So hey! Hi! New here and this is the first post ive come across in really familiar with!
So it is 100% fact less plants in a singlé pot the better. There's no disputing that. But if your like me and have poor soil and have to utilize as much space/soil all while trying to get the most off each plant... We make do with what we have. I'm working with 2 raised beds which if I had to guess are between 200-250 gallon, max I stuck 3 plants in each bed. I did this knowing full well the plants would be smaller. But I was tasked with germinating 100+ seeds this year and the natural processes took half the seedlings out. Then after sexing I had just a quarter the plants I started with. I ended up having more plants than anticipated still and had to find room for them...
With your set up man I really wouldnt put more than 1 in those pots. If you can double your pot size than I'd say 2 would be okay! But with having 3-4 ... Those babies are going to end up extremely root bound very quickly. Which will result in stunted growth. A whole crazy range of deficiencies since theres not alot of soil and theres several plants sucking out every last bit of nutrience. One or 2 may even die as a result of them competing in such close quarters for nutrients, light, and space.
Just a whole bunch of problems come from cramming to many plants in a small pot. I'm in the same type of boat with feeling like I need to put a couple plants per bed but proportion is everything. My soil amount is larger thus I can comfortably accommodate 3 plants. If my beds were any smaller I would adjust accordingly!
My advice! If at all possible get some more soil and larger pots. OR! Get a few essential basic nutrients to amend soil and maybe just try to fix up the dirt in your yard. I did that too this year. Got a few things to amend my dirt with and plopped one girl in and shes actually doing alot better than I was expecting!
Anyways ill wrap up. Sorry for the novel. Hope any of my ramblings help you figure out what your next steps are from here. And good luck!
