Dull, dry leaves in veg

RiversidE

RiversidE

Member
Hey all, probably just being over-sensitive right now, but you all know how new growers are :) My plants are just over 2 weeks old now, grown in FFOF and watered with distilled water. Earlier this week, I have begun seeing drooping and curling, indicative of overwatering and high heat. So I have not watered for about 5 days now and moved my light (180W LEDs) up from 9" to 14". Temperatures at canopy level are low-to-mid 80's F. Some of the lower leaves have begun drying out and turning a dull green, which looks like under-watering to me, but still doesn't explain why the other leaves are drooping like they are being over-watered. So, I'm looking for some more opinions on what could be the cause of this and hopefully a solution.



This was taken about a day ago. The dryness has spread to about 70% of the leaf now. And this is happening on multiple plants as well. The plants have not shown any noticeable grow for about 3 or 4 days now.

 
RiversidE

RiversidE

Member
Thanks for the input guys. I watered it some yesterday and am beginning to notice growth again. What's the rule of thumb for how far below the soil it needs to be moist? I have a moisture meter and have probed all the way to the bottom where it is always pretty moist, so I probably just need to keep the root level hydrated.
 
MrGhettoGrower

MrGhettoGrower

Well-Known Member
How big is the pot? It looks like the same size as the plant?
Have you fed any nutes? You may need to feed some nutes?
Just possibilities the drooping is from root bound and the
lack of green color could be it needs to be fed~
 
RiversidE

RiversidE

Member
MrGhettoGrower said:
How big is the pot? It looks like the same size as the plant?
Have you fed any nutes? You may need to feed some nutes?
Just possibilities the drooping is from root bound and the
lack of green color could be it needs to be fed~
Click to expand...
Pot is 7.5"x7.5"x8.75". Roughly 2 gallons. No nutes at the moment. I really hope its not rootbound already :/
 
RiversidE

RiversidE

Member
MrGhettoGrower said:
It shouldn't be root bound then maybe it needs to be fed?
Click to expand...
I see. I think I may try to get some nutes tomorrow and see what I can get out of those.

holdenlots said:
maybe a bit of overwatering too if he has been keeping his soil moist?(according to his moister meter)
Click to expand...
I was thinking that since the roots aren't quite down to the level where the soil is still moist (from the first watering after transplant) that doing more frequent light waterings would keep moisture at the root level. Is this correct or am I doing plant science wrong?
 
holdenlots

holdenlots

Active Member
i prefer to give a good watering/feed then let the pot dry up well, the roots need air too to remain healthy, if your soil is constanly wet then your roots cant breath an this can cause root rot and other nasty things,

to really find your sweet spot, water well once then let the pot dry as much as you can check the weight of the pot each day as it dries so you get a feel for whats alot of water and what not, try let it go one day extra until you see slight wilting the first time if you like, just be sure you water well and dont let it go too long, dont worry any wilting will stop quite quickly once you water,
the plant will recover alot quicker from a little underwatering than from alot of overwatering,

before you add any nutes i would try let the pot dry out this time, use your moister meter if you have to, (i had one they are not great) let it go into the red and check the weight of the pot also, then when needed give a good watering, ( my plants flowering under 400w get water every 4ish days depending if that give u any rough idea, every grow is different!)

and if you havent already i would look into "cultivation" very important for keeping your soil healthy!!
 
RiversidE

RiversidE

Member
holdenlots said:
i prefer to give a good watering/feed then let the pot dry up well, the roots need air too to remain healthy, if your soil is constanly wet then your roots cant breath an this can cause root rot and other nasty things,

to really find your sweet spot, water well once then let the pot dry as much as you can check the weight of the pot each day as it dries so you get a feel for whats alot of water and what not, try let it go one day extra until you see slight wilting the first time if you like, just be sure you water well and dont let it go too long, dont worry any wilting will stop quite quickly once you water,
the plant will recover alot quicker from a little underwatering than from alot of overwatering,

before you add any nutes i would try let the pot dry out this time, use your moister meter if you have to, (i had one they are not great) let it go into the red and check the weight of the pot also, then when needed give a good watering, ( my plants flowering under 400w get water every 4ish days depending if that give u any rough idea, every grow is different!)

and if you havent already i would look into "cultivation" very important for keeping your soil healthy!!
Click to expand...
Hey Holden, thanks for the info. I should have definitely let them dry out much more than I did. I fed my grapefruit plant (last picture in OP) just this morning with low strength FF Grow Big and Big Bloom and while it did get some noticeable vertical growth (stretching :/), the leaves are looking worse. The yellowing is more pronounced, the curling is still there, and the tips are beginning to turn black. Growing under LEDs, it is definitely important to take into account that you do not need to water as often as you think. It's been over a week since I watered when I transplanted all of my plants (grow thread: https://www.rollitup.org/indoor-growing/452809-riversides-first-grow-stealth-bookshelf.html). But I will be sure to let grapefruit wilt and wait until the other two plants I have are completely dry before watering again.

 
T

tacomuybueno

Active Member
i need help!! i got the exact same setup as you and am using fox farm ocean forest w/added lime. temp at 80. my plants look exactly like the pics of yours here. did you ever find out what was wrong with yours?
 
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