I have a problem with the growth of my aproximately two and a half week old seedlings. They are growing, but slowly it seems. There are nine seedlings, each in their own large bucket with nutrient-rich soil. They sit in a 3 foot long, 3 foot high, and 2 foot deep box painted white (for reflection), with two 18 watt flourescent lights on the top. The seedlings are about 4 inches from the lights. I have given it about 24 hours of light for the last two weeks, and have been watering usually everyday (with small amounts). There is a small mixture of yeast/sugar water mix for CO2 production. The temperature in the box is usually around 65-70 degrees, and the humidity is good. There is virtually no ventilation system, aside from me opening the box daily, and airing it out for 10 minutes, and blowing on the plants to strengthen them. The largest seedlings are about 4 inches high, and almost none of them have a second set of leaves (just the first set). I've seen a lot of pictures of other people's plants after two weeks, and they are always much bigger and more developed than mine. At this growth rate, it seems they will take months before they're mature enough to flower. I'm just wondering if anyone thinks I'm doing anything wrong? Why aren't they growing faster? Is it a CO2, lighting, or ventilation problem? Thanks for any help.
Slow Growing Seedlings
- Thread starter wlhigh
- Start date
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FallenHero
Guest
your lights are too far, your seedlings sound stretched. move your lights closer, get some pics, get a fan for the stems, and you need vent.... at this point i would say a combonation of no venting and lack of light the reason for your slow comming growth.
Got some pics of my seedlings, these are approx. two and half weeks old. Does anything look wrong with them? I took the advice of installing a fan to circulate the air, and strengthen the stems, and I also moved the plants closer to the lights. I'm hesitant to add ventilation holes in the box (as it is, its not air tight anyway), because it is in a place where the temperature of the room is pretty cool (like 45-55 degrees F), and I would rather keep the heat of the box locked in. Which do people think would be worse, colder temperatures, or lack of substantial ventilation? Thanks for the info.
NoobMaster
Active Member
Ok, im still somewhat of a beginner. Looking at those seedlings (the one in the middle is REALLY TALL!) I would definitely advise buying stronger lights (I have 26 watts...a little stronger) and lowering them as close as possible without burning the tops.
slamminsam
Active Member
your tips are curling down it looks like you need more humidity.
seedlings need lots of humidity about 70-85%. Its better to buy a seedling tray w/humidome keep the roots at 80 with a heating pad.
High Tech Garden Supply
for under 10 bucks you can get the dome, tray, seedling tray.
Best of luck.
seedlings need lots of humidity about 70-85%. Its better to buy a seedling tray w/humidome keep the roots at 80 with a heating pad.
High Tech Garden Supply
for under 10 bucks you can get the dome, tray, seedling tray.
Best of luck.
dahamma
Well-Known Member
real helpful......... anyways use more wattage of the proper spectrum light, and bring em in closer. vent holes wouldn't hurt. build up soil closer to top to protect the stems. good luck!!!
Nocturnal Cannabis
Member
those arent lookin to good for being 2 1/2 weeks old bro. u need stronger or more light.
connorbrown
Well-Known Member
Lighting: You've only got 36 watts going on 9 seedlings. Each plant needs ATLEAST 9w. I put a 26w over each plant for 2 weeks.
You need more light.
Ventilation: Cold temps are 10x better then no ventilation. Plants need constant co2 and they don't produce they're own. Sucking in fresh air will give them their co2. Pushing the air out will take the o2 that they emit out of the box. Thus resulting in stronger healthier plants.
Humidity: If you don't want to mist every hour then get humidity domes over them. I leave mine on for 1 week, after sprout. Like said above, they need 80-90% humidity. Once they get bigger and have developed a stronger leaf system you can take the domes off and bring the humidity down to about 30-40.
Tempature: The perfect temperature is between 65-75f degrees. This shouldn't be a problem if you get more lights in there because they will make heat. And again we are back at ventilation. Outtake fans are the most important to me IMO. Get and outtake fan and cut some holes for intake. This should keep the temp at about 75.
Stretching: Your plants have major stretching problems because of not enough light and light distance. Either tie them to a stake or get a fan blowing across them, moving them slightly. That should strengthen the stem and increase leaf production. At this point I would say that your plant has a poor root system because its focusing on trying to photosynthesize.
Hope this helped a bit.
You need more light.
Ventilation: Cold temps are 10x better then no ventilation. Plants need constant co2 and they don't produce they're own. Sucking in fresh air will give them their co2. Pushing the air out will take the o2 that they emit out of the box. Thus resulting in stronger healthier plants.
Humidity: If you don't want to mist every hour then get humidity domes over them. I leave mine on for 1 week, after sprout. Like said above, they need 80-90% humidity. Once they get bigger and have developed a stronger leaf system you can take the domes off and bring the humidity down to about 30-40.
Tempature: The perfect temperature is between 65-75f degrees. This shouldn't be a problem if you get more lights in there because they will make heat. And again we are back at ventilation. Outtake fans are the most important to me IMO. Get and outtake fan and cut some holes for intake. This should keep the temp at about 75.
Stretching: Your plants have major stretching problems because of not enough light and light distance. Either tie them to a stake or get a fan blowing across them, moving them slightly. That should strengthen the stem and increase leaf production. At this point I would say that your plant has a poor root system because its focusing on trying to photosynthesize.
Hope this helped a bit.
weed monkey
Active Member
i experience the same shit alot i think its the seedlings from all these fucking companys there selling shit seeds!!!!!!! i dont know if its cuz of there age or what but somthings about them is not right. theres stressed so bad that they dont grow right, and trust me its not your fault.....
and fuck you if you dont think this is right cuz it is so go fuck yourself
and fuck you if you dont think this is right cuz it is so go fuck yourself
smylinacha
Member
I'm a beginner too and my seedlings looked liked that when I started. They grew quick but they looked stretched. Get stronger light on them and close to the plant. Also, and any here pls correct me if I'm wrong, but what I did to stop the stem from being so lanky is I repotted the plant and buried the stem about half way up w/ soil. I read that on here somewhere.
weed monkey
Active Member
nothing to do with light or envirnment. bad seeds, start over, nothing you can do.
SeniorRaincloud
Active Member
need more cfls dude!
BKCSG
Active Member
Lighting: You've only got 36 watts going on 9 seedlings. Each plant needs ATLEAST 9w. I put a 26w over each plant for 2 weeks.
You need more light.
Ventilation: Cold temps are 10x better then no ventilation. Plants need constant co2 and they don't produce they're own. Sucking in fresh air will give them their co2. Pushing the air out will take the o2 that they emit out of the box. Thus resulting in stronger healthier plants.
Humidity: If you don't want to mist every hour then get humidity domes over them. I leave mine on for 1 week, after sprout. Like said above, they need 80-90% humidity. Once they get bigger and have developed a stronger leaf system you can take the domes off and bring the humidity down to about 30-40.
Tempature: The perfect temperature is between 65-75f degrees. This shouldn't be a problem if you get more lights in there because they will make heat. And again we are back at ventilation. Outtake fans are the most important to me IMO. Get and outtake fan and cut some holes for intake. This should keep the temp at about 75.
Stretching: Your plants have major stretching problems because of not enough light and light distance. Either tie them to a stake or get a fan blowing across them, moving them slightly. That should strengthen the stem and increase leaf production. At this point I would say that your plant has a poor root system because its focusing on trying to photosynthesize.
Hope this helped a bit.
Perfect Temp is actually 76.4. I agree with the humidity dome, but you don't need it once the seedlings have broken the surface of the ground. humidity should be between 40-60 for the remainder of the grow. and you need at least 75 watts of cfl for each plant (not 9) to grow to maturity.
BKCSG
Active Member
This is a joke right? It is definitely not the seeds in his case, or yours. Just get better at growing from practice, listening to advice and researching non stop. I have only had problems in my first grow, after that I studied marijuana cultivation for several hours a day until I gained confidence and knowledge of the subject. So trust me... It ain't the seeds my friend, sorry to say.
good luck
binarybuds
Member
definitely need some ventilation but the way your leaf tips are curling down is indicative of a a nutrient overdose. sprouts like that should be in mostly inert soil
Lame @ss excuse for bad technique.
You need a LOT more light dude. You can put 50-70 watts per square foot, of almost any light technology and not be providing anywhere near what the Sun provides on a good sunny day. One 28watt CFl per plant is still borderline low. Buy a 4 foot fixture with 6-8 T-5 HO bulbs and you will be getting closer. Keep the temps below 90 faren.(75-85 optimal) and don't worry about pumping the humidity too high. If they can get enough water from the soil the dryness of the air scarcely matters....herb grows in the desert and in the jungle(low to high humidity extremes). Let soil dry out on surface to maybe 1" down every few days to avoid root rot.