The Proper Way To Water A Seedling In A Large Final Container

[Emilya Green]

I have started 4 auto seeds in their final 5 gal. fabric pots for an outside grow. The seeds have all popped and broken ground and are about 4 days old and I am following your watering advice but I have a couple of question:

I am using a standard trigger spray sprayer. Should I be avoiding getting any sprayed water on the stems of the seedlings to avoid damp off or that doesn’t really matter?

I am giving them about 20 sprays around the stems twice a day. Should that be enough or is that too much? Should I switch to the water can now that they are above ground?

One of them appears to have its cotyledon leaves stuck together. I don’t think the seed shell is still there, how should I handle this?

I do not advise using the spray bottle for very long at all, certainly not long enough to allow the dampening off virus to grow and take hold... it doesn't just happen because of water. As soon as the plants have established themselves by sending a root down deep, they will no longer swim around when you water them out to 3x their diameter. By this time you should be able to give a bit more water. And no, spraying the leaves is not going to hurt a thing... think about a rainstorm out in nature that actually gets a lot more violent and wet than we do. 20 sprays was probably about right, but yes, it is probably time to switch to the watering can now. Mind not to give them too much water yet.

 

[jokerlola]

Ok. Thanks! I will move on to the watering without spraying. I have a little 2oz empty nutrient bottle that I was going to use to water the seedlings. Should 2oz around the seedling twice a day be about right for now, or should I be more aggressive with the water?

 

[Emilya Green]

Ok. Thanks! I will move on to the watering without spraying. I have a little 2oz empty nutrient bottle that I was going to use to water the seedlings. Should 2oz around the seedling twice a day be about right for now, or should I be more aggressive with the water?

2 oz should be about right at first. The goal is for the water to go down, to show the roots how to get to the bottom, but still not wet the entire container. Use the 2oz and see how far out it spreads... keeping the 3x the plant diameter wet zone until that encompasses the entire container.... we are still a ways from getting the entire container wet.

 

[jokerlola]

2 oz should be about right at first. The goal is for the water to go down, to show the roots how to get to the bottom, but still not wet the entire container. Use the 2oz and see how far out it spreads... keeping the 3x the plant diameter wet zone until that encompasses the entire container.... we are still a ways from getting the entire container wet.

One problem I am encountering is hydrophobic soil. I am growing these Autoflowers in 5 gallon fabric pots (Smart Pots) in a peat and perlite mix (Promix). Now that I’m using a water bottle instead of a sprayer, when I pour the water around the seedling, it either puddles and runs to the sides then it runs out the sides of the fabric or it runs down and out the bottom. I have them in saucers so the pots can wick that water back up, but I don’t think no any water is saturating the upper levels of the soil. Following your article, I’m now watering about 2 cups of water every 2 days. Today was my second 2 cup watering since I quit using the spray bottle. The seedlings are about 11 days old.

 

[MedicalMe]

One problem I am encountering is hydrophobic soil.

To help overcome hydrophobic soil issues, try adding a drop of unscented dishwashing detergent to a gallon of water. Makes water "wetter" by breaking water's surface tension. Commercial wetting agents are also available.

 

[Emilya Green]

One problem I am encountering is hydrophobic soil. I am growing these Autoflowers in 5 gallon fabric pots (Smart Pots) in a peat and perlite mix (Promix). Now that I’m using a water bottle instead of a sprayer, when I pour the water around the seedling, it either puddles and runs to the sides then it runs out the sides of the fabric or it runs down and out the bottom. I have them in saucers so the pots can wick that water back up, but I don’t think no any water is saturating the upper levels of the soil. Following your article, I’m now watering about 2 cups of water every 2 days. Today was my second 2 cup watering since I quit using the spray bottle. The seedlings are about 11 days old.

Try first wetting the soil in the area you wish to water. Pour just a little out there and let it pool and be afraid to go down, and all that stuff that new soil likes to do. Be patient. Give it a few squirts from your sprayer. Then, go away for 5 minutes, and let it settle in. Try wetting it again, just like the first time, and see if the water is more eager to go where you want it to. If not, wait another 5 minutes. At some point, the water already in there will help pull more water down into the soil. Patience is the key. My favorite trick would be to run into the garden during commercials on TV, just to do a quick wetting. 15 or 20 minutes later, I'm back in there with more water.

This is even more important when in cloth bags. You want the water to go down, not outward and out of the sides of the bag. This requires patience, at least at first. It is not just your soil or you causing this... we all have had this problem. Wetting agents help as mentioned above, my favorite is a little bit of aloe, but the best trick is using patience.

After 11 days I am sure that by now you are noticing that your plants are no longer trying to swim around when you water... they have established their position by sending roots down to the bottom of your containers. Keep widening that circle to be 3x the diameter of the plant at its widest. As soon as that outer circle hits the sides of the container, it will be time for your first proper watering to runoff.

 

[jokerlola]

Try first wetting the soil in the area you wish to water. Pour just a little out there and let it pool and be afraid to go down, and all that stuff that new soil likes to do. Be patient. Give it a few squirts from your sprayer. Then, go away for 5 minutes, and let it settle in. Try wetting it again, just like the first time, and see if the water is more eager to go where you want it to. If not, wait another 5 minutes. At some point, the water already in there will help pull more water down into the soil. Patience is the key. My favorite trick would be to run into the garden during commercials on TV, just to do a quick wetting. 15 or 20 minutes later, I'm back in there with more water.

This is even more important when in cloth bags. You want the water to go down, not outward and out of the sides of the bag. This requires patience, at least at first. It is not just your soil or you causing this... we all have had this problem. Wetting agents help as mentioned above, my favorite is a little bit of aloe, but the best trick is using patience.

After 11 days I am sure that by now you are noticing that your plants are no longer trying to swim around when you water... they have established their position by sending roots down to the bottom of your containers. Keep widening that circle to be 3x the diameter of the plant at its widest. As soon as that outer circle hits the sides of the container, it will be time for your first proper watering to runoff.

So basically, once the circle of water that is 3 times the width of the plant reaches the end or sides of the pot, it’s time to saturate the whole pot’s soil to run off?

When you say 3 times the width of the plant, do you mean 3 times the whole plant, from tip of leaf on one side to the tip of the leaf on the other side?

So would this plant be ready for a full saturation watering to run off, or not yet?

 

[Emilya Green]

So basically, once the circle of water that is 3 times the width of the plant reaches the end or sides of the pot, it’s time to saturate the whole pot’s soil to run off?

When you say 3 times the width of the plant, do you mean 3 times the whole plant, from tip of leaf on one side to the tip of the leaf on the other side?

So would this plant be ready for a full saturation watering to run off, or not yet?

It is very close if not at that point already! Yes I go from leaf tip to leaf tip and I'm not real super critical about it. At some point though you need to water the entire container and then sit on your hands for a week so that she can learn to drain it

 

[jokerlola]

It is very close if not at that point already! Yes I go from leaf tip to leaf tip and I'm not real super critical about it. At some point though you need to water the entire container and then sit on your hands for a week so that she can learn to drain it

Ok. Thanks so much. The width of this plant it about 3 inches and the pot width is about 12 inches (5 gallon fabric pot.) so it is close. My other 3 plants (all autos but different strains) are not quite as big so they’re not as close yet.

 

[Emilya Green]

Ok. Thanks so much. The width of this plant it about 3 inches and the pot width is about 12 inches (5 gallon fabric pot.) so it is close. My other 3 plants (all autos but different strains) are not quite as big so they’re not as close yet.

Be patient then, it is worth it

 

[jokerlola]

So I watered the plants yesterday afternoon to about 3 times out, the width of the plant and gave them over a cup of water each and already today, sticking my finger down into the soil, it’s dry as far down as my finger will go. They likely dried out because of the sun and not because the plants are drinking that much. With the top 3 or more inches of soil being that dry already, should I water again today or wait for the plants to droop a little? There is likely moisture down lower in the pots.

These are Autoflower plants (4 different strains) that are being grown outside in 5 gal. fabric pots. I used a pump sprayer to water them so that the water just didn’t run right out.

The 2 larger plants popped out of the ground about on June 1st. One of the other ones came out a few days later and the smallest is a week behind because the first seed didn’t germinate and I had to start another one. Are these plants small for their age? (18 days old for the larger ones, 14 days for the next one and about 10 or 11 days for the smallest).

 

[Emilya Green]

So I watered the plants yesterday afternoon to about 3 times out, the width of the plant and gave them over a cup of water each and already today, sticking my finger down into the soil, it’s dry as far down as my finger will go. They likely dried out because of the sun and not because the plants are drinking that much. With the top 3 or more inches of soil being that dry already, should I water again today or wait for the plants to droop a little? There is likely moisture down lower in the pots.

These are Autoflower plants (4 different strains) that are being grown outside in 5 gal. fabric pots. I used a pump sprayer to water them so that the water just didn’t run right out.

The 2 larger plants popped out of the ground about on June 1st. One of the other ones came out a few days later and the smallest is a week behind because the first seed didn’t germinate and I had to start another one. Are these plants small for their age? (18 days old for the larger ones, 14 days for the next one and about 10 or 11 days for the smallest).

First, a pat on the back for sticking with it so far. You are doing well.
One major criticism though... sticking your finger in as far as it will go. It came out dry to no surprise. Yes, the sun has a lot to do with this process, but as an experiment, set a fully watered bag of soil out in the sun and see how long it takes it to dry out all the way to the bottom without a plant in it. You will be surprised. But consider this. The water you have been giving has indeed been helping the plant, because you are pointing the water to right where the roots are developing, within that 3x circle. But that which is not immediately sucked in by the roots in the top and middle of the container, has to drop down to the bottom. Gravity works. There is now a small pool of water down there, and this smart plant has grown some strong feeder roots down into that wet area. Things are going well. The plant knows what it is doing.

So look at your plants. Do they look stressed? Are they wilting? Are the leaves drooping or are they joyfully reaching upwards toward the light?

You know what causes the plant to be able to lift up its leaves and track the sun? Water pressure. The more leaves and the taller the plant, the more water pressure it takes. Apparently, even though your dip finger came up dry, there is water there somewhere. The plant is NOT complaining, only your dry finger is. The reason your plant is so happy is that all of the roots down to where the water table starts, where the rest of the way down is under water, all of those roots above the top of that lake are getting oxygen! Oxygen is just as important as water, and your plants are deliriously happy because they are getting the best of everything right now.

I doubt you are qualified yet to be able to tell a true "I need water" droop and one caused by time of day. The true look of a "I need water" droop starts in the very lowest leaves and visibly moves up the trunk over the next 12 hours. It is a very specific type of droop, but thankfully there is an easier way to tell when it is time to water. It is also not necessary to water immediately when seeing that droop... I always wait 12 hours. It is far better to let the plant need water so badly that it is starting to droop, than it is to water early. When the plant starts to get desperate, it grows new roots looking for that water. By forcing the issue, you are forcing the plant not to be lazy, and grow new roots. This rootball thing doesn't just happen by accident.

Your goal is to pull oxygen all the way down to the bottom, using the top of the water table as a diaphragm to suck the air down deep into the soil. The ONLY way to do this is to be patient and aware enough of where that water table is, so that you don't water until you can see that it gets down into that last inch or so of the container. Please note that the very tip of your dry finger was nowhere near this, and could not possibly tell you what you needed to know to determine if it was time to water.

The three most common and accurate methods to tell that it is time to water are either the "lift the pot" method, the weighing method, and the dipstick or probe method. I personally like the $6 hardware store moisture meter probe that will show you exactly where the water has settled to in the container (the top of the water table).

Anything less than using these methods to be sure how much water is in there, is just guessing when to water. You have taken all this effort so far not to overwater, and your plants are doing great because of it. Keep with me here. Autos start strong for a week and then stall out for a week or so up top, while the roots really get going, and then they flat out take off. Yours are about to do that. Just keep with this watering thing. Very soon you will water to runoff, and then it is going to be 7-10 days of torment before you need to water again. You are going to have to learn this new skill to determine how much water is left in that container or you will quickly loose the advantage you have gained so far. Also keep in mind that as you have been watering to 3x the diameter, you have been giving more and more water each time. You would be surprised how much water is building up in the bottom with just the meager amount of watering you have been doing... and those roots are getting stronger and stronger, and I bet you are starting to see almost exponential growth up top.

You are almost to the next stage. Then we will do another trick, and water small amounts around the outside edge every 3 days to entice lateral root growth, while waiting for the exponentially growing plant to drain the water in the bottom.

 

[jokerlola]

First, a pat on the back for sticking with it so far. You are doing well.
One major criticism though... sticking your finger in as far as it will go. It came out dry to no surprise. Yes, the sun has a lot to do with this process, but as an experiment, set a fully watered bag of soil out in the sun and see how long it takes it to dry out all the way to the bottom without a plant in it. You will be surprised. But consider this. The water you have been giving has indeed been helping the plant, because you are pointing the water to right where the roots are developing, within that 3x circle. But that which is not immediately sucked in by the roots in the top and middle of the container, has to drop down to the bottom. Gravity works. There is now a small pool of water down there, and this smart plant has grown some strong feeder roots down into that wet area. Things are going well. The plant knows what it is doing.

So look at your plants. Do they look stressed? Are they wilting? Are the leaves drooping or are they joyfully reaching upwards toward the light?

You know what causes the plant to be able to lift up its leaves and track the sun? Water pressure. The more leaves and the taller the plant, the more water pressure it takes. Apparently, even though your dip finger came up dry, there is water there somewhere. The plant is NOT complaining, only your dry finger is. The reason your plant is so happy is that all of the roots down to where the water table starts, where the rest of the way down is under water, all of those roots above the top of that lake are getting oxygen! Oxygen is just as important as water, and your plants are deliriously happy because they are getting the best of everything right now.

I doubt you are qualified yet to be able to tell a true "I need water" droop and one caused by time of day. The true look of a "I need water" droop starts in the very lowest leaves and visibly moves up the trunk over the next 12 hours. It is a very specific type of droop, but thankfully there is an easier way to tell when it is time to water. It is also not necessary to water immediately when seeing that droop... I always wait 12 hours. It is far better to let the plant need water so badly that it is starting to droop, than it is to water early. When the plant starts to get desperate, it grows new roots looking for that water. By forcing the issue, you are forcing the plant not to be lazy, and grow new roots. This rootball thing doesn't just happen by accident.

Your goal is to pull oxygen all the way down to the bottom, using the top of the water table as a diaphragm to suck the air down deep into the soil. The ONLY way to do this is to be patient and aware enough of where that water table is, so that you don't water until you can see that it gets down into that last inch or so of the container. Please note that the very tip of your dry finger was nowhere near this, and could not possibly tell you what you needed to know to determine if it was time to water.

The three most common and accurate methods to tell that it is time to water are either the "lift the pot" method, the weighing method, and the dipstick or probe method. I personally like the $6 hardware store moisture meter probe that will show you exactly where the water has settled to in the container (the top of the water table).

Anything less than using these methods to be sure how much water is in there, is just guessing when to water. You have taken all this effort so far not to overwater, and your plants are doing great because of it. Keep with me here. Autos start strong for a week and then stall out for a week or so up top, while the roots really get going, and then they flat out take off. Yours are about to do that. Just keep with this watering thing. Very soon you will water to runoff, and then it is going to be 7-10 days of torment before you need to water again. You are going to have to learn this new skill to determine how much water is left in that container or you will quickly loose the advantage you have gained so far. Also keep in mind that as you have been watering to 3x the diameter, you have been giving more and more water each time. You would be surprised how much water is building up in the bottom with just the meager amount of watering you have been doing... and those roots are getting stronger and stronger, and I bet you are starting to see almost exponential growth up top.

You are almost to the next stage. Then we will do another trick, and water small amounts around the outside edge every 3 days to entice lateral root growth, while waiting for the exponentially growing plant to drain the water in the bottom.

Thanks so much for this Emilya! I have 2 instincts. One is what your advice above says and the other is that the soil feels dry so I should water and I didn’t know which instinct to follow and you just set me in the right direction! I forgot to mention the weight of the pots and yes, besides the dry soil, the pots do have weight to them which means that there is water down there.

I’ve been following your watering method from the beginning with clones and mature plants but the seeds and seedlings have been a challenge to me. I tried my first Autoflower seeds last year and started them in solo cups and transplanted up to the 5 gal fabric pots and they stunted terribly (probably because I waited too long to transplant.) So I decided to try planting directly into their final pots this time and I’m paranoid about them stunting again.

 

[Emilya Green]

(probably because I waited too long to transplant.)

Yes, it is easy to miss the window, especially with extremely rapidly growing Autos. As you are seeing, there is a way to start in the final container, but it certainly is not intuitive what needs to be done. Over and over again I see gardeners who have no idea of how to see the wet/dry cycle, and instead of using any guide whatsoever to tell them when to water, they totally overwater Autos during the 2nd week when they typically stall and then continue compounding the problem with finger in the top watering methods. Especially in the solo cup, this is your chance to force the plant to do what you want it to do, and be able to "see" what is going on well enough with the lift method that it is possible to see the stall and not water during that time. By working with the plant instead of trying to think for it, much bigger plants can be achieved... I think I got 5oz dry off of my last auto.

Instincts are not to always be trusted when starting new endeavors. I can only imagine how tempted you will be to water during that week after the first proper watering. lol

 

[jokerlola]

Yes, it is easy to miss the window, especially with extremely rapidly growing Autos. As you are seeing, there is a way to start in the final container, but it certainly is not intuitive what needs to be done. Over and over again I see gardeners who have no idea of how to see the wet/dry cycle, and instead of using any guide whatsoever to tell them when to water, they totally overwater Autos during the 2nd week when they typically stall and then continue compounding the problem with finger in the top watering methods. Especially in the solo cup, this is your chance to force the plant to do what you want it to do, and be able to "see" what is going on well enough with the lift method that it is possible to see the stall and not water during that time. By working with the plant instead of trying to think for it, much bigger plants can be achieved... I think I got 5oz dry off of my last auto.

Instincts are not to always be trusted when starting new endeavors. I can only imagine how tempted you will be to water during that week after the first proper watering. lol

Fortunately I’ve been learning from you so I’ve been trained

Yes, it is easy to miss the window, especially with extremely rapidly growing Autos. As you are seeing, there is a way to start in the final container, but it certainly is not intuitive what needs to be done. Over and over again I see gardeners who have no idea of how to see the wet/dry cycle, and instead of using any guide whatsoever to tell them when to water, they totally overwater Autos during the 2nd week when they typically stall and then continue compounding the problem with finger in the top watering methods. Especially in the solo cup, this is your chance to force the plant to do what you want it to do, and be able to "see" what is going on well enough with the lift method that it is possible to see the stall and not water during that time. By working with the plant instead of trying to think for it, much bigger plants can be achieved... I think I got 5oz dry off of my last auto.

Instincts are not to always be trusted when starting new endeavors. I can only imagine how tempted you will be to water during that week after the first proper watering. lol

Thanks for all the advice!

 

[jokerlola]

Emilya, one thing I forgot to ask you about is when you switch to the water can and start watering more aggressively. In your tutorial you say that after switching to the water can, to slowly pour about 2 cups of water over the whole surface and to check with your finger that when it dries out in a day or 2, to water it again with 2 more cups and keep doing that until the plants are big enough for the first full watering. Is this more of an indoor grow thing or applicable to outdoor growing in pots as well?

So if my soil is dry to my 2nd or 3rd knuckle (Which it is. Bone dry.). Should I give them the 2 cups of water slowly over the surface every time I find the soil dry with my finger (which could occur every 2 days with outside temps in the high 80’s now) or wait for the moisture at the bottom of the pot to be used up first? I checked with a wooden dipstick and it looks like my plants have about an inch or less of moisture at the bottom. They are not showing any drooping yet and the leaves are praying to the sun.

 

[Emilya Green]

Emilya, one thing I forgot to ask you about is when you switch to the water can and start watering more aggressively. In your tutorial you say that after switching to the water can, to slowly pour about 2 cups of water over the whole surface and to check with your finger that when it dries out in a day or 2, to water it again with 2 more cups and keep doing that until the plants are big enough for the first full watering. Is this more of an indoor grow thing or applicable to outdoor growing in pots as well?

So if my soil is dry to my 2nd or 3rd knuckle (Which it is. Bone dry.). Should I give them the 2 cups of water slowly over the surface every time I find the soil dry with my finger (which could occur every 2 days with outside temps in the high 80’s now) or wait for the moisture at the bottom of the pot to be used up first? I checked with a wooden dipstick and it looks like my plants have about an inch or less of moisture at the bottom. They are not showing any drooping yet and the leaves are praying to the sun.

You are way more concerned about the top of the container than your plant is. Again, you are seeing no signs of distress except that annoying dry dipfinger that is causing you concern, not the plant. The important point here is that when the top gets dry enough to water, but the water still is pooling in the bottom, there is a specific way to water. The advice to pour 2 cups over the entire surface is when you are getting ready to water to runoff, and you want to slowly condition the soil into taking that much water. The 2 cups on the surface will sink down and start the suction that will pull the rest of the water down instead of out of the sides. Without doing this first, you will likely be frustrated how difficult it is to get the water to go down where you want it.

But you are adding a step in your mind... you are still trying to figure out when they are ready to get the full watering. This has nothing to do with your knuckle measurement, it completely has to do with that 3x circle. If your plant has reached that milestone, it is time to water that container to saturation. Start with the 2 cups on the entire surface, and then over the next half hour or so, see how much water you can get that soil to hold. Take your time with it, and even come back 1/2 hour after you have finished, just to top it off again, so that you can be assured that you have saturated the soil. If you measure this amount, you will also be able to see that as the roots develop, they actually can start taking more water.

After watering to runoff, sit on your hands for 3 days. Come and see if you can measure where the top of the water table is at that time. Do you have your $6 water meter yet? Stick it slowly down deep and deeper until the meter pegs all the way to the right to show you that it just found wet. You are now sticking in the top of that underground lake. When you can see that the water table has fallen to about where the end of your finger would be, about 4 inches down, then it is time to use the measuring cups again. About every 3 days or so as you wait for the bottom to get drained, come around with your 2 cups of water and try to use it to just water the outside edge of the container. You want that outside inch or two around the container to become the wettest place there is in the top of that container. This not only shows the roots where to go, but it keeps the metabolism high because the top spreader roots will very effectively feed the plant as well as the bottom feeder roots... there are two root systems in this plant.

For at least a week there will still be plenty of water in the bottom, but this 2 cups will likely not reach the bottom before being captured by the soil in the top region. This wet spot that you have created on the outside edge will draw roots to it like flies to honey. Every 3 days until that bottom dries out, whether it takes a week or 11 days, make that outside edge wet, 2 cups down. This will cause amazing lateral growth of your roots and will greatly accelerate the formation of your rootball, filling the entire container.

 

[jokerlola]

You are way more concerned about the top of the container than your plant is. Again, you are seeing no signs of distress except that annoying dry dipfinger that is causing you concern, not the plant. The important point here is that when the top gets dry enough to water, but the water still is pooling in the bottom, there is a specific way to water. The advice to pour 2 cups over the entire surface is when you are getting ready to water to runoff, and you want to slowly condition the soil into taking that much water. The 2 cups on the surface will sink down and start the suction that will pull the rest of the water down instead of out of the sides. Without doing this first, you will likely be frustrated how difficult it is to get the water to go down where you want it.

But you are adding a step in your mind... you are still trying to figure out when they are ready to get the full watering. This has nothing to do with your knuckle measurement, it completely has to do with that 3x circle. If your plant has reached that milestone, it is time to water that container to saturation. Start with the 2 cups on the entire surface, and then over the next half hour or so, see how much water you can get that soil to hold. Take your time with it, and even come back 1/2 hour after you have finished, just to top it off again, so that you can be assured that you have saturated the soil. If you measure this amount, you will also be able to see that as the roots develop, they actually can start taking more water.

After watering to runoff, sit on your hands for 3 days. Come and see if you can measure where the top of the water table is at that time. Do you have your $6 water meter yet? Stick it slowly down deep and deeper until the meter pegs all the way to the right to show you that it just found wet. You are now sticking in the top of that underground lake. When you can see that the water table has fallen to about where the end of your finger would be, about 4 inches down, then it is time to use the measuring cups again. About every 3 days or so as you wait for the bottom to get drained, come around with your 2 cups of water and try to use it to just water the outside edge of the container. You want that outside inch or two around the container to become the wettest place there is in the top of that container. This not only shows the roots where to go, but it keeps the metabolism high because the top spreader roots will very effectively feed the plant as well as the bottom feeder roots... there are two root systems in this plant.

For at least a week there will still be plenty of water in the bottom, but this 2 cups will likely not reach the bottom before being captured by the soil in the top region. This wet spot that you have created on the outside edge will draw roots to it like flies to honey. Every 3 days until that bottom dries out, whether it takes a week or 11 days, make that outside edge wet, 2 cups down. This will cause amazing lateral growth of your roots and will greatly accelerate the formation of your rootball, filling the entire container.

I think I’m at or almost at giving the the 2 bigger plants their full watering to run off. The other 2 smaller plants (They emerged from the soil later than the first 2) are still not ready for that water to run off. I have ordered a moisture meter but it hasn’t come in yet, but using a wooden skewer as a dipstick, it looks like the moisture is at the last inch or less of the pots. The plants are still not showing any drought stress and they made it through our first two 88 and 92 degree days in full sun with no complaints! Before that we have been having nothing but 60’s and 70’s and a lot of rain here in Denver. So they have been inside a lot and kept inside at night because we were getting down to 45 degrees on many nights.

 

[Emilya Green]

I think I’m at or almost at giving the the 2 bigger plants their full watering to run off. The other 2 smaller plants (They emerged from the soil later than the first 2) are still not ready for that water to run off. I have ordered a moisture meter but it hasn’t come in yet, but using a wooden skewer as a dipstick, it looks like the moisture is at the last inch or less of the pots. The plants are still not showing any drought stress and they made it through our first two 88 and 92 degree days in full sun with no complaints! Before that we have been having nothing but 60’s and 70’s and a lot of rain here in Denver. So they have been inside a lot and kept inside at night because we were getting down to 45 degrees on many nights.

are we there yet?

 

[jokerlola]

are we there yet?

Yes. I watered the the 2 bigger plants to run off on Saturday. I gave them about 2 quarts each. I gave the 2 smaller plants 2 cups of water each on Sunday. They are still not up to 1/3rd of the width of the pots yet. I used a pump sprayer to water all of them slowly.