As you know we are big fans of the Root Pouch, we use them for all our marijuana plants (clones, teenagers and moms) and folks will often ask us about using them in hydroponics and of course our response is “yes you can and yes we do!” Then we explain how we pick the clones we are going to flower right off the same shelf that their clones come from.
So today will be a real quick post on how we do it (because there isn’t much to it).
The above picture is of one of the grows that we just put in a few days ago and as you can see we do ebb and flow hydroponics (also know as fill and drain or slap and tickle) with extruded clay pellets/pebbles.
We put enough pellets in the bottom of basket so that it sits high enough that the top of the pouch will be above the water line/level (when the bucket is full) so the dirt will not be washed out. That’s it, no tricks, no smoke, no mirrors. And no problems, including zero problems with pH because of the dirt.
The reason we do it this way is because if you pull your clones out of the bag (regardless what they are being planted in) you are disturbing the roots, no matter how careful, no matter how gentle you try to be, you are disturbing the roots. There’s just no getting around it.
By disturbing the roots not much good will come of it. Best case scenario is that you plant will lag for 7-14 days as it recovers from the shock of what you just did it. Middle of the road scenario is that you end up with a less than vigorous plant which will mean a low yield at harvest time. Worse case scenario, your plant dies.
So we tell every single person who gets their clones from us to LEAVE THEM IN THE POUCH regardless if they are going in dirt, water or fairy dust.
The next question we’re asked is “will the roots pass through the bag?” and again our answer is “yes!“, check out the picture below of a clone that was planted in a second pouch and then put into flower (in hydro) and as you can see the roots had absolutely no problem passing through both pouches, the pellets and into the bottom of the bucket.
We have been doing it this way for years with great success and would encourage those considering this as an option to take the plunge, the water is fine!
Just in case you missed our YouTube video on Root Pouches here it is again:
