Transplanting fabric pots

Adjorr

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #1

I have 2 white widows in 3 gallon fabric pots. im thinking about transplanting into 5 gallon pots before i start flowering them. i had choosen fabric pots beacause from what i understand plants wont get rootbound when in them. if this is the case is it even worth transplanting to 5 gallon pots or should i just leave them be? theyve been vegging for about 2 months now.

 

Slipon

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #2

good question, I myself also came to that conclusion, but I guess its more then if it get rootbound or not, its also about getting it to grow a root net big enough to support a big plant, as I see it, less space = less root net = less potential to grow a big plant = less yield, there is a big connection between size of the root net and size of the plant

 

Becorath

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #3

I have grown bigger plants in the 3 gallon root pots. You should also thik about feeding and watering a large plant with a small rootball. If you flower now, you may be able to keep in the same pot. I would just recommend more, lighter feedings as you will be watering more often.

 

Baywatcher

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #4

Personally, I'd put them in 5-7 gallon pots. I use 7 gallon ones. Are you doing supersoil? Unless you're planning on using chemical nutrients to supplement, the 3 gallon pots will be used up way before you finish flowering. A rough rule of thumb for almost any plant is that you want the rootball to be roughly the size of the canopy -- the bigger the plant, the more roots are needed to keep it fed. You'll have a way happier plant and get a much better yield if you use a larger pot to finish it (I transplant and then let it veg in the big pot roughly 2 weeks before moving to the flower chamber).

If you're going to be doing a bunch of transplanting, the 2 gallon Geopots with the velcro strips down the side are really easy to use.

Good luck, your plants look awesome, especially the one on the left.

 

thatboyis1uvakind

New Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #5

Those look fine....if what's above can fit in what's below ur good....see what I'm saying?....those plants are fine in those pots....if ur growing them bigger...up size...if ur flipping lights leave em roots dont grow much in flower

 

LadyZandra

Active Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #6

Everyone I know that uses them and has to transplant just plants the whole thing in the soil-- don't try to take it out of the planter... go to a 7 gallon!!

 

Adjorr

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #7

well they have a few more weeks to go before i start flowering them. i have 2 autoflowering plants in the same space that are nearly done and im running 18/6 for the lights. once they are done i plan on flipping, should be around the end of this month. im growing in SeaSoil containr gardeing mix, and fertilizing with advanced nutrients sensi grow (bloom for the autos). whats been said about the bigger root mass supporting a bigger plant makes sense to me. maybe what i will do is go to 5g pots after my auto harvest and then veg for a week or 2 at 16/8, from what i understand roots grow more during the dark period. this would set up a good foundation for flowering, thoughts?

thanks for compliments on plants, the one on the right had some ph issues and stoped growing for a week or two. both plants were topped twice and have had some minor lst treatment

 

Baywatcher

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #8

Sounds like a good plan. You'll see a huge growth spurt in those two weeks.

Regarding planting the whole pot, I'm against it for a couple of reasons. The primary one is that I like to break up the root mass a little bit during the transplant to stimulate fresh growth. The fabric pots don't keep a plant from getting rootbound -- they keep the plant from getting the crazy circular roots that you get when they hit a plastic wall and try to circle around finding an exit. So when I take it out of a two gallon (usually at week 6-8 of veg) it is pretty much a solid root mass. I break it up on the bottom and the sides.

The second reason is that I re-use the pots, and having them buried in dirt with a (hopefully) huge root mass penetrating the fabric for three months is not conducive to bag longevity.

 

Rancho Cucamonga

Active Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #9

First off you are OK as 3 gallon fabrics will allow a good yielding plant to do well, but next time just start with 5-7 gallon fabric pots.

Second, you cannot transplant, or should not transplant from fabric pots, only to. I have never tried but I can't imagine it would be easy and I know it would hurt your plant overall.

They will be fine, you won't get top yield but close.

Be sure to use regular pots before you transplant into final fabrics. I transplant twice.

I start in these



After 8-14 days I transplant into these



I get roots like these



And then transplant into finals here, either 5 or 7 gallon smart pots but any fabric pot will do



And then hopefully get top buds like this.

 

Baywatcher

Well-Known Member

• Apr 3, 2013

• #10

Actually, the 2-gallon geopots with velcro strips are specificially *made* for transplanting out of. They work great.

 

G

Ganja.Farmer

Member

• Apr 4, 2013

• #11

Rancho Cucamonga said:

Second, you cannot transplant, or should not transplant from fabric pots, only to. I have never tried but I can't imagine it would be easy and I know it would hurt your plant overall.

Click to expand...

How are you going to say that you cannot transplant out of fabric pots if you've never done it? You have no experience so how the hell would you know?

It's completely possible to transplant from fabric pots. I do it all the time and it doesn't hurt the plant even a little bit.

As someone already pointed out Geo-Pots makes fabric pots specifically made for transplanting and they have them available in several sizes, the smart pot brand recently came out with a 1-gallon transplant pot. I don't use the transplanter pots, I use the regular smart pots and they transplant just fine. Hell, they love getting transplanted.


If you don't have experience with something you shouldn't be giving advice on it. Leave it to the people that actually know how things work.

 

Becorath

Well-Known Member

• Apr 20, 2013

• #12

I also transplant to and from fabric pots. I feel that it is actually helpful. It prunes the root tips some when you pull it out, I am willing to bet that that helps it establish itself more quickly in the new container. Much like root pruning a bonsai.