big problem

[smknbud]

whats up, i have 3 plants, and the 2 that were planted earlier have started to droop, a bottom leaf is beginning to wither and there's some chlorosis. i'm not worried about the possible nutrient deficiency/over watering as much as my roomate messed with the soil and stuck his finger to mix around the soil to make sure it was all moist. once i saw the plants, it looks like the roots were damaged, i guess by mixing the soil around, which was not a good idea at all. is it possible for the plants to be salvaged? with my 9 inch plant, all the leaves are drooping down, still green, but theyre much smaller in width, and with my other plant thats 5-6 inches, it looks like the leaves are beginning to droop like the other plant. i believe it's root damage, can someone help me out? will the leaves grow back?
thx

[-mu]

First thing you need to do is, get rid of that lunatic roomie!

You can put your finger straight down, and straight back out again, if you really need to, but a FAR better way to judge moisture is by weight. To calibrate your brain; lift the pot when bone dry, and again when fully saturated.

Even if he did break some roots, they will usually recover from damage like this fairly quickly (unless he went crazy), mostly, roots don't inhabit the top of the pot, anyway. Some people prune the roots of their mother plants. The plants love it!

As to the plants current troubles, if there aren't enough roots to support the plant, it may drop a few leaves, but will recover. If he went crazy and damaged the main tap root, your plant may die.

But it sounds more like an overwatering problem. Or nutrition. Without pics it's difficult to give a definitive answer, even with pics.

Your plants are still young, so don't worry too much, and don't go throwing more water and nutes on them until you know exactly what's going on.

Got a digi-cam?

-mu

[smknbud]

here's a picture of each of the plants. they both haven't grown lately. i noticed the slight overwatering problem and part of that is due to me folair feeding the plants. before the drooping happened some leaves were curling under, too much nutrients. just for the record, i'm using a 250 watt hps with about 18" separation from the tallest plant. i also used to mist the leaves when the soil was dry which is probably what the overwatering is; now i'm just watering the soil.

[bluebong]

It's hard to tell with the low quality pictures, but they look dead.

The sure cure most of the time is to get back to the minimum basics. Good light, good air,good temps. Let the pot get light, then give it clean water...through the roots, not the leaves.

What kind of soil are you using?

[-mu]

Shit! Maybe he did go nuts! Wilting of the main stem is not a good sign. It looks like extreme, prolonged overwatering. It does look almost dead.

Misting shouldn't affect the state of watering. I mist more than most, but the ventilation is good, and the water evaporates quickly (wetting agent helps), so only the payload is left with the plants.

But yeah, to echo bluebong, get back to basics. Maybe get some new beans. Start with very light feeding only when they are ready (when the baby leaves drop off), and let the pot dry out between waterings. And start with smaller pots, that one looks too big for the plant.

Better luck next time!

-mu

[smknbud]

i'm using scott's potting soil, it has added phosphorus. the thing is, i have the plants in a walk in closet about 4'x6' with an oscillating fan. i would mist the leaves a lot as well as the soil because it dried up so quickly from the hps. basically all i've been doing lately is sticking to distilled water, fan, light and dark and thats all. i hope they can survive, would seltzer water help at all?

[skunkface]

Why would using smaller pots help?

[bluebong]

I'm willing to bet it gets well over the 80 degree mark in there with no exhaust and air being blown around.

And you should let your soil get dry. the best way to know when to water, as has been said, is by the weight. Dry soil is very light.

[smknbud]

no, if it gets over the 80 degree mark, it might be a matter of 4 degrees, and i have an oscillating fan on at all times. i used to keep the door of the walk in closet closed and noticed heat stress, so i kept the door open (only closed for an 8 hour period) and i saw that the plant was improving. the soil dries up really quickly, but i might have made the mistake of misting the leaves every time the soil dries. now, i have a feeling its the roots because every day until about 4-5 days ago, the plants have all grown very quickly and very full; then suddenly the day came where they slightly began to droop and then they progressively worsened in the days to come

[tnh]

start letting them dry out more and see if you can get them back to life (which i doubt)

then when you start over, leave a scale in there...

weigh it when it's dry weight it when it's wet

water it...

don't water it again until it matches the original dry weight....

that is until it get big, because it will then throw it off

[-mu]

Originally Posted by skunkface

Why would using smaller pots help?

If the pot is too big, the roots can't reach the whole pot, and you get stagnant water inside the pot, even though the top may appear bone dry (and so, oops, you water again), i.e. over-watering symptoms will occur, root-rot, etc. not good.

-mu

[smknbud]

thx guys, appreciate the help, i hope everything works out and these babies survive

[smknbud]

question anyone. 1 of the plants has already made a come back, thank god. the tall plant has some leaves that are withered and some that have drooped. but it looks like there's new growth at some stems, should i trim off the dead leaves? or is there anything i can do ?