5 gallon cloth bags with handles or 5 gallon plastic pots?

This is for an indoor grow. Does the breathing of the cloth bags help avoid room rot and help get oxygen to the roots?

Also which color cloth if you like cloth? Usually it is black or dark beige. Thanks.

Hey, I wrote about this on my blog actually http://growlikeme.xyz/step-by-step-growing-weed/ on point #2.

Huge fan of Smart Pots, or just about any other cloth bag. It helps more oxygen get to the roots, but in my opinion, more importantly, it drains any excess water that otherwise your plants don't need.

I first begin with Jiffy Pots though when I move the seeds into soil for the first time. It's practically the same thought process and they're biodegradable, but not entirely necessarily.

Thanks JC. I am checking out your blog.

Pretty cool avatar. What kind of lights are those?

HPS 1000W from Apollo, nothing special

JCgrow said:

Hey, I wrote about this on my blog actually http://growlikeme.xyz/step-by-step-growing-weed/ on point #2.

Huge fan of Smart Pots, or just about any other cloth bag. It helps more oxygen get to the roots, but in my opinion, more importantly, it drains any excess water that otherwise your plants don't need.

I first begin with Jiffy Pots though when I move the seeds into soil for the first time. It's practically the same thought process and they're biodegradable, but not entirely necessarily.

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I use both cloth pots & plastic, with good results. I generally get bigger plants out of cloth pots, relatively speaking (pot size).

Cloth or smart pots are nice and they do seem to grow bigger plants in my own experience than a equal size plastic pot .....if your indoors I don't think color is guna matter much ....the only difference IMO
Would be heat absorption from the sun ......just water slow and wait a bit to finish watering so you don't end up with dry spots from watering to fast and it running through the sides ......

Be careful if the bag is from the groceries store. They are the same thing but I've found they are super thin and will rip if you try to move. If you did the bags I would think about making them since they are a bit pricey, at least from what I've seen

These are my favorite.
http://rollitup.org/t/hillbilly-air-pots.909033/

Go with rootpouch fabric pots, my all time favorite. I don't like those felt pots, water just sluices out the sides if you feed too fast, whereas the rootpouch's woven plastic holds everything in a little better and still breathes as well if not better than felt. Plastic pots suck in my experience, I use pure coco and it's much harder to recycle when your plants are root-bound.

Happy Jack is getting a new pot today!

Milliardo Peacecraft said:

Go with rootpouch fabric pots, my all time favorite. I don't like those felt pots, water just sluices out the sides if you feed too fast, whereas the rootpouch's woven plastic holds everything in a little better and still breathes as well if not better than felt. Plastic pots suck in my experience, I use pure coco and it's much harder to recycle when your plants are root-bound.

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Woven plastic is great, which is what I use in hillbilly air pots. They are ideal for tents. I've got nine of them in my 5X5 tent & it's working out very well.

Some dude on another forum site said go to Wal Mart and buy their woven shopping bags they sell for $1.
I was looking at these Prune Pots with a handle.
https://www.hydroempire.com/prune-pots-fabric-grow-pots-5-bag-pack/?gclid=Cj0KEQjw_eu8BRDC-YLHusmTmMEBEiQArW6c-KMObq_R7j93j5CEAGeWtP2Njk6FaDKAFlzuzX-QhqcaAouw8P8HAQ

Chunky Stool said:

Woven plastic is great, which is what I use in hillbilly air pots. They are ideal for tents. I've got nine of them in my 5X5 tent & it's working out very well.
View attachment 3744826

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Ahh. What is that thing in the lower right hand corner. It looks like those cheap little LED panels with lots of reds and blues that the plants like.

Cool grow too!

Chunky Stool said:

Happy Jack is getting a new pot today!
View attachment 3744819

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The roots in that small plastic pot are all scrunched up and circling but in fabric pots the roots don't do that they go to the edge and stop they don't circle and when they are transplanted the fabric grown roots grow into the new soil while the plastic pot roots have to grow new roots. Lets see a photo of the roots.

backtracker said:

The roots in that small plastic pot are all scrunched up and circling but in fabric pots the roots don't do that they go to the edge and stop they don't circle and when they are transplanted the fabric grown roots grow into the new soil while the plastic pot roots have to grow new roots. Lets see a photo of the roots.

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Here is a couple pics of my plastic pot rootball. I am really interested in hearing more pros and cons.

backtracker said:

The roots in that small plastic pot are all scrunched up and circling but in fabric pots the roots don't do that they go to the edge and stop they don't circle and when they are transplanted the fabric grown roots grow into the new soil while the plastic pot roots have to grow new roots. Lets see a photo of the roots.

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I ended up doing yard work and never got around to repotting this plant. I'll get a photo of the roots when I repot tomorrow. I'm sure they are circling, but that does not always happen with plastic pots. If you wait until the soil is completely dry before watering, the roots will not circle the pot as much. Root tips get "air pruned" when the medium shrinks and separates from the sides of the pot, creating a small gap.

Colo MMJ said:

Ahh. What is that thing in the lower right hand corner. It looks like those cheap little LED panels with lots of reds and blues that the plants like.

Cool grow too!

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Thanks!
The side panels are cheap LED units. I already had a bunch of equipment before I started using a tent, so I did the ol' mix & match. 600w HPS + LED side panels + lizard lights in the corners (UV).
I debated whether or not to install a screen to support the buds but when they lean over, it opens up the canopy -- which is a good thing. Pots are *not* sitting right next to the walls of the tent. There's a border around the perimeter with four small fans moving air in a circle around the base (very important). Exhaust fan blows out the top & the intake vent is on the bottom.

Chunky Stool said:

I ended up doing yard work and never got around to repotting this plant. I'll get a photo of the roots when I repot tomorrow. I'm sure they are circling, but that does not always happen with plastic pots. If you wait until the soil is completely dry before watering, the roots will not circle the pot as much. Root tips get "air pruned" when the medium shrinks and separates from the sides of the pot, creating a small gap.

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Roots don't air prune they die when they dry out and when the plant is watered the water goes down the gap. In a fabric pot the roots hit the edge and stop but they are still alive so when transplanted they start growing into the new soil. those roots showing on the bottom are doing nothing they need to be in soil to do what roots do, feed the plant.

Check out Microkote Spin Out pots.
It has the same effect as fabric and they don't dry out as fast.

backtracker said:

Roots don't air prune they die when they dry out and when the plant is watered the water goes down the gap. In a fabric pot the roots hit the edge and stop but they are still alive so when transplanted they start growing into the new soil. those roots showing on the bottom are doing nothing they need to be in soil to do what roots do, feed the plant.

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Then how do you explain this rootball from a 2 gallon PLASTIC pot? No dead roots & no swirl.