how often to water in coco coir

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GhettoGospel

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #1

I have been waterering my plants about every 5 days

admitadely i should water more often! but i am used to soil grows!

My plants are experiencing magnisium or nitrogen... one of the two... the one where the leafs bleach yellow at the bottem of the plant

is it a good observation, that perhaps, because i am taking so much time between watering the plants are sucking up all the nitrogen/magnesium to fuel new growth there is a deficit????

so when it is all used up the plants are going to the leaves for nitrogen/magnesium...

my PH is 6.1
i have started feeding 9ml per gal
the feeding before this was 7ml per gal

the plants have about 10 nodes so they're not babies no more

 

G

Guest 18340

• Mar 24, 2011

• #2

What are you feeding them? In coco, once you have full roots you need to water/feed everyday. You are starving your plants. Coco has to be kept moist once you have roots.
Your ph is ok. I shoot for anything between 5.5-6.5, never had any issues in that range.

 

SergeantGod

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #3

Yes, water every day. Keep the coco wet, or moist. N deficiency can look like Cal deficiency. Are you using a COCO specific base nute, or you should be adding CalMag.

Coco is considered a passive hydroponic medium. What size pots are you using?

 

G

GhettoGospel

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #4

Its cana coco A&B whilst i have your attention , how often can you advise me to flush, to get rid of salt buildup? I am hand watering to waste.

 

G

GhettoGospel

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #5

sergeant they are very small pots 500ml i think

 

MarquisBlack

St. Elsewhere

Veteran

• Mar 24, 2011

• #6

I find that smaller pots/more waterings is more effective than larger pots/less waterings. Right now I'm doing 12 plants per light under 600s, in half gallon pots, watered 8 times daily. You can grow huge plants in small pots with coco. Some have found that in their systems, smaller pots actually yield more.

 

Jeeyah

Active member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #7

Water at least once a day in flower. Keep it wet!!!

 

SergeantGod

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #8

They could be root bound and that could cause the lower leaves to dry out and die.

Canna A/B is very good. 500ml = 2 cups. That's REALLY small. I use 3 gallon and water, drain to waste, once a day. At the end of a 10 week flowering cycle, they are pretty root bound.

I never have had to flush. I use House and Garden's Drip Clean, it's cheap and great.

 

G

GhettoGospel

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #9

This is such a bummer... i guess i'll do some reading on a dripper system..... i'll have a repot soon, trying to get a new cab done and its just taking long

MarquisBlack would a 2gal pot grow a 4' plant with potential for 5 oz? I was thinking before i would need 3/4gal

 

SergeantGod

Member

• Mar 24, 2011

• #10

Yield is very dependent on the strength of your light, how many lumens you are hitting the plant with.
What kind of light are you using?

 

G

Guest 18340

• Mar 24, 2011

• #11

GhettoGospel said:

Its cana coco A&B whilst i have your attention , how often can you advise me to flush, to get rid of salt buildup? I am hand watering to waste.

Click to expand...

I've been watering to waste in coco for 3 years now, the last year using Maxibloom, and I've never ever had salt build up issues. Never. Never had a drip line clogged due to salt either, and I use the real thin micro tubing.
The only time I ever flush is for the last two weeks before harvest. Otherwise, they get fed everyday once they get roots.
Feed those plants and watch them blow up

 

!!!

Now in technicolor

Veteran

• Mar 24, 2011

• #12

Coco should be watered every single day. Some say 2-3 times a day and I agree that this would be beneficial but I'm too lazy to do it myself.

I'm talking about plants with the roots hitting the bottom of the pot. Otherwise you'll overwater.

Again: A plant established in coco, esp if you add perlite or using crouton/mixed coco, should be watered 1-2 times a day.

 

G

Guest 18340

• Mar 24, 2011

• #13

I agree !!!, a well established plant in coco could/should be watered twice. Half way thru flower I up my feedings to twice a day; 30 minutes after lights on and again 4 hrs later...

 

I

ivanic

Member

• Mar 25, 2011

• #14

if your feeding twice a day instead of once a day would you half your nutrient strength or keep it normal (2 feeds of standard nutes)

 

G

Guest 18340

• Mar 25, 2011

• #15

I feed full strength (of whatever my formula may be) every time no matter how may times a day they get fed.

 

G

GhettoGospel

Member

• Mar 25, 2011

• #16

evlme2 said:

I agree !!!, a well established plant in coco could/should be watered twice. Half way thru flower I up my feedings to twice a day; 30 minutes after lights on and again 4 hrs later...

Click to expand...

Yeah i am was a bit concerned about the salt buildup. I'll wait to flush them

Damn now i have to choice... set up an irrigation system and risk being done for growing with hydroponics IF they catch me. Or water twice everysingle day by hand......... I'll feel like a right lazy bugger if i'm put inside for 6 months longer just because i couldn't be bothered to water some plants

 

I

IwannatokeNbone

Member

• Mar 25, 2011

• #17

imo people waste shit tons of nutes with coco and youll see this when u flush with it, they dont just go yellow overnight like some people think they do, the growth from coco is from all the fresh air being pulled through the medium when u water, feed the plant, dont worry to much about it, theese threads on coco have made it a neurotics choice method of cultivation, u got people feeding plants 7 times there first week of life with gallons of run off, for what?

id suggest u try both methods yourself side by side with clones, one u can go through 15 dollars worth of nutes on, the other 5 bucks, see what one looks better when u finish, youll probally see no differance except that your sick to death of wasting time, money n water for little benefit.

 

I

ivanic

Member

• Mar 25, 2011

• #18

evlme2 said:

I feed full strength (of whatever my formula may be) every time no matter how may times a day they get fed.

Click to expand...

if you had 5gal smart pots how many gals would you feed them each time not including run off

ghetto when i switched to a simple open ended drip line it was the best thing iv ever done for my grow. I still hand water them from time to time, but on them days where your busy it literally takes like 40 seconds from a flick of a plug.

 

M

MacGyver420

• Mar 25, 2011

• #19

IwannatokeNbone said:

imo people waste shit tons of nutes with coco and youll see this when u flush with it, they dont just go yellow overnight like some people think they do, the growth from coco is from all the fresh air being pulled through the medium when u water, feed the plant, dont worry to much about it, theese threads on coco have made it a neurotics choice method of cultivation, u got people feeding plants 7 times there first week of life with gallons of run off, for what?

id suggest u try both methods yourself side by side with clones, one u can go through 15 dollars worth of nutes on, the other 5 bucks, see what one looks better when u finish, youll probally see no differance except that your sick to death of wasting time, money n water for little benefit.

Click to expand...

i think you are right people do waste tons of nutes using coco


just for some kind of measurement: i use mostly 3 gallon bags with coco and i grow 3-4 foot plants - i water with about 1-2 gallons per 3 gallon bag

that being said, i have noticed better healthier plants by watering with nutes every time drain to waste; and by watering every day at a minimum

i burn through alot more nutes than if i was running some kinda of DWC hydro system but i prefer the finished product from the coco =)

 

G

Guest 18340

• Mar 25, 2011

• #20

As far as I know, no medium will give you yellow leaves overnight when being flushed...
But you are absolutely correct, people waste a lot of nutes by watering the shit outta them when they don't even have the root mass to support the feedings. It takes until halfway thru flower before they get twice feedings. And I don't just feed them twice for the hell of it, they dry out and fall over before the lights go out if I don't water twice.
I water 18 5x5x5 pots at the same time, to waste, and get less than 1/2 gallon of run off total. It's been proven thru grow threads that run off isn't really necessary, but the only way i can tell if the pots are fully soaked is to wait for a little to drip out