Moving 5 Gallon Fabric Pots

hooot4 · Mar 31, 2020

I have planted my clones in 5 Gallon fabric pots. I plan to move them outdoor in a month or so. In the meantime, I have them under a fluorescent light inside my garage for now so that they can get to a point that they can withstand the weather and wind outside when the right time of the year comes around. Unfortunately, where the light is located, I can't water the plants. Also, I think they enjoy the sun and therefore would like to bring them outside daily. Since they are newly potted, the roots have not grown yet into most of the soil. So when I move them, they flops around within the fabric pot because of the flimsiness of the pot. Am I damaging the roots? The clones are growing and look mostly happy. Should I limit moving them to only when I have to for watering to avoid damaging the roots?

Kampbe1l · Mar 31, 2020

i found that if you pack (not over pack) the soil/medium into the fabric pots, it doesn't have large 'cracks' around the edges when moving the fabric pot. also, i hold the handles (if you have 'em) inwards, rather than stretching them out, when carrying the fabric pots.

if it flops around when you carry it, then maybe you need to pack the fabric pots more with soil/medium. pack the soil around the stem of plants, in the middle of the fabric pot....

oh, i use large plates as saucers and try to carry the pots by holding the plate....

Buzzer777 · Mar 31, 2020

hooot4 said:
I have planted my clones in 5 Gallon fabric pots. I plan to move them outdoor in a month or so. In the meantime, I have them under a fluorescent light inside my garage for now so that they can get to a point that they can withstand the weather and wind outside when the right time of the year comes around. Unfortunately, where the light is located, I can't water the plants. Also, I think they enjoy the sun and therefore would like to bring them outside daily. Since they are newly potted, the roots have not grown yet into most of the soil. So when I move them, they flops around within the fabric pot because of the flimsiness of the pot. Am I damaging the roots? The clones are growing and look mostly happy. Should I limit moving them to only when I have to for watering to avoid damaging the roots?

Beware of bringing in bugs too. Once I finish hardening off..they stay outdoors for the duration.

Edinburgh · Mar 31, 2020

Same problem, my rh is so low im watering dayley, i just popped samsqatch og, at 6 days old got a great pop but evertime i try and move the pot 5gal the dirt opens up, this is a pain in the ass, have left the pot under the light and am watering around my seedling but today i had to wet the whole pot so everytime a crevase opens i refill with fresh dirt, this is a major pain, regular nursery pots work much better in winter as they hold water much better, all you can do is baby them along until there roots are laid down, once this happens and the weather starts to be more humid you will b fine, till then your gonna have to b careful and just baby them along till they get bigger, i found smart pots work much better in summer and nursery pots 4 winter, just go easy with them.

hooot4 · Mar 31, 2020

Thanks a lot for all your solutions. By packing it, I assume that you are saying to pus down on the soil.
My main question was never answered. By moving the pot which caused the plant to flop around in the soil, am I hurting the plant's roots and therefore the plant?

Kampbe1l · Apr 1, 2020

yes, you might be damaging the roots...pack (push) down the soil around the stem....it shouldn't flop so much.

maybe start in smaller pots, once it gets root bound then repot into this 3-gal fabric pot.

it's common, but great advice to use smaller pots, then repot as plant gets root bound. no such issue with smaller pots, and easier to manage including watering, etc.

Moving 5 Gallon Fabric Pots

Moving 5 Gallon Fabric Pots

hooot4

Kampbe1l

Buzzer777

Edinburgh

hooot4

Kampbe1l

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