Very Slow Growth

It looks like it's 5 days old. I'd say it's not going to make it.

 

need a quality medium with better aeration imo.
 
what exactly is in that pot?

 

probably over watering that pot is big

 

this too.
 
 
just make a bubble bucket and all your problems are over

 

I had this problem with a grow once. I couldnt understand why the seedling was staying alive, but not growing. It stood a healthy seedling for a month long. It was a PH issue. I grow in all organinc, but the problem was found when I decided that, theres no way it shouldnt be growing with the soil I was using plus light source and ventilation was fine. I tested the PH of my thought to be distilled water and it has a PH of less than 5...bad news. Thats the only reason I can think of why it would stay "alive and green" but not grow. Everything is basically locked out. Once I replaced the bad water with distilled that I confirmed from the start was PH neutral, the growth took off.
 
If youre using organinc also, it couldnt hurt to check the PH run off. I see in your recipe you dont use dolomite lime? If not, then im even more so leaning towards a PH issue. But stil lthink the main PH issue would be from the water source. I would also suggest in that soil recipe a mineral source, and depending on the quality of the compost, extra nutrients like kelp/alfalfa and so on. Keep in mind I am no expert.
 
Edit:I see you use distilled water as it is. In my specific case, I would buy distilled water in 5 gallons that you fill up yourself. THe only reason I could attribute the PH changing so bad, was the water source wasnt properly sealed once it was opened. Sometimes I had the cap off for a little while, and I would always notice condensation on the inside of the 5 gal container. This led me to believe that if it wasnt sealed, maybe some outside moisture was getting into the container, proven by the fact that if it condensated, moisture was getting out, so it could also get in. Thats how I realized the problem I had. I feel it was a rare issue, due only to the fact that I had unsealed water that due to its large size, sat around for a while. It could still be something for you to look at as I do not know your specific situation with the water. Still, without dolomite lime, Id equally assume the medium is having PH issues as well.

 

Did you use a meter or the strips? If its not the PH, I would next look at the areation of the soil. If it very compact? Does the water run through it easily? How often do you water it? Seedlings like that need a constant moisture for root establishment, however unless youre really good at being able to tell when to water it in a big pot like that, as others suggested, its very easy to overwater.
 
If none of the suggestions I give seem plausible, the next thing I would look at is ventilation and lights. How close would you say you get those cfls to the plant in normal conditions? If youre ventilation is sufficient and how have a decent air exchange going on with clean air coming in and air going out, you shouldnt have a problem getting those lights close about 2-3 inches away.
 
At this point, I would assume its either an aeartion problem in the soil/overwatering, or if you use a meter to check PH, it may not be calibrated properly.

 

The only thing I can suggest at this point with my limited experience is to start over, and start the seedling in a small cup or something like that to ensure the watering is controlled. Start with a mix of perlite/ peat moss and EWC. I would also suggest to take the opportunity to ammend the soil with a few more minerals/nutrients and let it cook. Where was the compost from?

 

If you are doing it all organic, there are things like vinegar, lemon juice and things like that to stabilze, however they do not hold the PH stable long term. they will wash out and only be a temporary solution, and I have no experience in using such things in a soil to tell you how that will affect the plant. I just know those things are commonly used to lower PH drastically.
 
I would suggest, if you want to save this grow getting powdered dolomite lime at a place like lowes, not the pellets, and not hydrated lime, and seeing if you can gradually get some growth and PH balance by adding 2 Tbsp per gallon of distilled water. But I highly suggest at this point starting over and adding dolomite lime per label instructions to your soil mix and letting it cook. I feel something in that soil mix has a really off PH, and there is no buffer in that soil to regulate it, therefore the plant cant take up any nutrients.
 
If you are not concerned about growing all organic, general hydroponics sells a nice PH up and down solution kit that will permanently stabilze PH, but I dont suggest using chemicals in an organic grow because of the microherd.
 
The wood shavings you say is in the mix should be making the soil more acidic, not basic, but if the soil PH is 8+ something else in it has a really off balanced PH.

 

In theory it sounds like it should...Its my understanding that the reason pelleted dolomite lime isnt wanted is because its a slow release form because the pellets take time to break down. If thats all you can find, couldnt hurt to try. But if you can go to the various hardware/garden store websites around your area and do a search for dolomite lime. You may be able to save yourself the trouble and source a place that sells the powdered version.