New Grower Planning my next indoor grow - coco in pots. Pls advise

[ParanoidCannabinoid]

Hi all,

Already thinking about my next grow, even though I've got a long way to go with my current one.
Already fed up with NFT as res temps are too hard to control and I can't give the plants personal treatment.

OK, here's my ideal set-up, if I can get the money together for the lights.

2 X 400W LED panels, 1 mounted above plants and 1 hung sideways so I can move it around. Not sure if I can afford this, but I'll try.

6 plants in 10 or 12 litre pots, filled with maybe 80% coco and 20% perlite.
Hand watered daily, with Vitalink Plant Start & Rhizotonic to begin with and then AN Sensi Grow/Bloom.

I was thinking about going with soil, but I want to be able to control the nutes throughout the grow as then I know exactly what they are getting.

What do you guys think? I know people say that coco is for experienced growers, but if I can get the nutes right, that's half the battle won isn't it?

All advice warmly received and appreciated.

Cheers

 

[Fisherboy]

Coco is your friend mate. So long as you got a decent ph meter and ec meter you can 100% control your grow in terms of nutes. I love the stuff, you know what you got to start with and it takes a lot of the guesswork out of it all. There's some good coco threads on here which I refer to often for info and inspiration. Good luck

 

[ParanoidCannabinoid]

Thanks for that. I'll have a look at the coco threads.
What do people think about the pot sizes? I'm not quite sure what litres are in gallons, but 10 or 12 litres sounds like enough for a fairly big plant.
I'm going for a cheese & chocolate double of:
3 X Dinafem Cheese Auto
3 X 00 Seeds Chocolate Skunk

 

[A4]

If you are worried about coco, Promix or Sunshine is a good way to go as well. Both are soilless and other than keeping your ph in check will seem like you are growing in soil. It would be a good transition to coco if you were thinking about it. You won't be watering quite so often in either of those as you would in coco either.

As for pot sizes, 10-12 liters should be good, that is about 3 gallons. The bigger you can go, the more room your roots have but there are diminishing returns starting around 5 gallons or 18 liters.

 

[ParanoidCannabinoid]

Yo A4 wossup?
Cheers for that, I'll have a look into those mixes. Not really worried about coco, it's just that some people make out like it's really difficult and I didn't want to start with it and then find out that it really is.
I work for myself and make my own hours so I can water twice a day if they need it when they get bigger.

Also, I am thinking about starting them off in sponge plug things and then just transplanting them once into the final pots. Does anyone see a problem with that?

 

[ParanoidCannabinoid]

So, been thinking more about this during our unexpected break.
I'm really sold on coco & perlite now. Been thinking about using 3 gallon "smart pots" to build a nice root system. The air-pruning thing sounds very interesting.
Will have to stick with my HPS for the next grow as money is tight.

What I'm thinking about now is this;

If I go for 3 gallon pots, I could only really do 4 plants, taking into account the spread from LST.
On the other hand, if I went with smaller pots, I could probably fit 6 plants in.

From the perspective of experienced growers, what would you prefer to do? Less, bigger plants or more, smaller ones?

 

[Eyes on Fire]

Hey there friend. if i may add my two cents,I would use the three gallon pots.your gonna do the LST and HPS,imho thats what Id do.And ive used smart pots a few times too.I have also used hydrofarms dirt pots ,and feel the dirt pots are more user friendly.they hold their shape waay better and wont crack your soil ball from picking it up as easily.Feelin the pearlite.Clueless about coco though.

 

[ParanoidCannabinoid]

Eyup Fire,

Yeah, I think 3 gallon is the way to go, it's just that I have loads of seeds/strains that I wanna try and I can't make my mind up
I might subsitute the Choco Skunk for some La Musa that I have as they are supposed to yield quite well. Really I'm a greedy so-and-so and I just want to grow everything at once.
And then I have 1 Think Different and they are supposed to be great. Oh, decisions decisions.

Been reading a lot about coco the last couple of days and I love it already. Never even seen the stuff but it sounds like a great alternative to pure hydro.

 

[SkatterBrayne]

Coco is a more forgiving version of hydroponics. You will have complete control over your root system. You can correct any issues that present themselves VERY quickly (when you take the proper course of action). On the other hand, as a hydroponic medium, things can also get out of hand quickly. As with every aspect of our hobby, it is a double sided blade.

The rate of growth in hydro speaks for itself, and I'm sure you have seen the results for yourself through other journals. So the question becomes, I this style of gardening fitting for you? If you want meticulous control, and don't mind being very 'active' in your garden, hydro is probably for you. If you would rather tend to your girls a couple times a week, with a proven soil recipe that will remain KISS, soil is probably for you.

Do your homework anyway, it will help you down the line in other applications. Decide if it's right for you. I have never played in soil, starting in DWC and moving to coco. I personally find hydro easier to comprehend than soil, and I think the "its complicated" stigma has been blown out of proportion. Arm yourself with knowledge, and you can't go wrong.