Alcohol Spray Ruined Plant

Hi More Experienced Growers,

First grow, Autoflowers, Week 6 or 7, outdoors, organic.

Let me start off by advising any other new growers, do NOT use the isopropyl alcohol/water mixture to kill insects. I know, I know, 10 well known cannabis websites state its a great way to kill spider mites. Yeah it kills the spider mites but it also kills your leaves. Get some Neem oil or Azamax. Lesson learned here.

Tried the 1-1 isopropyl alcohol to water mixture to kill of a mild infestation of spider mites on leaves as I read it from 10+ grow sites. 30 minutes later I noticed the plant's leaves were fucked. Rinsed off immediately with regular water but the damage was done.

My question now is; Do I prune the dead/dying leaves? Theres about 6 and they're all at the top of the plant.

Two schools of thought.

Remove the leaves;
-Pro: Gives more light to the lower canopy which was unaffected by the spray.
-Con: May shock the plant more and everybody recommends not pruning during flower for auto flowers.

Don't remove the leaves;
-Pro: Some damaged leaves have areas undamaged that may still absorb light/help the plant through flower.
-Con: The plant may put more energy into the dead leaves when it should be put into flower production.
-Con: The dead leaves may attract more pests and block sunlight to getting to lower canopy.




Thanks,

CasualFriday91 said:

Hi More Experienced Growers,

First grow, Autoflowers, Week 6 or 7, outdoors, organic.

Let me start off by advising any other new growers, do NOT use the isopropyl alcohol/water mixture to kill insects. I know, I know, 10 well known cannabis websites state its a great way to kill spider mites. Yeah it kills the spider mites but it also kills your leaves. Get some Neem oil or Azamax. Lesson learned here.

Tried the 1-1 isopropyl alcohol to water mixture to kill of a mild infestation of spider mites on leaves as I read it from 10+ grow sites. 30 minutes later I noticed the plant's leaves were fucked. Rinsed off immediately with regular water but the damage was done.

My question now is; Do I prune the dead/dying leaves? Theres about 6 and they're all at the top of the plant.

Two schools of thought.

Remove the leaves;
-Pro: Gives more light to the lower canopy which was unaffected by the spray.
-Con: May shock the plant more and everybody recommends not pruning during flower for auto flowers.

Don't remove the leaves;
-Pro: Some damaged leaves have areas undamaged that may still absorb light/help the plant through flower.
-Con: The plant may put more energy into the dead leaves when it should be put into flower production.
-Con: The dead leaves may attract more pests and block sunlight to getting to lower canopy.

View attachment 4929299View attachment 4929300View attachment 4929301


Thanks,

Click to expand...

I've never tried with isopropyl. Did you apply it during daylight hours, or after sunset?

If you use apply neem, azamax, bt, spinosad, etc... Only do it after sunset. If you apply when light is hitting the leaves, it will burn the plants badly.

I would trim the damaged blades off the leaves. They look like they still have some healthy blades. Any blades that are mostly burned I would trim.

Good luck! Peace

I would trim off damaged leaves and blades.

You shouldn't try to scare other growers from using Iso, Iso is great for killing mites. It's a great one application solution since it kills both mites and eggs. I've never seen damage from iso, even with 70% iso applied at full strength.

Not sure what you did wrong, but I'm going to assume you applied during the midday sun/heat and fried your leaves. If that's the case, neem or another oil would have probably fried your leaves too. That said it looks like you're outdoors, in that case iso isn't a great way to go. Iso evaporates quickly and offers no lasting protection. You likely have mites elsewhere in the garden, so you want to use something like neem or Diatomeous earth that is longer lasting. You should consider predatory mites in the garden and look around to see if you can spot mites anywhere else and formulate a plan to deal with them. Keep in mind when you're treating your yard, other insects are affected too - namely bees. I'd probably spread some predatory mites around the yard and treat the MMJ plants with neem. Unfortunately, neem does leave a bit of an aftertaste.

Good luck with the rest of grow.

CasualFriday91 said:

Hi More Experienced Growers,

First grow, Autoflowers, Week 6 or 7, outdoors, organic.

Let me start off by advising any other new growers, do NOT use the isopropyl alcohol/water mixture to kill insects. I know, I know, 10 well known cannabis websites state its a great way to kill spider mites. Yeah it kills the spider mites but it also kills your leaves. Get some Neem oil or Azamax. Lesson learned here.

Tried the 1-1 isopropyl alcohol to water mixture to kill of a mild infestation of spider mites on leaves as I read it from 10+ grow sites. 30 minutes later I noticed the plant's leaves were fucked. Rinsed off immediately with regular water but the damage was done.

My question now is; Do I prune the dead/dying leaves? Theres about 6 and they're all at the top of the plant.

Two schools of thought.

Remove the leaves;
-Pro: Gives more light to the lower canopy which was unaffected by the spray.
-Con: May shock the plant more and everybody recommends not pruning during flower for auto flowers.

Don't remove the leaves;
-Pro: Some damaged leaves have areas undamaged that may still absorb light/help the plant through flower.
-Con: The plant may put more energy into the dead leaves when it should be put into flower production.
-Con: The dead leaves may attract more pests and block sunlight to getting to lower canopy.

View attachment 4929299View attachment 4929300View attachment 4929301


Thanks,

Click to expand...

dont ever leave "sick" leaves on the plant!!!

Tracker said:

I've never tried with isopropyl. Did you apply it during daylight hours, or after sunset?

If you use apply neem, azamax, bt, spinosad, etc... Only do it after sunset. If you apply when light is hitting the leaves, it will burn the plants badly.

I would trim the damaged blades off the leaves. They look like they still have some healthy blades. Any blades that are mostly burned I would trim.

Good luck! Peace

Click to expand...

Yeah I did it first thing in the morning when the sun just had started hitting the leaves. I thought it must have had something to do with the sun and the alcohol as only the top 6 big fan leaves were effected the most.

Probably would have been better to do after dark like the other solutions you recommended. I never knew that the light/solution combo would burn up leaves.

I’m going to wait another day or two then trim the dead leaves. I’m hoping the plant will suck out any leftover energy and nutrients in them before I remove them.

Thanks for the guidance!

SnoopyDoo said:

I would trim off damaged leaves and blades.

You shouldn't try to scare other growers from using Iso, Iso is great for killing mites. It's a great one application solution since it kills both mites and eggs. I've never seen damage from iso, even with 70% iso applied at full strength.

Not sure what you did wrong, but I'm going to assume you applied during the midday sun/heat and fried your leaves. If that's the case, neem or another oil would have probably fried your leaves too. That said it looks like you're outdoors, in that case iso isn't a great way to go. Iso evaporates quickly and offers no lasting protection. You likely have mites elsewhere in the garden, so you want to use something like neem or Diatomeous earth that is longer lasting. You should consider predatory mites in the garden and look around to see if you can spot mites anywhere else and formulate a plan to deal with them. Keep in mind when you're treating your yard, other insects are affected too - namely bees. I'd probably spread some predatory mites around the yard and treat the MMJ plants with neem. Unfortunately, neem does leave a bit of an aftertaste.

Good luck with the rest of grow.

Click to expand...

Wasn’t trying to scare anyone from using iso, just thought others should be aware. Sounds like it was my fault though by spraying in direct sun. Wish one of the ten sites I read would have told me to wait until the evening to apply. Guess I should change the thread title to “Alcohol in direct sun burnt plants.”

I tried using DE for the past week. However I had to reapply once every day at least due to the humidity outside. I don’t think it really worked though as I’ve seen ants and other mites crawling on it every night without a reduction in #s over a week.

I believe I already have some predatory mites. When checking that my DE is still dry at night, I always see a lot of little red (I think, I’m color blind) mites moving over the DE. They are a little smaller than a crumb. I guess I’m just hoping they’re predatory mites as I don’t really know.

I bought like 1500 lady bugs that are being delivered today. Hopefully they will be able to protect the plants for the next couple weeks while it’s in flower.

I also got some azamax, which I don’t want to use unless I have to as I really wanted to stay away from chemicals and make this an all natural grow. Will this make the buds taste strange too like you said Neem oil will?

Thanks for the feedback and guidance

soulfly3377 said:

dont ever leave "sick" leaves on the plant!!!

Click to expand...

I’m going to wait a couple more days for the plant to absorb any leftover energy and nutrients from the damaged leaves. Hopefully during this time, the plant will show which leaves need to be removed and which leaves may still help the plant partially.

I’ve got alcohol around but I have never in my life seen on the label , mite control.

CasualFriday91 said:

I’m going to wait a couple more days for the plant to absorb any leftover energy and nutrients from the damaged leaves. Hopefully during this time, the plant will show which leaves need to be removed and which leaves may still help the plant partially.

Click to expand...

plants dont need so much those leaves indoors than outdoors as indoors you should feed them properly so they should have everything they need!!!! plus it cost lots of energy plants if they are trying to fix those sick leaves so if you feed them properly cut them off -well i would

CasualFriday91 said:

I also got some azamax, which I don’t want to use unless I have to as I really wanted to stay away from chemicals and make this an all natural grow. Will this make the buds taste strange too like you said Neem oil will?

Click to expand...

Azamax is derived from neem oil. It has a similar scent, and will make a similar bad taste on buds. Don't spray either of them once you have buds forming.

Lots of people use isopropyl with success and don't fry their plants. You used it incorrectly.

Neem should not be used past veg. DE isn't going to do a damn thing for mites. The ladybugs are just going to fly away unless you have substantial vegetation in your yard that can support them. They are not going to hang around for just a few mites on your cannabis plants.

CITRIC ACID for mites

$9 for a pound off Amazon. Last you for years.

xtsho said:

CITRIC ACID for mites

$9 for a pound off Amazon. Last you for years.

Amazon.com : Milliard Citric Acid 1 Pound - 100% Pure Food Grade NON-GMO Project VERIFIED (1 Pound) : Spices And Seasonings : Grocery & Gourmet Food

Amazon.com : Milliard Citric Acid 1 Pound - 100% Pure Food Grade NON-GMO Project VERIFIED (1 Pound) : Spices And Seasonings : Grocery & Gourmet Food

www.amazon.com

Click to expand...

Nice. What concentration do you use? Does it kill eggs too?

I have a huge bag. I use it to lower pH sometimes and to help flush out extra Ca. Used it for sour gummies and cleaning Ca deposits off shower heads and stuff too.

CasualFriday91 said:

Hi More Experienced Growers,

First grow, Autoflowers, Week 6 or 7, outdoors, organic.

Let me start off by advising any other new growers, do NOT use the isopropyl alcohol/water mixture to kill insects. I know, I know, 10 well known cannabis websites state its a great way to kill spider mites. Yeah it kills the spider mites but it also kills your leaves. Get some Neem oil or Azamax. Lesson learned here.

Tried the 1-1 isopropyl alcohol to water mixture to kill of a mild infestation of spider mites on leaves as I read it from 10+ grow sites. 30 minutes later I noticed the plant's leaves were fucked. Rinsed off immediately with regular water but the damage was done.

My question now is; Do I prune the dead/dying leaves? Theres about 6 and they're all at the top of the plant.

Two schools of thought.

Remove the leaves;
-Pro: Gives more light to the lower canopy which was unaffected by the spray.
-Con: May shock the plant more and everybody recommends not pruning during flower for auto flowers.

Don't remove the leaves;
-Pro: Some damaged leaves have areas undamaged that may still absorb light/help the plant through flower.
-Con: The plant may put more energy into the dead leaves when it should be put into flower production.
-Con: The dead leaves may attract more pests and block sunlight to getting to lower canopy.

View attachment 4929299View attachment 4929300View attachment 4929301


Thanks,

Click to expand...

You sprayed during lights on or sun out didn't you ??? Lol. Don't do that. Btw that will burn your plants even if it's neem oil or other wise. Don't spray in the sun, don't spray with lights on.

alcohol works fine. So do lots of sprays.Treating mites is about consistency, constantly keeping a clean space, remove infect leaves and dead plant matter always etc etc. Keep treating every 3 days until it's handled. That could take 10 treatments or more if you have it bad. You should consider predator mites. It's cheaper than sprays if you are spraying a lot and easier.

outdoors you are better off just hosing the plants off every other day using the hose with good pressure. Hitting all the under side of the leaves. Then shake them dry. Those kind of showers are hell for bugs. And will help keep them from colonizing a plant. Also takes me like 1 minute per plant to do this for outdoors. Worth it. Better than the time spent spraying

PadawanWarrior said:

Nice. What concentration do you use? Does it kill eggs too?

I have a huge bag. I use it to lower pH sometimes and to help flush out extra Ca. Used it for sour gummies and cleaning Ca deposits off shower heads and stuff too.

Click to expand...

2-3 tsp per quart.

If you look at products like Dr Zymes and Nuke-Em citric acid is the active ingredient. Most people are going to be better off buying a pre-measured product that has instructions for the correct ratio's. But if you're like me you just mix it yourself.

xtsho said:

2-3 tsp per quart.

If you look at products like Dr Zymes and Nuke-Em citric acid is the active ingredient. Most people are going to be better off buying a pre-measured product that has instructions for the correct ratio's. But if you're like me you just mix it yourself.

Click to expand...

I use it to clean my coffee pot, works great.

MidnightSun72 said:

You sprayed during lights on or sun out didn't you ??? Lol. Don't do that. Btw that will burn your plants even if it's neem oil or other wise. Don't spray in the sun, don't spray with lights on.

alcohol works fine. So do lots of sprays.Treating mites is about consistency, constantly keeping a clean space, remove infect leaves and dead plant matter always etc etc. Keep treating every 3 days until it's handled. That could take 10 treatments or more if you have it bad. You should consider predator mites. It's cheaper than sprays if you are spraying a lot and easier.

outdoors you are better off just hosing the plants off every other day using the hose with good pressure. Hitting all the under side of the leaves. Then shake them dry. Those kind of showers are hell for bugs. And will help keep them from colonizing a plant. Also takes me like 1 minute per plant to do this for outdoors. Worth it. Better than the time spent spraying

Click to expand...

Yeah, beginner mistake but thankfully I caught it before it ruined the whole plant. Still hoping to get some decent bud off it.

Right now it looks like the ladybugs are hanging around my garden. If they bail, I’ll use the hose method. Sounds easy enough and I don’t want to use anything else now that it’s in flower.

Thanks!

xtsho said:

DE isn't going to do a damn thing for mites.

Click to expand...

DE has always taken out mites for me. Maybe it's not as effective outdoors, but indoors, I've found DE takes mites out in a single application. Wash it off a week later.

Just used 1/1 water to isopropyl alcohol 91% to spray entire plant. One week into flower (so no buds or anything yet). Did it with lights OUT. It's been several days and no mites are moving (under handheld microscope). Plant is beautiful - no damage at all. I didn't realize it was 91% until after, but I've used alcohol on my orchids, so I know it's safe to use on plants. After a couple days I followed up with water/soap/oil mixture and will alternate every couple days. I caught it early though, so I may not need to do too much more. Damn spider mites - hate them.

Rubbing Alcohol works GREAT for mites and their eggs and lots of other pests. The problem you had was the wrong ratio. 1:1 is wayyyyy too strong lol. It's almost like spraying undiluted alcohol

The correct ratio is 9 parts water to 1 part rubbing alcohol.

I only learnt about it a couple months ago. I also saw the 1:1 ratio on sites but I knew that would be too strong. I got the 9:1 ratio from Fast Buds site.

Mist the undersides of all the leaves and also the surface of the leaves. Basically mist the whole plant. It works great in flower too. Now how often I would recommend not to overdo it. My leaves are healthy and mite free and no difference to the buds.

(If you only spray the undersides of the leaves some mites will move to the surface of the leaves.).

Again.... 9 parts water 1 part rubbing alcohol and you're good to go. Still always keep an eye on the plant in case you missed any.