I'm new to growing and to grass city, it seems very informative so maybe you veterans can help me out. Recently I've planted 2 seeds a candy kush auto and aroma auto. Both have succumbed to damping off the aroma went about a week and was looking great about 3 inches out of soil with first pair of leaves and today I look at the base of the stem and it is pinched off. I was told to put cinnamon but I doubt that will work. This is an outdoor grow it gets 10 hours of light a day, the past days have been very hot 80 degrees+ and humid. I water every 2-3 days and mist it with sprayer 2 times every day very minimal amount. What can help this? I feel like I'm doing everything right any tips?
Stop misting them. Damping off is a result of overwatering, or maybe more appropriately in your case over frequent watering. Put all the magical cures in there you want it wont do a damn thing if the top of the soil is too wet.
You should sterilize the soil by microwaving in a plactic container until moistened soil will accummulate droplets on side and top of container. Do not close the lid, simply lay the lid on top and don't snap shut. I do a gallon on 10 minutes ... I'll be very hot and damping off for you will be a thing of the past.
Damping off is caused by a list of pathogens and is prevalent in wet and cool conditions, and seedlings usually do not recover from it. Since this is an outdoor grow sterilizing the medium isn't going to do a whole lot in the long run, if the pathogens are present in your sorroundings they will just recontaminate your soil again in a very short amount of time. Bottom line a seedling will not damp off in the correct environment, that's what you should try and correct. You posted a picture in another thread you started on the same subject, but I will continue the discussion here. The pot size you have the seedlings in shouldn't need water every 2 days. Plants need much less water than you would think, especially seedlings. Once again you were just overwatering.
Here is what I use for seedlings. It is a little snapware container with about 1" of perlite with 2" coco pots nested into the perlite about 1/2" and then cover the perlite with hydroton (slows evaporation). Then you water the perlite every few days when it gets dry and the water will wick up into the medium keeping it perfectly moist. If you are growing in soil there are many beneficial microbes that are living in your soil that assist the plant in nutrient uptake eliminating the need for pH measurements.
Also the 10/14 light ratio probably is confusing your plants. Their not naturally suppose to active during a time frame like that. Where are you growing? What region of America? Tuckerjonesisreal
Yeah man just set that on a seed mat under some T5s and you can watch them grow... I just moved them to their 6" pots a couple days ago now they are vegging. They are 10 days old. Also to clarify, you don't have to worry about pH measurements if you keep your soil alive so that means no chemicals. It also helps to give them a compost tea every now and then and top dress with some organic amendments that will slowly over time enrich the soil biology as they break down. If you use bottled chemical nutes or do something to throw the soil biology out of balance you will need to worry more about the soil chemistry (salt build up / EC)
You only need to spray mist in LOW humidity. Damping off is a fungus disease of plants. When dormant, both bacteria & fungi are in the spore stage & can become airbourn. Look at these spores as being similar to seeds in the fact that they need moisture to sprout & grow, spores come out of dormancy & proliferate. In your case, you were over watering & adding to already humid conditions by spray misting. You created the perfect conditions to attract spores & actually cultivated them. It's not ALWAYS caused by over watering. If there's a large population of airbourn spores present, just enough moisture for a seedlings survival can be enough to trigger life in the dormant spores. Not so common, but still possible. So we do as much as we can to prevent cool, over moist conditions. Living between the ocean & a bay, surrounded by lots of streams & rivers, damping off is common here. I start my seedlings indoors & use a heating mat. You'll find it less of a problem when keeping your grow medium warm. I never put seedling out before 5 sets of leaves due to the high rate of fungus disease in the area (even the road side weeds get covered with powdery mildew & are subject to botritis). I prefer larger because of rabbits & such, but not always possible. Many fungicides available. Try treating the soil before planting & no need to spray mist outdoors. Don't over water. Practice that & you'll see the problem disapear... unless you live somewhere like a humid swampy area, such as the eastern shore of Maryland. (But you'll still see it GREATLY reduced).