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start in big pot vs transplant

GeorgeSmiley

Remembers
Veteran
So what would the recommendation for ending up in a 5 gallon bucket? Beer cup===> 1 gallon ===> 3 gallon ===> 5 gallon or could I skip the 3 gal and go right into the 5?
 

jjfoo

Member
I clone directly in 1 qt. square pots. 8 to a tray and the humid dome fits over the pots. Then transplant to 3 or 5 gal pots for flower. About as easy as I found, and the nute savings about equals the extra work in transplanting one time.

I don't add nutes after my soil is made so this isn't really an issue. All though, I plan to start playing with Earth Juice.
 

jaykush

dirty black hands
ICMag Donor
Veteran
i think it matters on how you grow. but personally i dont like small plants in big pots. the pots stay wet too long because the plant cant "drink" it up fast enough.
 

Mr. Greengenes

Re-incarnated Senior Member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
If I was to go to 5g, I'd start with my pony packs or 9oz cups and go to 20oz-1quart-1gallon-3gallon-5gallon. A week to a week and a half between repots. Get ready to spend quite a bit of time arranging plants that double in size each week, because once plants settle into that momentum of repotting you'll need a machete and compass to navigate your growroom.
 

Kaneh

Member
i think it matters on how you grow. but personally i dont like small plants in big pots. the pots stay wet too long because the plant cant "drink" it up fast enough.

There's easy solution for this:
Add water to the soil before you transplant, and don't make it too wet. It's enough if you can get couple drips out when squeezing handfull of soil. Then do the transplant. When you need to water first time, the plant has grown big enough, so it's not a problem.
 

jaykush

dirty black hands
ICMag Donor
Veteran
like i said it depends on how you grow, i have chose to avoid small plants in big pots personally. to each his own.

and yes i transplant with moist soil, transplanting dry soil would be stupid.
 

Mr. Greengenes

Re-incarnated Senior Member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
The beauty of horticulture is that so many different recipes work. With a tolerant species like cannabis, the possible methods are dizzying. Apparently, it can even tolerate being transplanted into 'moist' soil without immediately watering after. There's a method you'll only see practiced on cannibis!
 

grapeman

Active member
Veteran
Where do you find those big ass clear plastic domes? I use those square quarts as my
second stage pot. 3rd if you count the jiffy puck!
picture.php

At the hydro store. But not all 1 qt. square pots will fit the dome lid. Had to order the right ones. But this is as simple as it gets. I clone directly to these pots then up size for flower.
 

Mr. Greengenes

Re-incarnated Senior Member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
With the dolomite lime, I'd probably do about two tablespoons per gallon, maybe less if you're using lots of perlite. With oyster shells, I'm just grabbin' a handful!
 
I bud in nursery pots, mostly 6 gal, 8 gal, and 15 gallon. I like them, lots of room but not any taller than a 5 gallon bucket. I find that while yes, you definitely get better vegetative growth by upsizing slowly, you also get a nasty close noded bush. I'm finding that any day I would take a little more stretchy plant. Maybe I lose a little on yield( a luxury I can afford), but the bud is much much higher quality, and trimming takes half the time and misery.

So, I basically veg the plants up to a two gallon bucket or so, and drop that straight into a 6, 8 ,15. Best case I wait a week or two before budding that plant, but not always. The result is a controllable plant. Also I find it to be super duper difficult to try and remove a root ball over 2 or 3 gallons.
 

luvtogrow

Active member
Used to pot up 3X, found it much better (no yield loss), to start all my seeds(seed only grower), in a 32oz styrofoam cup(got a box of 200, cheap) and transplant up to a 5gal or 6.5gal bucket a couple weeks before 12/12. Easy transplant, cut slits in cup for easy removal, no damage. Allows time to sex while still in cups(3-3.5 weeks). Many reasons not to start in big container, especially from seed, but biggest for me would be getting those pots of unsexed plants within a small footprint. Easy with styro cups to keep all plants within the sweetspot.
 

Mr. Greengenes

Re-incarnated Senior Member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
"you definitely get better vegetative growth by upsizing slowly, you also get a nasty close noded bush. I'm finding that any day I would take a little more stretchy plant."
montanaorganics, those kind of differences are more easily achieved with genetics than cultivational parameters.
 
Well I have multiple genetics and like the plants to grow my way. Ultimately vegging longer creates more bud sites. Which means more leaves and smaller buds. That popcorn bud is invariably much harder to trim, for a insubstantially(to me) higher yield. I have trained a few plants a few ways and absolutley detest it. Yield goes up and so do a 1000 little buds. Its just not my cup o tea.
 
multiple transplants will give you denser root growth throughout all of the planting medium which equates to greater yield

whats grows above the ground relys on whats growing under the ground

Bullshit!!

Roots are gonna naturally seek the bottoms & sides of a container, just as they would go as deep & wide as possible in natural conditions. Transplanting allows the roots to have new areas to grow. I always see a nice growth spurt after transplanting also.

Bullshit!!

The reason I say it's bullshit is because if that information was true then plants would never be able to grow in the biggest pot known to man..THE EARTH..OUTSIDE..lol...
 
Starting plants in larger pots is better than transplanting...no transplant shock..the seedling can go straight to harvest without ever being bothered...it takes more water, but you water less....Remember, some growers don't have a life outside of growing. So they have nothing better to do than to sit there all day watching a plant grow.

For those that do have a life, start in bigger pots, plants grow bigger because the tap root has room to grow.

If you want a dense root system then use a Super Roots Air pot or a Microkote Pot and they will grow 10 times the density that transplanting in a regular will do..peace...
 
I germ my seeds or root my clones then I transplant them into big pots. Done until harvest. Easy is best.
Burn1

Amen!! Some growers make growing harder than it has to be. Then new growers get on here seeking advice and are scared away from growing because they think it takes rocket science..lol.. Marijuana is a plant like any other...Medium, light, water, nutrients, air, and BAM that's it...

Nothing more nothing less...I guess the Old saying is true

"TOO MUCH ADVICE IS BAD ADVICE"....lol...
 

supermanlives

Active member
Veteran
i have never noticed a differency in final outcome [ yield] i go from cups to the final container. the reason most use smaller containers is to have more crammed in. works well for seedlings.
 

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