Bottom Watering How To???

[whistech]

I am new to gardening and is my first Spring garden. I am trying to start seeds for practice before I need to do it for real this winter. I have had pretty good luck gettins seeds to grow to their first true leaves, but when I pot up to larger pots (4" square), I start losing plants. From what I have read here, I may be watering too much. I have the pots in a solid bottom nursery flat and pour water in from the bottom to where it reaches about 1/2 to 3/4 inch up the side of the pots. As soon as the water is absorbed in a day or two, I have been repeating the process. I am also adding one teaspoon per quart of 10/10/10 liquid fertilizer each time I water.

My question is this: When you bottom water, do you give the plants a certain amount of time to absorb some water and then move the pots out of the recpticle used to hold water?

Please point me in the right direction, I'm pretty discouraged right now.

[jerryinfla]

I bottom water and yes, I remove pots after the very top of the soil in the pots is damp -- usually 30 minutes or so and it changes color. Then I don't water again until the soil in the pots is almost dry. If you use the same size pots and same or very similar potting mix in time you'll learn when to water and when to remove the pots from the watering recptical by weight change.

[Cole_Robbie]

Everybody's mix will wick differently. My peat-based pro mix likes to turn into bricks that float until I dunk or flood them. It is worse on larger pots.

[rwsacto]

Get some net trays or net flats (with the criss cross pattern in the bottom) that can be set into a solid tray. You can set the whole tray of pots in about an inch of water for about 30 minutes every few days. If you cannot find any, punch a bunch of holes in a solid tray.

Pick up a dry pot or two before soaking and after soaking to learn how much they weigh so you can judge when to water.

after potting up, you can put 1/4 strength fertilizer in the water about once per week.

Rick

[guruofgardens]

I like trays like these because they allow for both drainage and wicking of the water.

http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...-trays-inserts

Most big box stores or Wal-Mart or nurseries carry them. They are a bit flimsy and may crack under the heavy plants, but you can always stack 2 of them together if they need to be transported anywhere. So far mine have lasted 3 years with only 1 cracking.

Like Rick said, start with 1/4 strength or less of fertilizer to begin with every week. I like liquid kelp and/or fish emulsion.

[whistech]

I want to thank each one of you for helping me. I know starting plants for experienced people like yourself seems easy, but for first timers like me it is a real challenge. I may kill a few hundred more plants, butI will keep trying. Thanks again.

[dice]

Teaspoon per quart of water of 10-10-10 is a bit much for seedlings.
Try 1/4 teaspoon per gallon of water.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by dice

Teaspoon per quart of water of 10-10-10 is a bit much for seedlings.
Try 1/4 teaspoon per gallon of water.

I read every post and found what I hoped I was looking for.
I agree with what Dice says.

I would like to ask in reply to what you said.

"I start loosing plants."

What do you mean by this?

What do they do besides die?

What do they look like before death?

I have bottom watered in trays for years and this is how I do it.

I put the plants in the trays and that is where they stay.
They get watered, the plants soak up the water.
When the plants start drying out but not wilted I water again.
I use about 1/4 teaspoon of regular miracle grow per gallon of water about every forth time I water.
It depends on what the plants look like.

All plants are not the same even of the same variety.

Any plants that aren't growing like the others and not drying out like the rest get put in their own tray.

These plants will soon start to grow like the rest.

Keep a close eye out for any plants not growing and drying out.

Never water all of the plants, only the ones that need it.
This last statement contradicts the tray method but just keep moving the plants.

Or do as others have said and remove them from the trays after they are soaked.

If the soil gets really dry it is very hard to get the soil wet again.
The bottom watering helps greatly with this problem.


Worth

[Heritage]

whistech,

It sounds like you are over-watering and over-fertilizing. Too much love!

I never water from the bottom. Here, foliage diseases are not much of a concern, however, spider mites are a huge challenge if given an invitation. Spraying/wetting the foliage, while top watering with a wand, helps to discourage an early infestation of mites. I water before noon so the foliage is dry in about an hour after watering. [disclaimer-] These are greenhouse plants and my method may not apply to indoor plants - I have never grown a tomato indoors.

It is much better to under-water than over-water. (same goes with fert) As long as you are experimenting, let one plant start to droop(wilt) before you water it. Ideally, you will want to water the day before the plant wilts but this experiment will give you a general idea of how long to wait between waterings - given your soil, plant size, and watering method.

Good luck!
Steve

[whistech]

Worth, the plants I lost were Marconi Giant and Fooled You Jalapeno pepper plants. The plants started curling up the first leaves (the ones that first appear when the seeds come up) and by the next day the whole plant is shriveled up and dies. I had some Porter tomato plants do the same thing, but a few have managed to survive despite my ignorance.

I have started new plants, but they have not got their true first leaves yet so I have not transplanted them yet.

[luke]

Although I understand the methodology behind bottom watering, and was raised seeing it done, I don't do it. I water each plant individually with a turkey baster - takes forever, but I like it that way.

I think the key is that I have holes cut in the bottom of my pots, and the water runs through the potting mix and is then absorbed (secondary bottom watering, I guess). But the most important thing is to water them only when they are bone dry. It is hard for some of us - moist soil just "looks right," but I have learned that my seedlings do better when they have a chance to dry out and then soak up water.

I also use a diluted fish emulsion fertilizer after potting them up, and not before.