My leaves r turning yellow...dying..progressing upward...i havent put any nutrients because i already know it has to do with pH. I cannot adjust pH levels in my water and soil bcuz of financial cutbacks. Just wondering if there would be another way to do so...for the sake of my plant.
you can use citric acid (lemon juice, lime juice, etc.) as a cheap and organic pH down. to raise your pH, unfortunately you are going to have to buy garden lime (pulverized/powdered, NOT granular). it is extremely cheap ($6.00 for a 40 pound bag of dolomitic lime at my local home depot) and it will last you a very long time. i do not recommend using baking soda as a pH up due to it's salt content.
remember what ph does. it allows the plant to take in particular nutrients. since you're not using nutes, ph is a non-issue. you don't mention how old your plants are. until around day 11-14, not nutes are necessary. i never mess with my ph with seedlings until i start adding feed.
yeah, the little first leaves (cotyledons) provide the plant with all it needs for the first couple weeks or so. after the first couple weeks, or after you get 3 alternating internodes. then go to 1/4 strength, and increase 1/4 at a time until you get to where you wanna be.