Seedlings not doing so well (pics)

[brettweir]

Well good work on the transplant. Were you certain the containers were not transparent this time?

For using Bat Guano, go here: Bat Guano for Organic Indoor Gardening w/RooRman

Haha, I forgot to mention.. the old containers were transparent! So that probably screwed them up just as much as the pot-bound situation did.

Thanks for the tea recipe. I'm wondering though.. I've also got bone and kelp meal. Would it hurt the plants at all to add the same quantities of each into the tea as well? The recipe calls for 3 tbsps per gallon of guano. I'm wondering if I should also go with 3 tbsps of bone/kelp meal to add as well.

 

[Ms.Fox]

When you get root bound, the plants will dry and wilt like they have not been watered. because they can't uptake water.

Good point. I didn't think about that.

 

[RooRman]

Haha, I forgot to mention.. the old containers were transparent! So that probably screwed them up just as much as the pot-bound situation did.

Thanks for the tea recipe. I'm wondering though.. I've also got bone and kelp meal. Would it hurt the plants at all to add the same quantities of each into the tea as well? The recipe calls for 3 tbsps per gallon of guano. I'm wondering if I should also go with 3 tbsps of bone/kelp meal to add as well.

The transparent cups is probably what caused them to become root bound so quickly. The roots stayed away from the out edges of the cup and secluded themselves to the center of the cup to keep away from the light. This made the potential room for them to expand very tight.

What brand of Guano are you using? If it is Sunleaves brand you can goto the Sunleaves website and look at the feeding schedule to give you an idea on how much to feed and when.

Bone and kelp meal would have been best used by adding them to the soil mix while transplanting. You can wait until the next transplant to add some to the soil and use liquid based nutrients to feed them for now. I advise you make the tea with bat guano only and leave the bone and kelp meal alone for now as they are mainly meant to be used as dry soil amendments not dissolved in feeding water.

 

[brettweir]

Since I have this thread going I'll bump it with another question..

It's been about 2 weeks since I transplanted the plants into 11" black pots. They have grown a lot since then, but I already notice roots at the bottom of the pot. I can see them through the drainage holes. Does this mean I'm in for another round of pot-bound roots?

If that's the case, what would you guys recommend for another pot? I really don't think I need a wider pot, but I believe a deeper one. What I was thinking of doing was simply cutting off the bottom of the pot I have now, fill up a large container with soil, and placing the pot on top of the new soil so the roots can start moving downwards again. Would this work? Any other suggestions welcome.

 

[Damagoman]

cutting off the bottom of the pot I have now, fill up a large container with soil, and placing the pot on top of the new soil so the roots can start moving downwards again. Would this work?

Yeapper, that method is used indoors and out.
Works very well from what I hear.
(just can't bring myself to cut the bottom out of a pot)

Check the Dollar store or somethin' of that nature.
They carry 3 gallon buckets cheap.
You just have to drill/add some drain holes and they work great.
Long as they ain't clear

 

[RooRman]

...It's been about 2 weeks since I transplanted the plants into 11" black pots. They have grown a lot since then, but I already notice roots at the bottom of the pot. I can see them through the drainage holes. Does this mean I'm in for another round of pot-bound roots?....

Yes, if you see roots emerging from the drain holes you need to transplant. As you said, the pot is probably wide enough, but not deep enough.

Everytime you transplant, use a pot at least triple the size.