My Seedlings Have Stopped Growing! HELP!

[staceyadams]

Hey guys! I'm growing in a coco/perlite mix, starting 12/12 from seed and the seedlings seem to have stopped growing right as they were about to develop their first true set of leaves. I'm currently attributing it to either over watering or root development, but I'm curious...

Will this completely screw me by leaving me with ridiculously small plants by the time flowering begins, or will flowering have been pushed back as well since there was no real growth happening? Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Mr. Greengenes]

Hard to guess without pics, but overwatering and subsequent root damage sounds very likely. Whether growth will still occur under 12/12 really has most to do with the genetics. Some genes will halt growth and begin flowering when the plant is teeny tiny, others will stretch 500% before/while setting flowers.

If you think you've damaged roots from overwatering, a repot into fresh medium would help. Seedlings like a very small container best, like a half filled 9oz solo cup. Contrary to a popular cannabis myth (from Jorge or Ed, probably) concerning roots being lightshy, I like using the semi-clear cups so I can watch root growth which helps gauge water needs in seedlings.

 

[staceyadams]

Thanks Mr. Greengenes! I've been letting them dry out for the last two days. They didn't wilt or anything of the sort, they just sort of stopped growing. Do you think they have a chance of pulling through and starting to grow again?

 

[staceyadams]

Ok, so i have some photos so you can get a look at them. I'm one hundred percent positive that it was over watering. Do these look like they'll make a recovery? I can't believe I made such a newb mistake, but it was my first time working with coco! I really hope they rebound! Anyone's feedback is greatly appreciated!

 

[Mr. Greengenes]

They don't look too bad. Are you sure they've actually stopped growing even? Seedlings grow slow, you know. Even fast growth (one week, double size) doesn't look like much at the seedling stage. That said, those pots are very large. I start seedlings in the six celled 'pony packs' you get tomatos in at the nursury. They have about 4oz of dirt space, those styrofoam cups look to be about a quart? Smaller pots are better because there's much more air available to fast growing roots. I would actually dig them up and transplant into small, half filled 9oz solo cups if I were you. But, if you don't do that, just be very careful about watering. It looks like they could go weeks between (the first few) waterings with that much dirt, but it's a guessing game with that ratio.

 

[EvilTwin]

stacy,
Was it brick coco and did you rinse the coco to flush out sodium? That's a sure fire explanation for cessation of growth.
ET

 

[staceyadams]

Hey ET, thanks for the response! Indeed it was brick coco, and I think you might be right...I may not have flushed it properly! Should I do something or do you think it will begin to fix itself?

 

[EvilTwin]

Hi Stacey,
Coco is manufactured and allowed to age on the beach where it picks up salt spray.

Before using bricked or other un-flushed coco, you really need to flush and preferable with warm water to get the salt out. The best way to do it is to measure the ppm of flush water going in and compare that to the ppm coming out. You want to flush until the run-off is coming out same ppm as it's going in.

When that happened to me, I transplanted into a fresh salt-free media. I suppose you could try a flush...and since they're in small containers I might even go beyond the usual flush parameters and try maybe 5x the pot size or even more.

It's really your choice. Maybe someone else has experience allowing them to outgrow it. Also, you really should flush the bricked coco and also a pre-soak in a nutrient solution before using on larger plants. No pre-soak for the seedlings though.
Good luck,
ET

 

[xmobotx]

i made the same mistake w/ coco...

this seedling stage is a tough stage for 'hands on' types - freq the best thing to do is nothing

my valuable observation would be - make sure the rest of your coco is thoroughly flushed before transplanting. since the seedlings are in a small amount of coco now, if they pull through, you should immediately see them benefit from transplant into your thoroughly rinsed medium.

 

[staceyadams]

Thanks for your feedback, everyone! It looks like they're starting to grow again after a couple of days of letting the coco dry a little. Hoping we're good to go again!

 

[staceyadams]

Ok, so they're all taking off now! I want to thank everyone who chimed in with their two cents. Thanks so much for helping me stay level headed!

 

[EvilTwin]

Ok, so they're all taking off now! I want to thank everyone who chimed in with their two cents. Thanks so much for helping me stay level headed!

Happy to hear that. Hope the grow goes well.
ET