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Tank59 · May 23, 2019

Hi, I'm new here and also to growing.
I've been doing a fair amount of research on growing and when to transplant but I think I messed up, got into my head and ahead of myself and transplanted too early.
So online I found a few different sources that said once you see roots trying to grow out of the small seedling pot drain holes it was time to transplant, well it's been 2.5 weeks since planting the seeds, I had some stretching which was why I decided it was time to transplant them when I saw roots poking through the drain holes. I wanted to burry the stems of the stretched seedlings so I decided today to go ahead and transplant but when I did this I noticed the roots hadn't grown as much as all the pictures I see people posting of very nice root systems, I'm now concerned I'm going to kill my plants by doing this too soon.
I would appreciate any insight. Thanks in advance

Dan789 · May 24, 2019

The seedlings will continue to grow roots no matter where they are (assuming buried in soil here) so nothing to be done except wait and attend your plant, watering as necessary. Keep the humidity up and water around under the canopy edge not at the stem. Light not too intense and not too close also. Good growing and welcome to the farm.

Tank59 · May 25, 2019

Dan789 said:
The seedlings will continue to grow roots no matter where they are (assuming buried in soil here) so nothing to be done except wait and attend your plant, watering as necessary. Keep the humidity up and water around under the canopy edge not at the stem. Light not too intense and not too close also. Good growing and welcome to the farm.

Awesome, I thought because they would've been too young and the root system was so small it'd been too fragile for transplanting and I shocked them and it was a matter of time before they died. However they actually look like they're doing well in their new pots.
Thanks for the tips Dan789, much appreciated.

Dan789 · May 25, 2019

Tank59 said:
Awesome, I thought because they would've been too young and the root system was so small it'd been too fragile for transplanting and I shocked them and it was a matter of time before they died. However they actually look like they're doing well in their new pots.
Thanks for the tips Dan789, much appreciated.

As you may be surmising seedlings are a tough stage to get through, fragile, easy to over water and takes forever for the roots to get going. In my seedling/clone tent I run a humidifier @75%, keep the light (fluorescent) at least 14”-16” away, watering sparingly 10ml at a time. Took four weeks before the plant was moved into a one gallon container, initially from the seedling tray, then solo cup. Keep a little clip on fan breeze going on to strengthen the stem, 3-4’ away.

Jimster · May 25, 2019

I prefer NOT to transplant, instead, I plant the seedling directly into it's final growing container. Seedlings and their root systems are ridiculously fragile, and any mistakes could take weeks to correct. Since they are already transplanted, the best you can do is to encourage them to grow, but don't make it too hard on them by mistake. Like was said earlier, water around the edges of the leaves, not at the stem, at least until it is well established, and don't be afraid to prop up any that fall over! One advantage of planting directly is that the roots will follow the slowly drying medium if you pre-soak your container of growing medium a few days before planting any seedlings. I sometimes put a very small piece of soil to partially cover the seedling if it is at soil level and just coming up. There are a million different methods that growers use... the best thing is to know a few of them, that way you have more than one option if problems arise. Different growers use different techniques, but most of them do a fine job with their personal process. There is no wrong way to do it except to drown the seedling, which is easy to avoid with a little practice and advice from other growers that use your style of growing. Good Luck!!

Mr Bee · May 25, 2019

Just go easy on the watering and let the soil dry out a good bit between waterings.your trying to get your roots to go out searching for water all around the soil.wen they'r pretty wet they dont need to search as much that's y it's better to go light wen watering.its a balance u need to get right.youl perfect it over time

Tank59 · May 26, 2019

Can anyone tell me if this is normal or if it is mold? A friend of a friend had very similar fuzzy looking stuff on the surface of the soil he was growing in, he became concerned and ditched all the soil and went to the local hydroponic shop to purchase more soil and the guy working told him that it was normal and not to be alarmed.. I'm not sure whether or not this is true.
I'm using MO KOKO with nutrients I was sold from the local shop, I forget what it is as I threw the bag out lol it's brown powder that I mixed in with the MO KOKO, they highly recommended it(it's all natural, had bat guano, blood meal and a bunch of other stuff).
I'm growing in smart pots, and I have a fan running for the majority of the day, my temps are 70-75 with a humidity of 65-70, all 4 of my plants pots look like this and it's again making me nervous.

Jimster · May 26, 2019

Looks like mold/mildew to me. This isn't the end of the world and can usually be corrected by either letting the medium dry out , lower the relative humidity, and/or treat with a appropriate cure. Mold/mildew is everywhere and it is usually treatable with a little planning and adjustments. Mold needs a lot of relative humidity, so letting the soil dry out a little will help to keep it in check. It is probably all thru your growing containers and might have come with your growing medium. Once the top crust of the dirt dries, the mold will probably disappear. Good luck, don't sweat it... it is part of growing and today you learned something new! :cool:

Tank59 · May 26, 2019

Jimster said:
Looks like mold/mildew to me. This isn't the end of the world and can usually be corrected by either letting the medium dry out , lower the relative humidity, and/or treat with a appropriate cure. Mold/mildew is everywhere and it is usually treatable with a little planning and adjustments. Mold needs a lot of relative humidity, so letting the soil dry out a little will help to keep it in check. It is probably all thru your growing containers and might have come with your growing medium. Once the top crust of the dirt dries, the mold will probably disappear. Good luck, don't sweat it... it is part of growing and today you learned something new! :cool:

Awesome, this is great news, I was going to put them outside in the sun for an hour or 2 tomorrow to help dry the medium. Is there any advice for trying to bring my humidity down?

Jimster · May 26, 2019

Tank59 said:
Awesome, this is great news, I was going to put them outside in the sun for an hour or 2 tomorrow to help dry the medium. Is there any advice for trying to bring my humidity down?

There are a lot of ways to help control humidity, unfortunately, most involve an air conditioner or a dehumidifier. Keeping the air circulating will help to keep it at bay as well. The mold problem might be temporary as well. Mold is everywhere and plants have evolved to fight it to some degree. When things really get growing, humidity might be even harder to control. If you have air-conditioning, using some of it's drier air can help if you can pipe it into your tent or room. Don't consider any of those humidity removal pouches, which are sold for storing clothes in closets. They will be overwhelmed within a day.

Tank59 · May 26, 2019

Jimster said:
There are a lot of ways to help control humidity, unfortunately, most involve an air conditioner or a dehumidifier. Keeping the air circulating will help to keep it at bay as well. The mold problem might be temporary as well. Mold is everywhere and plants have evolved to fight it to some degree. When things really get growing, humidity might be even harder to control. If you have air-conditioning, using some of it's drier air can help if you can pipe it into your tent or room. Don't consider any of those humidity removal pouches, which are sold for storing clothes in closets. They will be overwhelmed within a day.

I do plan on moving these plants outside once they get a little bigger, I just understand that the seedling stage is one of the most important stages as they are very fragile and I want to be safe and keep them alive with minimal set backs lol

Dan789 · May 27, 2019

Jimster said:
Seedlings and their root systems are ridiculously fragile, and any mistakes could take weeks to correct.

As @Jimster posted about roots being fragile and to help protect seedlings roots my method includes splitting a root riot cube halfway through, lay the seedling into, then re-close and place the cube into the cloning tray. From then on, as the seedlings roots grow out they have something to add protection...

Jimster · May 27, 2019

FWIW, once my seeds have sprouted, the only time I touch them is to plant into my Promix/bucket. I don't touch them again... even to help the seeds casing to drop off, as I have been very careful before but never careful enough not to hurt them in some way. I plant once the root tip is about an inch long, but don't touch it again until the seed case comes off and the initial seeds leaves have opened. Once they have decent roots, they are pretty hardy.

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