How long can I veg in small container until root bound?

[greenops]

Right now I got 10 young plants vegging in a small grow tent under 110w fluros. They are all sitting in 1 gallon (3.6l) pots.

There are matured plants finishing in the bigger tent as we speak, so I have to keep the 10 younger plants in their 1 gallon pot until their 5th week of veg. So after harvesting the matured plants, I will transplant the young plants in to 3 gallon pots then switch to flower.

The question is, can I veg them for 5 weeks in 1 gallon pot without causing root bound issues? Will they be able to fill the 3 gallon pot, if I switch to 12/12 right after transplanting them?

Thanks!

 

[Jnugg]

You can go 4-5 weeks in that container,just don't over water.

 

[Avinash.miles]

sounds good, veg 5 weeks then transplant to a bigger container w plenty of room to grow, then veg a lil longer (one week, 10 days ish) to let the ladies get comfortable in their new containers, stretch their roots into new media, then flip to flowering... like jnugg said, at first they will need very little water in those 1gals so be patient & dont overwater,
good luck

 

[village green]

I have found it depends on the medium. I have been able to slack on transplanting a ridiculous amount of time when running in coco compared to organics or Pro-Mix, for that matter. Still seems optimal to pot up before roots hit the wall to avoid transplant shock.

 

[Kindest]

You can go 4-5 weeks in that container,just don't over water.

So what happens if you veg that plant beyond this? Will flowering be affected? Plant health?

 

[longwaters]

You can tell when a plant is root bound when it stops growing vertically and starts branching out. This can be useful depending on your growing style.

If you put a slightly root bound plant into bloom, you'll notice vigorous growth because more roots = more water used = more bud. However, a majorly root bound plant in bloom will end up with most of the roots decaying, which means you have to remove lots of canopy and use a lower nutrient dosage or the plant won't live long.

 

[greenops]

Thanks for the answer guys!

So most of you are saying that I COULD get away with vegging them in their 1 gallon pots.
But I would really like to optimize the yield so I'm not just going ahead thinking it could work out.

How can you tell if a plant is root bound anyway? Longwaters described how the plant reacts to root bound, but how does it look like? Most of the time when I transplant I can already notice tiny roots wrapping around the corner, even if I transplant early.

However my plants never had so many roots wrapping around like in the following video at 0:45, but the grower didn't even seem to be concerned about it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OI4LhOpzKIM

So I guess if that's not root bound, then it may work.

Right now I have two options.

1) Try to veg them in their 1 gallon pot for 5 weeks and hope for the best.

2) Repot them from 1 gallon pots to 1.6 gallon (6.5l) pots on their 21st day of veg, just to repot them again 2 weeks later in to their final pot.


The reason why I'm avoiding option 2 is because I think too much repotting can stress them. But which is better?

 

[greenops]

sounds good, veg 5 weeks then transplant to a bigger container w plenty of room to grow, then veg a lil longer (one week, 10 days ish) to let the ladies get comfortable in their new containers, stretch their roots into new media, then flip to flowering... like jnugg said, at first they will need very little water in those 1gals so be patient & dont overwater,
good luck

That would be great if it would work. But I read somewhere that when too many roots wrap around the root ball, the roots won't even expand to the new area. Making the repotting useless... ????

 

[greenops]

This is how they look today in their 1 gallon pots, 16 days of veg.

To ensure a great yield:

a) Would you guys think I can leave them in these pots for 18 more days?

b) Should I repot the 6 best of the batch now to 2 gallon pots, then repot again to 3 gallon pots in 18 days?


Thanks and a happy new year guys!

 

[Floridian]

I go from 4 inch pots to 2 gal then 3 or 5 depending on circumstance you'd be better off not running in the same container any longer than 3 weeks,although I agree you can go 5 weeks in a 1 gallon,vegging in the two gallon then transplanting up is what I would do.Hows that for a frickin sentence

 

[fukndenny]

i've vegged in half gallons for up to 6 months.

never got "rootbound"

this was more for keeping genetics, not for rapid growth. but ive never had any problems.

 

[Holdin']

This is how they look today in their 1 gallon pots, 16 days of veg.

To ensure a great yield:

a) Would you guys think I can leave them in these pots for 18 more days?

b) Should I repot the 6 best of the batch now to 2 gallon pots, then repot again to 3 gallon pots in 18 days?


Thanks and a happy new year guys!

I've surely vegged in 1gals for 5 weeks...

IMO the plants in those pics aren't ready to be transplanted, and the young rootball would just fall apart in your hands. I'm sure 18 more days would be fine unless you have a record breaking explosion of root mass!

Good luck to ya.

 

[greenops]

Thanks guys. I think I will let them veg in these pots.

 

[medmaker420]

let em veg just don't let them dry out for too long as in small containers they can dry out pretty fast but then again a 1 gallon pot isn't really that small especially for vegging purposes.

 

[noyd666]

see what the gals and boys grow in soda bottles will tell ya. plenty room in that pot left to go, nice pots.

 

[kaotic]

Check out the beer cup growoff. It will surprise you.

 

[BasementGrower]

i feel like u can keep them in small containers.. just pick up the container and squish it a little to losen up the roots a little here and there.. i kept a mother in a 5 gallon grow bag for 7 months.. then after taking over 100 clones.. the plant lived for like 2 weeks longer then died on its own .

 

[noyd666]

i feel like u can keep them in small containers.. just pick up the container and squish it a little to losen up the roots a little here and there.. i kept a mother in a 5 gallon grow bag for 7 months.. then after taking over 100 clones.. the plant lived for like 2 weeks longer then died on its own .

r.i.p

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Every few weeks... pull them out, shave off some dirt around the sides and bottom and then re-plant with fresh dirt into the same pot. I keep my mums in pots like this for a year until I make a new mum.

It will keep them from being root-bound and also promote branching. I'd trim them at the same time as well, to keep them smaller.

Stay Safe!

 

[Hank Hemp]

Here's what I do-when seed pops into beer cups 12oz I believe, When starting to get root bound, I check by looking at the roots turn cup over and lift off root ball. Do this when dry. Next into one gallon pots, repeat. Then into 3-5 gallon pots to root then flower. Works for me.