How long can I leave without watering?

[adron]

Soil is my medium (obviously) and I'm watering manually (obviously). To give you an idea of size, my planter is the bottom 1/4th of a 1 liter soda bottle (cut right after the label ends at the bottom). So it's not really that big.

If I water as liberally as possibly without over-watering, how long can I safely leave it for? 48 hours? Assuming temps never go over 87F.

Thanks guys!

 

[JamieShoes]

HI Adron - I thought leaving soil for 48 hours was the norm?(I use coco).

Anyway I saw a thread somewhere with some advice on how to leave plants up to a week by leaving them in the bath tub with a small amount of water that they can absorb... you'd need to track that thread down for the actual info though...


good luck
j :smile:

 

[slappyjack]

That's precisely the reason I switched to E&F coco. Of course there are other benefits too.

When I ran soil I would often set up a passive wick system to give them water if I was to be gone for multiple days. Just a pail of water raised above the level of the soil with cotton ropes running from the pail to the soil.

 

[adron]

Good idea slappyjack... E&F ?

 

[neongreen]

Hi adron, guys,

I think it's hard to tell without knowing how big the plants are and what kind of soil. If there's lots of organic content it can hold allot more water than a free draining soil medium, and if it's a very young plant, it could be 1-2 weeks before the soil completely dried out.

I've got some young plants (on their 2nd/3rd nodes) that I've just put into containers, the smaller of which would hold a pint, and I've not had to water them since they went in, 6 days ago now, but I think I will need to water tomorrow.

Hopefully I have not left it too late, but I need to get an idea of how long they can go without water, so I'm just checking them as often as I can. I cant get to my grow for another 16 hours or so, so I'm just going on how heavy the containers felt, and the look of the soil/amount of condensation on the sides. It's a medium free draining soil I would say. Details in my grow diary here: http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=114970

I would just keep a very close eye on it, and keep picking it up to get an idea of what it feels like when its getting dry, but don't let it dry out completely. Most people say water when the surface is dry, and that's probably the safest way of telling, but it is a bit conservative, and I think the best growing time is just as the soil is starting to get dry.

MJ loves the combination of air and water in the soil at the same time. I tend to let it get a bit closer to fully drying out, but that has it's risks obviously, especially with very young plants, so I'd advise caution at first, and try not to leave them alone for more than 24 hours if they are still young like mine, at least until you know how long they can go with out water for.

 

[slappyjack]

Good idea slappyjack... E&F ?

E&F = Ebb and Flow

 

[magiccannabus]

Your soil mix is a huge factor we do not have info on here. Not all soil is the same, not even close!

I have coco coir in my mix, so I can water 5 times a day, or once every 5 days because of the moisture retention polymers in my mix. Good versatility. Best thing is, with this mix I can't over-water.

 

[banjobrain]

I'm trying to decide what is the best system for my first grow...

I travel frequently. I am usually gone for 4 days a week. I was thinking DWC would be the easy way to go, but I'm getting freaked out that I'll mess up the nutes and kill my plants.

I think soil might be a better way to go, but am concerned about plants drying out for 4 days left unattended.

I've been reading about the Wick System...any thoughts or ideas?

 

[cork144]

drop the container into water, leave to sit for 5minutes, do this for your next watering, your plant should manage to last it out, small containers require more watering, so it is abit of a pain.

 

[RetroGrow]

Two or three or four days without watering will not adversely affect your plants.
As people stated, your soil mix will determine it's water retention abilities.
Also the intensity of the lights, temperature, and humidity are factors.
Having said that, last year I had to leave town suddenly for a month. I wanted to keep my mothers alive, but had no time to hook up a drip system. I decided to try Miracle Grow Moisture Control Mix. Transplanted the mothers into the moisture control soil with water crystals. These were in 1 and 3 gallon pots. I filled them with water until it ran over into the drip pans underneath. I crossed my fingers and left on my trip, thinking that there is no way they are going to make it for a month between waterings.
However, to my surprize, I lost only one plant out of 9. The others were fine after 32 days between waterings. Soil was bone dry and hard, but the water crystals did their thing. I am now growing out the clones that I took from those mothers.
You can purchase water crystals and put them in any mix. They sell them in Lowes, and maybe Home Depot. They are not cheap, but they have an enormous capacity to retain water. My plants were under CFLs, and no doubt this would not work for that long under metal halide or HPS lights.
But if you need to keep them for periods without watering, water crystals really work.

 

[magiccannabus]

There are things to be careful of when using such crystals though. You can end up with the "jelly filled doughnut syndrome" where improperly mixed portions of soil can form large jelly-like clusters. Also, without enough drainage it can bog your soil down and drown them, or just make them sickly. All that said, I do use a small amount of them via the Pro-Mix for containers portion of my mix.

 

[southpaw]

Standing water works, even in soil. I left plants in roughly 1 gallon containers sitting in two inches of water in a big foil baking pan for about a week. For safety reasons, I'd probably never do this again, but minus some leaf burn from growing into the light, the plants were fine.

Water cloning some cuttings is another route to take.

 

[sallys]

I have used these amazing self-watering pots for ages for my moms- filled up they last almost 2 weeks without problems. I have used the idea to create my own version but bigger, using thin strips of old towels for the wicks.
http://www.amazon.com/Eva-Solo-Self-Watering-Flowerpot-Small/dp/B000LZP0TA

 

[del...]

i go out out of town often anywhere from 2 -5 days and for the longer time away i put the #1 pots inside a lg ziplock plastic baggie or sit the pot inside a bowl and overwater enough to put an inch or so in the baggie/bowl just before leaving to gain a couple extra days away. the larger #5 pots are good for up to 5 days if watered heavy just before leaving without adding a 'water catcher'...
i bought a submersible pump and tubing but now i have to work out how to make it feed the entire garden without having a maze of tubing running around the room...the venting from my inline fans are already an obstacle course to wade thru whenever i water!

also, raising the lights helps water last longer and if you're running multiple lights turn off one or two to cut down on heat and evaporation, where most of the water is lost.

wicks work great but should be installed with soil and before the plant...it's a real hassle to run them thru once the roots have taken hold. but a strip or two of terry cloth towels will pull all the water it needs and does it without the aid of gravity. (iow, it will pull uphill).