How long to leave in 26oz solo cups?

[Griot 2,051]

I am curious how long I should leave sprouts in 16 oz solo cups full of FFLightwarrior before transplanting in 6x6 square pots. Also does anyone know what a 6x6 square pot is equivalent to in gallons? Thanks OGers. -----G

Oh, on a 18/6 schedule with 400w HID

[ReverendMaynard 3,379]

I leave them in until the cotyledon leaves shrivel up and die, it's a stage of maturity saying that it's ready to grow up and start to eat food. Seems to work well for me, you can leave them until they're root bound but that can cause a stall after transplanting.

 

What's the height of the 6x6 square pots? Doesn't it say the volume at the bottom of them?

 

Peace

RM

[Griot 2,051]

Rev,

The height is 9inches and no volume on bottom of pot. I believe this would equal .75 gallon. This is what I ran last grow in to finish cause I can get more of them in the cab. They do get hard to water at the end cause of being root bound. But I make it work. Last grow the coty leaves remained green at least half way into the grow?

[BeachBud 7,927]

I go about 7 days with 12 oz. cups and then they go to 6" pots for 10-14 days.

 

As for the volume of your pot break out the calculator and give this a try.

[Misterdirt 11,962]

It's about 1.4 gallons, if the bottom is the exact same dimensions as the top (6" x 6").

 

A cubic foot is about 7.5 gallons (1728 in³). Your pots are 9 x 6 x 6 = 324

 

(324/1728) x 7.5 gallons = 1.4 gallons.

 

And if the bottom does NOT have the exact same dimensions as the top, we're going to have to do integral calculus. But fuck it, if it's important it's worth it.

[Griot 2,051]

thanks guys i am pretty sure i found them on the net at .75 gallon. the bottom is not 6x6 like the top! so it looks like i could get away with 7-10 days in the 16oz solo?

[randude 2,512]

I have seen one fellow use plastic drink bottles of that volume through harvest, reveg in the same container and do it again. It was a pretty specialized grow but in his program he had an incredible harvest vs volume ratio and with only CFL lighting. So your answer is not simple. Depends on how big you want your plants to be. I generally wait until plants are nearly root-bound before I transplant up as it provides explosive flower growth when the roots are allowed to expand.

 

Mr D did the math correctly for the pot volume, but not sure why it even matters. It is what it is and if it works it is good and if not you need to make an adjustment. Again, it depends on how big you want them to be. If you transplant a week before you go into flower (depending on strain) you should have a pretty good bud to leaf ratio.

 

Hope to see some pictures.

 

And one more thing... for those out there not so good at math, if you take a measuring cup and fill the container with soil using a known measurement (cups for instance) you can just count the cups and rough out the volume of the final container that way. I take it your pots are the final container. I would wait until the plants are about 3/4 the height you want and then put them in the final pot a week-two weeks before you go into flower lighting. With the size of your final container you will not have much room for the roots if you veg it too much longer than what I say. Then your roots will have nowhere to go when you are in flower.

[ReverendMaynard 3,379]

This is what I'm talking about G. I've never had cotyledons stick around for that long, they're a food source that should be used up in early development, by the 4th true node.

 

 

Ultimately, as long as you're not causing shock it doesn't matter.

 

RM

[Thay5212 644]

Damn I rock 16 oz solo cups for like a month lately in an organic peat mix. I don't really have any stress on transplant unless I fuck it up and disturb some roots. Been pushing a bit further than the cotyledons undressing. As long as you keep them watered they will just be root bound and take a tiny bit longer to bust into a new pot, not a big deal in my opinion.

 

The key is to try to envision the root ball, once I think I have a nice solid chunky mass with a lot of roots flowin through I transplant, that's the key for me to not end up with a pile of broken roots and soil when I pop them out.

 

There are a number of people out there who go seed to harvest in solo cups believe it or not, seems like a lot of work but rev is right, ultimately it really doesn't matter how long it is in there.

[ReverendMaynard 3,379]

…or use see-through solo cups? CCK @ 4 weeks from germ in ProMix HP

 

 

Peace

RM

[bigun 6,521]

lovely roots. I used the clear cups this time. never really gave a thought to how easy it would be to keep check on them. thanks rev good post.

[Griot 2,051]

I thought light was no good for roots. Fucking myths!

[Thay5212 644]

I would think it could be a concern for hydro due to algae possibilities being greater with the moisture in the root zone, if your soil has enough moisture for long enough to form algae then you're doing other things wrong too if you ask me.