What to use for soil drainage in the bottom of pots

Grow Equipment Grow Mediums
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I’m setting up some new pots for a fresh grow and wondered what everyone out there uses in the bottom of their pots for drainage and where they get it from? Thanks guys happy growing!

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GVUU04I

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I’m talking about in the bottom of the pots not underneath the pots so that the soil doesn’t compact and not drain. Sorry I wasn’t clear.

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Perlite is widely used to aid with soil drainage.

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So you don’t put rocks in the bottom of your pots for drainage?

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Some do. I never have. 20% perlite by volume gets the job done.

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Okidoke, thanks

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I get compaction, but it is unavoidable. The perlite will help keep it loose. Another trick is to put gypsum in your soil, which helps prevent clumping.

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Adding something other than dirt to your pot is robbing your plant of growing space. Plenty of research shows adding something such as rocks does not do anything but raise the perched water level this giving your plant less room for growth. Instead add drainage into the mix such as perlite, pumice or rice hulls.

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Thanks, I just added more perlite to the mix that I have ready for my plants. I figured got to be 20%. I just got to get away from that hole put rocks in the bottom of the planter like I’ve done forever with flowers. Lol

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Welcome home Mucluc! hope your house is warm from you being in the FLA sunshine and warmth. Only down fall to being back home from a warm vaca coming back to our weather.

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I think you’ll find it’s six of one, half dozen of the other. I typically add 1 1/2 to 2" of hydroton to the bottom of my 3 gallon fabric pots before they go in autopots. In my case this is to ensure moderate uptake of liquid into the medium (coco/perlite) due to the bottom feed nature of autopots.

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Thanks, had to hit the beach one last time before coming home and got burnt. Itchy and peeling while watching it snow. Time to burn another one. :grin:

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I buy big bags of river rock and put an inch or so layer on the bottom of the pots. Works pretty well. One time I think that the rocks caused something to happen to my soil and it got moldy. So now anything I put in for drainage, I wash off first with hot water and I spray it with rubbing alcohol and then let them air dry. I don’t know if that helps but it has not happened since.