Please Help Me!!!!

[metalchick832]

I will post my picture shortly so that you can all see what I'm talking about... but I will try to explain my problem as best as I can:

I have a friend that has been growing for 20+ years and was generous enough to help me set up my system. I have a 70 gallon aquarium with holes drilled in the bottom to release water, on top of that I have gravel, and on top of that I have MiracleGro potting soil. I was told that MiracleGro would be okay to quick start plants, but that when I transplanted them into pots I would have to use a bigger pot and different soil. I was told that a 20-20-20 would be best, so I bought Peters and some sand and mixed it according to my friends directions. The plants are only about a month old, and they were all doing very well... until a few days ago.

The light I use is a flor bought from Home Depot. I chose it with my "grow expert" friend because I'm working on a budget and she told me it would be best for STARTING the plants in an aquarium. It is a natural sunlight spectrum flor. I can't remember what the wattage is.

But I digress. Some of the plants were planted directly into the aquarium, some were started in coke bottles, some were started in ice cube trays, and some were germinated. The ones in the ice cube trays and coke bottles seemed to be doing the best, until I transplanted them into the aquarium when they got too big for their current "pots". The plants have grown very tall, very quickly, but then they just started dying at an alarming rate! I staked them up when they started to get too top heavy, and just after that they started dying. I don't understand what happened or where I went wrong! That friend of mine came over and took a look at the plants and said that her best guess what nutrient lockout...

I have been using MiracleGro seed starter and transplant solution twice a week when watering, and other than that I use regular treated tapwater to water them. Some of the plants are still very robust and healthy, but others are dropping like flies. I started with 148 plants and am now down to 40. Over 100 of my babies have died in the last week! I'm very upset and beginning to give up hope... does anyone have any suggestions on how I should deal with this problem? Please, let me know... I need MAJOR help!

Thanks,
Metalchick

 

[overgrow420]

You have a few problems. The first is not enough light, that is why they are tall and falling. second you should not fertilize at all especially when using miracle gro. Miracle gro has time release fertilizer balls, so you should not have to water for the first month or so. I would flush the soil with three times the amount of water to the size of the container. Then I would invest in a proper light. You sound like you really want to succeed so go buy a book about growing from your headshop around town. Good luck.

 

[metalchick832]

You sound like you really want to succeed so go buy a book about growing from your headshop around town. Good luck.

I do want to succeed, and I have read what feels like a million grow guides and books. Unfortunately, none of them talk about how to grow in an aquarium, so I am kind of winging it on that one. I have florecents as overhead lights in the room that I'm growing in. Do you think it would help if I kept those on during the light cycle so that the plants gets some extra light? I have them in an empty bedroom with white walls and blacked out windows.

So I should not be using the seed starter anymore? The back of the bottle says to use it for a month after the seeds are planted and to water at the base of the plant so that the plant grows twice as fast. MiracleGro says that it is perfectly safe and acceptable to use this seed starter with the potting soil, and that I should actually be getting better results than with the soil or starter by themselves.

I know that the plants are not getting burned by the light. If I flush the plants by hand (I don't have a resovior set up yet) how often do you think I should do it and how much each time? Right now I have everything mixed in a gallon milk jug (sterilized of course). The aquarium is 70 gallons, but the soil and plants probably only take up about 10 gallons of space. You said three times... would that be thirty gallons of water to flush them and get rid of the fertilizer, or should I just start over without the MiracleGro period?

Let me know what you think!

Thanks,
Metalchick :bong1:

 

[overgrow420]

The more light the better. When using flouresents you can put the light as close to the plant as possible. I would quit using any fertilizers and flush with about 10 to 15 gallons of water. If possible transplant into 3 gallon containers with alot of holes at the bottom, 1 plant per pot. Shake as much miracle gro off as possible and use ready gro or if you dont have access to an indoor plant store use something with alot of perlite in it and buy fertilizers that are way less than 20-20-20. Also you can buy a ph meter for less than 20 dollars at home depot, that might be another problem. Keep it at 7.

 

[longtimegrower]

One thing there is no way you can grow 140 plants in a 70 gallon aqu. . Also how wet is the soil, is it draining good. Make sure that the soil drys most of the way before you wet it good again.. And make sure you have some air blowing over your plants. I would try to grow 2 or three plants before i tryed to plant 140. the whole room your in won`t grow 140 plants unless your doing sea of green. Good luck slim.

 

[metalchick832]

Well, the plants are seedlings, that is why I started them in the aqarium. I'm obviously planning to transplant them when they get larger. LOL!

I do make sure that the soil is dry before watering again, and yes, they drain just fine. I don't know where I'm going to put them when they get bigger. A few friends have made inquiries as to whether or not I'm going to want to sell the plants before they flower... that was a thought.

Thanks for the help.

 

[AlienBait]

Sounds like you need to move the Fluorescent lights much closer to the plants.

Also, what is PH of the tap water you are using and the PH of the soil? Both should be around 6.5.

Finally, I noticed that you said,"A few friends have made inquiries as to whether or not I'm going to want to sell the plants before they flower..."

I strongly recommend that you tell no one that you are growing MJ, not even your best friend, unless they are directly involved in the grow. You would be supprised how often a "friend" would turn you in to get themselves out of trouble.

Just my opinion....

 

[longtimegrower]

Alien Is write tell no one and dont sell or talk about selling on this site its for growing your personal smoke thats all. Slim

 

[TheStickyIcky]

Sounds like you need to move the Fluorescent lights much closer to the plants.

Also, what is PH of the tap water you are using and the PH of the soil? Both should be around 6.5.

Finally, I noticed that you said,"A few friends have made inquiries as to whether or not I'm going to want to sell the plants before they flower..."

I strongly recommend that you tell no one that you are growing MJ, not even your best friend, unless they are directly involved in the grow. You would be supprised how often a "friend" would turn you in to get themselves out of trouble.

Just my opinion....

Great advice. You definitely need to drop to light to right above the plants. It sounds like they are stretching really bad if they are getting top heavy to the point that you have to stake them up.

 

[metalchick832]

Okay, I'll move the lights down.

And yeah, the friend that I was talking about is directly involved in the grow. She grows too... she is kind of like my mentor. I would trust her with my life, and I've known her all my life. LOL... I didn't even tell my husband I was going to grow until after it was all set up and he couldn't say jack squat about it! LOL!

Anyway, okay, so I'll move the lights down. Um... problem is tho, I don't know how tall seedlings are supposed to get. Are they supposed to be really long or should they be shorter and wider? Or does this vary from strain to strain? I don't really know what I'm looking for here, so I just kind of keep an eye on them and hope they don't die! LOL!

~Metalchick

 

[TheStickyIcky]

If they are tall and skinny and falling over and you have to prop them up, then they are unhealthy. Which is DIRECTLY caused by your flouro's being too far away and them stretching to get to it. I try not to keep them any further than 3-4 inches from the light. How far is your light from the top of the plants? You should post up some pictures.

 

[metalchick832]

I know I should post pics and I totally would if I had a camera! LOL! My cell phone is like, 8 years old and really out of date and my digital cam came without the attatchement to upload to the computer (I bought it at a pawn shop).

I will go to Radio Shack and get a USB cable for it eventually... probably on tuesday or so.

~Metalchick