Transplant before budding to renew soil?

[Roddy]

This question was posted in my sick plants thread but no response, so putting it here to see what others think...a bit of background, the Kandy Kush I speak of is my 6'+ beast about a week or so from harvest, the other two plants (Pineapple Express budding 4 weeks and Northern Lights budding 6 weeks) both showed cal/mag shortages. KK was transplanted from 5gal to 18 gal tub before budding:

A question for all those who are fairly experienced...I noticed that the Kandy Kush is just as happy as the day I transplanted her into the 18gal tub at the beginning of bud stage, no sign of cal/mag shortage, no signs of ANY nute issues or even any browning leaves save a very few expected losses at the bottom of the plant.

Question is, would the transplant to a larger tub with fresh soil be the reason? If I were to transplant from say a 3gal to a 10gal or so for each plant around start of bud, would this help to keep the babes happy healthy and HUGE? Would the addition of the bigger pot/soil be the reason the KK is so much happier than the two that are still in same soil as they started in some 3 1/2 months ago or so?

Reason I ask, the Pineapple Express is in a 3gal pot, is 3' + in size and I cannot stick my finger through the soil to even test the dryness...roots are like a net on the top! I should add that the PE wasn't like this when I put her in budding, the roots have tightened to the point I cannot any longer check dryness with finger....

 

[PencilHead]

The bigger the pot the bigger, and happier, the plant. I grow all my flowering stock in 17 gallon chum buckets.

3' in 3 gal? Those girls must work you to death feeding them, don't they?

ps: if the big pots hold water too long, try a coco mix next transplanting--you'll love it.

 

[Roddy]

She was only 22" or so when placed in budding, grew to the now 39 1/2" size in the budding room and likely would have grown larger had she been placed in a larger container.

My question though, did the placing in fresh soil keep the Kandy kush from getting nute hungry like the other 2? Putting it another way...would the Kandy Kush be as healthy if I had started her in the bigger pot from beginning instead of transplanting just before budding? The soil is the question, not size.

I was using Advanced Mix #4 by Sunshine for these plants and really liked it...a friend bought me some Humboldt Organics for the next round and I am not as happy as with the Advanced #4...which has the coir!

 

[Wetdog]

I would go with the fresh soil over the larger pot from the beginning.

This is just stuff I've noticed from my container veggies more than anything.

Everything ended up in 5 gal buckets.

But say, 2 pepper plants, same variety, both in ~1qt containers from the nursery. 1 went directly into a 5 gal bucket, the other into a 1gallon (didn't have another 5 gal bucket handy).

The 1gal got fairly root bound by the time a bucket became available, but when upcanned it fairly blew past the plant that had been in the 5gal from the git.

Just an observation on my part, but even my wife remarked on it.

Wet

 

[blancolighter]

Considering that both plants you want to transplant are about halfway through their flowering cycle, I doubt that putting them in a new bucket will cause them to become monsters, theyre prolly mostly done with their stretching and growing. The transplant would however make cal and mag available to your plants again, cause it sounds like your girls have used all the lime up in the soil you have now. You could always try suplimenting your feedings with some cal mag to fix your problem, though it sounds like your roots might enjoy some more room if you can spare it.

 

[Roddy]

This isn't about the plants now, but about future grows...and I think I am seeing the answer. I am basically asking if renewing the soil would lessen the need for nutes down the line.

I already transplanted the PE and won't be transplanting the NL.

 

[blancolighter]

Yea man, for down the road I'd do the transplaning. I do it myself, I go from a gallon pot in veg to a 5 gal when I flip em.

Now I'm gonna say this because its about my new favorite thing ever, SmartPots. Basically the way they keep the roots growing in the medium rather around the edges of a container IMO greatly increases the plants healthy size in relationship to pot size. Basically, in smart pots I'm getting in one gallon heathy plants that would otherwise need 3 gallon pots to maintain their size without gowing rootbound.

I mention this because you mentioned some pretty hefty container sizes which could use up valuable growing space, but like Pencilhead said, can wear out your watering arm as well. IMO tho, I like using my 5 gal smart pots for some large plants that would otherwise need 10 gal pots to be healthy.

 

[Roddy]

I wondered about those and will try them, THANKS!!! I'd like to stay around 10gal tops if not 5-7gal!

THANKS for all the helpful comments so far, please keep them coming!

 

[mr.greengenes]

Pencilhead: Hey Bro, long time no bloviate maximus. Waddup. Just checking in from outer space. Will Robinson says hello. Turns out his robot and Hal from 2001 a space oddity were gay lovers conspiring to sodomize Dr. Smith with a hydroponically grown rutabaga while in a medically induced somnambulist state. Will likes rutabagas au natural and foiled the plot for intergalactic health code reasons even though he's not a big fan of Dr. Smith. The funny thing is that I haven't aged all that much even though I was orbiting the cosmos for what seemed like a century.

Anyways, hope all is well with you and yours. I'll be harvesting a very small crop here in a few weeks. Glad to see that things are fine here, what with the weather being unseasonably chilly in most parts of the USA and europe.
Cheers mate,
Greengenes

 

[Roddy]

View attachment dope a1 023-2.JPG View attachment dope a1 031.JPGHere's the Kandy Kush about a week or so ago, it's mis-labeled, should say going into 6th week!

 

[blancolighter]

Lookin sick man, I'd say just keep goin with this formula you've found. it's doin ya good!

 

[Gixxerman420]

Lookin sick man, I'd say just keep goin with this formula you've found. it's doin ya good!

Six weeks flowering? I wouldn't transplant at all! No stress to halt bud production or subject it to the possibility of herming on you... I'd certainly weigh the risks; and unless you're so root bound she's not doing anything for a few days now, I'd leave her be! Not but a few weeks left for flowering right? I'm assuming medicinal for back pain calls for high indica blended strain? shorter flowering period than their sativa cousins! I'd just let her go, but just my opinion!

 

[Roddy]

Six weeks flowering? I wouldn't transplant at all! No stress to halt bud production or subject it to the possibility of herming on you... I'd certainly weigh the risks; and unless you're so root bound she's not doing anything for a few days now, I'd leave her be! Not but a few weeks left for flowering right? I'm assuming medicinal for back pain calls for high indica blended strain? shorter flowering period than their sativa cousins! I'd just let her go, but just my opinion!

LOL, she wasn't in consideration of being transplanted, she was just before budding. I took her from a 5gal to an 18gal and she really loved it! She flowered for another couple weeks (after that post) and produced some great buds with a beautiful high and taste. Still have about 3/4 oz of her in my safe lol