Seedling Appears Healthy But Leaves Bending Downwards

[TheDankest]

Good afternoon fellow farmers! I'm a new grower and I had a question so I can hopefully rectify my situation (if necessary) before it potentially becomes a bigger problem. There's so much conflicting information online about humidity, temperature, VPD, pH, ventilation, light type/intensity etc and was hoping to get some advice from some experienced indoor growers.

Upon inspecting my seedling this morning, I noticed its leaves are curled downward slightly. The plant itself still looks very healthy, I'm just unsure if this is a normal amount of bending in the leaves or if it's the beginning of a problem in need of correction. Here is some information on the seedling:

Strain: Purple Punch Feminized from Seed Supreme
Grow Space: 2'x4' Indoor Grow Tent (AC Infinity Cloudlab 642)
Grow Light: AC Infinity IONFRAME EVO3 - 18" above seedling on setting 4 on an 18on/6off cycle (as per manufacturer spec)
Ventilation: AC Infinity 4" Air Filtration PRO Kit w/ carbon filter - Currently have this set to run at setting 3 on a 24/7 basis, only going up as needed to correct temperature
Intake: RAXIAL S4 4" Booster Duct Fan - This is installed but not running, I seem to be getting enough passive intake with the exhaust fan to create negative pressure and draw air in on its own
Oscillating Fan: AC Infinity CLOUDRAY S6 - Currently running at setting 2 on a 24/7 basis (not directly blowing on seedling)
Custom Soil Mix: (1) 40QT bag Kellogg Organic Plus Potting Mix, (1) 1.4lb Coco Coir brick rehydrated with 1gal warm water for 15 minutes, mixed until soil like consistency, 2.5 cups Uncle Jim's Worm Castings, 4 Quarts Perlite, 1 Quart Vermiculite - soil is currently sitting at a pH of 7.0
Average Temperature: 75°F
Average Humidity: 75%
Average VPD: 0.7
Time In Tent: As of this posting, the seedling as been in the tent for 6 days. Before planting in soil and placing in the tent, the seedling had about a 1.5cm taproot and fully emerged from the soil the morning after placing it in the grow tent (Not sure if this info is necessary)
Watering: So far, I watered this seedling with 6.3pH RO water the day I transplanted it into the soil and haven't watered it since. The humidity seems to be keeping the soil moist while still allowing it to dry slightly (the top inch or so of soil is dry - not bone dry but doesn't feel too moist either) As you can see from the catch tray under the cup in the provided photos, the soil is able to drain excess moisture. I read an article the other day that I cannot seem to find again at the moment that said this is okay for a seedling as long as you have proper air circulation and ventilation, although I feel like this might potentially be the root of the problem

Hopefully this is a healthy plant, and I'm just being an overprotective plant dad.

If you guys need any more information to be able to give me an accurate and reliable diagnosis, let me know and I'll be more than happy to provide it!

Thank you in advance for taking a look at my post and providing any feedback.

 

[iParkos]

If this was my plant I would not have any concerns. To me it just looks young and growing. Hopefully you’ll get more advice confirming this.

 

[cannafarmer420]

Maybe a touch too much light and/or water, also,
don't have see through containers for the root zone. Put it in another solo or make the outside not transparent asap without transplanting. ✌

 

[TheDankest]

Maybe a touch too much light and/or water, also,
don't have see through containers for the root zone. Put it in another solo or make the outside not transparent asap without transplanting. ✌

Great advice, thank you! I didn't even think of that, I just grabbed what I had in the cabinet. I hope the roots are still happy.

 

[SnoopingAsUsualI]

I would say the plant does not really look like it has any significant problem, perhaps it just needs time. On the second thought, Nitrogen, yes...like first easy stage of deficiency, judging by the color

 

[Waffleman]

Great advice, thank you! I didn't even think of that, I just grabbed what I had in the cabinet. I hope the roots are still happy.

Not sure why you seem so worried :p Looks like a pretty healthy seedling to me? It seems quite young so the leaves being a little droopy still isn't too bad. Just make sure not to overwater it. (don't dunk water in there). Other than that the roots are only just forming, doubt you will have any lasting issues

 

[SchwiftyGrower]

Maybe a touch too much light and/or water, also,
don't have see through containers for the root zone. Put it in another solo or make the outside not transparent asap without transplanting. ✌

Second this!

 

[TheDankest]

I would say the plant does not really look like it has any significant problem, perhaps it just needs time. On the second thought, Nitrogen, yes...like first easy stage of deficiency, judging by the color

I'll definitely keep an eye on the color. The photo does make it appear slightly less green and a little more yellow-ish than it is in person. What are your suggestions for nitrogen? I've seen anything from coffee grounds to manure to different meals (blood/feather). Any particular thing you've used that has had the greatest success? I'd probably steer clear of coffee grounds because I've read they can lower the pH of your soil and right now I have my soil at a sweet 7.0.

Not sure why you seem so worried :p Looks like a pretty healthy seedling to me? It seems quite young so the leaves being a little droopy still isn't too bad. Just make sure not to overwater it. (don't dunk water in there). Other than that the roots are only just forming, doubt you will have any lasting issues

I'm just nervous I'm going to do something wrong and greatly affect my end result, lol. I'm just growing for personal use for myself (and possibly my wife, but she prefers a vape over bud) so I'm only growing one plant at a time, I don't want to have an overabundance of weed that's no good by the time I get around to smoking it. Based on what I've seen online, I should only have to do two-three grows per year to be good. I go through roughly an eighth per week.

Just watered her for the first time this morning since putting her in the tent a week ago, the consistent climate in there kept her pretty moist for the last week. I just watered her with 6.3pH RO water at ~75 degrees. Slowly poured it around the cup until it just barely started draining out of the bottom. I also threw a cut out black sock around the base of the cup for now to protect the roots from the light.

Thanks for all the feedback so far! I'm thinking about making a journal for this grow and tracking it on here, I'm excited to see what the end result looks like.

 

[TheDankest]

Unfortunately it appears that my concerns might have had some merit behind them afterall. I woke up this morning and went to fill my humidifier, and this is how she's looking now. More yellowing of the leaves and a much more prominent "clawing" of the leaves. I get the feeling this is outside of a normal amount of curling. Let me know your thoughts!

 

[TheDankest]

So I left the plant alone for about a week, and each day it got worse and worse. About 3 or so days ago as a last effort to try and save it, I transplanted it into just straight coco coir/perlite mix. As you can see, she is not happy at all and I have no idea what's wrong.

I haven't watered it since I last posted, so I think we can rule overwatering out at this point.
The temperature has been very consistent between 74-80F and humidity between 60-70%.
A soil runoff test gave me a pH of 6.8, so there shouldn't be an issue there either.

I also have a second plant that finished germinating and instead of putting it in the custom soil mix I listed above, I just threw it in some potting soil. I don't believe it could be nutrient burn, but on the label, the potting soil lists the following: 00.30% Total Nitrogen 00.10% Available Phosphate 00.10% Soluble Potash

From the reading I've done, you don't want to feed until they're into their vegetative stage, but could this be a LACK of nutrients?

The first photo is of the second plant that's been in the tent for about a week now and is beginning to show the same signs as the first plant before turning into what looks like guaranteed death. The next 4 photos are of the original plant. Despite the fact the original plant looks like it'd be crunchy with how wilted it is, the leaves still feel pretty strong/soft, not crunchy in the slightest. Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

Thank you!

 

[Asmodeus]

All your environmental factors seem to be good, my best guess would be your medium. From the pics it looks very "mulchy". I've had good luck using happy frog for seedlings

 

[TheDankest]

All your environmental factors seem to be good, my best guess would be your medium. From the pics it looks very "mulchy". I've had good luck using happy frog for seedlings

Yeah, the potting mix I'm using is Kellogg's All Natural Organic Plus Potting Mix, which does seem to have a ton of wood in it. This caused concern for an acidic environment as it ages, but upon doing a pH runoff test on the soil, everything came back great.

Originally I started the first plant in a mix of Kellogg's All Natural Organic Plus Potting Mix, coco coir, worm castings, perlite, and vermiculite. I thought that was possibly the problem, so when I planted the second plant, I planted it directly into the Kellogg's Potting Mix without anything else added. This second plant is now starting to exhibit the same early symptoms as the first plant. What throws me off is that the soil pH is perfect, and this potting mix only contains 0.3% Nitrogen, 0.1% Phosphate, and 0.1% Potash, so I'm unsure why this soil would be doing this. As I mentioned in my previous reply, I transplanted the original plant into straight coco coir/perlite, but maybe it's too late for that one to come back?

I just put a third seedling in the tent the other day, and I'm nervous this one is going to end up the same. Perhaps I'll leave the original in the coco coir/perlite, the second in the plain Kellogg's Potting Mix (for now), and quickly change out the third into some Happy Frog per your suggestion and see what happens. Hopefully transplanting it into the Happy Frog with how small it is won't stress it out too much. This will be 3 of my 4 Purple Punch seeds wasted if they don't bounce back. I guess we'll have to move on to the free Blue Dream seeds that SeedSupreme sent me otherwise. Hopefully not, as I'm really looking forward to trying out some Purple Punch.

 

[Asmodeus]

Yeah, the potting mix I'm using is Kellogg's All Natural Organic Plus Potting Mix, which does seem to have a ton of wood in it. This caused concern for an acidic environment as it ages, but upon doing a pH runoff test on the soil, everything came back great.

Originally I started the first plant in a mix of Kellogg's All Natural Organic Plus Potting Mix, coco coir, worm castings, perlite, and vermiculite. I thought that was possibly the problem, so when I planted the second plant, I planted it directly into the Kellogg's Potting Mix without anything else added. This second plant is now starting to exhibit the same early symptoms as the first plant. What throws me off is that the soil pH is perfect, and this potting mix only contains 0.3% Nitrogen, 0.1% Phosphate, and 0.1% Potash, so I'm unsure why this soil would be doing this. As I mentioned in my previous reply, I transplanted the original plant into straight coco coir/perlite, but maybe it's too late for that one to come back?

I just put a third seedling in the tent the other day, and I'm nervous this one is going to end up the same. Perhaps I'll leave the original in the coco coir/perlite, the second in the plain Kellogg's Potting Mix (for now), and quickly change out the third into some Happy Frog per your suggestion and see what happens. Hopefully transplanting it into the Happy Frog with how small it is won't stress it out too much. This will be 3 of my 4 Purple Punch seeds wasted if they don't bounce back. I guess we'll have to move on to the free Blue Dream seeds that SeedSupreme sent me otherwise. Hopefully not, as I'm really looking forward to trying out some Purple Punch.

Sounds like you have a good plan in place. A couple things to keep in mind, seedlings that small do not like transplanting, and the one in coco will need a light boost of something at some point, as coco doesn't contain any nutes. Good luck man, hopefully you'll get one of those purple punches going!

 

[monkey47]

in my opinion its just a seed with bad genetics. It happens every now and then. Cannabis is super resilient thats why they call it a weed.
Your KPI s all look good. I personally think 6.8 is to high but if you are giving organic nutrients i wouldent worry about it either.

I would advice against letting the stem get to tall. It just gives more problems get a low wattage cfl and put it right above it.