Any suggestions? (pics)

Hey, I appologize if this has been asked before but ive been searching all over these forums and google and I cant seem to find whats wrong. These seedlings are 2-2 1/2 weeks old I transplanted them a few days ago to Happy Frog soil because the soil I was using before was some random soil I found outside. One of my problems was underwatering but I took care of it and one of my plants came back to life (the one without the straw). The other one did for awhile but then seemed to start dieing again so I moved them both closer to the cfls. I have 3 CFLS (for now) 2 27 watts and 1 23 watt all at 5000k. I use a spray bottle to water them with bottled water everytime the soil seems dry. Any suggestions to bring my ladies back to life?Thanks.

-Also I was thinking of using these nutrients to see if it would help anything (since im on a tight budget)http://www.scotts.com/smg/catalog/productTemplate.jsp;jsessionid=6DF7B9555185D0DAE0E12471750FD19F?proId=prod100078&itemId=cat50040&tabs=usage would these be alright?

(BTW im on a budget atm so any 'cheap' suggestions lol)

I'm not a soil guy and unsure of the effects of over watering/under watering since hydro is ALL water lol but I can definitely say that you need to get the lights down low, much lower than you have now. We're talking no more than 3-4 inches from the tops.

get a small fan blowing on them gently(indirect so they wave around a little bit works fine) and they will stiffen/bulk up...also you don't need to spritz them...just water them when needed and let em grow

The nutes are fine(I use a 10-10-10 as well, but with other things), but you may need some dolomite lime if your soil isn't limed properly(helps buffer the PH, and gives calcium and magnesium), and you will want something higher in P/K during flowering...I use Shultz cactus feed + micronutrients...small concentrated bottle of 2-7-7

bigbillyrocka said:

I'm not a soil guy and unsure of the effects of over watering/under watering since hydro is ALL water lol but I can definitely say that you need to get the lights down low, much lower than you have now. We're talking no more than 3-4 inches from the tops.

Click to expand...

"Overwatering" is just another way of saying suffocated root system...underwatering = completely dried out soil

In a hydro system you aerate the nutrients/water so the root system gets oxygen...in soil if you keep it wet all the time it rots out the root system...same thing in hydro if you dont keep things aerated and use a little H2O2

Suggestions above are great. Also you can add a bit more soil to help the seedling get a little more support (this happened to mine before). Good luck!

Thanks for the quick response guys. Sorry the angle was bad but the CFL's are actually 1-2 inches from the tops of the plants. Yea I was thinking it could be just too hot since its in a small box and all. Im actually going to try and connect a comp fan to see if that gives some ventilation.

cover up that stem man, throw some more dirt ontop you shouldnt have to support the stem so soon!

Have to agree bury the stem up somemore, everything you cover will grow roots. The fan is a must to help the stem develop properly to support the plant. Other than that you are looking pretty good, just ensure that you don't overwater this is the biggest mistake newer grower tend to make with their plants. If you water that soil good when you put the seedlings in there it should be good for close to a week anyway. Seedling don't drink much and you must count on evaporation to dry the soil which takes a long time in a confined space.
Once week misty at this point should be good, bright light + water = hot spots on your tender little leaves.
Good Luck and happy growing

Welcome to RIU hope you enjoy your stay

Thanks for the help. I think since I accidently underwatered I became paranoid which led me to overwatering lol. Theyre in the dark right now but I plan to install a computer fan for more ventilation and not water for another 2-3 days (I just watered this morning). Oh and im going to bury the stems a little deeper.

Quick question: I know this sounds dumb but whats the best way to water the plants? Do I just spray a little on top of the soil? or do I make the whole top kind of muddy and just let it sit there til the next watering. I usually stick my finger in about 1 inch right by the plants to check if its dry but the soil seems to dry really fast. ( Like less then a day)

If you have small seedlings and your drying out the soil in less then 1 day then you have a lot of heat/light going on in there prob way too much for a seedling that size keep the t5 close the temps no more then 80F and always water from the bottom for now......when one sticks a finger into a pot you may not get the entire picture -- may be wet/dry spots etc...the best thing is a total soak (evenly) and a total dry out (almost) that way oxygen gets to the roots at all times and they (the roots) stretch to find more water---capilary action draws water up from the bottom so you DONT WANT them to be sitting in any standing water -- a condition known as "damping off" can occur makes em floppy and d e a d the ideas about supporting with soil are good .. good luck - also listen to your plants!

Do you have any perlite in the soil besides what came in it? I use the Happy Frog as well 4:1 with inert perlite. Helps drainage and at the same time retains moisture. I don't pretend to know much about nutes so I keep it simple and use the recipe for success kit from Technaflora. My girls have all loved the Happy Frog/recipe combo. I would also agre that you should cover some more of those stems. Good Luck and +rep for taking the leap into farming!

1st bury the stem some more. get you 3 more bulbs man so youll have 3 per plant and put those lights an inch away from the tops but remember youll have to go in and adjust that light a few times a day because those plants will eat up that light and growwwwwwww after doing that for a week then you can move the lights up 2-3 inches away.gl with your grow