Drip irrigation watering!

[Crazy Horse]

Hello AFN members! My first post! In a nutshell my grow history. I grew medicinally for about three years, been out of the garden now for about 8 years (all photos) but I'm getting back into it. I'm going to get into the auto game this time around!

I'll give you the low down of my set up. 30 plants, in soil, some in 5 gallon and some in 4 gallon pots. The seeds are a mixed pack from crop king. Drip irrigation with half gallon per hour drippers. Greenhouse feeding nites with some extra additives. Day 29 for half, day 24 for other half. Plant heights range from 4"-9". And all outdoors.

Some problems encountered: lots of rain, 45* C temps inside greenhouse when moved inside from the rain, hail, chickens pecking leaves off, and cat shitting in pots.

Anyways I have a question to ask! About watering frequency, and amount. Currently I have a timer set, for once a day, for 1 minute. So that's 60 ml water/day. Now I've read watering less, but more frequently is beneficial. But they way I always did it, and also what I have read, is that you should water when medium has dried out and soak soil till runoff. I'm guessing the top quarter of my soil stays consistently moist, not drenched, middle half of pot might see a bit of moisture, but I can't see the water being able to reach the bottom of the pot at all. The plants aren't showing any signs of lack of water. I have seen some leaves kind of lose, I guess elasticity? Like they try to grow and end up splitting their leaves. What are your guys thoughts on my watering?

 

[Crazy Horse]

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

What is your soil blend?

Add yucca powder to your drip system it is a natural surfactant and will help keep your drippers clean while providing much better water distribution in your pots. 45°C/113°F wow way too hot. Never let the soil dry out.

Soil and or coco can become hydrophobic if allowed to dry. This means it repels water. This in turn will create dry pockets in the soil and roots there will die. If your soil - coco have accidentally dried out use a surfactant to help re-wet it. I like yucca powder. Don't let soil remain soggy by watering too much too often. Root rot, damping off, molds, fungus gnats and other problems start in soggy soil. When you do water water the entire pot. How to learn when to water starts before you plant the seed. Fill your container with fresh soil/coco and weigh it (heft it) this is the lightest weight and consider it a dry pot. Now slowly water until the soil/coco will no longer absorb the water and run-off begins; weigh the pot (heft it) this is the maximum water, the wettest the pot can get. The difference between wettest and driest is the maximum water weight, for ease of explanation lets just say the water weighs 20 pounds. When the pot loses 10 pounds (half of the water weight) it is time to water again. There is an art to watering.

Run the drip until the pot is saturated and runoff is at least 10% to 15%. Then do not fertigate again until 50% water loss. Having different size pots can be dealt with by using different size or number of drippers in the differnt size pots so they finish watering at the same time. The biggest problem then is they will dry out a different rates. Automation works best in uniform systems.

Those Black plastic buckets will get very hot in the sun?

 

[Crazy Horse]

What is your soil blend?

Add yucca powder to your drip system it is a natural surfactant and will help keep your drippers clean while providing much better water distribution in your pots. 45°C/113°F wow way too hot. Never let the soil dry out.

Soil and or coco can become hydrophobic if allowed to dry. This means it repels water. This in turn will create dry pockets in the soil and roots there will die. If your soil - coco have accidentally dried out use a surfactant to help re-wet it. I like yucca powder. Don't let soil remain soggy by watering too much too often. Root rot, damping off, molds, fungus gnats and other problems start in soggy soil. When you do water water the entire pot. How to learn when to water starts before you plant the seed. Fill your container with fresh soil/coco and weigh it (heft it) this is the lightest weight and consider it a dry pot. Now slowly water until the soil/coco will no longer absorb the water and run-off begins; weigh the pot (heft it) this is the maximum water, the wettest the pot can get. The difference between wettest and driest is the maximum water weight, for ease of explanation lets just say the water weighs 20 pounds. When the pot loses 10 pounds (half of the water weight) it is time to water again. There is an art to watering.

Run the drip until the pot is saturated and runoff is at least 10% to 15%. Then do not fertigate again until 50% water loss. Having different size pots can be dealt with by using different size or number of drippers in the differnt size pots so they finish watering at the same time. The biggest problem then is they will dry out a different rates. Automation works best in uniform systems.

Those Black plastic buckets will get very hot in the sun?

Promix HP

Ok I've never heard of that so I'll have to check it out! Yeah I was working out of town and my son moved them into the greenhouse. Poor ventilation in there so it gets super hot! They only go in there when the weather's shit.

Oh ok that's interesting. When I used to grow I would wait till the pot dried out completely. But you're saying if I do that that creates dry spots where water won't easily saturate the dry pockets and will cause root damage.

Ya that's where I messed up. I staggered my germination (I haven't germinated seeds in like 10 years so I was nervous to do them all at once just in case I screwed up lol). And I also used different sized pots. And also too many different strains. They all have different water/nutrient needs at different times! So I'll definitely need different sized drippers. And I don't think the 2/L per hour are gonna cut it. I'm gonna have to upsize them.

I used to grow in those pots outdoors when I grew before. I never seen any issues with them. They get warm, but I wouldn't say they get hot. I definitely need to rethink my whole drip system lol. Watering small plants in 5 gallon pots is trickier than it looks!!

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Promix HP

Ok I've never heard of that so I'll have to check it out! Yeah I was working out of town and my son moved them into the greenhouse. Poor ventilation in there so it gets super hot! They only go in there when the weather's shit.

Oh ok that's interesting. When I used to grow I would wait till the pot dried out completely. But you're saying if I do that that creates dry spots where water won't easily saturate the dry pockets and will cause root damage.

Ya that's where I messed up. I staggered my germination (I haven't germinated seeds in like 10 years so I was nervous to do them all at once just in case I screwed up lol). And I also used different sized pots. And also too many different strains. They all have different water/nutrient needs at different times! So I'll definitely need different sized drippers. And I don't think the 2/L per hour are gonna cut it. I'm gonna have to upsize them.

I used to grow in those pots outdoors when I grew before. I never seen any issues with them. They get warm, but I wouldn't say they get hot. I definitely need to rethink my whole drip system lol. Watering small plants in 5 gallon pots is trickier than it looks!!

If you put a black bucket out in the sun here in California's San Joaquin Valley you might be able to cook an egg on it! Maybe not so much where you are?

That is correct you do not want pots to dry out or be soggy! Are you using mains water pressure to push the drip? Do you pump from a reservoir?

You can put two feeds for the different size pots. Different strains is a way of life for many of us. It is just part of farming.

 

[Crazy Horse]

If you put a black bucket out in the sun here in California's San Joaquin Valley you might be able to cook an egg on it! Maybe not so much where you are?

That is correct you do not want pots to dry out or be soggy! Are you using mains water pressure to push the drip? Do you pump from a reservoir?

You can put two feeds for the different size pots. Different strains is a way of life for many of us. It is just part of farming.

Ya I definitely won't see the heat you are getting!! I'm from Canada. So short summers! The hottest it's been here so far is, if I convert it right, is 69*F. It'll get up to around 86 on rare occasions! So not quite as balmy as California!

Ya I suppose if my soil was more porous watering the way I have been would work. But my soil just retains the water too much.

Reservoir. The pump I'm using is the same one you'd see in a holiday trailer. Has a high pressure switch set at 45 psi. Then I have a regulated fitting at my timer that drops it down to 25 psi.

That's a good idea, I could run 2 drippers in one pot. I do have some 2 gph drippers too I'm gonna stick into my mainline. I do love growing different strains! But I'm assuming this mixed bag of seeds I got off crop king are all different. I just put 22 seeds in pots today. Only 4 different strains this time. All fast buds. I wasn't planning on doing another run but I'm under my plant count at the moment and want to max it out. And I'm only allowed to grow outdoors so I gotta make sure I have enough for the year!

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Balmy - hell is more like it. 107°F the other day, a record for the date. Is that license rules or wife rules?

I will pull up a chair and tag along if you don't mind?

 

[Crazy Horse]

Balmy - hell is more like it. 107°F the other day, a record for the date. Is that license rules or wife rules?

I will pull up a chair and tag along if you don't mind?

Holy moly! Ya we never see heat like that!! Our winters are a bastard around here. 6 months of misery lol. License rules! They give you an option. All indoors, or All outdoors, Or indoors and outdoors. Plant numbers vary for each. I'm gone a lot for work, so I figured a quick summer grow I should be set! Wife is really good about it! She'd rather me be in the garden then in the bars lol