Transplanting without the stress.

I am going to be growing some autoflowers using a system of successive air prune pots in an attempt to find a less stressful way to grow large autos without wasting so much light on seedlings in big pots and avoiding transplant shock. It is my hope that I will develop a simple system that other growers can replicate and use to gain higher yields with their own autoflower grows while being less wasteful and of course saving money.

-Enjoy

think someone already did that, if the soil is wet and you remove the plant without disturbing the roots it won't put the plant in shock

mauricem00 said:

think someone already did that, if the soil is wet and you remove the plant without disturbing the roots it won't put the plant in shock

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k

Cups dropped straight into 1 gallon fabric pots filled with plain old 707, top dressed with neem cake and watered with tap



lot more root growth then id expected for Day 23



nothing fancy just plopped into soil lol


I guess in hindsight I see now that I should probably add another 2-3 rows of holes higher up.

very cool!!! cant wait to see them grow

Just wanted to take a selfie really didn't you @bf80255

Sounds good, look forward to seeing how it plays out, I've got a few of them bio-degradable cardboard pots, not tried though.
You got any experience with these and how well they brake down as far as just planting the pot in a bigger pot goes?

These lmao

You can just cut the cup away from the roots and place it in the larger pot. That would and always has worked. You are inhibiting the roots with the cup.

Just my opinion.

idfuckmyplants said:

Just wanted to take a selfie really didn't you @bf80255

Sounds good, look forward to seeing how it plays out, I've got a few of them bio-degradable cardboard pots, not tried though.
You got any experience with these and how well they brake down as far as just planting the pot in a bigger pot goes?

These lmao
View attachment 3899287

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hahahaha you got me!!!

damn killer! u won the fuckin genetic lottery lol wish I had fuckin colored eyes!!! I got shafted with the doo doo browns
yeah I use them for my veggies, u wanna water them and tear away the bottom and sides before planting to make sure the roots dont bind.

MichiganMedGrower said:

You can just cut the cup away from the roots and place it in the larger pot. That would and always has worked. You are inhibiting the roots with the cup.

Just my opinion.

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thanks for your opinion bud
I am aware of the method, this is an experiment on finding more efficient means of transplant not just copy and pasting someone elses ideas.
I WANT to inhibit the roots, thats the point of AIR PRUNING.

bf80255 said:

hahahaha you got me!!! View attachment 3901712

damn killer! u won the fuckin genetic lottery lol wish I had fuckin colored eyes!!! I got shafted with the doo doo browns View attachment 3901727
yeah I use them for my veggies, u wanna water them and tear away the bottom and sides before planting to make sure the roots dont bind.


thanks for your opinion bud
I am aware of the method, this is an experiment on finding more efficient means of transplant not just copy and pasting someone elses ideas.
I WANT to inhibit the roots, thats the point of AIR PRUNING.

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Ok. Just that a fabric pot that air prunes does it with air through a permeable surface. A plastic cup with holes is nothing like that. The roots divert anywhere there is plastic. It's just a barrier.

I don't even cut the cup. I wait til the roots hold the soil and pick the plant right up out of there.

Never see any transplant stress anymore with some experience. Nodes can start growing in an hour after.

Just my opinion and experience. No need to tell an experienced grower about copy and pasting.

MichiganMedGrower said:

Ok. Just that a fabric pot that air prunes does it with air through a permeable surface. A plastic cup with holes is nothing like that. The roots divert anywhere there is plastic. It's just a barrier.

I don't even cut the cup. I wait til the roots hold the soil and pick the plant right up out of there.

Never see any transplant stress anymore with some experience. Nodes can start growing in an hour after.

Just my opinion and experience. No need to tell an experienced grower about copy and pasting.

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yup.
thats cool.
yup experience is great.
awesome. nope sure isnt

I wanted to upload some flower pics but this stupid fucking website is acting dumb with uploads still and I was only able to get the group shots up.... very frustrating.... I have anger issues so im just gunna wait till things improve before driving myself insane lol

Day.... IDK like 50ish or something lol id have to look it up and im kinda pissed right now so.... next time.

Unfortunately the experiment was a failure because they grew too fast and outgrew the cups before they showed sex and as such I was unable to transplant prior to them creating excessive root growth. back to the drawing board! lol

They still were able to settle in and produce some very nice buds that I made selections upon and pollinated with a select pink F6 male so once seeds mature ill harvest these guys and probably try again with another strategy.

Youll probably notice quite a bit of variation from plant to plant, thats because this is a run of F6 plants (my last generation before things got really stable) Im trying to backtrack and widen my gene pool before I push past the F8. Some really cool phenos in here, I miss all the choices!!! haha

Keep in mind this thread is for experimenting , I am not looking for anyone elses opinion or ideas I am just sharing my attempts at simplifying the growing process for those with less experience than myself who are interested. if your not interested then just move on and have a nice day

bf80255 said:

yup.
thats cool.
yup experience is great.
awesome. nope sure isnt

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Glad I stopped in.

I drill all my cups like that, or now i buy lil dollar store plastic baskets. I line em w weedblock fabric like u put under mulch. At transplannt time pull the fabric up rootball comes out easy dont remove it till ur nestling in her new home, i see very little to no stress doing it this way...

I sometimes also use those peat pots that roots can grow through once saturated with water, but I learned my lesson recently that I cant get away without transplanting even my autos up. I am super careful when I transplant so it yields more merits than downfalls. The root ball gets a much better chance at developing nice and evenly, and quickly so long as I transplant. I fucking stunted like 4-5 plants by starting them in 3gal pots and not having enough time early on to pay enough attention to them, resulting in lazy rushed overwatering as the lights come on in the morning and I rush out the door lmao.

Haha its all about the eyes @bf80255, the colours pointless after a few joints they just look like there bleeding lol besides looks like my little lads gonna be a brown eyed boy

I assumed they'd need a little pull apart to help, shame your experiment didn't play out as hoped, doesn't look like they've suffered any noticeable stress from being in the cup though

Keep it going m8, you get this growing business half as easy as you make it look and you should manage to help a few out

MichiganMedGrower said:

Glad I stopped in.

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hey sorry man I was being a little faggot about the situation lol I was in a shitty mood and I was just taking it out on everyone, not an excuse. I dont like treating people any different than id like to be treated so, sorry, i apologize for being a dickhead. (I have anger issues lol)

I appreciate the input michiganmed but like I was saying, im really trying to find a way around transplanting because for someone with years of experience gardening, transplanting is pretty hum drum, Ive transplanted plenty of autos with zero shock myself but to the beginner gardener it can be pretty difficult. watching my friends (trying to teach them) and the other students in my propagation class I see how sloppy and disturbing inexperienced hands can make a transplant leading to stunted growth and sub-optimal yield. So my goal was to make a simple, reproduceable, cheap and effective alternative for the less experienced grower especially since with the recent laws there has been a massive influx of new growers and general interest in cannabis cultivation. Pinkie Pie was herself created with the goal of being vigorous enough to withstand a good margin of grower error and inexperience so I always try and think of ways to help out the folks just getting into growing when I can.

Huckster79 said:

I drill all my cups like that, or now i buy lil dollar store plastic baskets. I line em w weedblock fabric like u put under mulch. At transplannt time pull the fabric up rootball comes out easy dont remove it till ur nestling in her new home, i see very little to no stress doing it this way...

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I like that basket idea man! might have to give that a go in the near future, thanks!

dynospec said:

I sometimes also use those peat pots that roots can grow through once saturated with water, but I learned my lesson recently that I cant get away without transplanting even my autos up. I am super careful when I transplant so it yields more merits than downfalls. The root ball gets a much better chance at developing nice and evenly, and quickly so long as I transplant. I fucking stunted like 4-5 plants by starting them in 3gal pots and not having enough time early on to pay enough attention to them, resulting in lazy rushed overwatering as the lights come on in the morning and I rush out the door lmao.

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DAMN! stunted in a 3 gallon? those bitches must have been monsters!

idfuckmyplants said:

Haha its all about the eyes @bf80255, the colours pointless after a few joints they just look like there bleeding lol besides looks like my little lads gonna be a brown eyed boy

I assumed they'd need a little pull apart to help, shame your experiment didn't play out as hoped, doesn't look like they've suffered any noticeable stress from being in the cup though

Keep it going m8, you get this growing business half as easy as you make it look and you should manage to help a few out

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oh yeah man females go wild for colored eyes, hahaha hes got the curse!!! lol its not all bad tho... Ive never had issues getting girls he'll live.

yeah.... sux but not the end of the world. Gotta fall on ur face a few times before you find what works in most cases. Ill just have to adjust fire, shift left and give it another go till i get it

lol hope so! Id be fucking eccstatic if I only helped out 1 person... even a little lmao I love the cannabis community, so many really cool people, I wish every last person on earth could grow and partake of this herb! its life altering.

@bf80255 no problem. Thanks for calling me back.

I still think patience is best for transplanting. If the whole root ball won't pop right out. She ain't ready.

But I appreciate your experiments. Keep it up brother.

No prob! They work great! They have ones just a bit biggervthan a beer cup but close up to small laundry baskets brob 3 gal or so... when u think a 50' roll of 3' wide weed block fabric is like 8 bucks... you have smart/airpot type units for barely over a buck... and milk crates are another cheap step up to final home and sturdy,,, for fractions of what the brand name ones run...

I've had to cut windows into the sides and bottoms of plastic pots before ......but cups IMO are small enough to just remove instead if poking holes .....the only reason I've cut windows into the sides and bottoms of plastic pots is because the plants were already quite big headed into flower soon ......I'm talking two guys to lift the cut pot into a giant smart pot .......had to help a friend do it last year actually .....thankfully over the last few decades of growing I've learned how to use the rite size final pot ......not saying your wrong for your method .....but I usually just slide the root ball rite out of the solo cups no issue in the evening and transplant ......with no issues/stress...GL