Watering?

I was watering every day and then I was told to water when they girls want it will make them root out more.

So at first I let them wilt a little watered and they came out of it fine but I didn't like this, so been watering about every 3 days. Feed every third watering.

And plants seem fine. I really can't water every day but was told to.

What is the right way? Growing in Happy Frog, 5 gallon, Fiber Pots.

Imo the right way is to water the plant thoroughly then wait until its dry you can judge by weight but pay closer attention to what they look like when they perk back up and before wilt they just start to not stand up as nice but not wilt. You’ll get it. Intervals will change with the plants growth

bam0813 said:

Imo the right way is to water the plant thoroughly then wait until its dry you can judge by weight but pay closer attention to what they look like when they perk back up and before wilt they just start to not stand up as nice but not wilt. You’ll get it. Intervals will change with the plants growth

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Well basically this is what I'm doing and today I was told I was wrong but like I say I can't water every day and seem to be doing fine.

The only thing I can't do is clean before messing with them. I go to my Chickens several times a day and I live in the woods. Plus during warm weather I'm working in my vegetable garden and working on my lawn.

Thats what matters I guess but I’ve never had a run when they didn’t get to a point they weren’t drinking daily indoors so maybe think ahead they will snap back from a wilt if you catch it fast but not ideal for healthy plants

Well in four days I will have some wilt so I just water every three days.

Got a New Meter and my Temperature is running 78F and my RH running about 25.

Cool for led and super dry

Plant size/maturity vs. container size -i.e., a 4 month old plant in a 1 gallon pot will drink a lot more often than a 1 month plant in a 5 gallon. Pretty obvious.

Water retention of grow medium - if you squeeze your wet soil, does it form solid balls that retain their shape (mud balls), or does it fall apart because it's nice and fluffy with lots of aeration?

In veg, I pretty much water whenever pots feel light because I don't have watering automated in veg. but I don't want the plants to get too wilted. If the pot feels light, i'll give it water. If leaves are sagging, it needs water pronto.

In flower I prefer to keep them at a constant rate, ideally watering the proper amount every day. Plants prefer a steady water/feed, not surprises.

Well I can't pull the Pots out and weigh them using one Arm. So always have to have help.

I can do some but if I try I lay them on their side and dump soil out.

When I first started I over watered and had problems.

I know one gut took off for over a week and his girls were just fine. Me I would have been going nuts.

Lots of variables i guess but if i left my plants unattended for over a week the first thing id do is get the loppers and shop vac

Oldguyrealy said:

Well I can't pull the Pots out and weigh them using one Arm. So always have to have help.

I can do some but if I try I lay them on their side and dump soil out.

When I first started I over watered and had problems.

I know one gut took off for over a week and his girls were just fine. Me I would have been going nuts.

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Have you looked into blumats?

5 gallon bags of happy frog water maybe twice/week. 5 gallon of coco water/feed daily.

Oldguyrealy said:

I was watering every day and then I was told to

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If you have a working watering schedule stick to it. That could be your magic.

Well like I was telling my wife different people have different opinions no matter who they are.

Go with what you feel is best until you find something different that works better.

Blumat system keeps medium consistently moist. Build a Soil way (living soil) says to water 5% volume of soil daily and 10% once a week. I've seen 20% soil volume and dry cycle also suggested. What if the strain is drought resistant or doesn't do well with having wet feet all the time? What if its a small plant in a big pot? Pick a style and adjust based on the plant's response.

I try to make them happy. But human and mess up every so often.

My grows are outdoors. After a growing hiatus for several years I had forgotten how to water, last few years my plants were stunted and some died because I felt they need water because the top few inches were dry. Found out the bottom was waterlogged. No idea how I forgot to take care of them, but this year, summer 2022 I had my best grow in a long time. Did several things, I kept them in smaller pots until the root system filled them up. Ended up in 10 gallon containers. I did judge by weight, but here in the 100 dg summer I found at first sign of a little leaf wilt, it was time to water til runoff. The leaves weren't drooping down, but I could see they were a little soft. Watering this way, the plants always had a massive growth spurt, no ill effects. Where I am at, this happened every 2nd/3rd day. I'm always home so I could keep checking and make sure it never went longewr than a few hours

Well where I'm at so far I'm legal growing inside.

Thing is Summer here it gets above 100F with Humidity you can wear so A/C gets a workout.

bam0813 said:

Imo the right way is to water the plant thoroughly then wait until its dry you can judge by weight but pay closer attention to what they look like when they perk back up and before wilt they just start to not stand up as nice but not wilt. You’ll get it. Intervals will change with the plants growth

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I go by this method too, I used to bomb them daily and then I used an automated system which was overwatering my plants. I've since returned to pitcher feeding and I will let the pots almost dry out even in coco and then water until just a little water comes out of the bottom of the pots to let me know the root ball is fully saturated. In 10 gal pots this means I'm usually feeding 2 gallons every 2 days on average.

@OP This all will change depending on your grows environment. The best way to find out how much and how often is hands on experience.

I'm using a Sprayer and for my 5 gallon pots they take about a gallon each plant.

Of course the Autos in 3 gallon pots use less.

Messed up had couple Clones no place to go with them so put them in with my Autos that I had my Light turned up. Put the Clones too close and they burnt but I'm thinking 3 will be max in a 4X4 Tent.