What is this? How do I get rid of it?

[krustytheclown]

Strain: Chronic by Serious
Medium: Peat Pellets kept very moist in a humidity dome with standing water
Light: Non until seedlings sprouted, then 42W of CFL's 2 inches away from the top of the plants
Age of plants when problem appeared: 1 week
Grow area: C13 cabinet

I tried to sprout some seedlings and right after they sprouted out of the peat pellets, I got this weird fuzzy white growth right at the base of the sprouts- nowhere else. For other reasons, I had to abandon the grow, so I didn't see what would have happened if I ignored it.

What is this?

Last grow was about 8 months ago and I had a light case of bud rot which infected 10% of the buds. I rubbed down the C13 with bleach and water, as well as all cords, the fan, the Waterfarms and anything else that was inside the cabinet when the bud rot occurred.

Here are some pics of what I got. If it's something bad (which it most certainly is), please let me know what to do to prevent this from ruining a crop, or at least where to look for that info.

 

[Mickymouse]

Yea that looks like some kind of mold.Definatly not good.I never liked those peat pellets.Get something else.They where to humid.Seeds should be just left out.Iv put mine in a cup of dirt under a 1000w with no problem.

 

[Sleepy]

Peat Pellets kept very moist in a humidity dome with standing water

too much humidity...

what you have there is mildew.

throw them out and start over...

soak the peat pucks until wet, squeeze out excess moisture, dig a small hole, insert germinated seed sprouts, cover back up using a toothpick...

spray plain water with a mister daily until they break the surface...

when roots start showing, plant the whole shabangabang in a 4 inch pot...

 

[krustytheclown]

too much humidity...

what you have there is mildew.

throw them out and start over...

Got it. Should I take any other precautions to prevent mildew from forming again?

Like, should I rub the cabinet down again with bleach, or get something else from the store?

Should I get rid of the humidity dome and get another one?

 

[FreezerBoy]

A dome is a dome. It's not as though one brand outperforms another. I avoid domes at every opportunity. The one exception is germing. My Rockwool sits on a vented grill and is covered with a well vented dome. The idea is to retain moisture in the medium, not to create dangerously high RH levels while preventing oxygen exchange. The second I see signs of life seedlings are pulled from the dome and transplanted to netcups.




I don't think moisture was your problem as much as stagnancy. I've germmed in my bubbler which keeps my cubes 100% saturated at all times. With a bubbler, the water is an oxygen delivery system. When cubes are completely soaked, there's no need for a dome to retain moisture. Because water, Rockwool and cab are continuously flooded with fresh air, no mold.

 

[krustytheclown]

You may be smarter than me, so I apoligize in advance:

What the hell do you have going on?!?

It's like a DWC, a cloning chamber and a random tube sticking out of DWC.

 

[Deft]

Notice your fuz is on where the seeds are, thats because it's eaten them before they had a chance to come up. Has happened to me a lot! Try germing somewhere else, like a window that is the right temp and has lots of airflow around it. I say window because UV from the sun seems to kill mold, and thats where I have the most success (basement and small rooms are the worst spots for mold when germing for me). Airflow and natural sun are your best friends in fighting damping off imo aside from the humidity and saturation of the medium.

By smarter you mean he knows whats in his own cab? Lol!

I kinda was wondering that too.

I spy, jewel cases, a plastic grate, a tub (with vent hose?), Home made net pots?, rockwool with sprouts, dome, air pump, and more wires than devices in the pic.

 

[FreezerBoy]

What the hell do you have going on?!?

Sorry, only the sprouts applied here. Nothing else is actually happening. It's a "getting ready for the new diary" shot. Out of context it must seem confusing.

The big blue 18 gal tub is my regular DWC. The spout in the corner is a water pump for draining. The air pump is covering a similar hole which allows air tubing and cord for heater.

All that's actually happening is 3 of 4 seeds sprouting. The Solo cups are home made net pots. Not one of my best inventions.

 

[FreezerBoy]

I spy, jewel cases, a plastic grate

The CD case covers the 5" net pot hole in the lid. The grate allows ventilation to the rockwool. All the corner and floor wires are my power strip cord and wires for remoting the ballast outside the cab. At the time of the shot, I was still thinking of cutting more holes in the lid but, that's another (long, boring) story.

Sorry for hijacking. We now return to regular programming.

 

[otherwhitemeat]

If ur getting mold like that either your RH is too high or ur peat pucks have come with a supply of nasties. How old are they, have they been sitting out for a while?

You might try popping your beans before putting them in peat. If peat's the problem--try rockwool. I put my beans in a shotglass of regular tap water for about 24-48 hours. As they show their tails, I place them in the cubes.

Some mildews can be killed with a weak hydrogen peroxide solution. Try spraying with a capful or two in about 8 ozs of water and see if the mildew disappears.

You can also sterilize peat pucks by soaking them in boiling water for a few minutes. I reuse rockwool cubes all the time, even after they've been hit by bacteria. Not sure if the peat pots would come apart tho.

If that doesn't work, consider living soil...there will usually be a healthy balance of bacteria and fungi that will keep things like this in balance

If you continue to have problems, consider the location of your grow. If in a basement you might try HEPAs on the intakes to keep mold spores down. Clean your area real well with bleach and be sure that there is no standing water.

I don't like domes, never did--no air exchange. I do clones and seedlings all the time and do it totally domeless. I spose if you are in an arid clime, this may be necessary but given the state of that mold, I don't think you need to worry about keeping them moist.


Good luck with your efforts

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Peat Pellets kept very moist in a humidity dome with standing water

too much humidity...

what you have there is mildew.

throw them out and start over...

soak the peat pucks until wet, squeeze out excess moisture, dig a small hole, insert germinated seed sprouts, cover back up using a toothpick...

spray plain water with a mister daily until they break the surface...

when roots start showing, plant the whole shabangabang in a 4 inch pot...

Soak your seeds until they crack and sprout a 1/4" - 1/2" tail

Plant following sleepy's directions

This is exactly what I do, only I don't have a mister.
If it's just one or two seeds I'll put each one in the bottom of a 16oz plastic cup with a bit of soil around it. I'll then put a plastic bag over the top loosely with a bunch of holes poked in it.
Weak lighting and a 75F temp range
I see sprouts within 24hrs.

If I'm germing 6 or more I like to use those little humidity domes the pucks sometimes come with. If you use too few in the dome they dry out too quickly. (I leave things unattended if I can)

I also tend to use about 1/4 teaspoon of Vitamin B1 rooting solution per gallon of water I soak the peat/coco pucks in. Tends to make for some nice thick white roots

As soon as you have a good taproot and are ready to transplant them, remove that outer wrapping the pucks come in. I have some strains that grow right through it and others that seem to get choked off.

Removing it allows it to just pop roots like mad so it can't be a bad thing to remove it.