Is it damping off or something else

[aabra420]

Strain - dutch passion critical orange punch
# of Plants - 4
Grow Type - coco and perlite
Grow Stage - seedling
Bucket Size - 0.2 gallon
Lights - (5) cxb 3590 (3500K) 240 Watt LED COBs (dimmed to 50% at 2 feet height I'm getting around 250 ppfd)
Nutrients - general hydroponics
Medium - 30% Perlite 70% coco
PPM - 120
PH - 6.8
RH - 70% to 85%
Room Temperature -79 to 83
Room Square Footage - 3'x3'
Pests - None Known

Problem: the first set of true leaves are curling and the seedling falls in no time
I've tried using fungicides like metalaxyl and mancozeb
focetyl al 80%
also used sterilized media
I'm posting pics here please help

 

[VetSmoke85]

I've never had it but looking at the pic it's what I understand damping off looks like. Not sure if it's a typing error or not but your pH is high. Pretty sure you want 5.6-5.8 in coco. Hopefully someone with coco experience can chime in. @Skunksta maybe? Or @Bill284 knows his stuff too.

 

[SmokingWings]

The pinched look to the stem at or near the soil/media line is one of the classic signs of damping off disease.

I am not familiar with being able to stop it once it starts. Basically, it is all over, done for, the end.

The best thing is to prevent it from happening. Allow air to flow across the soil or grow media. Let the surface, especially in the area right near the seedling's stem, dry out. This often means watering around the edges leaving the surface area near the seedling dry.

Fill the pot with soil or coco coir mix till it is just below the rim whenever possible. When the level is down a half inch or more it can form a pocket of air that does not get moved as much as we think. The air movement 'helps' prevent the problem. 'Helps' but is not a sure-fire way of preventing the problem.

 

[Skunksta]

As said with that pinch i feel she has gone way to far to be saved now.
And also as above and your guess i would say was spot on damping.
It can happen , cant really say its you or something you did
if you have had the right results doing the same.
Sometimes we just get a seedling that dont want to grow.
But great advise from @SmokingWings no need for me to go over that good adivce.
Better luck next time.

PS. i tent to feed my coco a night or two before i pop the seed in.
Then i wont feed her again until the coco starts to dry at half my recommended strength.
Then first real feed recommended strength 5 or 6 days later seems to work for me with "my nutes"

Also welcome to 420

 

[aabra420]

Thank you guys for giving time to my questions.
@VetSmoke85 @SmokingWings @Skunksta
For the last 5 years I've been growing with the same setup but this season it suddenly kicked in
I already ruined 4 seedlings last month (barneys farm Runtz muffin)
after learning a lesson I've ordered one more batch of seeds this time passion (critical orange punch)
to start from a clean slate.
but even after using fungicides and all sanitation stuff, there was no luck for me this time.
maybe I will try changing pots, media, and water source next time.
also will add an extra fan inside

 

[013]

Yes she is stretched from not enough light, appears to be well on the way towards damping off…

coco coir is not the same as soil, coco style growing is passive hydro so the Ph is way off, your feed water for plants grown in coco coir should be adjusted to 5.8

 

[Skunksta]

Ye forgot to add that i assume wrongly when growing in coco 5.8 is the norm.
And as @013 said its a common issue for new to coco grows.

 

[SmokingWings]

but even after using fungicides and all sanitation stuff, there was no luck for me this time.
maybe I will try changing pots, media, and water source next time .

Wash out the pots. Then once they are clean mix up a batch of water with a couple of drops of bleach to a gallon of water and rinse the pots off a second time.

It is recommended that the grow medium, whether natural soil or coco, should be tossed out onto the lawn or a flower garden area so the sunlight can sterilize it. Then try new media for the next attempt.

What is the water source you are using right now?

 

[aabra420]

@013 @SmokingWings yes ph is 6.8
I used to grow it organically with the ph 6.8
this is the first time with only coco and perlite. I will fix the ph to 5.8

@SmokingWings , I sterilize the media by pouring boiling water into it before 2-3 days of planting
and I'm using simple dechlorinated tap water sterilized with UV tube. TDS is around 50 ppm

 

[013]

Welcome aboard Aabra420, It’s all good in the hood!

 

[SmokingWings]

... and I'm using simple dechlorinated tap water sterilized with UV tube.

You are sterilizing the media even though it should be inert and pretty close to sterile as it is since it is coco coir & Perlite and not a growing media that is made up of natural mineral & organic materials. It should be OK to use just the way it comes out of the bag as long as nothing happened to contaminate the coco.

Do not worry about the tap water. Use it as it comes out of the tap since the chlorine is what sterilizes the water for you. A bit of chlorine will not harm the plant and whatever is there will evaporate off within a day anyway. Make sure the pots and any other growing containers are clean and sterile if you want.

Set up another pot, maybe two, just like you have been using up to now. Fill them up to within a 1/2 inch or so of the rim. Plant two tomato seeds in the pot. If trying with two pots then use 2 seeds in each. See if the tomato seeds sprout. The normal time will be 5 to 10 days. If they sprout let them grow until the 3rd set of true leaves opens up. Watch to see if there is any problem with the plants looking like they are catching 'damping off'.

If you are in the US it might be hard to find tomato seeds since the planting season is over until late next winter. You can go to local hardware stores and ask them and they might still have some left over tomato seeds in the backroom. I am suggesting tomato seeds because they will sprout in a short time, not as fast as Cannabis seeds, but fast enough. Also the stem will be about the same thickness so easy enough to see if the pinching is taking place.

Make sure the fan is blowing air just enough to gently go over the surface of the media in each pot.

 

[aabra420]

You are sterilizing the media even though it should be inert and pretty close to sterile as it is since it is coco coir & Perlite and not a growing media that is made up of natural mineral & organic materials. It should be OK to use just the way it comes out of the bag as long as nothing happened to contaminate the coco.

Do not worry about the tap water. Use it as it comes out of the tap since the chlorine is what sterilizes the water for you. A bit of chlorine will not harm the plant and whatever is there will evaporate off within a day anyway. Make sure the pots and any other growing containers are clean and sterile if you want.

Set up another pot, maybe two, just like you have been using up to now. Fill them up to within a 1/2 inch or so of the rim. Plant two tomato seeds in the pot. If trying with two pots then use 2 seeds in each. See if the tomato seeds sprout. The normal time will be 5 to 10 days. If they sprout let them grow until the 3rd set of true leaves opens up. Watch to see if there is any problem with the plants looking like they are catching 'damping off'.

If you are in the US it might be hard to find tomato seeds since the planting season is over until late next winter. You can go to local hardware stores and ask them and they might still have some left over tomato seeds in the backroom. I am suggesting tomato seeds because they will sprout in a short time, not as fast as Cannabis seeds, but fast enough. Also the stem will be about the same thickness so easy enough to see if the pinching is taking place.

Make sure the fan is blowing air just enough to gently go over the surface of the media in each pot.

Thank you very much for your time.
First of all let me introduce myself.
I am from India and have been growing cannabis for the past 2-3 years.

I know that coco sourced in the United States is always sold to standards, as you mentioned in a previous message.
But the coco found in India is processed in sea water and has high salt content.(TDS 3000ppm)
So I have to wash it thoroughly till the TDS is less than 100.
Then comes buffering.
And in the buffering process it has to be kept in the nutrient solution for a long time, so the chances of infections are high, so I have to sterilize it properly.
When I grew organically in the past, there were no such problems.
This is my first time in Coco and I'm learning a lot. The technology is not yet developed here in India as it is in the United States.
Sometimes even if a simple TDS meter is asked for in the local market, they dont even know what it is.

I really liked the solution you gave.
And as I've heard, where tomatoes can grow, cannabis can grow.
Tomato seeds are easily available here.
Now tomatoes will be my guinea pigs before planting cannabis again.
I will definitely try this experiment.
I will make further updates on this thread as the experiment progresses.
I think someday I will be successful.
Happy Growing
Cheers from india .

 

[cbdhemp808]

Hello @aabra420 and welcome to the forum!

I love coco coir and use it in several ways. The stuff I get is imported from Thailand, and I think sometimes India, but it's pre-washed and very low sodium.

I just responded to another member who was having problems with his sprouts... CLICK HERE.

My recommendation is to prepare a special sprouting mix... check out what I said in the link above.

happy growing!