Faster seed to autopot automation question

[Bullgod]

Planning on using a 15ltr square autopot container that has had a large amount of the sides and bottom removed with a 50mm holesaw, to provide a stable skeleton (?) which I am planning on lining with windbreaker cloth and filling with a mixture of coir and perlite (50:50 ?, recommendations please.)

What I am wondering is if I was to make a small paper/light cardboard tube (eg thinned walled kitchen paper towel roll tube) that was 30mm off the bottom, and fill that with coir mixture and place in the middle of the lined container and then fill around that tube with the rest of the coir mixture, place a autoseed that’s sunken over night into the tube or possibly a jiffy disk for a few days, and then transfer to the tube.

Would having a slightly restrictive “internal” container within the grow medium cause the seed to send roots straight down ?,
as that’s the least resistance and then after a short time (7days?) the cardboard or paper would soften and not cause any resistance for the roots to grow through but already in the self watering stage.

Basically forcing the only easy early root growth to go straight down and then growing roots from the bottom up as container disintegrates.

 

[Death The Cultivator]

Planning on using a 15ltr square autopot container that has had a large amount of the sides and bottom removed with a 50mm holesaw, to provide a stable skeleton (?) which I am planning on lining with windbreaker cloth and filling with a mixture of coir and perlite (50:50 ?, recommendations please.)

What I am wondering is if I was to make a small paper/light cardboard tube (eg thinned walled kitchen paper towel roll tube) that was 30mm off the bottom, and fill that with coir mixture and place in the middle of the lined container and then fill around that tube with the rest of the coir mixture, place a autoseed that’s sunken over night into the tube or possibly a jiffy disk for a few days, and then transfer to the tube.

Would having a slightly restrictive “internal” container within the grow medium cause the seed to send roots straight down ?,
as that’s the least resistance and then after a short time (7days?) the cardboard or paper would soften and not cause any resistance for the roots to grow through but already in the self watering stage.

Basically forcing the only easy early root growth to go straight down and then growing roots from the bottom up as container disintegrates.

Couldn't you have done the same thing with fabric pots and starting the seed directly in the pot?

 

[Simplicio]

What I want to be able to do is start seeds in 2.2 gallon autopots, and never hand water after the first time.
There might exist a set of reservoir ppm that could do this.
Something like 0 ppm until germination, 50 ppm for a few days, then 100 ppm, and so on until max ppm is reached.
I am on my second Autopot try, and don't know enough about them yet to figure this out.

 

[Bullgod]

I haven’t used a fabric pot before and am not sure about how to use to their full advantage.

So with a fabric pot you get the air pruning of the roots, which I understand, but if you wanted to move the plant and fabric pot around wouldn’t this cause the pots growing medium (soil or choir/perlite mixture) to compress and then “crack” when it’s placed back on the ground ? - potentially ripping roots.
Where as if a fabric pot had a ridged exoskeleton the growing medium (and roots) would be not stressed with lifting or turning

 

[Bullgod]

Couldn't you have done the same thing with fabric pots and starting the seed directly in the pot?

Yeah but I’m wanting to get it to using the autopot system as fast as possible so I don’t have to top water for 2-3 weeks

 

[Death The Cultivator]

Yeah but I’m wanting to get it to using the autopot system as fast as possible so I don’t have to top water for 2-3 weeks

Drip system until roots reach the bottom?

 

[Mizzo81]

Drip system until roots reach the bottom?

Roots hit bottom super fast. If your seedling is 3” tall the two is most likely about 6” already the 2.2 autopot is only 8” tall. I think the thing to try is turn the res on for enough time for all your trays to fill long enough to soak up to its potential then shut off for two or three days sepepndimg how fast it dries out. Too moist at seedling stage will slow root growth and with autos this isn’t good. So keeping res on I think wouldn’t be good. Just a thought.

 

[Death The Cultivator]

Roots hit bottom super fast. If your seedling is 3” tall the two is most likely about 6” already the 2.2 autopot is only 8” tall. I think the thing to try is turn the res on for enough time for all your trays to fill long enough to soak up to its potential then shut off for two or three days sepepndimg how fast it dries out. Too moist at seedling stage will slow root growth and with autos this isn’t good. So keeping res on I think wouldn’t be good. Just a thought.

Basically just part of using the autopot?