how to avoid and repair rootball

if the plant has already gone into a rootball stage, what is the best way to cure it? I have the Veg. in 3" square pots for 2wk. and the roots are busting out the bottom. Then they go into 1gl. pots and in 2-3wk. its crowding the drain. Soon after they get put into 3gl. pots. Then the roots run for another 2-3wk. When the roots start to show on 2 or more of the drain holes, it's time to change. This is about the time for 12/12. Now w/ one more pot change into a 5gl. or slightly larger container, the plant will get chopped before the roots crowd the drain. So I guess my question is "how often should you upsize your container?" I think some may call it "pot graduation"

haha i only like to transplant once man it stresses the plant and ups your chances of hermies and males

No chance of males in this dojo. All are from clone. The only herm-ing signs are when you run it to long. She will throw out a male pollen sack and try to self-pollenate in a way. One that i forgot about did this. By the time i found it, it had seeds that were already germinated on the plant! Some went straight into soil. Just as an experiment i wanted to see how they would turn out.

P.S. some stress is good i think. It's a weed and some things kick-in when you stress them. Just don't be stupid

yes true well the it sounds like you have a set procedure that is working and yes you are right i am flowering clones now and i put them thru hell

i was just thinking that, rootball is a good thing rootbound is a bad thing which one is it

rootbound is a better way to put it. They seem to get this thick, roughness on the leaves, start to turn lite green, then curl up and crack/die. Mostly from the new shoots out. I was thinking the "rootbound" condition was causing a nutrient lockup or ect...So i flushed,stop feed and watched. They seem to get worse. The others I hit w/ heavy "N" and they made a strong comeback. Now everyone needs tons of "N",more than ever before