Is it really best to use a fan to blow the plants about and why? I used one in the past as was told it strengthens the plants so I just bought one and it’s bent one of my plants which hopefully will survive I can’t deal with another plant death 🪴 . I’ve moved it back and turned it down now.
2). A question in relation to amount to feed/water?
I’ve got them in ten litre pots clay balls in the bottom and the rest biobizz coco fibre Mix, which I made a feed of water and the various canna nutrients needed and wet the whole pots through. The coco is still wet I wasn’t intending to feed again until the substrate had dried out a bit do you recommend feeding more often than this? I’ve read about things like root rot and other problems with over watering.
Wind does strengthen plants but it should move the plants gently so don’t aim your fans directly at them. Coco mixes are supposed to be watered through daily, though not sure if the biobizz mix follows that same protocol.
Never grew in 10 liter pots, just about every thing BUT lol. I currently have two autos in coco in 12 liter (3gal) pots. And I have mostly grown in 5 gal pots, I just got 7 gal Radicle mesh pots but haven’t used them yet. I have no idea what @docee is doing watering 2-3 times a day lol.
I am not saying it don’t work, i am saying I have NEVER watered 2-3 times a day. I water when they are first put in a coco 5 gal pot/bag only once a week if that often. Now this is given that the plant is two or three sets of branches when I put them in the 5 gallon pots.
And i use 20oz plastic cups to start them, so when you transplant them that big they are down in the 5 gal pot pretty deep and don’t need to be watered until the pot dries out. When the pot dries out then I water till a little runs out the bottom of the pot, (about a pint) Currently in the 3 gal pots I am watering 1 gal with nutes in each pot every 3-4 days the plants are 3 feet high. But it is all about mass. A three foot tall plant that has been topped 4 times and is 4 feet wide is going to use a lot more water than one that is a single stem untopped.
Now if you put a tiny little seedling in a 5 gal pot you are going to have to water around it till it gets it’s root down a ways into the pot to the moisture level. Anyway, as the plant gets bigger it uses more water and nutes so both the frequency and the amount goes up as they grow. I have not read that article that @docee put up, so can’t comment on that. Read that article, it might give you a different method that works better than what I do. I am going to read it when I am done blathering on here lol.
It seems the article really only applies to pure coco (+ perlite) as a medium and treating it as true hydroponics keeping it saturated. I’m with you though in the feeding, just my opi but roots need a dry spell regardless of oxygen-to-water ratio so they readily expand and “mature”
Not sure why roots would need a dry spell that would be a water deficiency from what I understand that’s what coco has over soil is the roots always have what they need water oxygen and nutes also roots are never dry in hydro I water my coco twice a day feeding every time coco has no nutes in it and when dry can be harmful to plant constantly adding in fresh nutes and water keeps the coco balanced never running out of anything or having to much as long as your feed is made right
Fans definitely are needed but wind burn is a real issue if too strong. Btw I’m giving away a gallon of canna coco a&b & pk 13/14 just pay shipping and they are yours
Touché, I guess dry spell was poor word choice. Just my preference to allow wet-dry cycles (never too dry or for too long, but the top layer def dries out) in the medium between feeds…my medium is about 40% coco only and has some moss that retains moisture, don’t know about pure coco or hydro growing so I’m speaking off base here.