Plants are Drying Up Outdoors

Soooo... I'm going to try and grow some plants back in the wooded area of my property.. I've tried like 4 times and the plants just dry up. I buy miracle grow soil from walmart and it dries up super fast.. does anyone know of a type of soil that holds water well? Or a way I could keep my plants hydrated without rotting but not have to water them ALL THE TIME? When i tried i just filled a hole with the soil. Should I use a pot? The strain is "kb" nothing legit. I put the plants in a pot in the windowsill and I wanna get them outside so bad pleez helppp

I'd use anything but Miracle grow.There are a lot of threads in the Organics/ Subcool organics sections of RIU. You may want to veg your plants a little longer in pots prior to planting in ground, it will allow for the roots to develop. Then with a good soil mix you should be able to maintain hydration , just dont wait too long between waterings & let them get shocked.

well if you have a good spot with at least 5 hours of direct sunlight, its going to dry the soil out. your going to need to water at least twice a week during summer. try mulching them with about2 inches of mulch. this will keep the soil cool and moist during the hot summer and keep it warm during the spring and fall. pots will dry out faster than soil in the ground. try adding a little bit of vermeculite or silica crystals to your soil but not too much you dont want soggy roots. dig holes about 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet for each plant. try to find an area that the soil looks dark and breaks apart easily in your hand. you want to mix your good soil with the native soil in the bottom of the hole, then add your good soil for about 6-8 inches, then plant your plant in the good soil, you want a buffer zone so that when the roots grow thru your good soil they dont hit pure shitty soil and get shocked. another thing you could try (if your not trying to be super stealth) is take a 5 gallon bucket (clean of course) with a lid. drill a small hole (around 1/16" - 3/16") in one side right at the bottom of the bucket. put this bucket beside your plant full of water (and nutes if you are feeding) and it should drip for a day or two, this will porlong time between watering.

anyway hope this helps
goodluck

^that guy said it all

the silica water crystals are a great option

and the 5 gallon bucket with a small hole is a time honored and personal favorite method

a cheap way to retain water is to buy some diapers, cut into them and take the fluffy stuff out of the middle and mix it in with your soil. this stuff is made to hold liquid. MAKE SURE YOU WEAR A MASK IF YOU DO THIS because that shit can get into your lungs and really fuck up your day

Legit Smoke said:

Soooo... I'm going to try and grow some plants back in the wooded area of my property.. I've tried like 4 times and the plants just dry up. I buy miracle grow soil from walmart and it dries up super fast.. does anyone know of a type of soil that holds water well? Or a way I could keep my plants hydrated without rotting but not have to water them ALL THE TIME? When i tried i just filled a hole with the soil. Should I use a pot? The strain is "kb" nothing legit. I put the plants in a pot in the windowsill and I wanna get them outside so bad pleez helppp

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There is a product called Soil Moist. It comes as a granular and looks like rock salt when u get it. Soak in warm water for a while and it hydrates, then it looks like crushed ice. It holds 40 it's own weight in water. Hydrate b4 u add to soil. It acts as a moisture reserve and roots grow right through them. Definitely good stuff

Use composted soil + manure and you'll be perfect

chaiberson said:

sounds like you need bigger holes and some mulch on ontop of the soil to prevent evaporation. Alot of people use hay or cedar.

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I agree, bigger holes will solve your problems. I have my babies in the bush I only water them once a week and they get atleast 9 hours of direct sunlight and its been pushin 80 degrees lately. I dug some pretty fat holes, I was surprised that they were surviving with only a gallon of water a week. Everytime I go back they are getting bigger and bigger. Try digging 4'x4' hole I only filled mine with happy frog nothing else.

dannyboy602 said:

There is a product called Soil Moist. It comes as a granular and looks like rock salt when u get it. Soak in warm water for a while and it hydrates, then it looks like crushed ice. It holds 40 it's own weight in water. Hydrate b4 u add to soil. It acts as a moisture reserve and roots grow right through them. Definitely good stuff

Click to expand...

The thing about Soil Moist (and similar products) is that when they start to dry out they pull water from the soil and roots. That's bad. It can work, but not if you intend to be absent throughout the grow. You still have to water them regularly.

Wolverine97 said:

The thing about Soil Moist (and similar products) is that when they start to dry out they pull water from the soil and roots. That's bad. It can work, but not if you intend to be absent throughout the grow. You still have to water them regularly.

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Ooops. Yeah I remember about that. He's prolly better off with bigger holes and lots of mulch.....

...and mb a gator bag...they work

IMO if youre gonna be away from ur grow all season you can't rely on anything to keep it watered. even a 12v water pump, battery bank and solar panels need to be checked up on.
its a happy medium between being at your crop way too often and getting seen/ making a trail, and leaving plants out in the bush all summer to fend for themselves
lol
then amount of work you do all season = the amount of product you shall reap

goodluck

mix in some sponges. they work rather well. also mulch on top the soil will help tremendously. Personally I solve this problem by planting where the water table is high. Like along pond shores, gravel pits are great because they are remote, along creeks, rivers etc. This is precisely why location is key.