Watering and Living Soil

I've always been under the impression that you want the soil to dry out between waterings. After two successful grows, this is how I've always done it. But the more I read into organics and living soil, I keep hearing that when the soil dries out, the microbe activity slows or decreases drastically.

So with living soil, do I want to start a watering schedule... say, every 6 days? Or should I wait for the soil to dry between waterings like I always have?

I plan on transplanting 8 plants that are currently in 1 gallon fabric pots into 5 gallon fabric pots with living soil from KIS organics. http://www.kisorganics.com/products/shop/165

I have this soil ready to go and it looks, feels, and smells incredible!!!
Thanks for your help!

Check out SIPS.

goodjoint said:

I've always been under the impression that you want the soil to dry out between waterings. After two successful grows, this is how I've always done it. But the more I read into organics and living soil, I keep hearing that when the soil dries out, the microbe activity slows or decreases drastically.

So with living soil, do I want to start a watering schedule... say, every 6 days? Or should I wait for the soil to dry between waterings like I always have?

I plan on transplanting 8 plants that are currently in 1 gallon fabric pots into 5 gallon fabric pots with living soil from KIS organics. http://www.kisorganics.com/products/shop/165

I have this soil ready to go and it looks, feels, and smells incredible!!!
Thanks for your help!

Click to expand...

I'd add a lil more aeration to that soil, looks a lil thick, from what we've all read a moist organic soil will have a happier microbe population, but what I've experienced is that it's not that simple, cannabis HATES wet roots, what I've found to have the best results is to minimize your top-soils evaporation, we all are taught to use fans, and lots of airflow, and we are also taught that cannabis likes lots of aeration in the soil, BUT both of those things in a controlled inside grow can lead to a FAST water drainage/transpiration, the key is this, keep an organic layer of topdress on the soil, whether it's composting leaves, shredded cardboard, redwood tree-moss (my fav), hell I've seen people using damp newspaper, but doing that not only keeps the soil an even moisture, it promotes aeration also, watering more frequently will, DUH, add more liquid to the plant/container, you don't really want that (I know, sounds counter-productive), but you want a humid soil, not a WET one.
Try it, it's easy as hell, and you'll see a super fuzzy white mass of roots all the way to the surface of the soil, and more roots everywhere. I've seen roots growing up and out of the soil, it's amazing and it's simple.
Obviously watering your plant is totally essential, but I've found that keeping the soil more humid and moist is SO much better than watering more often.
Also in my mind a nice big fuzzy mass of white roots would absorb and use any topdresses you do much easier and more efficient.

Thanks for the advice! I have some perlite sitting around, I'll add some to the soil.

Would you recommend a living mulch like white dutch clover, or advise against it? I was thinking about trying a combination of tree moss, decomposing leaves, and living white dutch clover.

goodjoint said:

Thanks for the advice! I have some perlite sitting around, I'll add some to the soil.

Would you recommend a living mulch like white dutch clover, or advise against it? I was thinking about trying a combination of tree moss, decomposing leaves, and living white dutch clover.

Click to expand...

I don't have a lot of experience using living mulch unless you count the redwood moss, but that's not technically a "traditional" plant,
I use nitrogen fixing legumes to help recharge my older soil, but not while my plants are growing in them, I use redwood moss, but another thing you could do is find the bagged spaghnum moss (used for a houseplants) keep it in a layer fitted for your container and keep that moist and that would do the same thing.
Just something to keep the soil humid, but without being anerobic.
I've seen people covering the container with plastic wrap (about an inch from the soil) and popping holes in that to keep the soil humid, that works as well, but it's a bitch to water...
I'd use redwood moss first
spaghnum second
composted leaves third (may rob nitrogen)
thick coco "hair" fourth (gets dry faster)
shredded newspaper, cardboard, etc.

goodjoint said:

Thanks for the advice! I have some perlite sitting around, I'll add some to the soil.

Would you recommend a living mulch like white dutch clover, or advise against it? I was thinking about trying a combination of tree moss, decomposing leaves, and living white dutch clover.

Click to expand...

maybe add some biochar or oyster shells in there too, couldn't hurt.
I'd add pumice or volcanic rock over perlite, but if you aren't reusing your soil it'll be fine.
perlite isn't bad, just "floats" after a while...

I've heard great things about the Dutch and micro clover. I'm currently using red clover with good results.

I also use cannabis leaves as mulch, free and a simple/safe way to dispose of them.

Once the cannabis plant gets big enough it will block out light from the clover killing them off. This in turn turns into Dead mulch. Win win !!!

Here's a few examples. I start the pot that the seedling/seed/clone will be transplanted into with clover ahead of time. I put down a pot, which will leave a space where clover won't grow for when I need to transplant/or plant. This eliminates competition for light.