What have I done wrong?

[Shanusman]

ok so I planted a seed the other day after germinating, (it germintated very quick in the paper towel method) then i put in a rockwool cube which had been sitting in pH5.8 water for 24 hours and placed in the dwc under a t5 light with a homemade humidity dome also had the air pump turned on and the tub filled up to the bottom of the netpot pH was at 5.8. It sprouted after another 24 hours and a few days later the cotyledons had fully spread out and was growing its first true set of leaves, only that the first true leaves looked like it had a burn to it or a purple tinge, hard to tell, the stem is also purple and the cotyledons are drooping down it just looks in bad health from my previous seedling experience, this seedling was also a purchased one :/

 

[NuttyProfessor]

are the roots coming through that rock wool , there maybe no oxygen getting to the roots , im sure other hydro growers will chime in , but my pennies worth is the roots are soaked

 

[Shanusman]

Haven't checked I placed the cube in the netpot when I transferred the seed from paper towel, is that bad? should I pull the cube out and let it breathe a bit? I also turned the bubbler off

 

[NuttyProfessor]

hmmm is the wool soaking wet , id lower the water in the bubbler but keep bubbler on , just have rock wool damp , too wet is a killer , i hope someone else chimes in . ive only started dwc my self so im not 100 percent my friend

 

[Shanusman]

Umm its moist, haven't watered it for a few days and have half a coke bottle on it as a dome, ok well I will lower the water level to half an inch or so bellow the pot and see if that helps.. Thanks mate

 

[NuttyProfessor]

i would check some dwc journals , but at least this keep you post up tops for others to drop by , good luck

 

[indica vet]

hey guys
you want the water level about 1-2 inches under the net pot to start with ,the bubbles from the air stone will pop at the surface and mist the bottom of the pots lightly enticing the roots down ,once they are out lower water level to 3-4 inches below
yeah she looks wet !

 

[Shanusman]

Ok thanks for your help guys have lowered the water to about 2 inches, hmm do you think she will pull through? should I leave the dome on it still? its about 3 4 inches from a t5 light I have a mh one but don't want to put it under that to young

 

[Richard Richardson]

The dome is trapping moisture, seedlings never need a dome

 

[SeedLab]

Yep all these guys are spot on. Good Luck!!

 

[wufo]

I had a similar problem when clones were in a propergator with lid on too long. Learned the hard way.

 

[indica vet]

just a little tip with rockwool cubes..never squeeze them .....EVER!!
wet or dry it has no memory and will not return to its original shape or have the air retention anymore it will be a drowning your seedlings

 

[SeedLab]

Any updates?

 

[EARTHWALKER]

To be honest Shanusman. Your seedling looks very healthy. Yes the stem is red/purple, but that's nothing even to consider as it's strain dependent. I've seen many photos on this site and others with random stem colours. I've had seedlings of the same kind in the same medium and grow different coloured stems.
The cotyledons often turn down immediately. Again, seems to be genetically random. Mother nature has a whimsical way sometimes.
Your fist set of leaves look fine to me. What do you think is actually wrong with her? Maybe a teensy bit yellow.
I grow hydro too and use a small bit of Cal-Mag on every water, but yours is a bit too young to start any nutes.

You destroyed your rockwall cube...eek!!! As rockwall is like asbestos; the last thing you want to do is squeeze them. Bits of crap just gets everywhere. I moved of from rockwall to Peat Pellets and haven't looked back.

If those are clay pebbles, I would seriously suggest you check your ph 2 or 3 times a day as with those you can often get a .8 difference within hours.