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Lunchbox, that is an awful high failure rate. You must be using a peat based soil. I use a bark based soil, germinate directly into the mix (screened to smaller particle for seed) and I had a 97% germination rate, and no transplant losses this year. People need to know how bad peat based mixes...

Yes, hydrophobia is another property of peat that makes peat dominant soils difficult to work with. Theres no middle ground, too wet or too dry. Some have found that fir bark is available where pine bark is not and works well also.

Sounds like whitefly but who knows without pics. One missing thing above about the flowering issue... temperature. Temperature too high or low can affect flowering as well. But it sounds like your plant just isn't healthy. Pests usually tend to attack unhealthy plants. You need to get rid of...

Looks like overwatering to me. What does your Dad say?

I'd like to post a bark based mix that is proving to be far better then peat based mixes due to improved drainage, increased aeration, and reduced salt buildup. You will have to water this a bit more often then peat based mixes, but it is well worth it, and pots can be left in the rain. Best...

I know there are people out there that love MG soil, my wife was one of them. She's used it for 30 years . She is usually very resistant to change, but when she saw the results I was getting with the 5-1-1, she has also given up on MG soil, and is now always asking me to "mix up some of that...

I agree that Pro-mix is better then MG, but not better then a bark based mix. Usually you have to make your own bark based mix, as most bark based mixes are only available to professional growers. The good side of mixing your own, is it's cheaper then either Pro-mix or MG mixes.

If your raised bed is touching the ground, the ground will act as a wick increasing drainage. You still need fairly well drained soil mix, but it doesn't have to drain as well as in pots due to the wicking action. That is why you can still mix in some native soil, which is something you would...

Miracle grow is a very poor soil. It is too water retensive. Particles are too small. It has perched water at the bottom of the pot that rots and cramps roots. It dries out too slow causing other problems such as attracting pests like gnats, algae and fungi. Roots grow thin and brown in it. It...

I've got a much better soil mix to tell you about. I got it from the the container forum on another site. I used it last year, and had an incredible harvest. It's called 5-1-1. It's 5 parts partially composted pine bark fines and 1 part sphagnum peat and 1 part perlite. Also, Dolomitic lime is...