Rookie with some Seeds Q's?

[Datsik]

Im in the dreaded section of every farmer (lol:mad: ) with some questions about seedlings
Ill let everyone in on what i did before this happened
I germed the seeds with the paper towel method for almost 2 days
Then I carefully transplanted them into 1/2 gal. coco pots that I had already prepared 2 days earlier with RO water, Cal mag @ 200 ppms and some Gnatrol @ ph 5.8 to get an early combat against any possible pests in the future Im scared shitless of BTW along with a pinch of great white in the transplant hole.

After I transplanted I lightly watered them about 2-3 oz of the solution and I
put them under a new 4 lamp t5 I got for them with a heat mat.
Temps have been on the higher side, and humidity was on the low, I fixed the humidifier and its been on all day today

3 days later (today) all have sprouted but 2. One which did not make it from the beginning showing signs of stem and cotyledon rotting that got tossed

And the other which looked fine last night, besides the start off drooped cotyledons has just pretty much died on me as of now :(.
Before I start 2 more seeds to replace them I really would like to know wtf happened and where I made the mistake.
Doing some research it seems like damping off, I just dont know why it would only happen to 2 seeds and not the other 7


-My concerns are looking at the picture does it look like damping off?
-Is this a common occurrence with other farmers? being my third time popping seeds I have not had this happen before.
-I read damping off can be spread to others seeds like a fungal infection is this true?

-Before I forget to add I lowered my T5's to about 6" above them with a small 6" fan blowing lightly over them, the stressed seedling was the second closest to the fan fwiw

-Should the seedling be getting a light breeze to the point of slight sway? I did think of VPD

-Does watering with my solution of Ro, cal mag and Gnatrol seem efficient and safe for a seedling?
or should I be feeding with just Ro water or even my tap water that comes out 140 ppms?
Reason asking is because I dont want to do any harm to the other seedlings by overfeeding. Im still very new to this.

-How can I be sure not to cause this again?

Any and all tips and suggestions are MUCH appreciated!! Thanks in advance farm

Here are some pics with my other ones that I "think" look healthy so far at least I hope so.
Ill just let the experienced be the judge.

 

[ProdigyGrower]

this is how do it with amazing success i soak seed for 12 to 24 hrs in half ro and half tap maybe a drop of super thrive then i transplant in to a dix cup with some bennies hygrozyme and a lil superthrive they go under a t5 ho until they pop if they look a lil dry they get sprayed WITH RO from a spray bottle hope this helpsl. i never use cal mag until they star to yellow they enough nutes stored in the seed to survive for a lil bit and i never spray with an insecticide i think those 2 thing were your problem don't get to ahead of your self let the plant tell you what she needs.

 

[Datsik]

Whats up PG??
Thanks for the tips!
Have you ever had this happen to you with all those infamous beans Ive seen you pop?
It was heartbreaking to just walk in and it lookin basically dead, even stranger my other 7 look just fin, my heads hurting from scratching it so hard damn it lol
I just dont want this to happen again, it happened SO fast

Gnatrol isnt an insecticide, Its a BTI or biological larvicide meant to stop fungus gnats, that didnt add any ppms of course so I dont think it could have been that imo

As for using cal mag, I was thinking it was better than using ro water because Ive heard ro strips all nutes from the medium and plant as well.
Also taking into consideration I flushed the coco with it like Ive always done before transplanting in coco, now im no expert but Ive heard numerous time from the big boys your suppose to flush and charge with esp. with coco.

Do you do that with your coco when poppin the beans PG?
How far you keeping that T5 from them?
Ive read just a couple inchs is ok, but is that really ideal to have them so close with a small fan basically blowing on them to?
Can a seedling have to much airflow?

All help is appreciated everyone

 

[ProdigyGrower]

Honestly bro I have never rinsed my coco i did once and it was a bitch so i use my botanicare coco grow rite out the bag. The only thing i add is some myco or azos bennies. I usually keep them 4 to 6 inches from the tops with a lil clip on air king fan blowing on them. I have never had stuff like that happen damping off i have had once but if my seeds didnt crack when i soaked them they didnt come up most of the time other than that i have really good germ rates. I also like using rapid rooters as well. They work really good i would just water with ro hygrozyme and some bennies and a drop of superthrive this has ben really good to me. I have popped 100's of seeds and this way works the best try it out and see how it works for you. The amount of hygrozyme i use its usally 5 to 6ml per gallon seedlings dnt need much for real buddy i think your just over thinking it. I understand especially if they are seeds you really wanted and took 4ever to get. Keep it simple i know you will do fine. Oh for rinsing coco i actually have ben using used coco for like my new rooted clones and stuff and still didnt rise the coco and couldnt tell a difference but i think thats because i water with just fresh ph'ed ro every 3 or 4th watering. Next time you transplant use one rinsed coco and one straight out of the bag. I would never tell you to do something i havent done first hand with good results any thing else buddy just get at me that's why i'm here. Oh i do think you can have too much air flow have you ever heard of or see wind burn? just a nice steady breez will do for seedling imop.

 

[true grit]

What up? First of all lemme tell ya- don't be worried about losing a few seedlings, best thing to learn is to not discouraged when ya lose some plants. Always more beans, always more plants.

Second- everyone makes this a bit too complicated. For me popping beans is an easy deal. And only takes a few steps-
1. pop seed into moistened rapid rooter
2. mist with tap water to keep moist/not wet
3. let them pop in a dome but make sure to pull dome off regularly so that they don't get used to too high RH (dome is just to keep rooters moist)
4. when your root tails are poking out, up pot to some beer cups of coco.
5. at that point give them like a 1/2 strength feed til they start showing growth and work up to full feed as they develop

I don't start using RO or nutes until they are transplanted with a decent tap root into the beer cups. I usually keep lights about 6-10" away from plants, just depends on light intensity and working to keep stretch down. I usually lose/cull at least a couple seedlings each pop. I also never pre-wash or pre-charge coco. Just straight out the bag to transplant to feed.

hope that helps out some! good luck

 

[Datsik]

Thanks TG and PG
So waking up today I found another seedling that did the same thing and basically died on me...
This shit is getting frustrating as hell, of course there some beans ive been waiting forever to get my hands on..

whats bothering me the most is NOT knowing why the hell it happened
Yo TG when you lost a couple beans did they look like my pictures?
They look like they were just dried out, kinda like a clone that got the dome taken off to early
I put a dome on them today in hopes of not losing the others.

Ive already lost 3 and wouldnt be surprised if it happens again, it just happens way to fast

Going crazy over here :mad::( Like WTF!!???

Does anyone know what to do to make not happen or does this happen to others to?

 

[Datsik]

And now from experience I can tell its gonna happen to another one

4 seedlings already?! AGRRR what the hell am I doing wrong guys?

 

[Schwoop]

less is more with seedlings, gotta kid glove them tell they get a few leafs, they dont need much, support and water really, and make sure the mix isn't real hot.

 

[crom]

What strain are you growing and where did you get it? The one picture with the hairy leaflet looks like a mutant. Could your problem be bad seed? I like to soak seed in a shot glass of RO over night or till they sink. After that most seeds are almost cracked, some are. This is dependent on the freshness of the seeds too. After the soak I go to a wet paper towel, or 15 lol Keep it moist but not soaked by putting it on an angle with a tupperware lid in a tupperware container. As soon as the root tip is about an 1/8th" it's going into it's medium. I never charged coco either. Though I will water the medium, such as coco or soil, with some Great White, and Rapid Start pHed properly for the medium. I then use a chopstick to poke a hole for the seed to sit go in. Ensure that your hole isn't more then double the width of the seed itself, or it might use too much stored energy to get above soil, thus stunting and killing them. Try direct sowing your seed just like mentioned above, without all the soaking and/or paper toweling. I would also stay clear of anything in your watering except RO and a quarter strength dose of calmg if your concerned about your cal/mg with RO. OR just use straight tap water pHed. Either way don't feed till a few leaves are present and they "look" hungry. Meaning the leaves look like they are providing the nutrients rather then your feed water. This means there is nothing in the rhizosphere feeding the baby seedling so it is turning to it's stored food in it's leaves for food. This is when I start to feed. When the plant shows me it's first issue with nutes. I highly recommend using organics when plants are young, even if you can't continue organically for veg/bloom, because it's super hard to "burn" a plant with organics. Also ensure your medium isn't compacted. This could also make it harder for the seedling to set roots, stunting up top above the soil line as well. As far as light goes, you don't need a ton of it. I have a seedling/cutting three shelf plastic lined metal setup with single T5s above each shelf. The top shelf is used for trays that the plants are too tall for under the shelf lighting. The T5 for the top shelf is a 4' single bulb. Though the whole 4x8 tent is lit by a 400w mh in the center of a 4x8. This is supplemental light for the seedlings/clones, and it keeps cuts and mothers in check with their growth. I don't like a fast vegging mother room by any means! Anyway point is as long as the light isn't heating the tops of the seedlings you should be okay. Maybe 4-6" above? Ahhhhh Anything else I missed? lol Hope this helps/makes sense! Best of luck bro!

Cheers,
Crom

 

[Datsik]

Wow Crom thanks for the detailed response!
Ive never had a mutant before that just randomly dies on me, has this happened to you?
I dont understand why they would start off good and go south so quick?
The beans are Lemon Alien Dawgs from big Alien, I did basically your exact method except I went straight to the towel(fluffed up with a fork and even used 1/4 strength RE ph'ed to), although im germing 2 more in the shot glass and from there to the paper towel and gonna give it another shot in coco with just tap water this time(crossing fingers), maybe the cal was a lil much on them? I have no idea and my ocd's getting on my nerves with it lol

I still keep thinking damping off but most people I see who thought they had said that there seedling tipped over, But mine didnt...
I see people treating with fungicides for damping off?

I seriously think these other ones I have are just gonna take a dump on me and do the same thing, even tho they look fine speaking of.... Heres a pic of it happening to yet another :/...
And a healthy one thatll probably end up dying tomorrow if i dont figure this out

this whole mishap fucked my summer plans up,
It all sounds sounded so good what I was gonna do with these beans.... FML

 

[entropy99]

Yes, you can treat damping off with some fungicides. It has to specifically target damping off though, as it's not your 'regular' mold. Damping of is caused by either Pythium or Phytophthora species, both of which are actually oomycetes (water molds) rather than actual fungi.

 

[crom]

Overwatering will lead to fungus gnats, and possibly dampening off. Do the seedlings have a white crusty salt build up looking ring around the soil line on the stem? That is an indicator of Dampening off. Best of luck with these bro!

Crom

 

[Schwoop]

pic 2 is a out to burn up IMVHO, to close to light or to hot out, or soils to hot. Id put a clear plastic cup over her to raise humidity and get her moist again! I never use the word moist, nothings moist except 1 thing in my world! LMAO!

 

[ethnoman]

What kind of soil are you using? Poor soils can favor pathogens such as damping off. Healthy soils are less likely to produce problems for your plants. Using a microflora inoculant like Cap's bennies might help.

 

[Datsik]

Yes, you can treat damping off with some fungicides. It has to specifically target damping off though, as it's not your 'regular' mold. Damping of is caused by either Pythium or Phytophthora species, both of which are actually oomycetes (water molds) rather than actual fungi.

Have you had any experience with damping off fungicides or damping off?

Overwatering will lead to fungus gnats, and possibly dampening off. Do the seedlings have a white crusty salt build up looking ring around the soil line on the stem? That is an indicator of Dampening off. Best of luck with these bro!

Crom

I hear ya crom when I flushed the Coco I waited 2 days b4 i put the beans in, then once I did I gave em maybe 2 oz of water, Im thinking it wasnt that, pulled out the dead ones and they def had new root growth that looked healthy white, and not slimy brown like I would think overwated roots would look like

Although yet another one is slowly dieing, It was limped over and the base of the stem was skinnier than the top, if that makes sense :mad:

Any suggestions anyone?

pic 2 is a out to burn up IMVHO, to close to light or to hot out, or soils to hot. Id put a clear plastic cup over her to raise humidity and get her moist again! I never use the word moist, nothings moist except 1 thing in my world! LMAO!

Lol thanks Schwoop, Do you think it was the cal mag @ 200 ppms that burned them?
Thats the only thing that could have possibly done it because im not in soil but coco
But then I think ro water with cal mag is basically the same think as tap water am I right?
I put a dome on them last night, ones limping now...
Looks like ima have to get me some God gear pretty damn soon lol

What kind of soil are you using? Poor soils can favor pathogens such as damping off. Healthy soils are less likely to produce problems for your plants. Using a microflora inoculant like Cap's bennies might help.

canna coco, fwiw I did drop some of caps foilar pack for them...

Fuck waking up to this shit Im about to pluck em Im so fed up with it not knowing what the hell my mistake is, I dont see to many differences in what Im doing compared to you guys, Ive NEVER had these damn issues with any seedlings... Complete BS :confused:

I thank ALL of you once again for talking time to come to my rookie aid, thats some good karma!

 

[doubletree]

hey dude, don't rip em out yet. be patient and work out what the problem is. if u do that then u are less likely to run into the same prioblem again, every mistake is a lesson and every problem is chance to learn how to avoid it in future.

 

[green punk]

Dont use coco. Put seeds in media when tail is, shorter than .5 inches. Use whitneys seed starter mixed 3 to 2 or even 4 to 1 with happy frog or similar. In a solo cup or similar. Water once before you put sprout in, wait until its obvious seedling needs it. Then water with light kelp solution, the soil will have plent of nutes to get to 3rd set of leaves. Keep lights atleast 6 inches away for a bit until they have good roots. Blow fan across at lower speeds. Try keep humidity 50 ish and temp below 80 Good luck.

 

[crom]

^^Good info.

 

[ProdigyGrower]

I have popped 100's of seeds in pure coco and never had a problem.

 

[Alien]

Those are definitely burn issues.

I would recommend exactly what Green Punk and Crom said above...looks like a bad batch of coco...starting in mellow soil works 100% every time. Actually, if you are a new grower, I can not recommend enough switching to soil and organics now. It's way simpler, MUCH superior product, and you will end up saving yourself a lot of time and research. Just my .o2...

If you can't pull these little ones through, hit me up again via PM and I'll drop you another pack. Want to see you off to a solid start.

Best of luck...thanks to everyone in this thread for chiming in and helping out Datsik....much appreciated.

Cheers,
A



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