Seedling stem too loose

[Gamerdad2017]

One of my seedlings was too loose so i just put a little more soil around to keep it from swinging about. It's too early to put in a bigger pot and didn't want to take it out so I thought a little bit more soil would keep it steady. Did i do right?

 

[Gamerdad2017]

One of my seedlings was too loose so i just put a little more soil around to keep it from swinging about. It's too early to put in a bigger pot and didn't want to take it out so I thought a little bit more soil would keep it steady. Did i do right?

 

[Integrum Stultus]

Yes, IMO that was a smart move. Typically ones own intuition will serve them well when gardening, except when it comes to watering. Thats the beginners worst mistake; OVERWATERING.

 

[Gamerdad2017]

I'm watering every 2 days but mist them about 4 times a day to keep humidity up and i pour water on the plate with pebbles, lights are off now so temp is at25c but with lights on it goes up to 32c and the fan is on.

 

[Integrum Stultus]

What is the height of your light source to the seedlings?

 

[Gamerdad2017]

My 600 watt hid light is 70 centimetres away from seedlings and I've dimmed the light to 250 watts as i think 600 watts will heat things up to much

 

[Integrum Stultus]

When did you dim the light?

 

[Gamerdad2017]

The light has been dimmed from start, their on day 10 since they sprouted. Not sure if i should turn up the watts and put the light higher, would that make them stretch out for the light or should i just keep things as they are and turn up the watts in 2 weeks when they have more leaves?

 

[Integrum Stultus]

Drop the light down to 18 inches and set a higher wattage and see how they respond. Mix and match power and height to obtain the growth you want. It looks like they are stretching for the light. Keep an eye on temps and growth to ensure you get the growth and stretch combo you want and go from there. They will tell you what they want and like just like they're telling you they want closer more intense light now.

 

[Rastas]

Those plants are fine. Come time to transplant, bury them down to the base of the stem, where the cotyledons are.

 

[Rastas]

They're tiny. They should be under a simple T5. That's way too much light for such small plants. You will stunt their growth and this grow will drag out to 4-5 months. You are over watering too. If the temps were higher I'd say every second day is a good move, but at those temps I'd allow the roots to absorb a little more oxygen. When you transplant, water with Mykos. They will grow much more rapidly during the veg phase and you will suffer less CalMag deficiencies.

 

[Gamerdad2017]

I haven't got a T5 light, I was told my dual spectrum hid light should be fine for all stages as long as i get the distance right

 

[Gamerdad2017]

Drop the light down to 18 inches and set a higher wattage and see how they respond. Mix and match power and height to obtain the growth you want. It looks like they are stretching for the light. Keep an eye on temps and growth to ensure you get the growth and stretch combo you want and go from there. They will tell you what they want and like just like they're telling you they want closer more intense light now.

If I do drop the light closer and turn it up to 400 watts i think i will over heat my seedlings and it's my first grow i really dont want to mess it up

 

[Integrum Stultus]

So leave your power setting where it is and drop the light. Duh! LoL! If they take to it well raise the power. And go from there. Push them till you see slight signs of stress and then back off just a tad. This will set your threshold.

 

[Gamerdad2017]

 

[Gamerdad2017]

Ok I've put a box cos my lights can't go any lower, they are about 18 inches away from light and I'm gona keep it n 250 watts

 

[Integrum Stultus]

Sounds and looks good. Just keep a close eye in them for any shock from moving them closer..

 

[Southerncough]

be careful not to scorch them. I only use fluorescent lights until they pop a few fan leaves. Even a few cheap 6500k CFLs screwed into shop lights for a week or so (total cost $10-20) would do the trick. Once some small fan leaves are present I introduce to more intense light.

With my lanky seedlings I cut a slit in a small DRY rockwool cube and gently wrap it around the stem like a big squishy splint and pin it shut with a toothpick. Keep it dry at first because you don't want to rot your delicate stem. This acts like burying the stem without having to transplant. I then slowly mist the cube every few days and the eventually the stem will grow roots into it. When it's time to transplant, bury almost all of the stem (which may already have small roots growing into the cube) like the previous post mentioned and you're in business.

I stumbled upon this when one of my babies had the seed hull stuck and the little booger shot up about 6 inches over night! Desperate I stacked/pinned two cubes around the stem just to keep her from lying in the dirt. She struggled to catch up at first and wound up being my biggest yielder to date. So glad I was able to save her!

Might be silly, but now it's my go to fix.

Best luck!