More light, happy, or thirsty? Questions Galore

When the growth tips are pointing up that means the roots are searching for water right?

If she is looking for water, how long do/would you wait?

Also, what do you use to water your plants?

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If the pot feels light, it’s time to water. When they are really dry, the leaves will droop as the plant loses osmotic pressure.

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Thank you, I’m trying to learn to read her signs.

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Signs point to her being happy.

I water using a gallon jug.

All the best

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Couple cycles under your belt and it’ll be as easy to read as a Dr. Seuss book.

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Also would you wait untill these signs to weigh?

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That plant looks healthy and content.
It’s not thirsty just yet, it could go another day or two by the looks of it.

Like @vernal said, pick up the container a few minutes after it has been thoroughly watered and runoff has stopped.
Picking up the container every day will give you an indication of how much moisture is still in the medium, by water weight alone.
When the leaves start to droop, pick it up again and it should feel a lot lighter than it did when it was watered.
After a few cycles of watering/drying out, you should be able to easily tell whether the plant needs water by the weight of the container alone.

Bottom watering will encourage the roots to grow towards the water source, creating a robust root system that will serve the plant well for the remainder of its life.

How far away is your light from the top of the plant? What type of light are you using?

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I got a bit lazy with the 5g pot at picking it up when full because of it being heavy. This time ill do a full watering cycle of pickups.

The light is at 19k lux. Dont have a par meter but, I try to have a numerical value at which I feel it shows stress.

Also I have 2 240w quantum boards.

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I also need to add, I feel like I was overwatering by weight too.So ive been to go longer or until there were signs.

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No. Some people let it get bone dry before they water but I feel that unnecessarily stresses the plant and is a major cause of herms (last part is my little pet theory). In nature, there is always some water in subsurface levels. Let it get a bit light but never totally dry. Overwatering isn’t something I’m familiar with; I use enough perlite so even at full saturation there is plenty of air in the media.

Letting pots totally dry out also concentrates the solution into an unacceptably high EC, and makes the media (when dealing with peat based potting mixes) harder to rehydrate evenly.

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That plant looks happy af

Just a bit of old lady gardener wisdom… If you put your hand gently under a leaf and bounce it, if it’s under watered it will have a lot of give. If the stem is wiggly or has give then it’s over watered. Your’s looks perfect right now and I’d bet if you tried it that neither the leaf or stem have much give at all. :wink:

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Sorry for the multiple posts. I water with about 20% the volume of the pot each time and let it dry to about 2 to 3 inches at the top before watering. In plastic pots when it dries you’ll see the soil pulling away from the sides of the pot. A sign it’s time for watering as well.

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Thank you so much, no need to apologize! I uppotted my seedlings to plastic pots this time instead of smartpots. That will really help.

I will also try the leaf test every time I do the weight. Should be able to pick it up easier!

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