I have question about adding more soil to my 6 week old plants.

[deerman12]

My autoflower plants are about 6 weeks and looking pretty good. I am using 3 gallon pots. My dirt has really compressed down since the process started. I am using Happy frog, Ocean Floor, and perlite. Would it be good or bad to add more dirt at this point? My soil is 3-4 inches from top of pot. My plants range from 15-24 inches, right now.

 

[PipeCarver]

My autoflower plants are about 6 weeks and looking pretty good. I am using 3 gallon pots. My dirt has really compressed down since the process started. I am using Happy frog, Ocean Floor, and perlite. Would it be good or bad to add more dirt at this point? My soil is 3-4 inches from top of pot. My plants range from 15-24 inches, right now.

Hi, yes certainly I top my pots up so there's just about 1" of lip space. ... More perlite will help the compacting, I'm at about 40% now because of that. Just beware when transplanting out of a high % perlire mix the roots and soil don't hold together well making transplanting awkward

 

[BigBlonde]

Would it be good or bad to add more dirt at this point? My soil is 3-4 inches from top of pot. My plants range from 15-24 inches, right now.

What @PipeCarver said.

I'll add that it's helpful to fill the pot near the top for better air flow at the lower part of the plant. Top dressing with soil mixed with dry nutrients is often recommended. These plants can form roots from the stem up to the cotyledons, so it's safe to add soil that high. If you choose to add nutrients by top dressing, leave some space for future added soil.

 

[deerman12]

Thank you to those that replied. I appreciate it.

 

[BB22]

Appreciate this thread and the answers given.

I started some seeds in “plugs”. As the soil compacted after watering. The plug stayed up top. Exposing some of the roots.

I’ve been covering them back up. With the soil or some added spag.

 

[Perrin6363]

I also do what @PipeCarver said. One thing I noticed when I started adding about 30-40% perlite to my happy frog or ocean forest was that before roots grew throughout the pot, (like right after transplant) the 3 gallons of soil would use way less water. Until that pot fills will roots it'll be like that. Also if you're adding more soil it'll be adding more nutrients, so take that into account. Good luck