Outside plants drinking too much water?

Silky T

Well-Known Member
My girls are outside; it's 98 degrees every day and about 75 at night. They drink two 16 oz bottles of treated water a day. Should I let them dry out between waterings so they will bulk up protecting themselves (is what I would do if I were a plant) like people store fat if they only eat once a day. They have never dried out completely as I water them twice a day, as needed.
 

petert

Well-Known Member
Helps to know how big your plants are and how big the pot is?
ive got two 4x4x2 fruit bins with two plants in each. One of the bins the two plants are 5’ tall and they are 1-2’ wider than the bin. On really hot days I water that one 3-4 gallons in the AM and there have been days lately that I’ve watered again late afternoon.
my rule of thumb is if I stick my index finger in to my knuckle and it feels dry I water. Or just watch the plant, she will tell you if she’s thirsty.
 

SCM 831

Well-Known Member
you need to water the entire pot with water till the soil is drenched. Then wait till dry and repeat. The way you’re doing it the entire root ball might not be getting watered
 

eddy600

Well-Known Member
I grow in the same temperature range as you in 4ft by 4ft raised beds that are 30in deep. I put about 30 gallons on them every other day and shower a couple gallons on them to keep them cool in the hot weather on the days i don't water. 60 gallon smart pots use 15 gallons every 1 and a half days. The humidity is low where i am at 10 to 15 percent on average. Every area uses more or less water depending on the climate
 

Silky T

Well-Known Member
you need to water the entire pot with water till the soil is drenched. Then wait till dry and repeat. The way you’re doing it the entire root ball might not be getting watered
This is the deal. I have like 20 plastic bottles (16 oz. Dr. Pepper bottles) that have my nutes in them with water. I take a bottle and pour half of it on top and the rest in their respective trays. When the trays dry up, sometimes twice a day, I rinse and repeat. Not "drenching" them with water is prolly why my plants don't look like they're ready to flower but they are so instead of colas I'll prolly just get nugs. I will switch up the watering on one plant to test and see if they want that much. On the other hand, if they sit in my nute water, then they should be getting drenched on the inside. They uptake the water when they want it. My concern is they never get a chance to actually dry out to encourage new foliage, but I could be wrong.
 
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Silky T

Well-Known Member
Helps to know how big your plants are and how big the pot is?
ive got two 4x4x2 fruit bins with two plants in each. One of the bins the two plants are 5’ tall and they are 1-2’ wider than the bin. On really hot days I water that one 3-4 gallons in the AM and there have been days lately that I’ve watered again late afternoon.
my rule of thumb is if I stick my index finger in to my knuckle and it feels dry I water. Or just watch the plant, she will tell you if she’s thirsty.
These photos were taken last week. They've gotten thicker since then. But here are 3 of the 5. They are the same strain but have different characteristics for some reason.
 

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Davmalk

Well-Known Member
Again, another prime example of underwatering. Throw those 16oz bottles away and start using gallons instead. Is water too expensive in your area? If so just feed it sand because two 16oz bottles is about the same.
 

JoeBlow5823

Well-Known Member
Yeah, water until fully saturated. Then wait to water again until the pots have dried. Its not complicated.
 

petert

Well-Known Member
Just water evenly around the pot until water starts coming out all of the bottom holes. You don’t want to miss a section of roots.
looks like that’s a 2 gallon pot? Water thoroughly then check the next morning. As she gets bigger she will obviously need repotting or more water and nutrients.
 
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