Help assess my plant’s issues!

[RoadKillSkunkHunt]

This is my first grow in coco. I have been using the same lighting techniques with an organic, living soil bed with no issues like this.

Nobody will dispute that. When things are going well, its easy. When things get a bit difficult, it takes some experience to sort through it all. You're in a place where there's boatloads of experience. We'll help you sort this out.

 

[GreendangerMN]

Nobody will dispute that. When things are going well, its easy. When things get a bit difficult, it takes some experience to sort through it all. You're in a place where there's boatloads of experience. We'll help you sort this out

 

[ArtfulCodger]

This is my first grow in coco. I have been using the same lighting techniques with an organic, living soil bed with no issues like this.

Coco and living soil are very different, in a bunch of ways. How often and how much have you been watering?

 

[Ninjadogma]

All the light manufacturers' and influencers' charts notwithstanding, it's all about what the plants show us.

Amen to that!

 

[GreendangerMN]

And yet it didn't improve, right? I suggest taking the chance and bumping it up just a smidge to 6. We've got people who say 5.5-6.5 is fine in coco but you can look at those charts and see for yourself, just below 6.0... like somewhere around 5.95 or so, plants can't make use of calcium even if it's available to them.

Where I see folks have success is they'll start in the lower pH range in soulless mediums (haha, autocorrect did that and I'm leaving it!) like 5.6-5.8 and as the plant gets a little bigger they move it to 5.8-6.0 as the nutrient demand shifts.

But at the end of the day here's my take. Younger plants don't have much need for calcium yet and they are normally able to metabolize what little they need, except for one problem. And that is the electromagnetic wavelength generated by LED lighting strips it of its calcium and magnesium and it leads to a deficiency you wouldn't encounter normally until a later stage where you would have already adjusted to a slightly higher pH in preparation of the demand.

So like what do ya do... add more cal mag? Back off the lighting? Adjust your pH?

And just a final thought, not sure how you are getting your pH readings but if it's a digital pen they are prone to being off a little, so you could be even lower than you think... but strips or reacting agent drops, not so much.

Thank you so much for your thoughts! Very helpful to a new grower like myself. I will bump the ph up a bit and I will calibrate my ph meter before my next feeding. I did splurge and buy a decent ph meter in the Hanna Edge bench meter. So far, I'm very impressed with it. Thanks again and I'll keep ya updated. Cheers!

 

[GreendangerMN]

Coco and living soil are very different, in a bunch of ways. How often and how much have you been watering?

Thanks. I'm aware they are different, that is why I posted this. This is my first time growing in coco and I'm trying to get some help.

 

[ArtfulCodger]

Thanks. I'm aware they are different, that is why I posted this. This is my first time growing in coco and I'm trying to get some help.

Gotcha. How often and how much are you watering?

 

[GreendangerMN]

Gotcha. How often and how much are you watering?

I've watered twice after transplant, both with too strong of a nutrient solution. I plan to water with plain water next then cut my EC down a bunch.

 

[Ninjadogma]

Thank you so much for your thoughts! Very helpful to a new grower like myself. I will bump the ph up a bit and I will calibrate my ph meter before my next feeding. I did splurge and buy a decent ph meter in the Hanna Edge bench meter. So far, I'm very impressed with it. Thanks again and I'll keep ya updated. Cheers!

WAIT!!!!! If you are adjusting, I would suggest not recalibrating your pen right away, otherwise you may have no good reference for your 0.1 adjustment. Do you have a pool test kit around or can you borrow one from a neighbor? You can check your pen's accuracy side by side with some red phenol drops and get an idea how much you are off, but for the sake of your adjustment, leave it be until after.

 

[RoadKillSkunkHunt]

WAIT!!!!! If you are adjusting, I would suggest not recalibrating your pen right away, otherwise you may have no good reference for your 0.1 adjustment. Do you have a pool test kit around or can you borrow one from a neighbor? You can check your pen's accuracy side by side with some red phenol drops and get an idea how much you are off, but for the sake of your adjustment, leave it be until after.

You can also usually find pH reference drops where they sell fish supplies. Walmart carries it for example.

 

[Ninjadogma]

You can also usually find pH reference drops where they sell fish supplies. Walmart carries it for example.

I forgot that. I'm in Southern Cal, everybody has a pool!

 

[closettrapper217]

I have been adding Cal/Mag to each feeding.

Alright and I saw you went from living soil to coco. You aren’t allowing the coco to dry back like you were with soil right ? The first thing I had to learn when I switched to coco is that it is not soil lol you need to keep the medium wet so no dry backs. I feed every day.

If you’re already doing this I apologize but too much of a dry back or not watering to runoff could cause some salt build up which would cause lockout.