the plant? One last thing, you said seedlings only need 2-3 direct hours of sunlight during the first week. So if they are indoors and I have to keep them in a closet for stealth purposes for all hours except the 2-3 hours of direct sunlight that will be enough? They won't be getting any light in the closet either, it will be dark in there. My only other option would be transporting outdoors the day the seeds sprout.
No i don't know much! Just the veg. ferts have a lot of Nitrogen (which is acidic) so you need to lower the acidity with a little bit of flowering ferts (alkaline with P,K). But yes you're right, N (and K) in veg, P and K in flowering. And the pure wtaer will "clean " out the soil anyway. A little bit (10%) of the opposite won't hurt to balance the pH. I'll give K (Russian comfrey) all along. Yeah, the elevated crate thing works good, I did it! No you shouldn't put them in a closet (all dark) and then in the sun. For the first days, maybe if you can't do anything else, but then give them more sun and normal outdoor light (or all indoor). Or they will just stretch and stretch looking for more light and sun, and not have tight rows of leaves. Good luck! It's not that hard, just find a water source, a stealthy spot, water well and plan bringing in soil and water ahead. Tell no one!!! N: I use liquid nettles P: I use liquid high P bat guano K: I use liquid Russian comfrey. All usable on the spot with wild water. Hehe!
In the past when i have had gardens that i couldnt get to on a regular basis i would take a gallon jug full of water and poke a hole in the bottom with an ice pick. You can set this jug on the ground a few inches from the plant and it will slowly water your plant. It takes anywhere from 3-5 days to drain a gallon jug. Also i saw in a popular mechanics magazine there is a log shaped gel thing that u set by the plant and cut slits in the plastic wrapper and it feeds and waters the plants slowly.
Corto would you suggest putting them outside in the crate as soon as the seedling sprouts then? And MRK, thanks but I don't want to attract any attention to my plant having a jug nearby so I'm just gonna make the trips to water each time. They also sell things that water plants slowly already made. They look like little globes on a stick, not sure what they're called.
this is where i disagree with u. i think its smart not to go to your grow spot often. the more you go to your spot, the more likely you are to get caught and the more likely you are to set a path that makes it easier to spot from the choppers in the sky. i go to my plants usually twice a month...less if i am getting any kind of rainfall. u'd be surprised how well the plants will do for themselves... just my thoughts on that...
Loudog, they're called Aquaglobes or something but you don't need them for the babies (or ever imo). Yes, once they sprout, keep watering gently until water overflows a bit. Stop watering. Letdry out for 2-3 days about, when the soil is dry looking and first inch is dry (coupe inches for normal sized plants in soil). Water again. It will be Spring so the water requirements won't be big. Just keep them not too far. This won't be your final spot so it's ok to go back and forth a couple times to tend to the babies. The best if you can is to keep them with you for 1st week at least. (wind, rain, slugs). Then put them in an elevated hidden place (3-4 feet high), keep watering with plain water until 3-4 weeks when you transplant and give first feeding. The potting soil you use for sprouts will have enough for them in the first weeks. In the heat of the Summer, my plant stay about 1 week without watering. I see how it works at first by visiting every 4-5 days, thn I extend the times I vist to see how far I can push it without watering. That way I know the limits. 2-3 days without water can really damage your plants (dead fan leaves, wilting, inescts attack weak plants...). 3-4 days and they can be dead. You'll know exactly after a bit of monitoring the watering schedule they need. You don't want them to always lack waters for a few days (wilting) but you do want them to dry out their pot/hole so that the roots can breathe O2 in the soil, and they thrive when you water them again (don't over water is what I'm saying).