Babs, most of us are new at this.. and measuring things is a great help.
Jerry, I don´t know man... from what you say you have been feeding them plenty... I would not think that they are deficcient in nutrients.
Tatan, I never suggested that Jerry, or anyone for that matter "not" measure....only merely wanted to point out that I will never be one to suggest an "exact recommended dosage"......simply because I go by instinct.
I'm sticking with my diagnosis.......for the most part anyway.
It appears that the leaves rusting up began after flushing. After a flush (which requires that you use 3x the H20)........the plant is going to be significantly DAMP afterwards. Notice he began seeing the gnats? That's likely why.
My "theory" that his plant has a fungus problem is not off base.
Some people have more problems than others with gnats.....thus my obsession with the topic. You don't want that problem and it sounds like you don't have TIME for that problem either. It's not to say that I do either, but I work from home and am here the better part of the day to scrutinize it closely.
I recall Jerry you saying you use Foxfarms and Bat Guano.....a couple of other things as well?
I just want to point out that Fox Farms is a chemical fertilizer. While using organics, you can be a bit over zealous with your feeding schedule and get away with it. The same does not stand true with chemical fertilizers.
Right now, I only have the Fox Farms Grow Big for vegetative growth. Its directions for feeding (as I said, yes...I DO read the suggested feeding schedule, but again, I do NOT adhere to them.) With the Grow Big, they suggest 2-3 teaspoons per gallon every 2 weeks as a HEAVY feeding. I don't know how often Jerry you are feeding, but my guess is that you are attempting to pump just as much as you possibly can in hopes of getting some really fat bud......thus my statement that "less is often more."
While some may have insignificant problems with gnats, others lose their entire crop to them. I will say from experience (and do recall I am the transplant queen).........THAT after having transplanted, fighting the dirty specs, and then harvesting.......I've seen firsthand the damage they cause. My root ball e.g. was three times the size from transplant to when I harvested and pulled up the roots.......GNATS.......not spider mites. Gnats eat those roots---taking all that hard work of developing them with expensive nutes and tos'ing all of your hard work down the drain. Granted, you can still get some decent smoke (depending on when they invade and how you treat it), BUT your goal was to get the ultimate bud, yes?
No amount of nutrients you feed them now Jerry will improve those damaged fan leaves. I don't care what you feed them. Those damaged leaves are just that....damaged. Your goal is to not let them completely die quite this early in its budding stage. Keep your humidity low and increase your ventilation.
Just ask yourself this question...
Did you feed the heavy dosage as suggested on the bottle?....or the every watering? And then ask yourself just "How often was that watering?"
If it is in fact a fungus, those leaves will only serve to infect other leaves or promote bud rot. From what I see, those leaves are quickly dying.
For the first time in my life, I was prompted to recall the saying, "Let's get to the 'root of the problem.' And I say that is exactly the problem.....the roots. By removing that topsoil, you are addressing more than one problem and possibly correcting them all. Again, you can't 'fix' those contaminated leaves. You can only slow down their destructrion at this point.
I suggested areating, along with allowing the roots to dry out a bit--so to not cause root rot, get rid of possible larvae on the soil surface, AND loosen up the soil, which in itself, can cause so many of the problems associated with ph lockout.
Going back to my exercise analogy, same holds true for most things. When you begin taking certain meds, you introduce small doses, gradually increasing. You don't want to shock your body when attempting to stop taking that med.....you gradually decrease the dosage. SO many analogies I could make in life while comparing life to plants.....a plant is after all life. It's all about balance. Trust me, I have plenty of SHIT to balance in life too.
