Did I overwater?

P

PurpleDays

Member
I got these clones 3 days ago and watered them only a little more than a cup each as soon as I put them in their new mediums. Three days later, the soil is still somewhat moist (as you can see in the picture) and the leaves look a bit droopy. Is this cause for concern and how often/how much should I be watering these young plants?

FWIW I did water them with cold filtered water from the tap, maybe that's why it's taking so long to dry but I doubt it.

View attachment 2343846
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
The leaves don't have that swollen corrugated look I associate with overwatering. I agree with sworth, a clone "finding its feet" (nice phrase!) ... cn
 
W

Wetdog

Well-Known Member
Overwater????

You didn't water enough! I see a little bit of damp mix right around the stem and the rest of it looks dry.

Let me guess. You took that cup of water poured it just around the plant and did not saturate the entire medium. That plant is drooping because the roots are trying to grow into dry soil.

Saturate the ENTIRE container and then let dry. It should take at least 1/2 gallon if not more as dry as it looks.

Then, NO water until the entire pot is mostly dry. Especially no little *sips* of water in between.

Did you even get that mix wet before you transplanted? If not, you're going to have a hard time getting it to absorb water. Think of a dry mop vs a damp mop and which absorbs water easier.

Wet
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
That depends a lot on the mix. When my Fox Farms Happy Frog got old, it lost much of its wetting ability. But I had the chance to play with some Sunshine Mix #4, which has the thirstiness of shredded paper towel without the waterlogging liability, even from a dry start. I'm curious to do a grow in it.
So if it's a mix that naturally sheds water to arrive at a just-right degree of saturation, I'll agree. cn
 
P

PurpleDays

Member
Yeah Wetdog, your assessment is spot on, I think. I did only water the portion of the soil surrounding the plant. I did not wet the mix, either, do'h. Oh well, here's to being a newb.

So the plan is to saturate the entire soil, then. Any other opinions on this before I go through with it?
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
What soil is it? cn

<add> The other thing to consider is to rig a humidity dome, like a large soda bottle with the bottom cut off. You want to lighten the plant's transpiration load until ...feet.
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
In that case I'd dampen as uniformly as possible but not saturate. Fox Farm soils hold a lot of water. I'd definitely suggest a humidity dome though! cn

 
FreeRangeZombie

FreeRangeZombie

Active Member
Sorry I didn't look close enough as I am on an Android phone at the moment. But like wetdog said soak it then don't touch it agian until its dry.
 
FreeRangeZombie

FreeRangeZombie

Active Member
That's a cool idea u got there cannabineer. I have have never seen pop bottles used in that exact way. Maybe a milk carton over some outdoors but not this .Are there any airholes in them? . Thanks for sharing
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
FreeRangeZombie said:
That's a cool idea u got there cannabineer. I have have never seen pop bottles used in that exact way. Maybe a milk carton over some outdoors but not this .Are there any airholes in them? . Thanks for sharing
Click to expand...
I like that the cap can be a select-an-airhole. Back when i was married, we used these for delicate transplants to the flowerbed. cn
 
W

Wetdog

Well-Known Member
PurpleDays said:
Yeah Wetdog, your assessment is spot on, I think. I did only water the portion of the soil surrounding the plant. I did not wet the mix, either, do'h. Oh well, here's to being a newb.

So the plan is to saturate the entire soil, then. Any other opinions on this before I go through with it?
Click to expand...
Put the container in a larger container that will hold water and ~1/2 as tall as the container or more. Water from the top into the mix and keep watering until the water in the larger comes up halfway or so.

Let it sit for an hour or so, till everything is saturated. Take it out and let drain. Firm the mix down with your fingertips. If you need to add more mix, get it wet first.

Let dry and then totally saturate again. That size clone in that pot should be 4-5 days before it needs more water.

Before you do all this, pick up the pot and feel the weight (mostly dry), pick it up again when totally saturated. You'll learn to water when the weight of the pot gets close to the dry weight. Way more foolproof than any schedule.

Wet
 
P

PurpleDays

Member
Wetdog said:
Put the container in a larger container that will hold water and ~1/2 as tall as the container or more. Water from the top into the mix and keep watering until the water in the larger comes up halfway or so.

Let it sit for an hour or so, till everything is saturated. Take it out and let drain. Firm the mix down with your fingertips. If you need to add more mix, get it wet first.

Let dry and then totally saturate again. That size clone in that pot should be 4-5 days before it needs more water.

Before you do all this, pick up the pot and feel the weight (mostly dry), pick it up again when totally saturated. You'll learn to water when the weight of the pot gets close to the dry weight. Way more foolproof than any schedule.

Wet
Click to expand...
Is it ok to keep the plants in the container while I do this?
 
W

Wetdog

Well-Known Member
Yes, of course. That's why I suggested this way.

For just plain mix I put it in a 5 gal bucket (no holes in bucket), add water and let it sit for a bit before I use it. If not saturated, at least moist.

Never use dry mix to plant in. Remember the dry mop and damp mop.

Wet
 
P

PurpleDays

Member
watering job done. thanks to all who contributed with extra kudos to wetdog. hopefully the plants will adjust accordingly. this also made my humidity shoot up which is a good thing since I was averaging 20-30% with the dry soil.

will report back with results later.
 
sworth

sworth

Well-Known Member
Yeh, nice one Wetdog! And I thought I was reasonably observant...kiss-ass

(That smilie is the highest order of merit in sworth land, even +rep is 2nd...;))
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top