Could I Please Get a Quick Response from the Vets of Potting

ok i am just wondering if along with the million of 3/8" holes i drilled at the bottom of the 5-gal buckets i use, would drilling some more holes on the sides of the bucket be a worthy undertaking along the lines of plant health ? i havent found any literature on this matter. thanks

just as long as the bucket drains your ok

i just thought that the act of putting holes in the bucket maybe would possibly "air prune" the roots and maybe might possible leed to more root mass, fuck what do i know, im just a poor boy, nobody likes me

http://www.amazon.com/5L-AIR-POT-1-5-Gal/dp/B0041SV2C2

have no idea never used one

Well the only danger of lots of holes in the side of the budket is all the water drains out of the side as you water and the whole of the pot doesn't get saturated. I think it would be a very minimal danger though and quite likely not to be the case, as you say, airpots manage it.

right on, i was thinkin bout some 3-gal smartpots alrdy, but fuck, if i can make some outta 5gals with minimal effort and coin, then why not? fuckin 100 bucks for 20 3-gal smartpots , that's money i could use for bullets

i could also use smaller diameter drillbit for the sides, i dunno, i was just wondering if anyone has ever done this or seen it or anything, or if they all say fuck it and buy smartpots,

https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/303229-diy-air-pruning-pot-experiment.html

found this

Drilling holes in plastic containers will work. I did it for years ,then broke down and went with Smart Pots and I love them just gatta be careful that salts don't build up in the material. Between uses I clean them with a product called Clearex to get rid of salt build up .I also put my plants up on plastic pallets like those used by soda co.for increased air flow and drainage.

You can make your own smartpots out of that that "cloth" they sell at the hardware store, that's for laying on the ground and mulching your weeds. We made a sort of frame out of chicken wire. The cloth is cut to size, placed in the frame and connected to the chicken wire with zip ties. They're kinda floppy, but once they're filled with dirt, gravity will make them keep their shape.

Since we'll be using HUGE pots for the outdoor season, this is WAY, WAY cheaper than buying smartpots. A roll of weed cloth, a roll of chicken wire, and some zip ties. That's it! O yeah, it's easy for us 'cause these pots don't have a bottom--they'll just sit on the ground. If you're working indoors, you'll have to figure that part out.

fatality said:

i just thought that the act of putting holes in the bucket maybe would possibly "air prune" the roots and maybe might possible leed to more root mass, fuck what do i know, im just a poor boy, nobody likes me

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heh, the hell that all about?

anyhow, you've actually thought of something very intelligent here. I too have wondered this same question. I decided to do my own experiment with it too.. and it did help with drainage and of course it also lets more air (Oxygen) get into the soil and therefore the roots. Now, to be honest.. the benefits of doing this are there and noticeable In other words, doing this.. does indeed help the soil and the plant by providing better drainage and more oxygen/air into the soil.

Now, some people might tell you that the difference would be minimal.. minimal enough to where you may not even see a difference. However, I for one.. have done this with some of my pots.. and the plants that end up going into those particular pots.. always seem to do better than the ones in a completely stock pot.

It boils down to each person's preference.

peace.

sgt d said:

You can make your own smartpots out of that that "cloth" they sell at the hardware store, that's for laying on the ground and mulching your weeds. We made a sort of frame out of chicken wire. The cloth is cut to size, placed in the frame and connected to the chicken wire with zip ties. They're kinda floppy, but once they're filled with dirt, gravity will make them keep their shape.

Since we'll be using HUGE pots for the outdoor season, this is WAY, WAY cheaper than buying smartpots. A roll of weed cloth, a roll of chicken wire, and some zip ties. That's it! O yeah, it's easy for us 'cause these pots don't have a bottom--they'll just sit on the ground. If you're working indoors, you'll have to figure that part out.

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Awesome idea! I think I gave you a rep for this!

There are warts on most anything you try. Root tip termination using Smart Pots will only be accomplished if the ambient RH is low enough to terminate or air prune the tip. Griffin's Spin-Out is fool proof, but it's expensive. Probably alot more cost effective than Smart Pots though.

For outdoor growing, I like to use 5 gal. black pots with 6 large drain holes, plug the holes with wads of foam, and when I'm ready to go into the ground drop the pot into a 3" deep hole after pulling the plugs out. The roots will grow out of the drain holes into native soil.

UB

I bet your plants love being able to stretch their roots!

Uncle Ben said:

There are warts on most anything you try. Root tip termination using Smart Pots will only be accomplished if the ambient RH is low enough to terminate or air prune the tip. Griffin's Spin-Out is fool proof, but it's expensive. Probably alot more cost effective than Smart Pots though.

For outdoor growing, I like to use 5 gal. black pots with 6 large drain holes, plug the holes with wads of foam, and when I'm ready to go into the ground drop the pot into a 3" deep hole after pulling the plugs out. The roots will grow out of the drain holes into native soil.

UB

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DesertSativa said:

I bet your plants love being able to stretch their roots!

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Went to the Smart Pots website and read some of the studies. Damn good stuff. Lot's of references to root issues, copper hydroxide treatments, etc.

i'm making my own-

after growing with the clothes basket and weed block airpots i made i wanted to upgrade to the smartpots, but can't pay that guy that much. so.

in the excavating industry we use infiltration cloth(remay). it is typically used in leech bed type applications to keep existing substrate from infiltrating the stone that is used to bed the leech pipes. it is the exact material they make those pots out of. 12 feet wide by 1500 feet long, 200 bucks.
i sew them up with heavy thread from the fabric store and my sewing machine. i can make one in 5 minutes and they're nicer than the ones you buy. plus i can make them to the EXACT custom sizes that i like.
i'll take some pics and post them tomorrow.

by the way, thanks uncle ben for turning me on to this root pruning thing a couple years ago, i have never looked back.
i forget the name, but he has a thread on it here somewhere.

When ever I convert a bucket to a pot, I drill the same types of holes that would come in a regular pot.
I actually use a 3/4 spade paddle bit for the side holes, and pout at least 5 around the bottom.(On a 5 gal or larger pot)

Buddy Ganga said:

When ever I convert a bucket to a pot, I drill the same types of holes that would come in a regular pot.
I actually use a 3/4 spade paddle bit for the side holes, and pout at least 5 around the bottom.(On a 5 gal or larger pot)

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Sheesh, if I could I'd give you some. I'm only sitting on about 1,000 black commercial pots of all sizes. You should be able to pick them up cheaply from a nursery or landscaper, cheaper than a bucket plus they're heavier and usually have vertical ribs at the bottom to stop spin out. They'd be glad to get rid of them.

The only time I messed with pots was making my own slotted orchid pots. Those types of pots are very expensive. If you feel you need more air (which you really don't I might add) then put a carborundum blade on your circular saw and cut slits in clay pots starting at the bottom/side wall edge. Make sure to soak the pots first.

UB

Murfy said:

by the way, thanks uncle ben for turning me on to this root pruning thing a couple years ago, i have never looked back.
i forget the name, but he has a thread on it here somewhere.

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Probably this one - https://www.rollitup.org/general-marijuana-growing/9114-spin-out-chemical-root-pruning.html

I perfer to make the holes on the sides toward the bottoms.
Depends on the pots, because if they sit to flush on concrete the wholes on the bottom cannot drain, and sitting on dirt can plug them.

Murfy great post I am going to have to try your idea.