Hey community! So, I finally decided to germinate and plant a bag of seeds I've been saving up while buying throughout the years. I got like 5 of them to sprout up out of the medium I chose, which is miracle grow soil. My problem is.. The soil is pretty hard. Like, I have to push pretty hard to make a dent in the top layer. I'm worried this will stunt the growth by making it harder for the roots to grow out. Is it due to lack of air flow? I've seen a few suggestions saying that you should add perlite to the soil, but how could I thoroughly mix the perlite into the soil if the root system has already somewhat established itself? I thought maybe starting fresh with a new jiffy pot filled with new soil with perlite, but you can't really transplant a brand new seedling can you? My set up right now is two cfl bulbs connected to two desk lights with no shades pointed really close to my babies. I also have three fluorescent strip lights that are leaning up against the wall with the babies under them. The desk lights are coming in from the sides but still over the plants. The temp is between 75 and 80 degrees. Any tips my seasoned vets?
Miracle grow sucks, transplant into better soil. Its funny how everyone thinks miracle grow is great when 10 minutes on grass city or anywhere else and you'll see a ton of people having problems with it. You need to add perlite before adding the plant. You need loose soil with good drainage and not all the nutes miracle grow has. Do a little research online and see what's available in your area
Oh, lord... OK...point one...Miracle Grow soil uses pellets of dry, slow release fertilizer designed for the whole growth cycle, not balanced for veg, then for flower. Your quality of BOTH will be lower, just because of those nutrient balances. Second, dry fertilizer is death on plants. It's used by dissolving in contact with water, and distributed by the water. What happens if you drop a sugar cube in a puddle of water at the bottom of a bowl? There's more dissolved sugar close to the cube, and very little at the edges, right? So you're over-fertilizing anything CLOSE to the dissolving pellets, while starving anything at the peripherals....this means it's far too easy (and impossible to control) to burn roots in some places, while starving them in others, killing them either way. Miracle grow potting soil is designed for fat and sassy housefraus to stick their little decorative houseplants in, then water once in a while, and pinch off dead leaves, with no other worries. What does SHE care if she gets the largest blooms, most blooms, or best blooms? Her purpose is a living version of a velvet Elvis on the wall. Is that YOUR purpose? A plant to LOOK at? Next, if the soil isn't absolutely PACKED, tight soil isn't an issue...look at what happens with CEMENT...plants will push right through it, cracking it and destroying it, given proper conditions. Third, if you ARE having issues with it, break it up a little with a spoon...use both the bowl to dig out a little hollow for your seed, and the handle to break up the earth around it. problem solved. Fourth...BAIT SHOP. Go to the nearest sporting goods store (or even wal-mart), and ask for live nightcrawlers. break up the soil, and GREAT for the plants. 5 per gallon of soil is about right.
Thank you! So, in other words, yes I need to transplant my seedlings? Btw, I'm confused on this terminology. What exactly IS a seedling? My plants are in the process of growing their first two textured leaves. Is this still considered a seedling? With this new info, does your advice still apply?
I just transplanted my seedlings and they have already gone into shock. Hopefully they will recover, because I know normally people wait to do it after 3 weeks or more. But I guess that is a lesson to us to start out with the right soil from the start. Lol
THAT I couldn't tell you (if it still counts as a seedling or not)...but if a clone can be transplanted at essentially the same stage (I've seen clones taken that never should have been, the poor tiny things), I would guess it's safe enough.
