need help plz dying brown / yellow leaves

Hey, new grower here looking for some help. My plant is being grown indoors on about 200 watts of CFL's. I water the plant 1 time every 4-5 days. It is in a 1 gallon pot with miracle grow soil. The plant is a little more then 3 months old and has not yet reached the flowering stage. The problem is the leaves just straight up drying up to the point where if you touch them they crunch in little peices. At first the leaves were not even changing colors, just staying green and crunching up. They started getting brown about 2 weeks ago and just recently they are starting to turn yellow. But the outcome is the same, they are totally shrivling up to the point where they are crispy. The area's that are being effected was the bottom part towards the soil at first, but it seems to be moving up the plant. Its not every leave though, just random parts. The top of the plant (still getting new growth) has been untouched the whole period of its life. I got some pics here, the last one being of a top view of the plant. Its pretty old and almost 3 feet tall. Any information would be greatly appreciated, and if you need any more specs let me know.

http://i1.tinypic.com/5xddjyo.jpg
http://i14.tinypic.com/505t8oj.jpg
http://i6.tinypic.com/2dujih3.jpg
http://i5.tinypic.com/6bnhkkm.jpg

Here's a good link for you to take a look at its under the grow FAQ and it has good pics with advice and information. Looks to me like maybe nute burn, how do you feed it?

Ferts??
MG soil?? Is that MG organic? If it's not then you likely have some "time released" ferts that are very unpredictable and will like cause problems - it wouldn't be a surprise to just now see these effects.

Also I'd be looking for a possible trace element def in your ferts. You're likely to see the results of a low/missing trace element def around this time, and that last pic reminds me of a mild mag def. Make sure your ferts cover: mag, cal, iron, zinc (as well as other trace elements).

Those first pictures also look similar to when I had a phos + potas def during veg, but that doesn't look as likely.

Here's another useful link for ya.

Well now that i think about it, i put some slow release nitrogen in the soil before i planted it. But a very very small amount, under half a teaspoon. The soil is just regular miracle grow. But really i havn't put in any ferts at all. On the stuff i read up on, it seems like its a nitrogen def. maybe??? The leaves are for sure dying for the tips first then the whole leaf, starting to turn yellow and work its way up the plant. It also seemed to kill the Older, bigger leaves first after it started. Also, because i really havn't used any ferts and this is my first grow...any recommendations on what to get? Any more info would be great, thx for the help so far.

Now that i talk to my room mate who was taking care of it early tells me he put some stuff in the soil as well before it was planted. What he put in was a bunch of organics i think, it was kelp, humates, and some fungal spores for the roots? I have no idea, if that helps at all plz let me know. Seeing as the plant is so far along in growth and its just been happening in the past couple weeks does it play a role? Any info would help.

Just to add i checked the soil PH and Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potssium content. If it means anything to you guys.
PH was 6.5
Nitrogen content is D
Phosphorus content is D
Potassium content is D
- it was just a basic 3 step home soil test kit. D was the highest level, range was A-D and it said most plants use a C-C-C.

Does this mean i should Flush the soil? Contents are too high? Im not sure, seems like the ph level is good. Let me know.

Yep.....sooner the better. That sure looks like fert burn to me. Your ph is good for soil so flush heavily and get all those extra salts out. Are your pot sizes good or do you think the roots might be a little snug. Now would be a nice time to repot if you plan to with some fresh (NO nutes) soil. Otherwise flush away.

Good luck.

definitely OFed, definitely flush.
don't forget to use neutral ph for flushing, and flush with ~2x the amount of soil!

i haven't used a tester kit like that, but if i were just to guess, i'd say it should probably be more like a B on that scale.
when fert'ing you want to start out with about 1/4th, and then move up to 1/2, tops, the "recommended" dosage.

i would strongly recommend repotting to a non-MG soil; those time release ferts are only going to cause trouble - soil can be enough of a guessing game your first time.

my recommendation for soil and ferts? Fox farm for both. I use ocean forest for soil, and grow big (veg) and tiger bloom (flower) for ferts.

That ocean forest foxfarm.....that shit is golden.

What about timing? Did you forced her to flowering 12/12. Soil temperature is also important. I keep mine 90/80. I`ve read once you keep low temp. distance between air and soil is better for buds.

Wow that was some good info guys, thanks to all that who posted. As for the pot, it does seem like the roots are getting kindof smashed right now. Its in a 1 gallon pot but the plant is about 3 feet tall, is that pot too small? I did flush it and it seems to be getting a lot better. Also, No i did not force it into flowering yet. Should i force it? or just let it go naturally? And my temp as been about a constant 84 when the lights are on and 80 when they are off. I live in a dry area though and the humidity in the room ranges from 10-15%. Any additional info would be great, and thanks again for the info.

I was always told that you should have a gallon of soil per foot of stem.....3foot plant....3 gallon pot. And think even bigger if you havent' started flowering yet.

How much fertilizer are you using? Stop it all and begin a cleaning process. DO not fertilize for about ten days to two weeks give them time. Spray down your plants ever time you water. Not soaking them but like a light rain. In your pictures it appears your fans maybe the enemy. Move them back and do not allow them to blow directly on the plants. Get the heat in your room out some way. Get a small breeze going. Put a couple of full pans of water around the room to get your moister back in the air to raise the humidity in that room and you should be happy and back on course. Also, three months in lober then you need to put them on 12&12.
Arno j