I have several plants with about 1.5-2” of hay mulch in 5 gallon grow bags, today I watered them and gave them all about 1/3rd of a gallon of water each and a dose of fertilizer, and the top soil past the mulch barely even feels wet at the end of the day now, just barely damp. I know I’m supposed to water when the top 2” of soil feels dry, and then saturate everything, but it already almost feels dry, and I’m having to leave my plants for a couple of days so I’m concerned they will be under watered and wilt, since it is getting hot outside for the first time this year by me and they are on a south facing balcony with full sun.
by TheLastGinger420
8 Comments
>I’m having to leave my plants for a couple of days
Water everything lightly. Wait 15-20 minutes, and then water them again, deeply. Sometimes soil dries out and needs time to rehydrate before it can be saturated.
Grow bags dry out quicker than buckets.
There might not be time now, but you can look into battery-powered bucket reservoir drip irrigation systems, e.g. [https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/garden/water-and-irrigation/irrigation-systems/76781-solar-drip-watering-kit](https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/garden/water-and-irrigation/irrigation-systems/76781-solar-drip-watering-kit)
>it is getting hot outside for the first time this year by me and they are on a south facing balcony with full sun
Shade cloth across the balcony rails? Maybe a light bug/frost cover over everything?
What are the benefits of the yellow grass you have on top
Man my pepper plants from seeds look like absolute shit. These look nice.
If you have to leave for days, you can put them in shade so the sun doesn’t dry them too fast
All that is normal for grow bags especially that size. Most of my peppers are in at least 7 gallon bags but I do have some in 10 gallons too. It is starting to get miserably hot where I am at in zone 9b in SE Louisiana and am currently watering mine every other day. I will likely need to start everyday pretty soon and eventually up to twice a day. Peppers tolerate and I think actually do better with slightly drier soil imo. As far as leaving for a few days that is a tough one. You can try putting them a small kiddie pool with a couple of inches of water. That should last for 2-3 days depending on your temps. This year I planted some of my bags with ollas which should cut down on watering and would definitely be a solution for your situation here.
Put them in shade if possible. Keep that straw on top and water them deeply for a while. I bottom water soak for 1hour in a little kids pool then remove them. It keeps them going good for a 2 day trip
Im growing in large grow bags and i water pretty heavy about every other day if its sunny and probably every 3-4 days if its cloudy. If it rains I obviously dont water. I can’t seem to water them enough lol
I use drip irrigation for my grow bags because life gets in the way of regular watering.
Grow bags need a good amount of water — the porous fabric allows for a lot of evaporation. Before leaving, you should water each bag until you see the water coming out of the bottom of the sides. Again, they’re porous so water can pass through. Water very deeply before leaving.
Alternatively, if you can get a kiddie pool before you leave, then you can put all of the bags into the kiddie pool, and then fill the pool with water. As the water evaporates from the soil, it will wick it up from the pool. I wouldn’t water like this regularly, but it’s a cheap and easy way to create a reservoir to buy yourself a few days.