Damping off? Help my Seedlings plz!!!

[StealthFarmer]

Hi guys,

Im growing some Double Strawberry Diesels in 100% Canna coco (this is my first time w/ coco) and I noticed yesterday that 2 out of the 8 seedlings have what looks like stem rot or damping off.

They are in 16oz. Dixie cups and are about ten days old from planting. I have been watering once every day w/ 10-15% runoff and adjust my ph to 5.8, I think the damp coco conditions have led to this damping off. There is a green growth (algae?) on the top surface of the coco of the affected seedlings. Also, the stem looks like it has "damping off" towards the bottom and the leaves have developed some odd brown funky-shaped spots. WTF do I do to fix this???

Is there a product I could buy to remedy this? Should I blast them with Hydrogen Peroxide? Is it too late to do anything?

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated

 

[JWP]

I dont know if its 2 late. Got pix?
All i know is that once it starts you probably wont be able to stop it.
I'd take them out of the coco and put them deep in soil nearly up to the leaves to support the stem before they bend over and die. (wich will prob happen anyway)

Ya live n ya learn.

I used canna coco for ages and never had a prob with germing seeds. Then one grow when i was in a hurry to get started i just bought one of the cheep bricks. And i paid the price!

Check this thread out mate

Good luck

 

[StealthFarmer]

I cant upload pix, it says its temporarily disabled or something.

I would take them out and put them in soil but they have a decent amount of roots already. I put them in clear cups with a red cup over the clear cup so that I would be able to see the roots forming...

I think for now Im going to spray them with a water/hydrogen peroxide solution and water them with some Hydroguard at the recommended dosages. Damn I hope they pull through....

Thx for that link, some interesting reading. I think that guy in that thread has a somewhat similar situation but his seedlings dont look like they have a green growth on top of the coco and the brown spots that Im having.

What do you think of my solution? Should I do anything else?

 

[MynameStitch]

h202 will not be too strong for them; but yes it is caused by you watering everyday; they do not need watered everyday like that, not even in soil conditions do they need water everday; let alone run off everytime.....

Use some h202 mixed with water.... 3% from the pharmacy should do it good and add around 1 tsp per liter of water.

The alge will be easy to kill.... but your seedlings when they have wet tap roots they don't like it and when damping off hit them it's nearly impossible to kill. because it attacks them so quickly and they don't have a defense system setup yet..... so it kills quickly. You need to learn when and when not to water; 10k has a good thread that teaches you when and when not to water; you lift the cup before and after a watering..... seedlings only need watered where the tap root is, they do not need the entire medium wet; this causes the rest to stay wet considering there is no root system in the area where the medium is wet; the only area that needs to stay moist until they get a root system setup is there tap root area.

Here is a link to 10k's thread:
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=47761

Lift the pot"
The "lift the pot" method is a widely practiced, and very accurate method of knowing when to water your container plants.

The best way imho, to know when soil grown potted plants need more watering is by checking how heavy the pots feel. This method is very simple to learn once you get the feel for how light a ready for watering pot of soil feels.

Get an equal size pot and fill it with your soil. The medium should be about as moist as a new bag of potting soil (not dry). Use this planter as a learning tool to get a rough idea of how much the pots should weigh before watering again. The pots with your plants will feel only just slightly heavier when the soil is ready for more water. Pick up one of your planted pots, if its noticably heavy, do not water it until it feels "light". Next time you water a planter, pick it up and feel how much heavier it feels compared to the sample pot of soil.

It only takes a few times picking up the pots until this skill is like a "second nature" to you. You wont even need the sample pot after you get accustomed to the lifting method.

Sure your plants are always putting on more weight as they grow larger, but once you're proficient at lifting the pots, you'll also know how to compensate for the weight of the plants with ease.

I dont know how to better explain this method of knowing when to water, but believe me, anyone who learns this method, will always know when its time to water.

10k

ps... Sticking your finger into your soil is horrible dryness test and should NOT be practiced. There is no way your finger can tell just how moist or wet the soil is deeper down in the planter where the majority of the roots may be suffering from overwatering. Not to mention stressing the plants from you jamming your digit into the medium every day. Arrrgh...Stop doing that !

 

[StealthFarmer]

I mixed up a solution of about 5% Hydrogen Peroxide and water and gave them a good spraying... I'll let you guys know how that goes

Next time I water Im going to add some Hydroguard and Im going to water them every other day for a bit. Im growing in Canna coco and I thought it would be okay to water them every day but I guess in my situation I should let the coco dry out a bit first. We'll see how that goes.

 

[MynameStitch]

Hydroguard works for hydro; do not use it for soil....Use h202 and your better off not watering as often; because that is what caused your entire issue is, because you were watering everyday keeping the medium too saturated for the size of the plant.
As long as you do not keep the soil wet like you did and as long as they are free of mold/mildew environment you will not get damping off.

 

[StealthFarmer]

Hey Stitch,

Im growing in 100% Canna coco right now, is that compatible w/ Hydroguard? Im definitely going to cut back on the watering, I was keeping the coco fully saturated and I didnt even have a fan blowing air across the canopy, just an exhaust fan. I installed a fan today to blow air across the medium, hopefully that will help too.

 

[MynameStitch]

No, it is for hydro and aeroponic uses, systems that use water, not for soil or mediums like coco.

Yes, fan will help it out a lot in drying it out, just give that link I posted a read in learning when to water and you will be alright in that part.

 

[Guest]

I think what you may be seeing was caused when you put the seeds into the coco. I've seen it before but only when I've damaged the seedling when it was in its sprout form.

Here's what I think may have happened. When you take the seedlings out of the paper towel, if that's the way you germed them, sometimes the roots are damaged by the edges of the opened seed. The tap root is very tender at this point and the seed pod is just like a clam shell. I don't know how steady your fingertips are but mine are really steady and I've still managed to damage the things.

I'm going to start planting the seeds directly into the coco so as to avoid the stress.

As far as the coco being too wet and causing the seeds and roots a problem like what you're describing, as long as the water is draining freely out of the bottom, the coco's not wet enough to cause the root problem. One thing that will cause it though is too much heat while they're in this stage. If you've got the seedlings sitting on a heat mat, take them off.

You've been watering more than is necessary in coco. During the seedling stage, you want to let the coco almost dry out. Seriously, when you pick the cup up it should feel light enough that you just know it has to be dry, hehe. But it won't be. I'd let them go at least a day in between waterings. This is going to encourage the roots to go to the bottom of the cups to find their water. No nutes at this stage. Just water with a pH of 5.8. The water you're using is fine at 0.02 right now. The seedlings don't need anything in the way of food right now.


Hope this helps.

Peace

 

[Guest]

Hit the link in my signature to read my little coco guide. It should help you. I love growing in coco, but I keep it really simple.

Peace

 

[StealthFarmer]

Stitch,

Damn I already gave them a watering w/ a full dose of Hydroguard lol Hopefully they aren't harmed by the Hydroguard if its not meant for coco.

Mojo,

Ya I waited a day or two before I watered them, almost letting the coco dry out and I looked at the roots today and wow they exploded! Im definitely going to water less until they get bigger.

Things are looking a bit better now. I still have to stake a couple of them up but Im pretty sure they will make it through. Whew for a while I thought I was going to lose the whole bunch.

Thanks for the input guys

 

[MynameStitch]

Hey mojo that is a good guide dude A+++ for that bro; will most defiantly link it in my sig very soon when peeps want a good coco guide read

Na, I don't think it will harm them; it's just not good to use it; your better off using something that is meant for soil..... or other things you can use for soil.

They grow much better when they are not saturated; cannabis always hate soggy root zones.

 

[Guest]

Stitch,

Damn I already gave them a watering w/ a full dose of Hydroguard lol Hopefully they aren't harmed by the Hydroguard if its not meant for coco.

Mojo,

Ya I waited a day or two before I watered them, almost letting the coco dry out and I looked at the roots today and wow they exploded! Im definitely going to water less until they get bigger.

Things are looking a bit better now. I still have to stake a couple of them up but Im pretty sure they will make it through. Whew for a while I thought I was going to lose the whole bunch.

Thanks for the input guys

Nice to hear. Congrats on being able to relax, hehe. Keep it simple and enjoy the trip to harvest.

Peace

 

[Guest]

Hey mojo that is a good guide dude A+++ for that bro; will most defiantly link it in my sig very soon when peeps want a good coco guide read

Na, I don't think it will harm them; it's just not good to use it; your better off using something that is meant for soil..... or other things you can use for soil.

They grow much better when they are not saturated; cannabis always hate soggy root zones.

Stitch, if you think the link to my guide might help somebody, by all means girl, link it up. Thanks for the kudos.

I only really try to help the coco growers I see around here. Not that you can't but just to help out a little. But this is your house, young lady, so if I say anything out of line, feel free to correct me and I'll get back in line, hehe. Sometimes I tend to have more fun than I'm entitled to. I promise to try to behave.

I'm a firm believer in the ways of Yoda, who said "Try??? There is no try. There is only do, or do not do." So I'll behave.

Peace

 

[MynameStitch]

Naa! mojo you have never said anything out of line bro really; be yourself really
I would rather see someone in good fun than no fun and I know you are doing it in all good fun

Yup, sure do, new growers don't think some of the common sense things people think they should think of, which is where people tend to over look when they end up messing up. So sure do, going to change my sig soon and add some links and will defiantly add it