Watering confusion

[guilty]

Just looking for some watering feedback,

I am in the midst of my first grow. I’m using a coco with auto flowers and a 315 LEC.

Early on, I think I was watering too much. I have read the watering tutorial a few times and I am still confused.

Nebula mentions watering until run off and every 1-2 days being ideal. However, if I water till run off, my pots with take a week to dry out? Or I’m just waiting for the top to dry out knuckle deep? I’m in 5 gallon smart pots using the Mother Earth Coco plus Perite mix.

Just looking for a little more feedback/clarification.

Thanks!

 

[SiriusFourside]

If they're taking a week to dry out, I would guess your plants are still pretty small and you might need to give them less water until their roots can fill up a 5-gal container.

You only need to wait until the top layer is dry before you water again (knuckle deep is easy to remember), but it's also a good idea to check the weight of your pots if you're not sure. When your coco is dry, try lifting the pot 2-3 inches; it should feel light and easy to pick up. When you water next time, lift them a few inches again and notice how much heavier they feel. That difference in weight ends up being a good way to tell if they really need water or not.

 

[guilty]

Gotcha! They are just approaching the end of week 3 (I'll attach a picture.) I last watered them on Jan 22nd until the bottoms were wet. That took about 3 gallons for all 4 plants. Today, the top is pretty dry knuckle deep, but if I lift the whole pot compared to a completely dry pot with coco, it's still a fair amount heavier.

 

[Toker1]

I think it’s due to the large containers you have with those small plants.
https://www.growweedeasy.com/transplant

 

[guilty]

I’m guessing it’s probably too late to move them to something smaller now and risk disturbing them? Lesson learned I guess!

 

[D.A.A.S.69]

Just what Sirius said, cut back on your water-feed, until they get a little larger.It's still gonna take awhile for those 5gallon pots to dry out, until their roots start filling up the pots , oscillating fans will help some.
Try to get in the habit of picking up your pots, for how heavy they are. If heavy they don't need water.
Plus you can feel the bottom of the pots. If they are still damp. They are fine.
Yours plants look nice. Should be pistils showing very soon. If they are autos.
GoodLuck
HappyGrowing

 

[Toker1]

Agreed. Water less for now. Next grow... transplant into larger containers when the plants get a bit larger.

 

[OzBud]

It's better to put autos straight into their final pot anyway so no big deal, with coco its almost impossible to overwater as well