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Pot bound in smart pots ?? Leaves falling off ...

Dreamscape

Member
hey guys

I was just wondering if anyone out there has ever got potbound in smart pots ??

I'm fairly positive i'm pot bound with a couple plants and thats why my leaves are continuously yellowing and falling off.

As it is right now i'll water + feed , water , water , and water + feed again and i've been supplementing with some added nitrogen (nitrex).

Also my water ph is always between 6.4-6.7
 

ourcee

Active member
I have a buddy who has 5 FOOT plants in 1 gallon smart pots... (and hasn't flipped 12/12 yet :biglaugh:)

I'm amazed that the plants look as healthy as they do.

they arent crazy bushes by any means, but WAYYYY more growth than I'd imagine a 1 gal container being able to hold.

I'm sure a 5 gallon smart pot could sustain a bigger plant than a 1 gallon. so potbound? probably not because its constantly pruning, the top will only get so big (equal to bottom), so if you've filled up the bottom with roots, then it would make sense why the top would slow/drop leaves.
 

bigwity

Active member
Veteran
as loing as you feed em right and often enough there is no need to worry. i speak from experience i use small pots to regulate my sativa size, its not actually the pot that regulates its my frequency of feeding. also when they get big watering can be a 3 part process
 

bigwity

Active member
Veteran
hey guys

I was just wondering if anyone out there has ever got potbound in smart pots ??

I'm fairly positive i'm pot bound with a couple plants and thats why my leaves are continuously yellowing and falling off.

As it is right now i'll water + feed , water , water , and water + feed again and i've been supplementing with some added nitrogen (nitrex).

Also my water ph is always between 6.4-6.7
by the way dreamscape! i fooking loved dreamscape when i was younger and helter skelter i didnt realise people still remembered that stuff, good work
 

darksith

Member
what type of soil are you using? You may not be feeding them enough. I feed feed feed feed, never just straight water, but I also know my soil.
 
I feed EVERY watering in FFF with Fox farm 1tbl Big bloom, 1tsp tiger bloom, and 1tsp molasses and 1/2tsp of either Open seasame, Bastie bloomz or Cha ching. Have yet to get any burn or defficiencies
 

Dreamscape

Member
Initially I started in Moonshine mix ... which is a mix of FF ocean forest, light warrior and the orange bag with the fox on it ... I think its just called "potting mix" or something ... can't remember :joint:

Its these 3 mixed together with a couple of cups of FF peace of mind ... a couple cups of lime ... and about 35% large chunky perlite (about the size of nickles)

After the first month in soil I have to start supplementing their food because the soil becomes depleted.

My mothers are to the point where there isn't really anymore than possibly 5 percent medium ... its pretty much just all roots.

... I guess I should be feeding more often then huh ...

I started doing a feed with:

General Organics Grow + Cal/mag

next Just ph'd water ...

next hygrozyme and liquid karma ...

next water ...

Back to G.O. Grow + Cal/Mag

We'll see how it turns out
 
After the first month in soil I have to start supplementing their food because the soil becomes depleted.


Is this an issue for you?

From what I understand that light warrior is nothing more than good dirt. Nothing really added to it at all. so maybe use more FFOF to add a bit more heat to the mix and a little less feeding through out? Just a thought. I run straight FFOF not cut and never have had probs...... but then again Im sure my yeild is down a tab because there is no mix going on....
 
I cant believe the small pots people use on here that I noticed. My plants seem to get rootbound in veg so fast in a 1 gallon pot. 6-12 inches and I notice the growth slows and they start to stretch. Even If I flower in a 3 gal pot I notice a loss in yield and plant size compared to my 5 gallon pots.
 

Dreamscape

Member
BLUNToPOTomuss said:
Is this an issue for you?

At first it was because I wasn't ready for it ... now that I know i've got roughly a month of excellent nutes already in the soil i'm ready as soon as it goes over.

At this point i'm fairly convinced I must be root bound ... even though my plants sit at about 5' as small to medium bush's in 3gallon smart pots i'm convinced its either:

A.) i'm not feeding enough now that the soil is completely depleted

B.) i'm not feeding enough and they're root bound as well ...

thanks for all the input guys :tiphat:
 

Dreamscape

Member
there pretty much is no dust left at this point ... just roots on the top ... I can't even really dig my finger into the top ... But from what I understand , this is what smart pots are built for so ...

I'm still not 100% ... but i'm assuming I just need to feed them more.
 

darksith

Member
feed feed feed. They sound like they are big plants, and you're only feeding once every 3rd watering. You need to be feeding every watering. Are they in flower or veg? And if there isn't much soil you probably need to be feeding once a day maybe even twice! since there is no soil to hold the moisture in? I don't use smart pots, but its almost a hydro setup you need from the sounds of it.
 

swyork5

Member
pot bound

pot bound

I have had that problem only because i had a plant 3 feet tall and was using a 2 gallon smart pot. I use roots excellerator and great white so i have really healthy roots. i saw the top leaves curling and not growing too well so i changed to a 3 gallon smart pot and the plant regrouped. I normally use #3 smart pots and if its going to bloom longer than 8 weeks i use #5. Healthy roots equal health plant. Hope you have better luck.
 

Dreamscape

Member
They are all moms still in Veg.

Some are like 5 1/2 tall ... and a couple are around 4 1/2 foot tall.

6 of them are in 3 gallon pots and 2 of them are in 2 gallon pots.


GENERALLY ... they droop around every 3rd day or so letting me know they need water. So the moisture doesn't evaporate THAT fast.

Usually when I feed them as well I water around 1/2 gallon per plant. When its just been water it was a bit less ...

I remember reading through one of Pico's grows and he said he fed 1nce / water 2wice , feed again and so on ... thats where I got the idea.

I think at this point I'll water 2wice with LK and Hygrozyme and then feed 1nce ... ect ...

How many of you feed every watering ??
 

swyork5

Member
re pot boind

re pot boind

I use saucers bigger than my smart pots like a 15" saucers for my #3 smart pot. I feed until i see the water going into the saucers than i stop and usually my plants aborb the water with in 30 min and i will sometimes add a little more but i never let the saucers fill up. My plants are real healthy but i feed twice a week,once a fert feed on wednesday and then a clean water or supplement feed on sunday. If they seem to be getting a little dry i will do a lite just water feed on friday. My plants are usually ready for the second feed and as soon as i feed them the perk up and point up to the light. Hope this helps
 

Dreamscape

Member
I think I may just have to get a few saucers for my moms ...

My Secret jardin leaks through the bottom seams ... Unfortunately the cover for the floor isn't large enough to connect the velcro to the four poles ... I can get 2 or maybe 3 of the velcro corners to attach (just barely) and even then the fourth one still never reaches ... So I said fuck it and just put it with the carrying case.

But now when my plants have runoff they piss out the sides of the seams ...
 

jwm

Well-known member
Veteran
I'm watering/feeding my 10 gl smartpot everyday as I'm on a bluff w/ almost constant wind. And it's been hot this year. Kinda sucks because I can't hit the trails for more than a day...
 

Fiddynut

Active member
They are all moms still in Veg.

How many of you feed every watering ??


Good afternoon Dreamscape.

Disclaimer: I'm a newer grower that has a lot to learn so take my advise at your own risk:)

When I started growing a coupl years ago I read a lot about alternating watering with feeds. To be honest the whole feeding thing has been the toughest part of growing for me. I had a lot of feed and pH issues my first few grows when I was alternating feeds and watering. The I read somewhere that feeding lighter every watering was a good way to keep the plant happier. I also read that light feeding every time you water helps keep the soils pH balanced. I'm not sure if this is the case but my grows have been better since I started feeding every watering.
 
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