Originally Posted by Scrappy-doo

Where in my post did I say I have experience with bottom feeding?

When I said 'in my experience' I was not referring to bottom feeding, I was referring to letting my coco sit in its food, which people theorize will cause toxicity and salt buildup detrimental to plant health.

And again I will say that IN MY EXPERIENCE, which I have plenty of as far as this topic goes, there is absolutely no problem with salt buildup or toxicity. All I have are healthy plants.

So there should be no problems with feeding from the bottom, as my plants do that daily for the rest of the day after I feed them.

I was mearly pointing out that youre flushing anything out with all that runoff. Thats why you water until runoff...That wouldnt happen with bottom feeding.
Your initial post makes it seem as if implying bottom feeding is bad without experience is terrible, but then you go on to imply that it will work without actual experience bottom feeding without runoff.
I actually prefer my way because I dont have to worry about runoff or stagnant water.
Id be cautious if planning on leaving my coco in water for too long. Im sure its not beneficial to leave them in the waste water that was flushed out. Otherwise theres no reason for the runoff.

[habeeb]

coco needs no perlite I've ever seen.. also there is evidence that adding less then 50% perlite is pointless... go search the organic section for 'technical info' if you like

also another fun to ever look into is perched water table..


but no, no problem if you know how to manage no runoff coco..

make love not war

Scrappy......You can`t have it both ways Bro.......Original post is about being able to feed from beneath in coco , and as Tribal says absolutely you`re handwatering/topfeeding DTW and allowing the plants to sit in their own runoff until the plants rootzone dries out enough to wick the residual runoff "diluted juice" BACK up for the plants to use till next feed.......and.....

That`s completely apples and oranges and in no way answers whether or not bottomfeeding coco is a viable option without hiccups and residual salt buildup definite possibilities occurring in the rootzones from never flushing from the top down..... but......

Dripclean @ 1ml per gal will help eat the residual juice buildup in the upper rootzone to help yas through this , and if autopots worked well for yas without dripclean Cyat , then you`re the exception to the rule unless topflushing weekly and or employing dripclean into the mix.....

Watering into a saucer and allowing the rootzone media to wick the juice up once a day or however many times per light cycle depending on size of container has been proven to store residual salts and will most definitely fuck up your world causin imbalances and lockouts.......guaranteed..... ..without....

Dripclean......Get it....use it.....and thank God for it if yas want consistent results with coco regardless of how you feed..........bet on it....

Peace....DHF..... .....

[Treetroit City]

Salts moving top to bottom vs. bottom to top.

If you water from above and then let sit in the runoff you are flushing.

If you let them absorb from below you will never flush, then toxicity.

Try it, let us know how it works. Oh, wait, I just did.

[Buddaluva]

Thanks for everyone's replies

Reading over the post and the debating im gonna hold off on the bottom feeding

The part about not being able to flush since it soaks right back up and never out is what caught my attention most

I cant say that i wont try a trail run with a bag seed just to see how it turns out but as of now im gonna hold off on it

Again thanks for everyone`s replies

Well there's some respectable people giving their opinions which differ from mine so I'm not going to pick a fight. With all due respect I simply disagree.

I don't see any difference in feeding from the top and then letting the plants bottom feed sucking back up all the juices that came out, or just letting them suck up the juices from the bottom to begin with. Any salts that are in the runoff are going to get reabsorbed into the meduim as the plant drinks, which should cause this toxic salt buildup, but I have yet to see it in my garden.

With regards to blumats, most people I've seen using them in coco do so without runoff, so the salts should in theory accumulate and cause mayhem to the plants, but miraculously this is not the case, even in setups I've seen where drip clean is not being used.

I don't know... it's just my opinion. To each their own.

Hey Scrappy. Nobody was trying to pick a fight. Just trying to clear things up.
I think what makes the Blumats work without runoff or build up is the pot is kept moist, so the salts dont dry and become a problem. Although H#ad doesnt get runoff with his low ppm feeds either.
When I do water to runoff I usually empty my saucers. When I put the plant back down it continues to drip for about an hour. All the water I dumped on my floor and about an inch thats dripped back into the saucer evaporates. I have a bit of rock in the bottom of my pot and doubt it absorbs back into the pots. Even so, it would be very diluted with all the fresh nutes that just went in the pot.

[NorCalZero]

Originally Posted by Scrappy-doo

I hand water in coco daily, and always feed till the drip tray is about 1/2 to 1 inch full and let it sit in that.

Never never never do I have any issues with this method as far as salt buildup or toxicity. All I have are healthy plants. These problems are theories created by people who have not done it. Experience tells me this is not the case.

I do make sure I let the plant drink whatever is in the tray before feeding again, and adjust the amount so that I feed daily. I don't want her constantly sitting in a stew of liquid that becomes stagnant. I want her to drink it all up so only feed as much as I know she'll drink till the next day.

I can't think of a single reason why bottom feeding wouldn't work, considering how well I do with my method.

That's a great recipe for powdery mildew!

[RetroGrow]

It can be done successfully using a wick system. Nylon ropes through the coco that go through holes in bottom of pot to Reservoir below. I know this works, as I've done it while on extended vacation. Thirty days without problems. Not the ideal situation, but it works quite well in coco.