Auto Week 7 budding nicely but unhealthy leaves

[Irie_man]

Hi, this auto is either NL or Purple Punch. It started flowering in week 5 from germination and is now in week 7. The leaves are not looking healthy. Based on advice for another plant on a different thread, I recently gave this one a flush and moved it from the light. I'm wondering if I should be removing the discolored leaves and what else I can do. It is under a dual spectrum light, now at about 50cm distance, and I've been giving it Atari Bloombastic. Any thoughts? Thanks!

 

[Bdubs]

First glance, Nitrogen toxicity due to glossy, dark green and aqua blue hue.

 

[Bdubs]

But you have a lot more going on there. 3 leaf growth signaling root/medium issues. High soil temps or low soil temps can be a thing here. Overwatering reduces oxygen to the roots and bad bacterias steal oxygen from the roots (this would be due to root rot from - Overwatering or underwatering. Potential nutrient lockout and root rot. Overwatering/underwatering. Low humidity may be a contributor to it all and not a direct indication of overfert but excessive uptake of nutrients (nitrogen causing lockout).

The flush can help, but needs a good dry back after to determine results of that action. Humidity and temps need under control to prevent excess uptake from roots, lower aVPD if not in range 1.00-1.5. Plant taxation uptaking excess nutrients that eventually cause lockout. Discoloration that looks like burn is most likely from P and K deficiencies which is typical for late flowering, especially if Ph is too low or lockout occurs. (The excess nitrogen could be a signal of continual low Ph with Nitrogen as the most available and P and K the least available). Root rot releases acid and causes Ph to drop or stay lower ans does the plants useage of nitrogen will lower Ph, and the Ph should buffer closer to 6.5 as the plant uses more P and K.

Thoughts put up. Not much info to go off of about your environment. But I’d start looking to what I’ve done, the progression rate of it, water habits, Ph and PPM runoff checks should be done to eliminate Ph and lockout respectively before assuming any fertilizer adjustments are needed.

From what I have seen, overwatering is a main cause for most of what you see. But it is a progressive condition that has manifested for a long time and overwatering is the most detrimental for soil and causes a plethora of problems. Overwatering can progress into multiple stressors as rot and lack of oxygen to the roots creates a downturn in all aspects. From Ph issues and lockout. Low Turgor pressure (leaf droop) is your very first signal, always, to root problems. When Turgor pressure is low, stop any adjustments and do a full round check of Ph, soil moisture, PPM. Root rot is progressive and takes weeks to form from over or under watering. Unless you have fungus gnats eating your roots, it is most likely due to poor watering habits.

 

[Bdubs]

Correct anything off, don’t add nutrients to try to correct your issue as that is not the issue 9/10. Water correctly and allow dry back if in doubt of soil moisture content. Correct environment if it isn’t optimal.

Not much else to do at week 7 as major adjustments will slow or stop productivity. Get her to week 9 and see if she can be harvested. It is possible that feeding only water when it’s due, can help give her a little push to the end without creating more issues and reduce stress. As nutrient salts (if used) can dehydrate the roots and cause root burn (dying roots) as much as excess moisture can rot and strangulate.

But the soggy looking bud sites may be signaling mold issue, so check that there is no moisture inbetween your buds. It is never good to see heavy, soggy, matted looking buds. If so, it is compromised and should be tossed out and not smoked or attempted to be. I’ve thrown out pounds of trim that would have been great hash, but just one bud showing mold, I tossed the whole bucket into my compost.

 

[Irie_man]

Thank you for this detailed response. My growth environment is not so sophisticated so I don't have all of the measurements. What I can say is that until now I tried to be careful about overwatering, because I had bad experiences with root rot and gnats. I can say for sure that there are no gnats. The plant seems not so happy in response to my flush from a day and a half ago. Still drying it out. Another thing: I've been using a silicon leaf-coat once a week on it. Should I stop with this?

As for the buds, is it possible that they are just really dense? that was my impression, because when I try to train it, they are heavy and close together.

So in terms of water (after it dries up from the flush), I should stop with the Bloombastic and just use straight water?

Really appreciate it!

 

[Eledin]

Ill let Bdubs handle your problem he is doing great explanations but just in case youre spraying that silicon coating, yes, stop. Never ever spray a plant during flower, youre gonna smoke every residue that stays on the pistils from early flower to the buds in late flower. Maybe youre using a brush I dont know, but even then Id be very careful for it not to splash in the buds. The only time I ever sprayed my plants in flower was with water and hydrogen peroxide because I wanted to save a plant for kief that had a spider mite infection, and I had to wash it after I cuted it (It was a beatiful plant and I didnt want it to go to waste). If youre spraying that stuff, or any stuff at all, you must clean them with a bath once you cut them and then dry them with a fan before hanging them to dry.

 

[Eledin]

Bud washing. In case you dont have pests you dont need to use hydrogen peroxide or baking soda with lemon, but it helps remove other stuff like dust, nicotine and other smoke related stuff (if you have an indoor inside the house and youre a smoker), dead bugs (specially if you had a really bad gnat infection, they tend to stick to the buds and die), would also help with the silicon, etc... If you wanna go straight to the point of "how to" its marked at minute 5:23

Also you might cause mold and rotting by spraying it during late flower, the buds accumulate a lot of humidity. Another thing is that you shouldnt spray them when the lights are on and you should dry them asap or just do it right before the lights go off. I have the feeling that part of your problem is caused by the spraying.
As for the nitrogen toxicity, it looks similar, shiny green leaves, but I expect to see more clawing if its that advanced, theyre shiny most likely because of the silicon, but its worth tackling every possible problem and maybe even if its not the main problem it does have a bit of excess nitrogen, I see a bit of clawing just not enough to justify the plant being in such state.
EDIT: Forgot to mention, if you are indeed spraying them, dont be shy with the washing, move them slow but for a long time, inhaling silica dust can leave you with a permanent disease called silicosis which scars your lungs (silica dust are very very tiny crystals, harmless to the skin but not to the lungs) and inflamates them.

 

[Irie_man]

Bud washing. In case you dont have pests you dont need to use hydrogen peroxide or baking soda with lemon, but it helps remove other stuff like dust, nicotine and other smoke related stuff (if you have an indoor inside the house and youre a smoker), dead bugs (specially if you had a really bad gnat infection, they tend to stick to the buds and die), would also help with the silicon, etc... If you wanna go straight to the point of "how to" its marked at minute 5:23

Also you might cause mold and rotting by spraying it during late flower, the buds accumulate a lot of humidity. Another thing is that you shouldnt spray them when the lights are on and you should dry them asap or just do it right before the lights go off. I have the feeling that part of your problem is caused by the spraying.
As for the nitrogen toxicity, it looks similar, shiny green leaves, but I expect to see more clawing if its that advanced, theyre shiny most likely because of the silicon, but its worth tackling every possible problem and maybe even if its not the main problem it does have a bit of excess nitrogen, I see a bit of clawing just not enough to justify the plant being in such state.
EDIT: Forgot to mention, if you are indeed spraying them, dont be shy with the washing, move them slow but for a long time, inhaling silica dust can leave you with a permanent disease called silicosis which scars your lungs (silica dust are very very tiny crystals, harmless to the skin but not to the lungs) and inflamates them.

Oops... I took a closer look. It is Bio-Bizz Leaf-Coat made of natural latex. They claim that it biodegrades within two weeks.


Leaf-Coat is a ready-to-use product that strengthens and protects plants against unwanted insects and damaging leaf fungi. Made from natural latex that was originally developed to prevent evaporation, it creates a permeable, self-degradable barrier on the leaf, which still allows air and light to get through.

There's no need to mix Leaf-Coat with water — simply apply straight from the bottle, preferably from an atomiser. Spray the leaves and flowers completely, and repeat this about two times a week until a fortnight before the end of the flowering period. Within a few hours of application, a very thin elastic layer — 1.5 microns thick — forms on the leaves. Its beneficial effects last for up to two weeks until it is naturally decomposed by light or sunlight.

 

[KushCultivator]

It looks like you might need to adjust your nutrient levels.