hello lab ~x ... you have been so helpful and i thank you . i think brick top (bottom post)made a good call "damping off disease" (you can wiki it ) sounds like my problem ..... so on to better things , i live in the northeast and decided to let mother nature take over.....seeds cracked on a sponge , then planted into small pots for 4 days in the dark. they grew well and strong during this period. they are now outdoors in 5 gal bucket . so my question to you is watering , how much, when , how little, water near the bean sprout or around it ? due to the timing here in the northeast i will probably bring them inside for flowering stage.but i will deal with that and indoor when the time comes. again thanks for your help , just need a little info on the h2o !! i have learned a lot thru you and my mistakes , i am a newbee so thanks again for your help with my medicne......btw , your diagnosis is very close to what damping off disease is......tnx