SIP thread -- (Sub-Irrigated Planter)

Hey guys thanks for the replies.

By the sounds of it it's not a true no till type system as you're not able to amend with top dress of amendments. Trenching in amendments will disturb the soil food web and fungi as would dumping and mixing each round but you could do a super soil then I guess, but I like the no fuss of no till and how the soil improves every grow.

An earthbox or growbox dimensions are to big for my space and an octopot is too expensive to buy and ship to where I am. I have fabric pots thats why I was thingking of the octopot. would be pretty easy to buy a small net pot used for growing lettuce and cutting out some of the fabric pot base. I read on their website that soils need to be super lite and I'm not sure a no till is the right medium but what do I know I've never tried it.

I suppose I could folier spray my coconut and aloe waterings or add it to the resevior I'm not sure

Some people have used teas, but it's easy to over saturate the sip , some people have added nutes to the res, I think octopot talks about this , captain used to ad nutes to his sip res
I prefer not to use bottled nutes and try to avoid chemicals wherever I can. I don't do teas I just top dress dry amendments and water it into the soil nice and simple really.

From the ocotpot website


SOIL - Always follow the 60/40 Rule! Specifically, use 60% high quality soilless mix with 40% perlite in Octopot Grow Systems. Perlite should be mixed throughout the growing media. Never create layers of perlite inside the Gro Sleeve®.


SUPER SOILS - Super soils can be too heavy and hold too much moisture, limiting air exchange which damages plants causing root rot. Also, nutrients in super soils tend to be used up too early and run out too soon in the growth cycle which starves plants. Super soil may work with Octopots if it has the correct ratio of perlite (40%) and controlled release nutrients.



Again I've never grown in this type of system before and from what I see in the thread the results a re great I'm just trying to take advavtage of better systems but at the same time don't want to waste to much time mucking about with it as I don't have to space to grow multiple plants just a nice single each time.

Will look at the innertub more closely
 

Tim Fox

Well-Known Member
i thought no till means you don't disturb the soil and don't remove the roots just plant right next to the old stem. and maybe EM1 can counteract whatever nutrient leaches into the reservoir to prevent algae and mold. no biggie though.
I would say good luck doing true no till in a sip
 

Tim Fox

Well-Known Member
Hey guys thanks for the replies.

By the sounds of it it's not a true no till type system as you're not able to amend with top dress of amendments. Trenching in amendments will disturb the soil food web and fungi as would dumping and mixing each round but you could do a super soil then I guess, but I like the no fuss of no till and how the soil improves every grow.

An earthbox or growbox dimensions are to big for my space and an octopot is too expensive to buy and ship to where I am. I have fabric pots thats why I was thingking of the octopot. would be pretty easy to buy a small net pot used for growing lettuce and cutting out some of the fabric pot base. I read on their website that soils need to be super lite and I'm not sure a no till is the right medium but what do I know I've never tried it.

I suppose I could folier spray my coconut and aloe waterings or add it to the resevior I'm not sure



I prefer not to use bottled nutes and try to avoid chemicals wherever I can. I don't do teas I just top dress dry amendments and water it into the soil nice and simple really.

From the ocotpot website







Again I've never grown in this type of system before and from what I see in the thread the results a re great I'm just trying to take advavtage of better systems but at the same time don't want to waste to much time mucking about with it as I don't have to space to grow multiple plants just a nice single each time.

Will look at the innertub more closely
I personally am in a big dissageement with the octopot instructions, non of the other sip systems use thier ideas on grow medium , I am using heavy super soil in my current grow with outstanding results, my soil has no added perolite just what was in the ffof my soil is in my wicks and I did not use a trench , I have done this for years, the guy here on rollitup who uses the octopot puts nutes in his res to make up for the loss in soil due to all the perolite they ad to the soil, I don't use bottle nutes and I grow water only the whole grow I put nothing in my res other than water , probably the reason they put so much perolite in the soil is to help make up for all the evaporation that occurs in or through the fabric pot
 
Yeah I was thinking the same reading through this thread about the tubs vs the octopot naf from asome yt videos that if anything I would only be adding em-1 to the resivior for both nutrients and to keep the water healthy.

I did not use a trench
So are you dumping the soil every grow and amending then or how are you applying no till methods to SIP?

I don't use perlite either and I mix my own soil from my own compost, ewc etc.. Do you think that mulching and cover crop could replace the plastic cover? I would still need to work out how the top dress would get watered into the soil.

i like the idea of faster growth in the no till.
 

Tim Fox

Well-Known Member
Yeah I was thinking the same reading through this thread about the tubs vs the octopot naf from asome yt videos that if anything I would only be adding em-1 to the resivior for both nutrients and to keep the water healthy.



So are you dumping the soil every grow and amending then or how are you applying no till methods to SIP?

I don't use perlite either and I mix my own soil from my own compost, ewc etc.. Do you think that mulching and cover crop could replace the plastic cover? I would still need to work out how the top dress would get watered into the soil.

i like the idea of faster growth in the no till.
I don't use no till I mix a new batch of super soil every grow , I dump the old grows into my wife's back yard garden
 
Looking good, Will have to look into it more from a no till way I can be bothered mixing soil all the time I got lazy with the simplicity of no till.

I wish either the earthbox or this growbox fit in my space I would just buy it. DIY is not exactly my thing but it may have to be in this case. There are some around where I am but they are either just to big or they are to small nohting in between really or the resevoir is really small. or they don't hold enough soil.

At this stage I think DIY is my only option

I've also seen a lot of DIY with reses filled with stones or clay balls some even with perlite and the fabric pots sitting on top of them. what do you think of that system? Clay balls and a fabric pot?

OR
Is it worth trying something in one of these for example https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/ikea-ps-fejoe-self-watering-plant-pot-black-30117188/

or something similar to that?
 
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raggyb

Well-Known Member
Looking good, Will have to look into it more from a no till way I can be bothered mixing soil all the time I got lazy with the simplicity of no till.

I wish either the earthbox or this growbox fit in my space I would just buy it. DIY is not exactly my thing but it may have to be in this case. There are some around where I am but they are either just to big or they are to small nohting in between really or the resevoir is really small. or they don't hold enough soil.

At this stage I think DIY is my only option

I've also seen a lot of DIY with reses filled with stones or clay balls some even with perlite and the fabric pots sitting on top of them. what do you think of that system? Clay balls and a fabric pot?
you can make one with a bucket and a lid and a fabric pot on top. its mostly not too hard. need drill, zip ties, scissors, razor blade, hole saw, and paddle bit for the pvc pipe hole. i'm not sure what you are thinking with stuff in the res. you put nothing but water in there.
 
you can make one with a bucket and a lid and a fabric pot on top. its mostly not too hard. need drill, zip ties, scissors, razor blade, hole saw, and paddle bit for the pvc pipe hole. i'm not sure what you are thinking with stuff in the res. you put nothing but water in there.
I've seen other SIP thread on other forums where the fabric pot sits on top of the clayballs and the water level is about an inch below the top of the clay balls where the fabric pot sits

Second picture of OP

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?threadid=356985

I'm not sure if the link is allowed or not if not I will delete it
 
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Imbald

Well-Known Member
Looking good, Will have to look into it more from a no till way I can be bothered mixing soil all the time I got lazy with the simplicity of no till.

I wish either the earthbox or this growbox fit in my space I would just buy it. DIY is not exactly my thing but it may have to be in this case. There are some around where I am but they are either just to big or they are to small nohting in between really or the resevoir is really small. or they don't hold enough soil.

At this stage I think DIY is my only option

I've also seen a lot of DIY with reses filled with stones or clay balls some even with perlite and the fabric pots sitting on top of them. what do you think of that system? Clay balls and a fabric pot?

OR
Is it worth trying something in one of these for example https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/ikea-ps-fejoe-self-watering-plant-pot-black-30117188/

or something similar to that?
I think I would use net pots or even beer/solo cups to support the fabric pot over clay pebbles. Wouldn't take up as much valuable res. space.
 

Imbald

Well-Known Member
yeah I think so. the roots from the last plant will be all in the wick and would clog the wick so you at least would have to unclog the wick between grows which would be a pain in the ass with the container full of dirt.
I am not sure, I haven't got that far myself yet...
But I think if you have a very healthy "living" soil, roots on your next grow wouldn't be to much of a problem. But I would probably pull out the biggest chunk of the root ball. I think your micro herd or living organisms in your soil would help take care of the smaller roots.
 

Tim Fox

Well-Known Member
Looking good, Will have to look into it more from a no till way I can be bothered mixing soil all the time I got lazy with the simplicity of no till.

I wish either the earthbox or this growbox fit in my space I would just buy it. DIY is not exactly my thing but it may have to be in this case. There are some around where I am but they are either just to big or they are to small nohting in between really or the resevoir is really small. or they don't hold enough soil.

At this stage I think DIY is my only option

I've also seen a lot of DIY with reses filled with stones or clay balls some even with perlite and the fabric pots sitting on top of them. what do you think of that system? Clay balls and a fabric pot?

OR
Is it worth trying something in one of these for example https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/ikea-ps-fejoe-self-watering-plant-pot-black-30117188/

or something similar to that?
have you considered making an earth bucket, would be much better than the ikea pot,,, here check it out
 

Greenthumbs256

Well-Known Member
I'm seeing alot of questions here that I've covered a few times over. If you guys check this out it will answer alot of your questions.

Dont listen to ppl saying it wont work, or you cant do this and cant do that. Ive proved them all wrong countless times! Everyone told me that my idea and this plan would never work, that I should give it up and throw it away! and now I consistently pull 2 pounds per 4x4! And absolute minimum amount of work, no fertilizer or bottled nutrients! True living recycled organics! Fuck the professionals that know everything. Bc I've been growing for 5 years and putting 20 year growers to shame! Just bc you havent tried it doenst mean it wont work! And if you have tried it maybe you did it wrong or possibly maybe you just suck!

 
have you considered making an earth bucket, would be much better than the ikea pot,,, here check it out
That looks simple enough I'll take a look and may even be worth trying 1 grow insomething like that that I can make for the cost of a pvc pipe before lookinginot a more permanent solution


Also came across this what do you think? Without the window and adding a fill pipe. I don't reallt want silicone in there



I'm seeing alot of questions here that I've covered a few times over. If you guys check this out it will answer alot of your questions.

Dont listen to ppl saying it wont work, or you cant do this and cant do that. Ive proved them all wrong countless times! Everyone told me that my idea and this plan would never work, that I should give it up and throw it away! and now I consistently pull 2 pounds per 4x4! And absolute minimum amount of work, no fertilizer or bottled nutrients! True living recycled organics! Fuck the professionals that know everything. Bc I've been growing for 5 years and putting 20 year growers to shame! Just bc you havent tried it doenst mean it wont work! And if you have tried it maybe you did it wrong or possibly maybe you just suck!

I'll be sure to take a read.
 
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Gemtree

Well-Known Member
One time I just threw plastic in the bottom of a tent and filled it with damp perlite then set 10gal smart pots on top. Easy notill sip.
 

Greenthumbs256

Well-Known Member
Sips are a very simplistic design. You can make them more complicated but bottom line, it needs a place for water to sit, and something to act as a wick to suck up the water into the soil and plant. Not much to it.

Here's some of the designs I use, I stopped using the ones with the plastic floor, i now use the vermiculite bc the roots can grow right into the reservoir, and wont get blocked.CM190311-174358001.jpgCM190219-220453001.jpgCM181107-231223001(1).jpg

As you guys can see, its works more then Good enough for me, but I'm always tweaking the design.

20191210_224424.jpg
 
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