Seedlings are dying

Sorceror · Jan 23, 2017

I've lost about 40 seedlings in my latest attempts at growing. They germinate okay but a week or 2 later they die (flop over).

I've flushed the coco and soaked in a light nutrient mix. 6/9 GH. There is no perlite in my mix

When I was growing in pro-mix I had great success rates so could it just be bad coco?

I've germinated a total of 50 seeds and I have about 5 that got to true leaves.

I also have root aphids or fungus gnats but I doubt they are killing them at this rate.

belgowiet · Jan 23, 2017

Sorceror said:
I've lost about 40 seedlings in my latest attempts at growing. They germinate okay but a week or 2 later they die (flop over).

I've flushed the coco and soaked in a light nutrient mix. 6/9 GH. There is no perlite in my mix

When I was growing in pro-mix I had great success rates so could it just be bad coco?

I've germinated a total of 50 seeds and I have about 5 that got to true leaves.

I also have root aphids or fungus gnats but I doubt they are killing them at this rate.

you have any pics? never grow on coco so i cant help you with that but i had a similar problem few years back .
And i think they died because of the bad air .. they where in a little hot room with no fresh air. dunno your situation

Sorceror · Jan 23, 2017

No pics right now but the bottom of seedling kind of 'shrinks' and the rest of the plant falls over.

I will up my fresh air exchange but I do have a pc fan going already (small t5 bulb space)

I've cleaned the pots with a bleach solution because I thought it might be 'damping off' but they are still dying.

I think I may have to use a seed starter like rockwool or jiffy pellets and see if that helps at all.

mango420 · Jan 24, 2017

How wet/dry are you keeping the medium? How often are you giving them water? Are you burring the long stalks?

MickFoster · Jan 24, 2017

They are damping off - usually caused by being too wet. I suggest rapid rooters.

Sorceror · Jan 25, 2017

I wet them in their 16 oz. party cups and spray water on top for first couple days.

I have been letting them dry out a bit before watering. Some have been dying before drying out though.

Buried the stalks on some but I quit doing that as the next day they would be dead. lol

I have got some jiffy pellets so I will see how that goes... Was hoping I could switch over to straight coco completely but it doesn't look like its the best option.

I'm also going to keep trying the germinating in coco to see if I can get the right moisture levels.

Thanks for the help everyone, much appreciated.

meadowman · Jan 25, 2017

too wet, only fill em half way with coco and let em get close to dry before feeding. i use 9oz. cups….

belgowiet · Jan 25, 2017

fungus gnats can kill your seedlings very fast ..
killed mine in 2-3 weeks so i cleaned everything and germed some new beans unfortunately i whas so stupid to keep a pot of infected dirt next to my growroom so they died in less than 10 days

Levitationofme · Jan 25, 2017

I started mine in Root Riot plugs. and when I had roots coming out the bottom I would
set them in coco.

And yes some coco is better then others. I had 1 bag of uncompressed Canna coco I think. Came ready to use, but it sucked balls. Tons of root animal life. When I rinsed some out, Mass amounts of Brown runoff, Tannins perhaps. Really messed with my grow. I topped off all my plants with it

I had used a Compressed brick product and I liked it much better. But I don't remember the brand. Clearish runoff, and I was able to rehydrate it with what I wanted. I wish I had known more then lol.

It seems the aphids and shit just somehow survive the processing as it happens so often.
Or its not processed as advertized.

What is the PH of your nutrient mix? Coco is picky. Likes 5.8 so it can slowly drift up.

Cal/Mag is often an issue with coco. I always added cal/mag to the nutrients.

ChaosCatalunya · Jan 25, 2017

I had exactly this recently, seedlings 2 or 3 days old getting thin, weak at the base, keel over, die

I am 99% sure it is wetting off, so now I squeeze all the coco to get rid of excess water, then only water when it has got pretty dry, and then, only by sitting the base of the pot in a few mm of water for a few minutes, from below.. I no longer water seedlings in coco from above until they are well established

russej05 · Jan 25, 2017

Sorceror said:
I've lost about 40 seedlings in my latest attempts at growing. They germinate okay but a week or 2 later they die (flop over).

I've flushed the coco and soaked in a light nutrient mix. 6/9 GH. There is no perlite in my mix

When I was growing in pro-mix I had great success rates so could it just be bad coco?

I've germinated a total of 50 seeds and I have about 5 that got to true leaves.

I also have root aphids or fungus gnats but I doubt they are killing them at this rate.

I grow in coco, I have Perlite mixed with it about 70:30. try add some perlite it will help. that is a a lot of seeds to go thru.

russej05 · Jan 25, 2017

Sorceror said:
I wet them in their 16 oz. party cups and spray water on top for first couple days.

I have been letting them dry out a bit before watering. Some have been dying before drying out though.

Buried the stalks on some but I quit doing that as the next day they would be dead. lol

I have got some jiffy pellets so I will see how that goes... Was hoping I could switch over to straight coco completely but it doesn't look like its the best option.

I'm also going to keep trying the germinating in coco to see if I can get the right moisture levels.

Thanks for the help everyone, much appreciated.

Hey, On your journey with the coco, just remember when it is dry its dry its dry coco doesn't retain water like soil does. the pots will become very light.

Sorceror · Jan 25, 2017

I made the seeds so it's not too bad of a loss. I will try the perlite and seed if that helps.

Thanks

Lethal · Jan 25, 2017

These early seedling deaths usually are caused by overwater but that's just from my dirt experience. Otherwise beware of the pests it can really crush the young ones quickly...I did lost batch of nice AF seeds for outdoor purposes because of pests last year :-/
I would advise go easy with water and make sure to get rid of pests if possible.

For purpose of fresh start try cubes. Helped me couple of times especially with the watering regime.

Good luck Lethal

MedicinalLifer · Jan 26, 2017

i have coco figgured out...firstly you need to flush a 5 gallon pot of it with 10-15 gallons of PH 6 water, then when you finish flushing give the coco a 1/5th strength feeding of veg food at 6.0 ph, let sit couple days under a light then its ready for a seed, plant and give a tablespoon or 2 of weak food, and top with a ziplock like a greenhouse but dont seal tight...make sure you are 18 inches or more off the floor, and 3 feet from a hid, once up dont feed for first week or so as it wont get dry fast, and only water with 1/5th or 300 ppm ph 6...soon they will develop lots of roots, and keep it in cup for a while, 8-10 inches before transplant and you can get by in 1 gallon bags, I have some 4.5 footers in 1 gallon bags not rootboundand flourishing in flower now, I needed clones, did smaller cups for clones, just 8 oz, and didnt use hormone or gel and 100% rooted...all 45, and put 7 in a container of water and they readt to plant now...all with 1/5 th strength nutes...always use cal mag suppliment, and when plants get bigger you increase feedings from 1 to 3 and up to 6 a day...more you push a seemingly rootbound plant they grow more...pro mix sucks compared to coco for sure, so much larger and faster

MedicinalLifer · Jan 26, 2017

ok the 5 gallon pot I used to flush medium for clones in cups, just easier to flush a 5 gal pot then 45 - 8 oz cups

Loc Dog · Jan 26, 2017

mango420 said:
How wet/dry are you keeping the medium? How often are you giving them water? Are you burring the long stalks?

I have some seeds I am starting in coco. Some are too tall and spindly. Would it be bad to dump the coco out, and replant them so the leaves are closer to the surface of coco?

Loc Dog · Jan 26, 2017

Did not hear answer, and was anxious. Went ahead and re-buried them, and have strong fan to dry out coco. Will post results.

gr866 · Jan 26, 2017

Loc Dog said:
Did not hear answer, and was anxious. Went ahead and re-buried them, and have strong fan to dry out coco. Will post results.

I always bury deep when transplanting, you should also use a cool lamp close to them, I use a florescents on them till they get some size and have a lite fan on them, that builds stem strength.

Deprivation · Feb 12, 2017

Coco how to for seedlings . Rinse ALL coco well then put in a big pot, its cheap insurance not to fuck a grow. Now flush with a kettle of boiling water. Next add full strength nutes let sit for 24 hours, this maxi charges the ca and mg cations displacing k and na. Fill your solo/seedling pot from this coco. rinse with 1/3 strength nutes and plant seed or sprout. Cover with a cut off pop bottle top. Once it pops leave it B! dont mist! dont water! Just leave it alone for a few days like 5-7, then flood again with 02 saturated nutes. leave it 5 more days and up pot. It always works.

solo seedlings day 5-10 and 20 days later

Seedlings are dying

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