real coco can be over watered.

[vaped]

The botanicare bags say feed 4 to 6 times per day but i challenge that. i believe you can feed coco chunks and even cocodan crutons like hydro but fine coco is just like soil it will drown roots. I dont know why all the original posts call coco a %%%Hydro medium.%%% If you use piece coir or chunks yes but fine coco is a soil medium 100% actually if you want to plant in fine coir why wouldnt you just use soil. so coco can be a hydro medium but in most applications unless mixed atleast over 50% coco chips it will cause root rot because coco pith does not drain properly. coco is not a hydro medium but if it is processed into a hydo medium it can be used that way.Fine coco doesnt drain. by the time you see run off with fine coco you are water logged. My first grow with coco my boy had a fool proof mix mostly fox farm chunky perlite crop circles an a little bit of fine. you could water that to death but pure coco you water it 3 days in row it feels like brick and your plant is dead so coco can be a hydro medium but dont fool your self fine coco breeds pythium i can show you dead roots. look at the bottom 2.5 inches of your pot yup its dead right. do a little chip action down there and your world will change.

 

[MarquisBlack]

The botanicare bags say feed 4 to 6 times per day but i challenge that. i believe you can feed coco chunks and even cocodan crutons like hydro but fine coco is just like soil it will drown roots. I dont know why all the original posts call coco a %%%Hydro medium.%%% If you use piece coir or chunks yes but fine coco is a soil medium 100% actually if you want to plant in fine coir why wouldnt you just use soil. so coco can be a hydro medium but in most applications unless mixed atleast over 50% coco chips it will cause root rot because coco pith does not drain properly. coco is not a hydro medium but if it is processed into a hydo medium it can be used that way.Fine coco doesnt drain. by the time you see run off with fine coco you are water logged. My first grow with coco my boy had a fool proof mix mostly fox farm chunky perlite crop circles an a little bit of fine. you could water that to death but pure coco you water it 3 days in row it feels like brick and your plant is dead so coco can be a hydro medium but dont fool your self fine coco breeds pythium i can show you dead roots. look at the bottom 2.5 inches of your pot yup its dead right. do a little chip action down there and your world will change.

QFT

 

[bobblehead]

50/50 coco/perlite. no need for the chunky perlite... That makes no sense at all. Chunky coco is good too, the roots can actually grow into the coco. Not so with the perlite.

 

[inreplyavalon]

i feed my fine coco in 3 gallon pots 3x a day. No perlite, no chunks. White furry roots. If the pot is filled with roots and the light is strong, and the plants are happy they will eat and drink what i give them. Thats a reality at this exact moment in time.
The whole tone of the original post sounds like the original poster is caring on an argument from somewhere else or some other time. Sort of weird in my mind

 

[superbolan]

So i guess everyone here who waters straight coco several times a day and get great results are just lucky? Coco IS a hydro medium

 

[Shcrews]

ummmm i think the general rule of thumb is "DONT OVERWATER YOUR PLANTS"

any grow medium can be used to drown a plant

just be smart. if your plants dont need water, don't give it to them.

 

[slave4sail]

The botanicare bags say feed 4 to 6 times per day but i challenge that. i believe you can feed coco chunks and even cocodan crutons like hydro but fine coco is just like soil it will drown roots.

Coco stand alone is a unique medium all it's own. Feeding 4 to 6 times a day brings out the benefits of accelerated growth usually associated with other hydroponic systems, although to achieve this container size must match the rate of speed in which the plants are metabolising. This goes far beyond the medium, and will depend on all other environmental variables. Another benefit of coco is that it does not require the frequent waterings, and a slower rate of metabolism can be used and still achieve good results. It is all in the application.

I dont know why all the original posts call coco a %%%Hydro medium.%%% If you use piece coir or chunks yes but fine coco is a soil medium 100% actually if you want to plant in fine coir why wouldnt you just use soil. so coco can be a hydro medium but in most applications unless mixed atleast over 50% coco chips it will cause root rot because coco pith does not drain properly. coco is not a hydro medium but if it is processed into a hydo medium it can be used that way.

I was always under the assumption a soil is not a stand alone medium but a conglomerate of different substrates mixed together. Each adding their unique properties and supplying food. Coco on it's own does not supply enough food on it's own for the full cycle of plant life, so for how I choose to define things this does not fit into being a soil. Coco can be added to a soil mix, and is a great addition at that.

Fine coco doesnt drain. by the time you see run off with fine coco you are water logged.

Coco or any other medium are not supossed to drain, that is a task assigned to the container the medium is placed in. The medium can only saturate itself, nothing more. Once saturated, all excess moisture or water is then drained by way of the container. Not the medium itself. The ability to hold water, or the saturation points for different mediums and mixes will vary. Due to the unique properties of each, whatever they may be.

My first grow with coco my boy had a fool proof mix mostly fox farm chunky perlite crop circles an a little bit of fine. you could water that to death but pure coco you water it 3 days in row it feels like brick and your plant is dead so coco can be a hydro medium but dont fool your self fine coco breeds pythium i can show you dead roots. look at the bottom 2.5 inches of your pot yup its dead right. do a little chip action down there and your world will change.

Sounds like your boy did not appropriately gauge container size based on growth rate and environment provided. As said before, it is all in the application. It is nice to see your boy found a mix with perlite to suit his style better. Application for the win.

inreply has it down pat. Nice example, and I did not understand the tone of the topic myself. Coco is extremely versital as a medium, you just have to know how it works best for your garden. Application people, it is the beezkneez!

 

[vaped]

My whole tone is against the mountai9ns of bad info regaurding coco on IC. Some people may have figured out how to water 4 to 6 times per day that is fine but I am skeptcal. How much do you feed? Do you feed till run off ? or just a little on top? I know that when i water every day my roots look brown. when i let them get popcorn fart dry inbetween watering i get white roots. Also I use standard nursery pots plenty of drainage but when i water plain coco to run off the bottom few inches of coco are way to wet.

 

[DonkDBZ]

If you have The correct NPK profile and use Drip clean you can get away with not having runoff as much. I have watered 3-4 times daily no problems. Fully saturated Canna Coco is 73%water 23%air.

Full Nutes every time I water. PH 5.5-5.7

There is mountains of great info on Coco here I am really happy with what I learned.




I never let my coco dry

 

[Ciarán]

I water my coco when the lights turn on, then 6 hrs later. Each time just enough to moisten the top layer of the 1 gals. It wicks down, the only time I have runoff is when I flush.

 

[xcrispi]

Also I use standard nursery pots plenty of drainage but when i water plain coco to run off the bottom few inches of coco are way to wet.

This is why I love my Air-Pots ,
The stank spot you and others speak of = always wet at the bottom is a thing of the past . Incredible amounts of air to the entire root system . Impossible to overwater them , even if you did / were feeding 5-6 times a day - but that sounds too much like work to me , I'ma lazy sum bitch. I feed / water w/ a wand to 10% runoff only when needed , but never have let them dry completely = setting yourself up for build ups / lok outs etc...
Crispi

 

[vaped]

I water my coco when the lights turn on, then 6 hrs later. Each time just enough to moisten the top layer of the 1 gals. It wicks down, the only time I have runoff is when I flush.

I can see that working quite well. that makes sence.

 

[vaped]

This is why I love my Air-Pots ,
The stank spot you and others speak of = always wet at the bottom is a thing of the past . Incredible amounts of air to the entire root system . Impossible to overwater them , even if you did / were feeding 5-6 times a day - but that sounds too much like work to me , I'ma lazy sum bitch. I feed / water w/ a wand to 10% runoff only when needed , but never have let them dry completely = setting yourself up for build ups / lok outs etc...
Crispi

Air pots have been on my mind for a while but i would need close to a hundred of them that would be like 500 bones just for pots after this pull i might try it. I have seen them work great with pro mix. I use H&G drip clean aswell so salts never build up.

 

[slave4sail]

My whole tone is against the mountai9ns of bad info regaurding coco on IC. Some people may have figured out how to water 4 to 6 times per day that is fine but I am skeptcal. How much do you feed? Do you feed till run off ? or just a little on top? I know that when i water every day my roots look brown. when i let them get popcorn fart dry inbetween watering i get white roots. Also I use standard nursery pots plenty of drainage but when i water plain coco to run off the bottom few inches of coco are way to wet.

Nice to read this vap, and can see where your frustrations lie. I have the same. It is a constant battle until the gardener is able to develop an understanding with a particular specimen, but once they find what a particular specimen prefers, things can move along with relative precision from that point on. I am nowhere near a master gardener by any means, and sincerely hope my comments are taken only with an open mind and pinch of salt.

With regard to the mountain of bad information, that really depends on who you ask. You see, we are only able to share our experiences and thoughts. What works best for one garden, may not always work best for another. To add on that line of reasoning, not every gardener has the same specific goals or resources.

When the label you are reading says 4-6 times per day, does it also mention an amount of run-off? I would not recommend runoff if at all possible, but instead adjust for proper amount of food. Run-off leaves for stagnant water for the duration of time until the containers drain. Plant's do not nescesaraly metabiolize fastest with a totally saturated coco medium. That is where paying attention to the wants and needs of specific specimens is critical.

No I do not water 4-6 times per day, but also could adapt to such a schedule if needed but I prefer my nutrient schedule and slightly ammended coco. I would not like to dial in a schedule that called for so frequent waterings with run-off, that seems wasteful. I do the best for me, with what is available. It is all part of dialing in your style to environment with consideration to the specimen. There is no one answer, so if you are looking for one the only one that will help is: your own experience It is a bonus to also relate that to shared experiences from others here at ic. But none of them have watered any of my specimens. Not holding my breath either.

You give no mention to the size of your pots. If you wish to increase the amount of waterings without sacrificing any of your current plant metabolism rates you can reduce the size of the container, or reduce the volume of nutrient treated water when feeding. With the risk of sounding redundant, thats all I can think of. I understand where you are comming from now, and hope you understand the same of me. nam myoho renge kyo
here is happy roots just starting

below roots becoming sad and ready for a new container and a trim.

 

[3dDream]

I bottom feed in coco. I try to grow the plants to a size where they can soak up the water in the trays multiple times a day. I hand water daily when they are small. If I put too small of a plant on the automated feedings they sit in the water longer than I like. Normally the roots avoid the bottom of the pot and I think of it as water pruning. I also think good airflow can balance things out. I can get my girls to drink even more with a strong fan.

 

[MarquisBlack]

Shallow containers/slabs are where it's at with coco, ime.

 

[superbolan]

Run off definitely serves a purpose. I run off to between 10%-30% each feeding it helps prevent build-ups in the coco. I am also using coco hempys and though the plants are sitting in standing solution there is no stinky zone just tons of healthy white roots. You cannot ever totaly saturate coco 100% even if you try too, it is alway around 25% air. That is the joy of coco

 

[Super.Seeds]

I also bottom feed coco. I use a 2 gallon smart pot with a coco mat cut to fit the bottom and then 70 percent coco and 30 percent perlite. plants are about 3 feet when done. My timer is set to 5 mins ONCE a day, right as the lights come on. This is just enough to fill the tray and let em get one good drink a day and I never have issues. I used to water 15 mins a day, but it was overkill and i was getting gnats and rot. Anyone else water their coco just once a day? When I was watering more often the pots would really get soaked and it was no good...room temps never go above 85.

SS

 

[vaped]

Thanks for all the info guys. I do believe Ic has a lot of good info but there are alot of misconceptions floating around on this subject. Keep the thoughts coming.

 

[!!!]

I don't agree with the OP. You can't overwater coco unless the drain gets clogged and water is left standing on the bottom of the pot, and fine coco DOES clog the drain holes so that's probably why some people see overwater symptoms.

I use fine coco, sometimes 100% sometimes 90% w/ 10% perlite. I've never had problems w/ overwatering in coco. In soil I killed plenty of plants w/ overwatering.

I line the bottom of each bucket with hydroton and place the coco above that. Drains just fine.

The reason runoff takes a long time to see is because coco holds a lot of water.