A question for the bag growers. I was underwaterin...

depends a lot of consistency of substate... how you tamped it down while filling the pot etc... even whethe it has a proper surfactant to prevent hydrophobic properties (soil can repel water in that context and such things are more common to occur but not limited to that cause). if you are flooding the top, that's probably why. if you aren't flooding teh top, then you probably need a little surfactant added... over time soil particles buildup a film of organic material around it which is hydrophobic.... it will start to repell water rather than absorb it... this can also cause a little loss of water horizontally as opposed to soaking in properly. i used to use fabric pots. i always stuck with 50% perlite for excellent drainage. I tamp down a pot as i fill it so there aren't gaps in substrate -- usually slightly on dry side so it doesn't compact significantly. this avoids odd fissures and such in the substrate that water will quickly follow before it can be absorbed. so, there are several things to consider... don't pack it in tightly, as that's more of a cost than a benefit, but super loose has it's own problems too. anyway, i'd occasionally see some drips on side when i'd dump enough volume to create a 2" pool on top, lol.. when being impatient. even that had mnimal runoff on sides..just a hint of drips seaping through occasionally. .these were not expensive fabric pots, cheapest i coudl find, so i don't think they were especially thick, either. so, you can definitely avoid this even when being impatient with irrigation. it is possible.