Smart Pots
- Thread starter Clackamas Coot
- Start date
smoketrichs
Member
Just got 8 of the 1 gal root pots today for an upcoming sog (still sexing some clones I cut). I like em so far, Is it normal to be able to water a shit ton without runoff?
Cool Moehere's a few Caseys on Day 30 from seed that just got put outdoors to flower. These got up-potted from their 2qt starter pots to 2gallon smart pots on Day 18.
The root growth out of the sides is amazing. It's something that I've never seen on any commercial nursery plant or sapling. That says quite a bit about the genetics that you're running.
CC
Hey CC,
No doubt the vigor from H3ad's Casey Jones is nothing short of amazing. My veg light is a 4' 4 bulb t5, so to get 10 plants in 2 gallon pots underneath it they are pretty crammed together with the sides of the pots touching each other. One day after being fully exposed nearly all the root growth you see out of the sides will be air-pruned off and will disappear. Thanks for the look!
coolmoe
No doubt the vigor from H3ad's Casey Jones is nothing short of amazing. My veg light is a 4' 4 bulb t5, so to get 10 plants in 2 gallon pots underneath it they are pretty crammed together with the sides of the pots touching each other. One day after being fully exposed nearly all the root growth you see out of the sides will be air-pruned off and will disappear. Thanks for the look!
coolmoe
wholesale smart pot material?
wholesale smart pot material?
ive heard tell that you can buy just the fabric from the folks at smart pots, is this true? anyone know of a source for it? been tinkering with my own fabrics and smart pots for a minute, would love to do some side by sides. anyhow thanks for the help.
wholesale smart pot material?
ive heard tell that you can buy just the fabric from the folks at smart pots, is this true? anyone know of a source for it? been tinkering with my own fabrics and smart pots for a minute, would love to do some side by sides. anyhow thanks for the help.
ThaiPhoon
Active member
I was thinking about making a type of smart pot as well.
This idea is a cheap way of doing it - I think -
Make a large cylindrical container using that plastic chicken wire stuff and another smaller cylinder of the same stuff that will fit inside the larger one - leaving about 5cm or so gap all around.
The cylinders could have a bottom attached (use zip ties or whatever?) I think only the bigger one needs a bottom
Ok so the smaller cylinder gets filled with soil mix, and the space between them gets filled with the big chunky coco husk.
When you water it, just water the inner soil part. The dry coco husk should act as a barrier for the roots.
Also these pots could be used in some kind of bottom feed application with a few mods.
Any thoughts?
This idea is a cheap way of doing it - I think -
Make a large cylindrical container using that plastic chicken wire stuff and another smaller cylinder of the same stuff that will fit inside the larger one - leaving about 5cm or so gap all around.
The cylinders could have a bottom attached (use zip ties or whatever?) I think only the bigger one needs a bottom
Ok so the smaller cylinder gets filled with soil mix, and the space between them gets filled with the big chunky coco husk.
When you water it, just water the inner soil part. The dry coco husk should act as a barrier for the roots.
Also these pots could be used in some kind of bottom feed application with a few mods.
Any thoughts?
I can't seem to find the post where
they sell the smart pots on discount if you buy 100.
anybody know the place?
thanks.
they sell the smart pots on discount if you buy 100.
anybody know the place?
thanks.
ive bought 100s of them at a time and never got a discount. got some cool free gear. smart pot hat and tee shirt.
If you really want to save some money make your own smartpots search for pond underlaying on google i found a roll that was 300x15' im going to be ordering that to make 180 200gallon smartpots which would cost $9000 from www.smartpot.com shit only cost me 1200 for the roll. then another $500 x 3 for 18inch x 300' galvanized steel fencing. zip ties $15 saving about 75% of what i would have paid
If you really want to save some money make your own smartpots search for pond underlaying on google i found a roll that was 300x15' im going to be ordering that to make 180 200gallon smartpots which would cost $9000 from www.smartpot.com shit only cost me 1200 for the roll. then another $500 x 3 for 18inch x 300' galvanized steel fencing. zip ties $15 saving about 75% of what i would have paid
check out my buddies thread he showed me how to make custom smart pots
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=201016
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=201016
BrotherGanja
Member
One thing I didn't like about the smart pots in my indoor garden is they take up more space than a normal pot a lot wider so you can't fit as many plants in one space. For outdoor I recommend using only a smart pot or homemade smart pot.
Hey all,
Just thought I would post that I am trying a new type of air-root pruning pot called "Plant Warrior". One reason I like them (I haven't tested them yet and haven't found anyone who has) is they are hard-sided plastic. The main reason I am wary of Smart Pots is they are not hard-sided and that affects the media properties (from 'sagging') such as air porosity and water-holding capacity (aka container capacity), this is especially true if one has to move the pots once filled with media.
I am not claiming Plant Warrior pots are the way to go, they could be junk, I just don't know yet. But I thought people might be interested in them.
Plant Warrior pots use traditional air-root pruning method via holes in the bottom of the pot, not the sides. In traditional air-root pruning pots without bottoms are placed on a sturdy screen a few inches to a foot or more off the ground. So when tap root reaches the screen it is air pruned and secondary roots start growing much more (like 'topping' a plant); as well as preventing tap root circling. The key to using that kind of air-root pruning is the RH of the air at the pruning point needs to be low enough to induce pruning, so the pots should be at least a few inches off the ground/floor.
The Plant Warrior pots have a cone in the center that is a few inches tall, extending into the middle of the pot. The cone has many decent sized holes so the roots that reach the cone will get air pruned. Two reasons I like the cone method besides for air-root pruning are (1) it should alleviate the 'perched water table' in media, thus increasing air porosity of the media all the way to the bottom of the pot; and (2) it should increase media O2 levels. One reason I dislike the cone is in the 5 gallon pots it reduces the total volume of media more than I would like, however, the probable increase in root mass and reduction/elimination of the perched water table should outweigh loss of media volume.
Here is the site of the manufacturer of Plant Warrior, Sunlight Supply (I have the 2 and 5 gallon pots): link
Pics:
Just thought I would post that I am trying a new type of air-root pruning pot called "Plant Warrior". One reason I like them (I haven't tested them yet and haven't found anyone who has) is they are hard-sided plastic. The main reason I am wary of Smart Pots is they are not hard-sided and that affects the media properties (from 'sagging') such as air porosity and water-holding capacity (aka container capacity), this is especially true if one has to move the pots once filled with media.
I am not claiming Plant Warrior pots are the way to go, they could be junk, I just don't know yet. But I thought people might be interested in them.
Plant Warrior pots use traditional air-root pruning method via holes in the bottom of the pot, not the sides. In traditional air-root pruning pots without bottoms are placed on a sturdy screen a few inches to a foot or more off the ground. So when tap root reaches the screen it is air pruned and secondary roots start growing much more (like 'topping' a plant); as well as preventing tap root circling. The key to using that kind of air-root pruning is the RH of the air at the pruning point needs to be low enough to induce pruning, so the pots should be at least a few inches off the ground/floor.
The Plant Warrior pots have a cone in the center that is a few inches tall, extending into the middle of the pot. The cone has many decent sized holes so the roots that reach the cone will get air pruned. Two reasons I like the cone method besides for air-root pruning are (1) it should alleviate the 'perched water table' in media, thus increasing air porosity of the media all the way to the bottom of the pot; and (2) it should increase media O2 levels. One reason I dislike the cone is in the 5 gallon pots it reduces the total volume of media more than I would like, however, the probable increase in root mass and reduction/elimination of the perched water table should outweigh loss of media volume.
Here is the site of the manufacturer of Plant Warrior, Sunlight Supply (I have the 2 and 5 gallon pots): link
Pics:
spurr
I haven't used these pots but I did hold one at a store and thought it was interesting. My initial thought was that it could be very useful for hydroponics but since I know absolutely nothing about what works best in that process I'm probably wrong.
I saw another product yesterday from GeoPot. It's cloth and heavier than the SmartPots products. They're square and on one side is a heavy Velcro strip which would allow one to open up the pot and not be as concerned about damaging roots as you do with other cloth nursery pots when transplanting.
I'm not sure how that would play out though in a large pot and let's assume that you've really got it going and you're enjoying massive root development - could the roots be strong enough to split the Velcro strip?
CC
I haven't used these pots but I did hold one at a store and thought it was interesting. My initial thought was that it could be very useful for hydroponics but since I know absolutely nothing about what works best in that process I'm probably wrong.
I saw another product yesterday from GeoPot. It's cloth and heavier than the SmartPots products. They're square and on one side is a heavy Velcro strip which would allow one to open up the pot and not be as concerned about damaging roots as you do with other cloth nursery pots when transplanting.
I'm not sure how that would play out though in a large pot and let's assume that you've really got it going and you're enjoying massive root development - could the roots be strong enough to split the Velcro strip?
CC
Ive never seen those before Gojo. I think Ill purchase some and give them a go. Ill compare them to Root Pouches that I currently use.
I make my own outta landscape cloth, 2x30meters for $100 retail, cut out and sew layflat tube's that I fold the bottom flaps in so they stand square. The cloth is about half as thick as the smartpot brand. I do not remove the cloth to transplant, I just plug them into the next container, it works great w/roots popping out within a day or two, no shock.
Other positives from sewing your own is you can over size the height and use the excess as a mulch, and obviously make any shape/size you desire. The layflat method is super simple, I can pump out 100 1 gals in under 2 hours total. No previous sewing experience is required the learning curve of sewing one line per pot is well within everyones capabilities. If you've got some excess time I highly recommend it.
Other positives from sewing your own is you can over size the height and use the excess as a mulch, and obviously make any shape/size you desire. The layflat method is super simple, I can pump out 100 1 gals in under 2 hours total. No previous sewing experience is required the learning curve of sewing one line per pot is well within everyones capabilities. If you've got some excess time I highly recommend it.
Last edited:
I don't know, I could happen I guess, I have seen very robust/strong root systems before. I would worry about the affects water and moisture would have on the Velcro.
Cool, let us know you opinion once you try them. I will be trying them once I get my GrapeGod seeds (from Next Generation) sometime next week. I have 2 gallon and 5 gallon pots, I thought I would up-transplant the plants but the 2 gallon cone is smaller than the 5 gallon cone so a well rooted 2 gallon root system/media would not fit easily over the 5 gallon cone.
1000 gal smart pot!
1000 gal smart pot!
Just think of the MONSTER you could grow in this!
http://www.icmag.com/viewarticle.php?articleid=2138
peace
doublejj
1000 gal smart pot!
Just think of the MONSTER you could grow in this!
http://www.icmag.com/viewarticle.php?articleid=2138
peace
doublejj
