Indoor Yellowing leaves at bottom of the plant

[pondochris]

Problem: yellowing leaves

Medium/grow method: garden soil with coco coir added

Feed: and supplements used: DR earth organic fertilizer 4-6-3 made into tea with 1/4 cup feet per gallon. Split between 2 plants.

water source: city tap water

Strain/age: northern lights auto 60 days from sprout

light used: outdoor for first 50ish days then indoor under iplantop 1000w blurple with both veg and bloom switch on

Climate:72 deg f and 50-60%RH. Carbon filter exhaust with inline fan and a small clip on fan to circulate air around the tent.

Additional info: 4-5 days ago plants were droopy and I figured they were underwatered due to dried and compacted soil. Watering only 1qt was giving runoff through the bottom so I took some time and really got the soil to soak up the water by watering little by little slowly. After that they perked back up.

From what I have read the yellowing leaves at the bottom are likely phosphorus defeciency but I figured I'd check in here as it's my first time.

I'm thinking about picking up Dr Earth bloom booster as it's high in p and I'm 2+ weeks into flowering

 

[HonestGR]

Just a few things:

The tap water used: do you allow it to sit for a day or two for the chlorine to evaporate? Chlorine is a big issue for roots.

Vermiculite will help with aeration of your soil vs coco. It also retains some moisture

Could also be nitrogen deficiency,
I am unsure the meaning behind "1/4 cup feet per gallon" if it is just simply 1/4 cup per gallon, I would say give it a slight bump up to the nutrients fed. Just a small one to see if it solves the issue, but you are at the vigorous stage of growth now, so it could just need a little more. Bump it to 3/8 Cup.

Given the info you posted, I would start there.

You did good with the watering, small amounts at a time so the soil can absorb it!

If you need more help feel free to msg me!

Edit: I know if it were photos, I would cut nitrogen off completly at this stage, autos are slightly different They will continue to grow and require nitrogen through a large portion of their life because they are almost always growing

 

[pondochris]

Yeah it's 1/4 cup of fertilizer per gallon.

I have not allowed the chlorine to evaporate.

That reminds me I should be able to get a city water report to check if it's chlorine or chloramine.

City I used to live in it was chloramine, which won't evaporate out. When I brewed beer I used campden tablets in the water to remove it.

Would campden tablets work for watering?

 

[HonestGR]

I do not know how those would effect the plant So I cant really comment on that.

Double check w. The town however

 

[SparkyRU12]

Bought one of these bad boys. Seems to do the trick and good for 10,000 gal. Check it out!

Keep it sparky:smoking:

 

[Waira]

- looks mostly like N defc. some of which is normal for bloom,... likely it's looking like an overall lack of feed levels... are you using inoculants at all? With organics, they are critical for good performance, they need to help break down the organics into form the plant can take up,... How often did you feed?
The dry out made matters worse, especially with the coco in there... don't bother doing that IMO, stick with straight soil... Coco itself is a common component, but not the bulk of most mixes, and coco itself has a lot peculiarities to it's behavior with cations,...

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Yeah it's 1/4 cup of fertilizer per gallon.

I have not allowed the chlorine to evaporate.

That reminds me I should be able to get a city water report to check if it's chlorine or chloramine.

City I used to live in it was chloramine, which won't evaporate out. When I brewed beer I used campden tablets in the water to remove it.

Would campden tablets work for watering?

No do not use campden it also binds to heavy metals (Calcium and Magnesium). Buy the cheapest store brand vitamin C It should be ascorbic acid and nothing else. 50mg per gallon will treat water with 3.8 PPM of chloramines.

 

[pondochris]

Ok last week I fed with a double dose of Dr Earth tea 1/2 cup per gallon water, split equally between both plants to try to get them their N. The yellowing stopped, and reversed slightly. The leaves that weren't yellowing are now darker green and looking healthy. Buds are starting to fatten. I have upped the watering schedule to 1/2 gallon every other day. I got some Dr earth flower girl and top dressed both plants with 1/4 cup each. Not sure what schedule will be with this one yet but it should be able to keep up with the P.

To address the coco coir mixed in with the soil issue. This was miracle grow garden soil, which has no peat or perlite and isn't meant to be in pots. I had coco on hand and used it to assist in drainage, oxygenation, and help prevent soil compacting etc. Not ideal I know but I essentially did this all on a whim with no experience or equipment for my first grow ever. I started outside, but picked up a tent setup and moved indoors to allow for family and friends in the back yard for BBQ etc. Also as soon as flowering started we had 100% humidity with 90 def f weather coming and wanted to avoid bud rot.