How do you water your plants?

[massivecalyx]

There has got to be a more efficient way of watering your plants then I am currently using. I do not have a tap in my grow area.

Right now I mix my nutes in a 5gal bucket and then fill a 1gal watering can with the mixture. This is time consuming and annoying. I transfer the mixture from the 5gal to the watering can by way of a party cup.

There has got to be a better way out there...so please enlighten me

 

[mg75]

if it is a large grow, then something automated like a drip-irrigation system might work best. you can also use blumats or a wick system. for smaller grows, you can use a submersible pump and a watering wand.
hand-watering is an art form by itself. the plants will adjust to your schedule, but you will have to water slowly and all around the pot evenly. if you hit them hard and fast, you may create "internal rivers" which will just drain all the way down and out, not keeping your medium evenly moist and wasting nutrients and h2o.

the beauty of hand-watering is that you actually take time to look at every plant, check its moisture level (by sticking a finger in the soil or picking up the pot), overall health, etc...

 

[ranta]

tru obout hand watering mg 75

 

[crack-attack]

plastic barrel and pump with watering wand. speeds things up and you look at every plant. mg75 hit it right on the spot.

 

[massivecalyx]

Watering wand huh? That sounds like it would make my life a whole lot easier. Now to try and find one.. is there any type/brand that is recommended above the others?

 

[Max Headroom]

i use the same method as massivecalyx only i use a plastic measuring cup from the kitchen to water.
by now i have it down pretty well, but the most time consuming element for me is taking the plants out of the box, and after watering "Tetris-ing" them back in. it's like a plant puzzle!

also, the preparing of the water itself is a bit tedious as well... (fill bucket, (add nutes), measure & adjust ph...)

 

[Catchin1]

I use

I use

I sometimes use a 5 gallon bucket set on a higher table and a wand after I mix the ferts.
Mostly, I fill 1 gallon plastic jugs and mix each individually and then water that way.
First off in either way I wet the soil a bit first before I water. I put a little water around each plant so it all gets wet and let it set for a second as YES like MG said you will water down the sides and cause river flows through your bucket and have dry spots and a lot of run through not run off.
Then you just water very slowly and take your time. It does take a knack to lift the buckets and tell they are the same.
I use bucket in a bucket....one drains to the other, so I have to separate them and dump the water in the catch bucket and then heft the plant one, so I can gauge fairly well the weights of the buckets.
Other then that, there is no rocket science aspect to it, just try it till you get it which is not hard if you use your head a bit. Come on I do it. it can't be that hard. it is easy.
I use soil less medium Bcuzz HP and top feed nutes.........Fox Farm line up....grow big, big bloom, tiger bloom, open sesame, beastie bloomz, cha' ching........first time with the powders, use to just use the big bloom and tiger bloom and grow big and had fine results........When I am done with these Fox Farms I am switching to the KISS.........MaxiBloom and KoolBloom as I remeber now after reading how good my old Peters grows were when I first started.

 

[dagnabit]

just pee on 'em....


J/K

 

[TreeTopHi]

First week I use a spray bottle / or untill it looks like it isn't doing the job anymore.

Then I use a little cup like you take meds in..

 

[ErnestHemingway]

I mix the nutes in 5 gal. buckets first, then pH of course. Then i just run a plain garden hose attached to a drill pump ($10 at home depot) and there you have it. It takes me about 5 minutes or so to get through a 5 gal. bucket. Pretty easy and you dont have to move your plants out from under the light you just reach the hose underneath the canopy to get to the pots farthest back. Its not the most accurate way of watering cause sometimes it is difficult to give each plant an even amount of water, but after a few times you get the hang of it.

 

[BlazingSaddles]

I keep a 20 gallon reservoir in my room filled with plain tap water at all times. It always sits for around 48 hours before use. When it runs low or gets dirty i refill by using 3 gallon buckets which i fill in the bathroom and bring into the room. Doesnt take long at all perhaps 5 mins every few days to refill reservoir.

Then i just have seperate 3 gallon buckets for plain water and nuted water to go in. I then have a 700ml watering can that i use to dip into the buckets and get my plain or nuted water.

Hand watering is an artform, after a couple of grow u really start to get to know your plants watering needs. I literally give each plant in my room a slightly different amount depending on the bag weight. U can tell exactly how much water your plant needs by very gently lifting the pot and checking the weight.

Its a great way to get close to your plants and really see whats going on.

In saying that though sometimes when im really tired i wish i had some kind of automated watering system.. But when ever i get in there and start to hand water i always start to feel relaxed no matter how tired i was before starting. I find watering extremely therapeutic weird as it sounds lol

BlazingSaddles

 

[Rysam]

I use a 5 gal bucket to mix in and 1/2g pitcher from a restaurant to deliver. one pitcher per plant as needed.

doesnt work well for lots o' plants, but its just fine for my 6.

 

[CannaBunkerMan]

Go hydro with auto fill reservoirs. I haven't watered my plants since I built my auto-water setup. Just a float valve, a 3/4 FIP solenoid, and a garden hose hookup. Sweet!

 

[mountain_goat]

mix my nutes in 1 gallon jugs ....then i water them with a sports water bottle......works perfect....plus 1 full sports bottle waters 5 gallon pots just about exact...so no measuring

 

[MIway]

... just a transfer of work loads... motions of hand watering... motions of filling/draining/cleaning a rez... which work do you prefer?

... farmin ain't easy... ;-) ... or is it just money growing on trees???

 

[Rednick]

You can use a UniSeal to use pvc to valve, or
you can use homebrew spigots/taps
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/brewing-equipment/fermenting-equipment/buckets

Or you can go the route others explained earlier.

I find in soil I water each plant about three times per watering, going around the whole garden each time.

 

[trichrider]

you definitely have a much more personal relationship with your girls by hand watering.

you can feel their needs, like when to cultivate that hardpack, or notice that water seems to just run out the bottom of the pot, with the benefit of being able to spot deficeincies or toxic problems, or pests.

auto watering removes that personal interaction...affair with the green goddess.

 

[MED-JACK]

TSC 25gal sprayer with a garden hose and a cheap graden sprayer. Plus 100 res. 25gal batch works great mixit all in the tank ph and off to hand watering the girls. HAND WATER yes its work and it sucks but you give and take....

 

[Crusader Rabbit]

There has got to be a more efficient way of watering your plants then I am currently using. I do not have a tap in my grow area.

Right now I mix my nutes in a 5gal bucket and then fill a 1gal watering can with the mixture. This is time consuming and annoying. I transfer the mixture from the 5gal to the watering can by way of a party cup.

There has got to be a better way out there...so please enlighten me

To get answers appropriate to your situation we need more info;

How many plants are you watering? How many gallons per day?

Can you easily get a garden hose to your grow area to fill a reservoir periodically?

Could you plumb a semi-permanent water line to your grow area?

Could you place a large reservoir in a location easily reached by a garden hose, and then run a small diameter hose to gravity flow to your grow? You could pump uphill doing this too.

Could you use a dolly or other wheeled contrivance to carry bulk water to your grow?

Does your grow space have plenty of headroom which would allow you to place plants on a table with a reservoir underneath?
.........

At the simplest, you can grow all your plants in a flood tray or tubs, and bottom feed. Just dump your water/nutes into the tub and it will wick up into your pots. A 2' x 3' mortar mixing tub from Lowes is $13. The tubs from Lowes are best, CENTREX Super Tub, real straight sides, most efficient space wise.