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Mold

mmcdermott1

mmcdermott1

I noticed a few of my pepper plants have a small amount of fuzzy what looks like white mold on top of soil. Not sure how this is happening because I only bottom water about every 3-4 days and I have a always on fan in the greenhouse and plants move around decent so I know they are feeling the air.

1. Any clues why this would be happening
2. What do you do to safely kill it?

Im assuming people are gonna say hydrogen peroxide but that would obviously be adding water..not sure that would be wise. Any suggestions?
 
I've been using powdered cinnamon with limited success. Supposedly, it is a natural fungicide... Easiest way, keep your moisture in check and have good ventilation first.
 
funny redtail..i just read that on another site and just came up from sprinkling cinn. on it :) If that doesnt work..i read take off about 1" of soil, replace soil, then spray with 3 tbsp of apple cider vinegar with 1 gallon of water...
the weird thing..the tops of the soil are REALLY dry...
 
one of my plant had that as well. what i did was ,i put it under the sun and let it dry a bit. :)
maybe your soil is too moist. check and see. u got a water meter ? it reads the moisture level of the soil.
 
thanks srin2..yup..have a water meter and water has been in check and i have one of those window fans that have the dual fans on it with a temperature control...good wind blowing through. The few plants in question have not been watered since saturday..which is about normal..every 3-4 days and I bottom water for about 5 minutes
 
srin2 said:
one of my plant had that as well. what i did was ,i put it under the sun and let it dry a bit. :)
maybe your soil is too moist. check and see. u got a water meter ? it reads the moisture level of the soil.
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Have a soil master meter..just checked again and the moisture is about 4.5 which is on the low end of "moist"
 
mmcdermott1 said:
Have a soil master meter..just checked again and the moisture is about 4.5 which is on the low end of "moist"
Click to expand...
i am not sure the value 4.5 but if mine goes more then 4 then its tooo moist. the readings are like 1 dry to 4 very moist. i am not sure if yours is like mine.....just stick your finger in and u know :) just remove the mold manually. :))
 
srin2 said:
i am not sure the value 4.5 but if mine goes more then 4 then its tooo moist. the readings are like 1 dry to 4 very moist. i am not sure if yours is like mine.....just stick your finger in and u know :) just remove the mold manually. :))
Click to expand...

mine has red (low) green (moist) and blue (wet)
moist is like 4-7 above 7 is wet below 4 is dry..its around 4.5 to 5 right now
 
The company I work for sells neem oil. Hopefully I won't have to buy any myself.

http://www.nutritiongeeks.com/p-8498-neem-oil.aspx

I'll shoot u a coupon code for a discount if u need any.
 
Usually mold/fungus will only grow on your soil if you're keeping the top layer too moist, and if there isn't enough circulation. Keep a fan nearby circulating the air well, and make sure to let the soil dry out pretty good before you water again. This will also encourage stronger root growth. If you give them too much water, the roots will stay small.

*edit: if the amount of mold/fungus is small, you can just scrape it right off, and once you let the top layer of soil dry out, it won't return. Using products like neem oil shouldn't be necessary unless the problem is really extreme.
 
Mmc...everyone is giving awesome ideas! I did something very similar. When I pulled some of my plants out of their germination chamber, most had fungus on it. (I use the same method that Neil at THSC uses...fish tank with heated water keeps anything under the surface at the exact temp you have it adjusted to. So, put peat pellets or soil into a container, the weight will keep them under the water, keeping them at 86 degrees constant for me.) Anyways, as you can guess, it gets pretty humid in there. When I pull most plants out (ones I plant in peat pellets. Starter soil hasnt molded on me...YET.), they are moldy. So, what I do, like it has already been suggested, I let my plants dry out REAL good. Then, when I water, I mix some chamomile up in hot water, let it cool to room temp., and use the water to water my plants. You cant go too strong with it, so IF you try this, dont worry about amounts of anything. I only do it at their first watering. No more fungus/mold after that.
IF you try this, you can use chamomike tea if you cant find straight chamomile. I got straight chamomile from a health food store right around the corner. I got about a sandwich baggie full for about $2. Easy to find, and who cant afford $2?
 
Cinnamon works better as a preventive measure for me. If I already have mold, I will scrape off the top surface with a spoon and then refill it with new soil mixed with cinnamon. It's easier than sprinkling every plant and you don't get cinnamon all over the leaves (not that it really hurts anything though).
 
What I would do is use a spoon and scoop the very thin top layer off containing the mildew/mold stuff. And in the future if you continue to top feed your plants turn the fan on all day, the airflow will dry the top of the soil very quickly and the mold/mildew will not be able to grow.
 
Mister_Al said:
Try sprinkling a little plain (not self rising) corn meal on top of the soil.


Alan
Click to expand...

I tried the cornmeal trick as I also found this on another website. Problem got bigger. I not only had the white mold but also got a bluish/green mold as well. The cornmeal did not work and I ended up throwing out that whole set. Issue is there is too much moisture. I used the self-rising pellets to plant my seeds in and they have the 'net' around them which holds the water in and promotes molding---even if you have a fan. now i had to restart all my seedlings into a 'vermiculite/lite soil' mix and i spray mist the top layer daily--lightly. I have no issues now with mold at all and am not using a fan as it would blow the vermiculite all over. Good Luck!
 
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