So, if i use 6.5" stakes, will i need to water/feed more or less? And you say it will make the plants more hydroish, will that increase the chance of root rot or have you never/rarely encountered that problem?
thanks guys for the quick responses guys!!
i've never had root rot in pots, only fully hydro. with soil, there is the danger of over watering. this will drown roots, and kill them, resulting in a dead or severely damaged plant.
my "dirt" is 60% perlite, and i water daily with no problems at all. my 100% perlite requires a basin to allow the medium to wick water back up (since it drains so quickly)
with a higher ratio of compost/soil, you'll have more compaction, and that will cause the mass to retain water for longer periods (and will it lessen the amount of oxygen to the roots).
when dirt is "cut" with perlite, you have plenty of air pockets and can hear the medium fizzle as the water travels through it.
i also have catch pans for runoff, and the soil is allowed to wick from there. when i start the pump, i watch for the first drips, then turn off the pump, let it drain, soak back up. once a day works well, though i'm about to start watering twice a day with a waste pan instead of catch pan, turning it into a drain to waste and making it easier to wash out old salts when watering with fresh nutes. i want to go from feed-feed-water-repeat to feed-feed-feed-repeat.
hope this helps
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
