Donna Murphy
Member
hi im wondering do you water an feed in the dark period, im unsure of this,, and am getting ready to start flowering.. would like some fed back
do you water an feed in dark period
- Thread starter Donna Murphy
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Brick Top
New Member
Watering just before lights out, or after, is a darn good way to end up with mold and or fungus problems.
Also plants should have access to the most amount of moisture and nutrients when they will need it the most and will make the most use of it, when the lights are on and the temperature is up and plant transpiration is at it's highest.
I always water/feed as early in the day, as close to when the lights come on as possible.
The Serpent
Active Member
Is this in relation to soil growing only? Because in Hydroponics you water pretty much a lot... aeroponically and NFT etc...
I'm just wondering, it's not too clear on this thread.
jondamon
Well-Known Member
Well said, this is pretty much how i do it , no longer than 3 hours after lights on i water/feed.
J
Donna Murphy
Member
im growing with hydro ebb an flowsystem
cannabisguru
Well-Known Member
Heya Murphy... just wanted to help you out here.
The best time to water/feed a plant.. is early in the morning. Like maybe an hour or two after the lights come on.
Watering/feeding a plant right before the lights go out.. isn't a smart idea. Why? Simple.. because during the 'dark cycle' or 'lights off period'.. the plant is converting all of its energy that it trapped in its leafs throughout that day.. so the last thing it needs during that time.. is water/nutes.
So again, its best to feed early in the morning time.. an hour or so after lights come on.
peace..
cannabisguru
Well-Known Member
BrickTop is correct actually... as I also said the same thing pretty much.
Its best to water/feed not long after the lights come on... trust me. I've been growing long enough to know.
peace..
Serapis
Well-Known Member
You should run it in cycles, day or night...... to prevent medium from drying... I ran mine for 30 minutes every 4 hours and it seemed to do fine by me, using a Botanicare MicroGarden Ebb and Flow. It took 7 minutes just to reach the flood level.. and the drain back was slow as well..
Serapis
Well-Known Member
Donna Murphy
Member
thanks for the advice, much appreciated...
KevinSmith
Active Member
I'm doing flood and drain in hydroton base with the plants started in rockwool grodan 4" cubes.
The roots now occupy 75% of a 4'X4' tray. I flood once a day, 4 hrs into light period and that's it.
After 'dark' temp drops but humidity rises no need to feed then. They say for foliar feeding you should do it 30 mins before lights on but I haven't found a need.
Unless you are doing a 100% generic grow, your experience will differ from the next grower... Get to know your plant
Most new people grow in earth because it's 'easier' but i'm not sure about that.. if you are mechanically inclined a hydro set up can be easier to maintain and deff. less mesy lol
Getting nutes and ph right in a resevoir is so much easier than in earth imo..
But hey it's 420 and I'm stoned and rambling haha
The roots now occupy 75% of a 4'X4' tray. I flood once a day, 4 hrs into light period and that's it.
After 'dark' temp drops but humidity rises no need to feed then. They say for foliar feeding you should do it 30 mins before lights on but I haven't found a need.
Unless you are doing a 100% generic grow, your experience will differ from the next grower... Get to know your plant
Most new people grow in earth because it's 'easier' but i'm not sure about that.. if you are mechanically inclined a hydro set up can be easier to maintain and deff. less mesy lol
Getting nutes and ph right in a resevoir is so much easier than in earth imo..
But hey it's 420 and I'm stoned and rambling haha
The Serpent
Active Member
So how come NFT hydro systems run 24/7 in relation to this thread? I'm looking for an explanation rather than kicking up any "dirt," here as to say, just confused a little bit...
surely plants would be covered in mould and fungus and as DRFever says, it rains in the dark at nights, I don't see plants getting weighed down in some sort of fungus hell?
One is confuzzled a little here...
surely plants would be covered in mould and fungus and as DRFever says, it rains in the dark at nights, I don't see plants getting weighed down in some sort of fungus hell?
One is confuzzled a little here...
Brick Top
New Member
I might have assumed too much and only thought the question was a soil growing question and I did give a soil growing answer. I'm not a hydro guy so I cannot comment on it.
Serapis
Well-Known Member
You are right to be thinking outside the box on this.... this question is a perfect example of a set of beliefs people pick up from browsing such sites.... I don't believe in hard, set rules when it comes to growing.... just be observant and respond to plant's needs.... it'll grow just like a weed if you LET it..
Brick Top
New Member
The reasons I gave are why at our nursery we have our timers set to perform the first watering of the day about an hour after sunup. Then everything is watered again roughly around noon to 1:00PM and then again about an hour before sundown.
Those are the hours of the day that the trees and bushes we grow need moisture the most, when their transpiration rate is the highest, not at night when the sun is down and the temperatures are cooler and their transpiration rate is the lowest.
Google best time to water plants or problems caused by watering plants at night or different variations of those general ideas and you will find a lot of information about problems that night/darkness watering can cause, and how plants need the maximum amount of moisture during the day, and in particular the hotter period of the day.
As for living in a world of mold and fungus, well we more or less do. Down here in tobacco country the last thing tobacco farmers want are humid, and even worse, rainy nights because of tobacco blue mold. They would rather have to run irrigation all day long than to have humid rainy nights because it can cost them their crop. All sorts of farm crops are susceptible to molds and fungus due to wet conditions and wet night conditions are the worst and most dangerous to them.
Even lawns suffer from mold and fungus problems if watered at night unless in an area of very low humidity.
People cannot control the rain so it will rain at night at times, but that does not mean it will not at times cause real problems to occur, because it can and it will.
Brick Top
New Member
If you can water without getting leaves wet and you have low humidity and good air movement then the risk of mold and fungus are minimal. But then if you have low humidity and good air movement at least some of the water in the soil will evaporate, and at a faster rate than the plants will use it because it will be during periods of darkness, so when your lights come on and the temperature increases there will be less moisture for your plants to draw on than if just watered.
Believe whatever you want but if you ever get the chance just ask a true horticulturalist about it and they will say morning watering is best and that nighttime watering should be avoided.
Brick Top
New Member
As I said I am not a hydro guy but I was under the impression that NFT hydro involves a channel of nutrient enriched water constantly flowing past a plant's roots that are not in soil, that are in a soil-less growing medium, and not water being poured on soil that can and will at times result in water being poured on or splashed on leaves.
It's not exactly an apples to apples comparison. You could say how in DWC at least some roots are always in water, so why aren't the plants covered in mold and fungus. But again, it would not make for a valid comparison.