Over/ under watering pls help .

[GemGrows24]

So I've noticed some drooping starting yesterday that's worse than as I checked today on this gelato g Auto flower. I've only watered three times in the past two weeks. The first being when I first planted the seed. The second time being exactly one week ago. Then the third time just today. I imagine since I didn't notice the drooping till a few days after the second watering that this would probably be a underwatering issue and not a over-watering. Just curious to see what your guys's thoughts tips or tricks might be. PS I have been bottom feeding but spraying mist on topsoil to keep top soil from drying out. The idea is to keep the microbiome alive and thriving. also I'm running organic this time around . I was wondering when the best time to add my Gaia Green all purpose soil ammendmants. Ive read that it take 2 weeks for the amendments to start beaking down . I'm using a mix of FFHP and FFOF 5/2 . So it's got plenty of nutes allready . But eventually they will run out , and since I'm new with Fox Farms. I'm unsure on when that timeline tends to be. Any advice is appreciate .

 

[GemGrows24]

 

[Boatguy]

Those plants dont look bad to me. Babies can be temperamental before they have a good root system.
Only things i would do different is just water them from the top like any other plant, and not bother with the misting.
You got this.

 

[Jimski]

I did my first top dress at 3.5 weeks and added a recharge conditioner made by fox farms with added EWC and vermiculite. About 2 inches added to the top of the dirt. I did not do a second top dress but went right into foop bloom kit for flower.
Made 2 mistakes with nutes. I should have topped dressed again at 5 weeks or started the beginning week of the foop nutes 1 week before 12-12 switch.
The second mistake was about 10 days ago. I had gotten used to every other day in the am nutes I forgot to check the pot. Started to water and noticed both drain pans had a bit of runoff. Checked and pots were heavy after a liter each. This caused the grow to miss a dry cycle. 5 days later the little plant developed a calcium deficiency. Treating with cal-mag plus.
Such a simple mistake but this is how we learn.

 

[Jimski]

Gem what does bottom feeding mean? Is it a fabric wick going down into the drain pan?
Dry cycle required for organic grow. Soil can not sit in water unless it has a barrier like a layer of hydroton such as a sub irrigated planter but the soil does not lay in the water.
I do not think this is a problem yet as I do not think roots have hit bottom yet to be in water if you are using a wick

 

[russ0r]

So I've noticed some drooping starting yesterday that's worse than as I checked today on this gelato g Auto flower. I've only watered three times in the past two weeks. The first being when I first planted the seed. The second time being exactly one week ago. Then the third time just today. I imagine since I didn't notice the drooping till a few days after the second watering that this would probably be a underwatering issue and not a over-watering. Just curious to see what your guys's thoughts tips or tricks might be. PS I have been bottom feeding but spraying mist on topsoil to keep top soil from drying out. The idea is to keep the microbiome alive and thriving.View attachment 5452993 also I'm running organic this time around . I was wondering when the best time to add my Gaia Green all purpose soil ammendmants. Ive read that it take 2 weeks for the amendments to start beaking down . I'm using a mix of FFHP and FFOF 5/2 . So it's got plenty of nutes allready . But eventually they will run out , and since I'm new with Fox Farms. I'm unsure on when that timeline tends to be. Any advice is appreciate .

Do you have a moisture meter? If not, get one! I notice you mention when you watered but not if it was dry. Don't worry about misting the top, there's no roots there. Your microbiome is underneath. There will always be an unused top layer. Bottom watering is fine, if it's dry...

Typically soil has enough nutrients for 2-3 months of vegetation(not flowering) at minimum. Since your auto flowering I would worry more with bloom nutrients when you begin to see flowering. All nutrients instructions will have you overdo it, always use lower strengths and preferably mix with a ppm/ec meter to be sure.

Having said all that, your plants look alright right now.

 

[GemGrows24]

Gem what does bottom feeding mean? Is it a fabric wick going down into the drain pan?
Dry cycle required for organic grow. Soil can not sit in water unless it has a barrier like a layer of hydroton such as a sub irrigated planter but the soil does not lay in the water.
I do not think this is a problem yet as I do not think roots have hit bottom yet to be in water if you are using a wick

By bottom feeding . I simply pour water into the pan the fabric pots are sitting in i don't add too much to where I end up with excess water in the pan. The fabric pots usually soak it all up within 10 mins or less. Are u suggesting I use a wicking system ?

 

[GemGrows24]

I did my first top dress at 3.5 weeks and added a recharge conditioner made by fox farms with added EWC and vermiculite. About 2 inches added to the top of the dirt. I did not do a second top dress but went right into foop bloom kit for flower.
Made 2 mistakes with nutes. I should have topped dressed again at 5 weeks or started the beginning week of the foop nutes 1 week before 12-12 switch.
The second mistake was about 10 days ago. I had gotten used to every other day in the am nutes I forgot to check the pot. Started to water and noticed both drain pans had a bit of runoff. Checked and pots were heavy after a liter each. This caused the grow to miss a dry cycle. 5 days later the little plant developed a calcium deficiency. Treating with cal-mag plus.
Such a simple mistake but this is how we learn.
View attachment 5453090

Since there autos I think I can get away with skipping all purpose and just throw in foop and Bloom dry amendments a week or two from now . This would be week 3-4. Do u think this sounds kosher?

 

[GemGrows24]

Do you have a moisture meter? If not, get one! I notice you mention when you watered but not if it was dry. Don't worry about misting the top, there's no roots there. Your microbiome is underneath. There will always be an unused top layer. Bottom watering is fine, if it's dry...

Typically soil has enough nutrients for 2-3 months of vegetation(not flowering) at minimum. Since your auto flowering I would worry more with bloom nutrients when you begin to see flowering. All nutrients instructions will have you overdo it, always use lower strengths and preferably mix with a ppm/ec meter to be sure.

Having said all that, your plants look alright right now.

I'm using Gaia Green dry ammendmants .so I'll probably throw in bloom in a couple weeks . So that a month from now the nutes will be bioavailable to the plant .

 

[Hollatchaboy]

So I've noticed some drooping starting yesterday that's worse than as I checked today on this gelato g Auto flower. I've only watered three times in the past two weeks. The first being when I first planted the seed. The second time being exactly one week ago. Then the third time just today. I imagine since I didn't notice the drooping till a few days after the second watering that this would probably be a underwatering issue and not a over-watering. Just curious to see what your guys's thoughts tips or tricks might be. PS I have been bottom feeding but spraying mist on topsoil to keep top soil from drying out. The idea is to keep the microbiome alive and thriving.View attachment 5452993 also I'm running organic this time around . I was wondering when the best time to add my Gaia Green all purpose soil ammendmants. Ive read that it take 2 weeks for the amendments to start beaking down . I'm using a mix of FFHP and FFOF 5/2 . So it's got plenty of nutes allready . But eventually they will run out , and since I'm new with Fox Farms. I'm unsure on when that timeline tends to be. Any advice is appreciate .

If you wanna keep the micro biome thriving at the top of soil, you might wanna consider mulch. It helps keep the soil most.

I'm pretty sure the micros try to avoid light, especially if you have any uv in the light spectrum. I could be wrong though. You might want to look it up.

At any rate, mulch is beneficial.

 

[russ0r]

By bottom feeding . I simply pour water into the pan the fabric pots are sitting in i don't add too much to where I end up with excess water in the pan. The fabric pots usually soak it all up within 10 mins or less. Are u suggesting I use a wicking system ?

Wicking system wouldn't allow your soil to dry, this is a no no. You essentially want to allow the soil to dry out almost completely to the point right before the plant droops, then soak your medium completely from head to toe. With a well draining medium(which you should be using), I would submerge the entire pot in a bucket, let it soak until it does not float. Then remove and allow your properly draining soil to drain off and wait until your soil is dry again before watering again.

 

[Jimski]

Wicking system wouldn't allow your soil to dry, this is a no no. You essentially want to allow the soil to dry out almost completely to the point right before the plant droops, then soak your medium completely from head to toe. With a well draining medium(which you should be using), I would submerge the entire pot in a bucket, let it soak until it does not float. Then remove and allow your properly draining soil to drain off and wait until your soil is dry again before watering again.

I do not agree his plants are the proper size to water the whole pot. At that size I was still about 1 liter per plant. His root structure is still building or the plant would be more advanced.
We do agree on the wick system. Top water only.
Where's my harbor freight water vessel. Best $13 EVA

2 Gallon Home and Garden Sprayer

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[russ0r]

I do not agree his plants are the proper size to water the whole pot. At that size I was still about 1 liter per plant. His root structure is still building or the plant would be more advanced.
We do agree on the wick system. Top water only.
Where's my harbor freight water vessel. Best $13 EVA

2 Gallon Home and Garden Sprayer

Amazing deals on this 2 Gallon Home And Garden Sprayer at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

Properly draining soil will dry out properly, the roots will never seek water where there is none, if he continues to water the bottom 2 to 3 inches of the soil only; the rest of the volume of the pot will be wasted, full and even watering is a standard rule and if the pot is too large it should be in a smaller pot to be transplanted when ready

 

[russ0r]

I'm not sure about happy frog but I'm an avid user of ocean forest and I don't like a lot of transplanting so I like to start in pots larger than nessecary as well at times - it dries out just nicely and I douse mine. Obviously you water much less frequently in the beginning. There is no schedule. Water when it's almost dry or right as the plant droops. They love it.

 

[GemGrows24]

I'm not sure about happy frog but I'm an avid user of ocean forest and I don't like a lot of transplanting so I like to start in pots larger than nessecary as well at times - it dries out just nicely and I douse mine. Obviously you water much less frequently in the beginning. There is no schedule. Water when it's almost dry or right as the plant droops. They love it.

I was wondering about this. Like if I waited till they dropped if that's a tad to late .or if I needed to set some type of schedule to try and time it right

 

[russ0r]

I was wondering about this. Like if I waited till they dropped if that's a tad to late .or if I needed to set some type of schedule to try and time it right

If you check your plants often enough, it's not too late. They bounce back within an hour of watering. Obviously if you don't they are at risk of getting crispy. The roots will dive around seeking that water in all that open space and get stronger because of it. If your moisture meter reads a 3 or less all the way down you can water.

 

[Jimski]

Since there autos I think I can get away with skipping all purpose and just throw in foop and Bloom dry amendments a week or two from now . This would be week 3-4. Do u think this sounds kosher?

I do not think a duplication of nutes would benefit the grow. Pick a line and run with it. I am using foop and from this grow I learned 2 things about foop.
Run the first week 2 times once a week before flip.
If torching with LEDs ( 65k lux) use cal+mag plus in flower at spec.

 

[driver77]

Wicking system wouldn't allow your soil to dry, this is a no no. You essentially want to allow the soil to dry out almost completely to the point right before the plant droops, then soak your medium completely from head to toe. With a well draining medium(which you should be using), I would submerge the entire pot in a bucket, let it soak until it does not float. Then remove and allow your properly draining soil to drain off and wait until your soil is dry again before watering again.

I use wicks with soil with great results. I top water sparingly if it dries out. I put them on wicks when first set of leaves come in and they stay on till harvest. I allow roots to grow into bases to increase yield with smaller containers....1 to 3gal bags can yield from 4oz to over a lb of autos depending on cultivar and me not screwing them up. with photos the sky's the limit.

 

[russ0r]

I use wicks with soil with great results. I top water sparingly if it dries out. I put them on wicks when first set of leaves come in and they stay on till harvest. I allow roots to grow into bases to increase yield with smaller containers....1 to 3gal bags can yield from 4oz to over a lb of autos depending on cultivar and me not screwing them up. with photos the sky's the limit.

If your roots are growing into a base of water where the wick is you are essentially not using the soil medium very much, but are going toward DWC
If that's what you meant by roots growing into the base. There's a 1000 ways to do anything but you should always understand what's actually happening. Roots can do well growing right in water as long as it's oxygenated. Just go hydro

 

[driver77]

If your roots are growing into a base of water where the wick is you are essentially not using the soil medium very much, but are going toward DWC
If that's what you meant by roots growing into the base. There's a 1000 ways to do anything but you should always understand what's actually happening. Roots can do well growing right in water as long as it's oxygenated. Just go hydro

Correct...it ends up a Kratky hybrid. I'm very aware of how it works. But before roots get there plant still thrives while on wick...which you said was a no no....just wanted to clarify wick with soil actually works very well and great for new growers because it takes the guess work out.