Looking for opinions

[juugn]

Hello all-
I am a new grower. I recently purchased a mars hydro tent kit and have two plants going now. Trying to find out what exactly I am doing wrong so I can have plants that don't look so sad . The temps have been around 77F and humidity in the 40-60 range always. I opened the tent up as what I was reading said it might be heat stress. Some of the leaves are starting to taco and they are all very droopy. I watered Sunday morning and they haven't perked up since. I know everything i'm reading is pointing to it being overwatered or heat but i'd love to hear it from someone else just to confirm. Also, if so what is the best solution - time so the medium dries out? It is a blend of FFOF and perlite. Please let me know if there is any info that would help! Thank you so much <3

 

[VerdantGreen]

They look ok to me... the leaves are very slightly angling themselves away from the light but nothing i would worry about. Learn to 'shuck' the weight of the pots so you know how heavy it feels after watering... and then you can tell when it needs watering next.. when they feel quite a bit lighter. remember that vegging plants don't need loads of light... sometimes they leaves curl away from the light if the light is too strong...
VG

 

[juugn]

Thank you VG, appreciate it. Now if I can just stop checking on them

 

[troutman]

Try to increase humidity to almost 70% until you start flowering. An easy way is to do this is place
a water container with a cloth partially in the water so it wicks moisture into the air. I do this when
the humidity is below 60% when I'm vegetating. I use a stick across the top of the water container
and fold the cloth so both ends are in the water. A gallon pail is enough for a small tent. I find that
seedlings exposed to less than 55% humidity take long to get going.

 

[VerdantGreen]

Thank you VG, appreciate it. Now if I can just stop checking on them

hey no worries, leaving them alone can be hard! looks like plenty of perlite in the mix so you will find it hard to overwater, so i wouldn't worry about that. Roots will only grow into moist/wet soil. Have you got a fan circulating the air in there? also have you got a dark period in the 24 hrs?

 

[juugn]

hey no worries, leaving them alone can be hard! looks like plenty of perlite in the mix so you will find it hard to overwater, so i wouldn't worry about that. Roots will only grow into moist/wet soil. Have you got a fan circulating the air in there? also have you got a dark period in the 24 hrs?

yeah they are 18/6 and the pics were taken maybe 4-5 hours after the light came on for the day. Yeah, there is a fan circulating - it is pointing above the plants (below the light)

 

[juugn]

Try to increase humidity to almost 70% until you start flowering. An easy way is to do this is place
a water container with a cloth partially in the water so it wicks moisture into the air. I do this when
the humidity is below 60% when I'm vegetating. I use a stick across the top of the water container
and fold the cloth so both ends are in the water. A gallon pail is enough for a small tent. I find that
seedlings exposed to less than 55% humidity take long to get going.

Doing this right now thank you for the tip

 

[HempKat]

You may want to look thru the Mars Hydro sub forum and/or LED lighting sub forums as there is an issue many people have by having their lights at full intensity from the start. I don't have any experience with LED lights yet so I can't give you many details on this problem which is why I'm suggesting you check these forums. Apparently though from what I've seen posted around it's best to employ a dimmer switch and start plants at a lower intensity and then gradually work them up to a higher intensity over time. You say your temps are 77 F but mentioned heat stress. If your temps are 77 degrees that's great but it also rules out heat stress. It could however be light stress due to the intensity thing with LEDs I mentioned. Other growers, especially ones not working with LEDs might get heat stress and light stress confused because more traditional bulbs run way hotter and when you have them close enough to cause light stress it also feels like heat stress because the bulbs are so hot. LED lights run much cooler and so it feels like it's safe to put them real close because there is so little heat coming from the LEDs but the intensity is still very high and if the intensity is too strong for the plant, regardless of the temperature it can cause light stress which in extreme cases can become light bleaching as the intensity can turn areas in the leaves a whitish color. Now if you do have light stress it's fairly mild because I see no signs of light bleaching in your pics. If anything it's like VerdentGreen said above. The plants for the most part look okay but maybe a little like they're trying to turn away from the light. If that's the issue you can fix it by moving the lights a bit further away or if you have a dimmer switch reduce the intensity of the lights.

Again though, I encourage you to check the LED related sub forums for more complete information since I've not worked with LEDs yet.

 

[exploziv]

Just make sure the vent moves them a bit. And leave them be. I do agree to slowly ramp up light and not go 100% from start. Also higher humidity is really helping small plants so try to fix that as well. What model light you got with the tent?

 

[juugn]

Just make sure the vent moves them a bit. And leave them be. I do agree to slowly ramp up light and not go 100% from start. Also higher humidity is really helping small plants so try to fix that as well. What model light you got with the tent?

The small one, the 100W 600series or w/e it's called. I'm moving it further away as I don't have a dimmer switch. really appreciate everyone taking the time to help.

 

[exploziv]

TS 600. Yeah.. that one should be kept like around 25-30 cm away from the tops. I had the ts1000 and tsw2000 and they are more powerful but same led chip density so I can assure you no burns even if at 20 cm away.
Also, no need for dimmer on that one. Its tiny enaugh that even seedlings can take full power. I was thinking you got a more powerful one, that has a dimmer.
Good luck!

 

[juugn]

The first set of leaves on both are starting to show brown tips / light yellowing as well. Overall i'd say the new growth is looking lush and happy with the efforts to increase humidity. I just bought a new humidifier so hopefully that will help once it arrives. Thanks again everyone.

 

[troutman]

Once the plants get bigger, they'll be able to transpire enough to keep humidity in check.
Another thing I've done was hang a towel in the grow tent and mist it lightly every day.

Good Luck.

 

[Roadblock]

Id say its over watered when they are little it's very easy to overwhelm them and it happens quickly, when this happens the plant's metabolism slows right down and the risk of major root problems is breathing down your neck, the plan is to get them back into turgor and this only happens when the root systems air-water ratio is where it needs to be.

Youve got to find the too dry spot, basically don't water until the very first signs of wilting, then water with a weak nutrient mix, not too much volume and not directly on the stem but around 1/2 way between it and the outside of the pot don't worry about runoff for the minute you want the right moisture level air ratio in the pot and right now you want to be a fraction on the dry side.

While doing this if you can back off the light somewhat it helps to take the demand off them until they are thriving, also periodically mist them with a very weak nutrient solution,

When they start to stand up and pray increase the water volume a little, then after a couple of days of good turgor give a good watering with runoff, again take them to just before wilting, then set your watering schedule an hour before that point and you should be in the sweet spot for your room and the stage they are at, let them tell you when they need it and then supply just before then..

When plants are not in turgor they are not moving a lot of fluid through them, its here that deficiencies or toxicity and lockout starts to happen and also the start of root rots etc, its not that the elements are not there in the nutrient the plant cannot assimilate them as roots are drowning or dying off and it shows it in the leaf, people straight away start adding things to address the leaf symptoms, its not the nutrient that's the problem, its more than likely the air-water ratio in the root zone is not right. When a plant is standing in turgor and then leaf symptoms develop then start looking at Ph and nutrient etc.

 

[Creeperpark]

Wet to almost dry is the best water management practice. Not completely dry in the center but almost dry before watering. You can stick your finger down the side of the pot and feel if it's dry. I like to use the lift method best but I will use my finger and lift to double-check. Your plants are ok for now