Pot without drain holes

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sktrrwn

Member
Hello everyone, I've been growing for some years now on indoor and outdoor setups, and I've been reading the forum for years at this point, however this is my first thread after finally registering
I'm doing it because I've searched the internet far and wide without luck on this matter;
At the moment the setup I have is still under construction, and I don't have a way to catch runoff water on pots with drainage holes

So I was thinking, what about pots without drainage? Could it work if I water the plants very carefully, in order to not soak the soil or drown the plants, and letting them drink the whole amount of water provided?
What do you guys think?
 
Nutty sKunK

Nutty sKunK

Well-Known Member
I did it this run but with fabric pots. Let them soak up the runoff. They were autos so ran about 90 days from seed.

I wouldn’t try without drainage holes if it’s a solid plastic pot. That’ll just create root rot in the bottom as the water sits and collects down there.

Why not use pots with holes and get some saucers and wire cooling cake stands? Can use a turkey baster to remove the runoff as you don’t want stagnant water sitting about
 
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sktrrwn

Member
Nutty sKunK said:
I did it this run but with fabric pots. Let them soak up the runoff. They were autos so ran about 90 days from seed.

I wouldn’t try without drainage holes if it’s a solid plastic pot. That’ll just create root rot in the bottom as the water sits and collects down there.

Why not use pots with holes and get some saucers and wire cooling cake stands? Can use a turkey baster to remove the runoff as you don’t want stagnant water sitting about
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I will be eventually getting a big ass tray to catch runoff and proper fabric pots in around a month or so, but for now it's not viable for me to even have a bit of runoff, I will do a SOG setup with many solo cups
could it work if I didn't water them enough to even have water collecting at the bottom? Like in a 2 liter plastic pot just provide around 0.5L of liquid at a time until it gets dry? What do you think?
 
Nutty sKunK

Nutty sKunK

Well-Known Member
sktrrwn said:
I will be eventually getting a big ass tray to catch runoff and proper fabric pots in around a month or so, but for now it's not viable for me to even have a bit of runoff, I will do a SOG setup with many solo cups
could it work if I didn't water them enough to even have water collecting at the bottom? Like in a 2 liter plastic pot just provide around 0.5L of liquid at a time until it gets dry? What do you think?
Click to expand...
So you’re gonna start a SOG with just solo cups? Thats gonna be a crazy amount of work keeping them healthy and watered correctly.

Usually with potted plants once they dry a little water will find channels to run down quickly and hit the bottom. Can be avoided by giving a little at a time so it’s not too fast.

0.5L in a 2L would shoot all over the place, especially once dry!

No point in rushing to get things done. If you’re growing photos just start them in cups then transplant them once established once you have your fabric pots/tray.

a few solo cups can fit on a dinner plate
 
amneziaHaze

amneziaHaze

Well-Known Member
IT can work just hard as fuck to know how much water is at the bottom.and as soon as the roots eat all the o2 anaerobic bacteria starta making peoblems...
 
TCH

TCH

Well-Known Member
Can it be done? Yes.
Is it worth the hassle? Not really
Is it worth the hassle in a SOG with small containers such as solo cups? Not a chance

I have a couple pepper plants in a window sill that are in pots that do not have drainage. They spent the first year of their life growing in beer cans. The pots they are in are between a quart and a half gallon size. That size is really too small, but, it has been done for about 6 months at this point and they are doing well. That said, they are super finicky and I have to be very careful about when I water them. To do it in a smaller container is just insanity. You will drive yourself crazy especially in a sea of green setup. It will turn into a nightmare very quickly.
 
Hook Daddy

Hook Daddy

Well-Known Member
You could use sips, or sub-irrigated planters, but they are not ideal for a SOG setup. It would solve the water in the bottom of the pot, but keeping the res on each one topped off would be a pain. Still probably the best option if you want no holes in the bottom of the pot.
 
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sktrrwn

Member
TCH said:
Can it be done? Yes.
Is it worth the hassle? Not really
Is it worth the hassle in a SOG with small containers such as solo cups? Not a chance

I have a couple pepper plants in a window sill that are in pots that do not have drainage. They spent the first year of their life growing in beer cans. The pots they are in are between a quart and a half gallon size. That size is really too small, but, it has been done for about 6 months at this point and they are doing well. That said, they are super finicky and I have to be very careful about when I water them. To do it in a smaller container is just insanity. You will drive yourself crazy especially in a sea of green setup. It will turn into a nightmare very quickly.
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I should have clarified, what I plan to do when the setup is ready, is using "solo cup" sized fabric pots (more like 2 liter ones) on a big ass tray, in order to avoid root rot and rootbound, and when they get big enough for watering to be a problem, just "flood" the tray and letting them drink from the tray upwards. Though it sounds like a cool idea, I'm not sure it will work.
For one more month, I will have to deal with no drainage though lol so I was wondering if anyone tried anything of the sort and if there was any issues I wasn't even aware of, like the anaerobic bacteria someone mentioned.
I guess we'll have to see lol it's proving to be a bit of a challenge to have started the plants so early before the setup is ready
 
TCH

TCH

Well-Known Member
sktrrwn said:
I should have clarified, what I plan to do when the setup is ready, is using "solo cup" sized fabric pots (more like 2 liter ones) on a big ass tray, in order to avoid root rot and rootbound, and when they get big enough for watering to be a problem, just "flood" the tray and letting them drink from the tray upwards. Though it sounds like a cool idea, I'm not sure it will work.
For one more month, I will have to deal with no drainage though lol so I was wondering if anyone tried anything of the sort and if there was any issues I wasn't even aware of, like the anaerobic bacteria someone mentioned.
I guess we'll have to see lol it's proving to be a bit of a challenge to have started the plants so early before the setup is ready
Click to expand...
I understand being anxious and ready to jump the gun. We've all done it. Unfortunately, putting the cart before the horse rarely works out. Practice patience and hopefully it all works out for ya!! Good luck!!
 
Hook Daddy

Hook Daddy

Well-Known Member
sktrrwn said:
I should have clarified, what I plan to do when the setup is ready, is using "solo cup" sized fabric pots (more like 2 liter ones) on a big ass tray, in order to avoid root rot and rootbound, and when they get big enough for watering to be a problem, just "flood" the tray and letting them drink from the tray upwards. Though it sounds like a cool idea, I'm not sure it will work.
For one more month, I will have to deal with no drainage though lol so I was wondering if anyone tried anything of the sort and if there was any issues I wasn't even aware of, like the anaerobic bacteria someone mentioned.
I guess we'll have to see lol it's proving to be a bit of a challenge to have started the plants so early before the setup is ready
Click to expand...
Using fabric pots in a tray and bottom watering is a form of sip or perhaps just bottom watering, and yes it can work. I believe the important part will be to empty the tray of water once the soil is wet or you may end up with root issues, kind of a combination flood and drain/bottom watering.
 
S

sktrrwn

Member
TCH said:
I understand being anxious and ready to jump the gun. We've all done it. Unfortunately, putting the cart before the horse rarely works out. Practice patience and hopefully it all works out for ya!! Good luck!!
Click to expand...
Thank you!!! It just kills me to have an indoor that looks like a spaceship and only having small ass seedlings sitting inside of it lol, it might have been too hasty
 
S

sktrrwn

Member
Hook Daddy said:
Using fabric pots in a tray and bottom watering is a form of sip or perhaps just bottom watering, and yes it can work. I believe the important part will be to empty the tray of water once the soil is wet or you may end up with root issues, kind of a combination flood and drain/bottom watering.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the input, you sure made me hopeful! I will have to look into a tray that I'm able to drain easily, like the one MickFoster posted. I'll have to try and find one like that since I'm in south america lol getting the good hardware stuff here is kinda difficult
 
curious2garden

curious2garden

Well-Known Mod
Staff member
sktrrwn said:
Thank you for the input, you sure made me hopeful! I will have to look into a tray that I'm able to drain easily, like the one MickFoster posted. I'll have to try and find one like that since I'm in south america lol getting the good hardware stuff here is kinda difficult
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Kiddie pools, concrete mixing tubs, or just frame up and cover with heavyweight plastic, all can work.
 
curious2garden

curious2garden

Well-Known Mod
Staff member
conor c said:
You need drainage holes without it you will get salt build up nutrient toxicity and or root rot gotta deal with that runoff somehow too its part of the game like it or not
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You can drill a hole into any of those, engineer a low point and drain into a basin/bucket something you can pull and empty
 
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