Newbie Issues

[lux01]

If that's where they're at after 3 weeks, unless you've been keeping the medium too wet you pretty much have to blame the medium. Even in an inert medium like coco they would get bigger than that before starting to starve for food, so there is another problem even though they would be starving by this age if there was nitrogen lacking or locked out. But overwatering does look highly likely.

 

How many growers have started posts with problems here over the years where they are growing in potting mix, usually the stuff with bits of bark all through it. My guess is that aside from not being ideally suited to canna, it doesn't drain well which makes the tendency to overwater more of an issue.

 

Prep some new medium of some sort, if you want to use potting mix get a premium one like Searles Premium and mix in a bit of perlite, or if you want to stick with what you've got, at least give it a good flush with water and wring out the excess. Get them out of those cups, and if they aren't root bound gently get rid of the excess potting mix, and repot them in proper small pots. Then let them dry out a bit before watering. Hopefully that stem thinning isn't damping off.

 

Best of luck

thanks all.

 

Hashy, they're both bone dry tonight through to the bottom so I might give them a bit of water and repot tomoz. What type of medium do you suggest is best? I don't have to use potting mix.

 

Also keep in mind guys that a friend of mine with many years of growing experience has been using this seedling mix for years and has never had these problems. Albeit he's never used Autos and only grows in spring. Maybe my issues are a combo of over watering and a bad batch of seedling mix?

 

Anyway let's hope all your info saves the girls.

 

One more question: will Seasol boost nitrogen def?

Edited April 21, 2016 by lux01

[Sir PsychoHashy]

I believe seasol will boost nitrogen, but you need to fix whatever the problem is that's stopping them feeding and growing.

 

Personally, for autos, I strongly recommend any hydroponic medium, soil works but you really need a good custom mix and some auto growing experience.  In fact, experience is fairly vital for growing autos, as you just cannot afford anything short of perfect in their first few weeks of life or they just don't yield bugger all, as you will soon find out.

 

Best bet would be to duck into a hydroponics store if there's one handy and grab some quality coco, perlite, and coco specific nutrients, and repot into a 70/30 coco/perlite mix in a minimum 100mm pot, up to 175mm at this stage, the smaller pot will help prevent overwatering until they make a comeback, and feed them on quarter to half strength nutrients at PH 5.8.

 

If that's not an option, at the very least go to Bummings or a nursery and grab some perlite to mix into your potting mix, though I would recommend a potting mix like Searles Premium Potting mix over that as it's very light on bark and shit, not too heavy on fertilizers, and seems to get on with canna okay, but I would still bung some perlite in.  If you use the miracle grow, run a good flush of water through it, squeeze as much water out as possible, mix in some perlite, and repot into that.  Then water in a half strength Seasol mix and leave them be until the pots are mostly dried out.

 

You can very gently wash the excess old medium off the roots before repotting if you want, just be gentle.  They do look strongly of overwatering, so check the state of your roots, if they are brown, slimy, and off smelling, just bin them and start again. 

 

Hope you can get them to bounce back, but being autos in that state at 3 weeks they won't do much.  In theory they should be in preflower now and about to enter stretch phase, in practice that will be delayed a little due to the bad start but they still won't be properly established and big enough when it does kick in.  If they were photoperiod you can spend as much time as you need repairing a visit from the fuckup fairy, but not autos, which is why I recommend newbies leave them alone.  Best of luck, and if you put up a grow diary you will get heaps of help looking after them.

[lux01]

Thanks mate! You're all legends in here.

[lux01]

Repotted them and both had shit loads of roots. Nice and white and healthy. No smell. New foliage is green and healthy.

 

The white widow which Iooks the worst had roots all the way to the bottom of the cup as well.

 

So in 125mm pots with same soil (no Searles anywhere near me and had to act fast. Sifted out all the bark as well. Added 30% perlite mixed into new soil. Added a little Seasol and watered. See what happens. I think may have been not enough Drainage early on as I had no holes in cups.

[lux01]

So been away for a few days and soil was ready for some water. I've had them

In a room under CFLs still on 18/6 with fan. New growth is visible on the seedlings but just noticed a very fine spiders web all around the Berry Ryder. I can't see any bugs at all. I do notice some microscopic red things that could be spider mites? But everytime I take one off it either plays dead or is actually nothing. It doesn't moves and is so small I can't make out if it's actually a bug.

 

Anyway these seedlings won't die but they aren't doing much either.

 

Pretty sure you the problems I've had this far are due to over watering because of poor or no drainage.

 

One thing is for sure. Marijuana is resilient. Any other seedling would've been dead ages ago.

 

Edited April 26, 2016 by lux01

[lux01]

Edit: confirmed little red critters (spider mites) all over the seedlings. Not even Spring/Summer and I've got pests on seedlings that are dwarfed because of over watering and suffering because of shit soil. Hopefully this is a learning curve and I have more luck with the real thing come September. Edited April 26, 2016 by lux01

[lux01]

Hi all just an update. Probably won't start a grow diary but thought I'd just update anyway.

 

Got some ECO oil and got rid of the spider mites and have seen some new growth. Checked this morning and seems there is a few back for a munch so will continue with more ECO oil tonight.

Edited May 3, 2016 by lux01

[FullCircle]

Good to hear they're still going.... Pics?

[lux01]

There still the same size . There Fkn minute. Anyway this has turned into an experiment and good learning curve. Hopefully they get to mature.

 

I cut the bottom first leaves off as there were completely white and covered in mites, webs and probably eggs too.

 

If I get some serious growth in the next week or so I'll put something up. [emoji1417]

[lux01]

Just tested my soul Ph and its 7.5. I used one of those CSIRO kits from Bunnings. I know it should be Ph 6-7, but is .5 out a lot?