• Here is a link to the full explanation: https://rollitup.org/t/welcome-back-did-you-try-turning-it-off-and-on-again.1104810/

Questions regarding soil aeration

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LimeGreenSticky420

Active Member
Hello people. I haven't been around for awhile but I've been reading a lot and I'm getting there. My question is this. I compacted my soil a little the other day to support my 3 foot afghan plant a little better. Today I water, and the water puddles ontop of the pot but slowly recedes, just a lot slower than it used to. There is about 1/3 perlite in the pot along with guano and FFOF mix. I was wondering if it's necessary to, and how I even would aerate the soil without damaging plant roots as I may have already done. She should be fine though. Any suggestions? Please help.
 
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bigsteve

Well-Known Member
You are smart to be concerned about the amount of oxygen available to your roots.

I do a lot of re-growing -- regular harvest, then re-veg 4 weeks and 4 weeks re-flower for most strains. As my re-grows are being asked to grow and thrive in the same soil as the first harvest, I have noticed soil compaction over time. Solution -- I got a 12 inch bamboo skewer and drive it right into the root ball under the plant. You don't have to worry about hurting the roots as the skinny skewer misses 99% of them. I aerate the roots once a week during the re-grows and have noticed improvement, mainly that the large fan leaves don't turn yellow and fall off as quickly. More fan leaves means the plant can use more energy to grow and flower.

So try aerating your plants that exhibit soil compaction. Compaction means less oxygen getting to the roots. Aeration solves that.

Good luck, BigSteve.
 
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watchhowIdoit

New Member
How does O2 make it into the soil and rootzone? Its actually pretty basic. 2 things cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Simple physics. Water gets poured on top and gravity pulls it through the medium. The gases and other things that have built up since the last watering get pushed out with the water taking its place. Then as gravity draws the water out of the pot it leaves a void or vaccum in a broad sense if you will. That void or vaccum needs to be filled by something. And whats just above the medium in our pots? Yep, air...pretty crude, yet accurate explaination. Good watering habits are key. Core aertion is designed for things such as turf mangement.

edit:just scratch the top 1/2 or 1 inch of you medium to speed drainage if you feel the need. Just the nature of peat based mediums....
 
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LimeGreenSticky420

Active Member
Steve I actually have a straw in the pot leading outside the pot for the roots. They loved it. Plant grew 3 feet in a month and a half, so thats good. This is my first indoor and it's going great I just don't want to screw it up. The tips of my fan leaves have been yellowing a little too. I've been searching for a solution. Any suggestions? I'm thinking ph because I haven't checked it at all, maybe I should flush?
 
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