Ive heard about wet dry cycles many times however I just heard that if I let my soil dry out, my soil will die and become useless. Im mixing Gold Tupar with Dr earth fertilizer. Seems to me letting the soil dry out is very risky, can anyone shed more light on this with the soil im using?
1 Like
If a living soil we keep it moist. No wet/dry.
4 Likes
So if my soil has dried out a couple times, is my soil useless now? I just started my grow.
Your soil good @Storm is right keep it moist do finger check to check moisture
1 Like
A couple of ideas:
I bought one of those hand pump sprayers to water slowly.
Also you can aDS aloe to the water to avoid the soil becoming hydrophobic.
Best to you!
If dried out mix the original ammendment in water and hit it. If it is a dry ammendment the critters wake up then die pretty quick with no soil. Will restart the soil. Doesnt take a lot.
1 Like
I suggest cover your soil, mulch (even though it’s my first time bringing it indoors) it kept my garden moist enough I went from watering every 2-3 days to every 10-14 days! I expect to do very little watering and have healthy soil throughout this grow. @Warkat uses bark nicely some people on here use straw, leaves etc. Free stuff around to use, waste scraps etc.
3 Likes
Is letting it dry out until I notice the fan leaves drooping to much? Im still struggling with the wet dry cycle. Ive tried to learn the weight of my pots, but usually water as soon as i notice a slight drooping
1 Like
I’d like to know that too. It’s tricky 'cuz I’ve noticed plants droop after a long day like they want a break, and the conditions might be affecting it too. So if everything else is perfect (I’ve never had) I would say it’s going too long dry.
1 Like
so i shouldn’t dump all my pots now that they dried out a few times? the soil retains water still i flow a half gallon of water in a pot with no leakage, i have a humidifier now and that will help off set what the space heater does to the air… Im struggling to figure out if my soil is now garbage.
I dunno if soil becomes garbage if it’s extinction or what, but people are saying they make a comeback. The organic matter is still in there so the germs will reproduce and it just set you back a few days, I think
1 Like
@THCMaker44 how old is your soil have you grow in it before how old are the plants in it
1 Like
Unused soil, planted seeds in it last week, bought soil 2 weeks ago.
1 Like
It’s fine have your seeds come up yet @THCMaker44
1 Like
No they didn’t grow in the soil, but I let them dry out the last day of germination Left them close to heater, and I didn’t have much faith in them moving forward, I’m starting again.
1 Like
@THCMaker44 I would suggest starting them in seed starter mix in small pots so you can bottom water them and i would start the seeds in paper towel so you have more control of them get them started then transplant them in your soil
3 Likes
Absolutely right Storm. No wet dry cycles moist happy critters is the key.
Other things can make lower fan leaves droop a bit. Look at the leaves around bud sites are they happy? When they start drooping then your too dry. Soil is funny it loves to layer on you creating very moist and very dry zones so you have to water both from top and from bottom of your pots on different days. I love the cloth pots I use when watering from surface you will see water running out the side of the pot where a dry layer is sitting on top of a moister layer. I never ever try to get all my watering done at 1 time. I much prefer smaller amounts 2 to 3 times a day. It just gets absorbed better to me. In my 3 gallon pots an average day of watering when there in full bloom is at wake up I spray the bark on the surface allowing enough water to moisten the surface of the soil. Then half hour later i surface water with about a pint. Watching to see if moisture runs out of side of cloth pots. It fine if it does that just means its layered a bit. Wait another half to 1 hour and give them another pint and you will see no more runoff out of side of pots so no more layering. Remember to look at the plant after each watering what changes have happened in the leaves and the lift your pots and gauge the weight. Remember tho as plants grow they get heavier so adjust for that. Basically you will just get a feel for thing after a while. I also only bottom water my plants about once a week.
Hope this helps a bit watering really is an art.
4 Likes