Possible damping off, help please

[SativaBob]

First grow but I have a lot of gardening experience that isn't helping me very much, hah. My 2 bag seeds popped at the start of the month so they're 24 days in the soil at this point. They're in organic soil and I've been watering every couple days with tap water or when the pots feel light. They've been outside for most of their life but a few rainy days under a 75 watt grow light. I was watering with a spray bottle, a little bit every day at first but then switched to watering through which I think is where I went wrong... kind of wondering what I should do now as I think they're damping off and I don't want to lose them. Should I transplant into better draining medium? It's been 4 days since I've water them and they still feel kind of bottom heavy. Thanks for any advice you all can give!

 

[GNick55]

usually burnt tips like that and the lighter in colour look is from too much watering..
should just keep them under the light (keep far from plants). until they are good and healthy, obviously watch your watering.
quit taking them outside until better or plant them in the ground when they are better.
putting outside than inside will bring in pest or mildew to your indoor grow.

 

[SativaBob]

usually burnt tips like that and the lighter in colour look is from too much watering..
should just keep them under the light (keep far from plants). until they are good and healthy, obviously watch your watering.
quit taking them outside until better or plant them in the ground when they are better.
putting outside than inside will bring in pest or mildew to your indoor grow.

Thanks for the reply. I don't really have an indoor setup at the moment all I have is a full spectrum 75 watt light that I can use. I have only brought them in when there were heavy rains for a few days but they never got wet. Theyve been outside other than that.

I'll bring them in though and keep them under the light until they look healthier and I'll watch the watering.

How far away from the light should they be? Should I transplant into a slightly bigger pot with medium that drains better to help them dry out?
Thanks again for the help!

 

[GNick55]

just leave them in the pot you have. they need to be left alone, the light well like 2 ft?
the next time they need water., do this.,

 

[SativaBob]

just leave them in the pot you have. they need to be left alone, the light well like 2 ft?
the next time they need water., do this.,View attachment 1139045

Right on, thank you, man.
So for now I'll keep them 2 ft away from the light and try your watering technique next time I water.
I still can feel it's slightly damp when my finger is in the soil up to the first knuckle so maybe I'll try this in a couple days and report back.
Thanks again.

 

[GNick55]

ya if your questioning the feel of the pot than just leave it another day.
when plants are stressed everything slows down or even looks like it stops doing anything.
i’m going through it now meaning i’m waiting for my plants to need a watering as it’s been 5/6 days already but i did transplant and the next day went from a T5 light to a 1000 watt metal halide.

 

[SativaBob]

Ok, been a little while and I've watered 2 time since using the method in your video. I also cut the dead leaves off since they were totally dead..

They're not any worse I'd say but they're not really doing anything it seems but I assume the roots are doing their thing. How long you think until I see some sort of growth or clue that it's doing better? Although, I guess the fact that they're not dying means they're doing better.

 

[LexLuthor]

What kind of soil are you using? Looks like straight mulch.

 

[SativaBob]

What kind of soil are you using? Looks like straight mulch.

Honestly just some organic potting soil I had just bought for some potted veggies I have going on atm. In my OP I had suggested maybe the medium was holding too much water and that's what the issue is.
My local nursery has fox farm stuff and I've seen people using that for these kind of grows. Is that what I should get? Or what medium is good for a beginner? Any advice I'll take!
Thanks!

 

[lvstealth]

It will all depend on you.

I recommend soil. There are lots of ways to go with soil though so you will have to decide that.

I recommend water only for your first grow. You can use any "super soil" in the bottom 1/3 of the pot (I like nature's living concentrate or purple cow. Depending on where you are there are lots of choices) and a good potting soil (I love ff Coco loco but any good potting soil will work) in the remaining.

If you do the water only you won't have to worry about ph, just use tap water and let it sit for a day or two. Or buying, measuring and dosing nutrients, the soil provides what the plant needs.

You can work on basic things like watering. Don't water on a time line, lift the container and you will feel when it is light and needs water.

If done right, a 24 day old plant should be much larger.

You might want to continue your effort with this one, but also get the right medium and maybe a light, and start a new seed or two.

 

[LexLuthor]

Honestly just some organic potting soil I had just bought for some potted veggies I have going on atm. In my OP I had suggested maybe the medium was holding too much water and that's what the issue is.
My local nursery has fox farm stuff and I've seen people using that for these kind of grows. Is that what I should get? Or what medium is good for a beginner? Any advice I'll take!
Thanks!

Yes, Ocean Forest is a decent soil, especially when you add a lil perlite to it. Damping off is when the stem dies off, so it doesn't really look like that from the pics. I think the soil is too dense and the roots lack oxygen. Another important factor, especially with seedlings, is proper irrigation. The pot looks like the correct size, so you should water the entire pot when you plant the seed, then allow the soil to dry back, however long it takes. When you add small amounts of water everyday, it will cause uneven moisture within the media and that will result in issues. So if these seedlings survive, I would transplant them into Ocean Forest when they get bigger and make sure you follow proper irrigation techniques. Good luck.

 

[GNick55]

post a picture?
the roots might of been already too far gone to bounce back healthy..

 

[SativaBob]

post a picture?
the roots might of been already too far gone to bounce back healthy..

This is them today. I think the roots are having a hard time growing through this soil. Main question is are they a lost cause or should I transplant into better draining soil?

 

[GNick55]

could be a lost cause but they are not dead either,
you might want to start some more and keep caring for those as they are small and probably not in the way to grow more.
maybe try some bag seed if you can get some and start a bunch and than keep a couple of the best so you can get the hang of things than get some feminized seeds once your more confident..

 

[GNick55]

just leave the seedlings be, dont transplant, not much to do other than wait and water when needed..
post on here daily before doing anything.

 

[SativaBob]

could be a lost cause but they are not dead either,
you might want to start some more and keep caring for those as they are small and probably not in the way to grow more.
maybe try some bag seed if you can get some and start a bunch and than keep a couple of the best so you can get the hang of things than get some feminized seeds once your more confident..

Thanks for the reply. These are bag seeds and do I have more to play with. I was planning on getting some fox farm soil this weekend and some other stuff and seeing what works best.
They are definitely alive and growing but it's super slow. I'll keep them going though and see what happens. Thanks for the advice.

 

[SativaBob]

I decided to transplant into to ocean forest soil. The little pots were not drying out at all and I had suspected the roots were suffocating. Turns out it seems I was right. When I popped the seedlings out of the little containers the soil was very wet and the roots were sitting in it and had been sitting like that for over a month. Check the picture below... the soil was majorly saturated.

The other seedling had a lot less roots going on but this one has already grown being in a new pot. I put them in a 5 gallon fabric pot and used 3/4 ocean forest with 1/4 perlite. Going to water only when needed and see where they go.

Already looking a little better after a few days.

 

[Madmax]

Honestly bro id start again with some more beans..they wont eventuate into anything much .you can keep them alive if you like but in the meantime get some more going is the best option..

 

[SativaBob]

Honestly bro id start again with some more beans..they wont eventuate into anything much .you can keep them alive if you like but in the meantime get some more going is the best option..

I think that's the plan. I'm holding space for some clones I'm getting in a few weeks so I'll keep these 2 going and maybe start some new bag seeds as well.
Thanks for all the advice, everyone. If anything changes with these 2 specifically I'll post back at some point.

 

[Rootbound]

I think that's the plan. I'm holding space for some clones I'm getting in a few weeks so I'll keep these 2 going and maybe start some new bag seeds as well.
Thanks for all the advice, everyone. If anything changes with these 2 specifically I'll post back at some point.

I would keep them going also. They look better already compared to the first pic.