Indoor growing problems - experianced help needed

farmhouse

Member
Hi, I have read this websites useful information from time to time and found it rather helpful but need some further assistance. I have used the faq and other threads but need some specific help in identifying my plant problems.

My setup:
Indoor - 1.2sq.m. & 0.6cub.m.
600 HPS @ 90cm
18/6
about 8-10 weeks (but no lights for first 2/3 weeks)
12 plants (for time being)
seeds: unknown
pots= 4.5L(200mm)
plants about 30cm tall
potting mix soil
Watered when the top 1" of soil is crusty
ph meter says about 5.5-7
fan replaces air in closet numerous times a minute.

Last week they came out of 2L pots into current 4.5L pots - (small i know but i have limited space and too many plants.

Just started nutrients last week, not sure of the ppm, but using 1/3 of recommended dose=1ml/L.

These plants are the worst, but all have similar problems to a lesser degree. They showed these problem before the nutrients and transplanting, but not as extreme.

Any experienced help would be appreciated.





 

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
http://www.gchydro.com/faq_nut.asp click the link scroll down to How can I tell what nutrient deficiencies or excesses my plants are suffering from?

You may want to add some perlite for (aeration and drainage) vermiculite (retains water).You add nutrients every watering??
 

farmhouse

Member
I add nutrients every second time i water, and water every 2-3 days.

The potting mix i bought claims to have water holding properties and large chips for air.

thanks for the link, but i am still not confident in concluding that it sounds like a N or Mg problem as i am often told it is a lot simpler than that.
 

brasmith

Well-Known Member
Hi, I have read this websites useful information from time to time and found it rather helpful but need some further assistance. I have used the faq and other threads but need some specific help in identifying my plant problems.

My setup:
Indoor - 1.2sq.m. & 0.6cub.m.
600 HPS @ 90cm
18/6
about 8-10 weeks (but no lights for first 2/3 weeks)
12 plants (for time being)
seeds: unknown
pots= 4.5L(200mm)
plants about 30cm tall
potting mix soil
Watered when the top 1" of soil is crusty
ph meter says about 5.5-7
fan replaces air in closet numerous times a minute.

Last week they came out of 2L pots into current 4.5L pots - (small i know but i have limited space and too many plants.

Just started nutrients last week, not sure of the ppm, but using 1/3 of recommended dose=1ml/L.

These plants are the worst, but all have similar problems to a lesser degree. They showed these problem before the nutrients and transplanting, but not as extreme.

Any experienced help would be appreciated.

When growing in soil your ph must be hovering right at 6.5. This is the first thing you should get right on. As long as the ph sits below 6.5 your plants cannot utilize the nutirents they need thus causing lock out of some nutrients and an overdose of others.


I add nutrients every second time i water, and water every 2-3 days.

The potting mix i bought claims to have water holding properties and large chips for air.

thanks for the link, but i am still not confident in concluding that it sounds like a N or Mg problem as i am often told it is a lot simpler than that.
Using soil with water holding properties can cause overwatering issues. When using this type of soil you can go sometimes up to 7-8 days without watering again. Lift the pot to check the weight, if it is light it needs water if any weight to it then it is fine and needs no water yet.

Also, another big problem is how much you are feeding them and the ph. With low ph they can't eat good so the amount of food they are consistantly getting is building up. They do well with a water, water, light feeeding type of schedule.

The way to fix these issues is to first flush the hell out of your soil with plain water ph'd to 6.5. This cleans the soil of salt build up, nutirent build up, and balances the ph. Then after the flush and on their next feeding feed them a 1/4 dose of grow nutes to bring them back around. Make sure to ph your feeding solution to 6.5 before giving to the plants.
 

farmhouse

Member
righto, i spoke to the local hydro shop and they said the same thing, potting mix retains lots of water and is slow releasing with nutrients. So i am going to flush them out, then only water them for the next couple of weeks. They also said coconut fibre is way easier to use as a growing medium than soil, any thoughts?
cheers.
 

brasmith

Well-Known Member
I recently switced to using coco this grow. Bought a dry block of coco and treated it with ro water and cal-mag. Then I mixed the coco with fox farms ocean forest soil, the mix ended up with about 60% being coco and 40% ffof.

The guy at our neighborhood hydro shop reccomended this mix after telling him of a reoccuring plant issue that always showed up smack in the middle of flowering. So far no issues and super excellent growth.
 

farmhouse

Member
sounds good, the guy i was speaking to said i could transplant again, but into coco so i would end up with a similar mix, part coco and part soil. THe soil you mention looks pretty trendy, i think this is where i might of gone wrong, used a range of different potting mixs, some expensive and some cheap. Might start again with coco if i get no improvement. thanks for the input.
 
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