Ok guys I cant seem to get watering right...

[st00ner]

Well my plants don't seem to be growing as fast as they should....

They are Lowryder #2, now 24 days old... not showing sex still on 18-6...

Most of my conditions are really good:
Roughly 4000 Lumens per square foot
Runoff PH of 6.4
Water Base PH of 7.0
1.5 Liter pots (9" tall) with Fox Farms Ocean forest soil

I have not got em on a regular watering schedule and i am not even sure how much to water em...

Right now I water them one cup every 3 days like so:
Water 1 Cup
3 Days
Water 1 Cup
3 Days
Water 1 Cup + 250 PPM 4-8-7 (They are supposed to be blooming and I see preflowers but nothing detmining sex due to stunded growth)

The plants look PERFECTLY healthy, no spotting or blotching or anything.

One of the runts just lost those first 2 leaves it got as a plant, not sure if that means anything.

Their leaves are kindof arced, like they are not flat, with the edges pointing up, and the middle down.

They look perfectly healthy! They are just growing slow. Any suggestions?

 

[THCPezDispenser]

Well my plants don't seem to be growing as fast as they should....

Most of my conditions are really good:
Roughly 4000 Lumens
Runoff PH of 6.4
Water Base PH of 7.0
1.5 Liter pots (9" tall) with Fox Farms Ocean forest soil

I have not got em on a regular watering schedule and i am not even sure how much to water em...

Right now I water them one cup every 3 days like so:
Water 1 Cup
3 Days
Water 1 Cup
3 Days
Water 1 Cup + 250 PPM 4-8-7 (They are supposed to be blooming and I see preflowers but nothing detmining sex due to stunded growth)

The plants look PERFECTLY healthy, no spotting or blotching or anything.

One of the runts just lost those first 2 leaves it got as a plant, not sure if that means anything.

Their leaves are kindof arced, like they are not flat, with the edges pointing up, and the middle down.

They look perfectly healthy! They are just growing slow. Any suggestions?

Pics would help man...

Do they need to be transplanted? Are you sticking to a rigid schedule rather than checking to see if they need to be watered (droopy leaves sometimes mean overwatering...). 4000 lumens - for veg, this is good enough for a space a little bigger than 1 foot square, how big is your space that you are lighting?

 

[st00ner]

Pics would help man...

Do they need to be transplanted? Are you sticking to a rigid schedule rather than checking to see if they need to be watered (droopy leaves sometimes mean overwatering...). 4000 lumens - for veg, this is good enough for a space a little bigger than 1 foot square, how big is your space that you are lighting?

I meant 4000 lumens per square foot... I have a total of 25000 lumens in a fully enclosed but heavily ventilated growing space.

Getting pics now...

Lowryder is recommended to have 9" of tap root grow space... so thats what I had in mind when I got the pots, plus I cant use anything taller due to stealth limmitiations.

 

[st00ner]

Heres some pics

 

[JBonez]

based on the size of the pots, if you give a cup of water, they should deplete that in a few days easy. I had a small problem learning when to water and this is how i ended up getting it right.

i started in 2 gallon pots, i water until i see runoff and the pots are quite heavy. With seedlings, they would go sometimes a week to a week and a half before needing water again. But you're watering in smaller increments so they need water more often. Basically when i water, i saturate them, which is fine. as they get older they will drink alot of water and i check this by the weight of the pot. feel the pot after you have watered, then feel the pot when they need water, it will be a lot lighter. Hope that helps, i water alot when i do water, till there is plenty of runoff. right now my plants in flower are drinking about 1/2 gallon every two days.

 

[JBonez]

g/l the plants look good so far bro

 

[THCPezDispenser]

Yeah they do look healthy, not sure what to say I think you need to wait for a Lowryder grower to chime in...

 

[JBonez]

you will eventually figure out when to water them, thats for sure, just gotta learn the hard way sometimes i suppose.

 

[st00ner]

based on the size of the pots, if you give a cup of water, they should deplete that in a few days easy. I had a small problem learning when to water and this is how i ended up getting it right.

i started in 2 gallon pots, i water until i see runoff and the pots are quite heavy. With seedlings, they would go sometimes a week to a week and a half before needing water again. But you're watering in smaller increments so they need water more often. Basically when i water, i saturate them, which is fine. as they get older they will drink alot of water and i check this by the weight of the pot. feel the pot after you have watered, then feel the pot when they need water, it will be a lot lighter. Hope that helps, i water alot when i do water, till there is plenty of runoff. right now my plants in flower are drinking about 1/2 gallon every two days.

What exactly is runoff? It is what comes out from the holes in the bottom of the pot right? because that is what i measured PH with.

So when you water, you always get runoff? I never have gotten it so far besides in one pot i though I overwatered and got my PH from, maybe I have not watered deep enough o stimulate root growth?

 

[cuy103]

Sometimes you just have to be EXTRA patient when you're sexing autoflowering plants.

From personal experience, my AF plants typically show sex around 19 days...give or take 2-3 days.

It looks as if it's been about 3.5 weeks...give it a complete 4 weeks and i'm almost positive you'll be able to tell sex on at least one plant.

How much run-off do you get when watering with only 1 cup?
I don't imagine you would get ANY run-off with just 1 cup of water.

I suggest watering with 2-3 cups...which is what I did. I used 1.5 liter pots like you and 2 cups was perfect (*For me). But if you still have minimal run-off...add small amounts (1/2 cup) of water until you get sufficient run-off.

Other than that, your environmental conditions are solid. Just be a little more patient and you wont regret it!

 

[JBonez]

ok, some people do this, hear me out.

(runoff is when you water to the point you saturate the soil completely and water comes out the bottom)

john doe has a plant in a 2 gallon pot. waters once every three days with a cup of water

jane doe has a plant in a2 gallon pot. waters once a week with a half gallon of water.

get it? i water heavy when i do water, that way all the soil is wet, not just where i pour the water. you can go longer between watering this way.

 

[JBonez]

also, when watering a pot, the soil not containing roots will absorb the water you do give quicker.

right under the plant is a root ball, this is a tightly packed mess of roots and soil. I will be harder for this to absorb water, so here is what i do. When i water, i use a small amount and saturate around the base of the stem, the water sits on top of the soil until it soaks it in. When it soaks in the water, you can continue watering around the base of the soil, gradually increasing in the amount of water. As it gets wetter, it will absorb the water rapidly, this ensures the root mass is well watered, then work your way out to the sides of the pot until you see runoff.

 

[st00ner]

Ok guys I am going to water till I get runoff every 4-5 days....

Hopefully that will work better for me.

Just gave em all an extra cup and got a bit of runoff

 

[JBonez]

You may not be able to go 4-5 days, and you may not be able to go longer, just give them a good watering, and when you notice that literally the first two inches of soil are bone dry, then give them water again, im telling you, you will eventually be going by the weight of the pot, or when the plants wilt from dehydration.

 

[PUFF MONKEY]

if you put them in bigger pots, watering will be a bit easier..when i grew in soil,it was alot of soil...17" deep if i recall and i watered when the topsoil had been dry for about 2 days...when i did water, i saturated the soil and let the grow tub drain.....in 86 days i had plants as tall as 7ft ...in a closet...pics are in my signature....first link.

 

[PUFF MONKEY]

oh yeah, i almost forgot....i covered the top soil with a layer of perlite...that kept the soil from drying as fast as it normally would

 

[andy52]

i have never watered until i got run off,never.and i raised some beautys.i also never flushed,never had to.if it ain't broke don't try to fix it,feel me.

 

[JBonez]

To each his own, andy, i like to saturate the soil, but i may be rethinking my ways, waste of water imo, but it gives me piece of mind. I do get a little more time between waterings tho. Maybe i will practice giving them less water so that there is no runoff, like a set amount of water and see how they react, but im sure it will lead to more frequent waterings.

 

[groworganic]

this is all great advice, but sometimes i think we all give things a little too much thought. Just gradually add water and moisten (not soak!) the soil until your pots feel heavier. You can also put a tray under your pots and pour a little water in that, just to make sure all roots get a drink. Then just wait for the pots to get light and repeat. (usually 2-3 days, if your space is properly ventilated).

 

[st00ner]

Well they are making some progress.... getting alot bigger and getting more leaves but not getting taller...

Its day 26 and still no sex or even signs of preflowering

Man I really think my crop is a lost cause.... Maybe they are not autoflowering by a freak accident and I need to change to 12-12?

Man I am so confused....

I know for a fact that they are Joint Doctor Lowryder #2, got it from the attitude seed bank...