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seeds Newbie...What's going on with my seedlings?

I would do that, but I'm concerned about it getting too cold in the grow box. My basement is around 16C (60F), and I currently have no other heat source.
 
I'm not sure what's going on here? All three of my adult Reapers have developed yellowing of the leaves. One of the plants is producing flowers. Any idea about what's going on?
 
I've been feeding them hydroponic water (at every feeding), and there are about 30 or so pellets of Osmocote Flower & Vegetable fertilizer on top of the soil. They are watered about once a week, or whenever the moisture meter shows that they are getting dry. Again, the lights are on 24/7.
 
Sorry, but I've tried drag-n-drop, embedding, and all of the icons, but I still can't get images uploaded to this site. If anyone could enlighten me, I will quit linking to photos in my Picasa Album.
 
Here are the links to two photos of the plants in question:
 
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/tluN_I8itNmeQy92sTI2f0rddJZ5aiXnJ6LQDJzyJIU?feat=directlink
 
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/iLtAGywoPdjEGKM3uZKTSErddJZ5aiXnJ6LQDJzyJIU?feat=directlink
 
 
 
Zoey said:
I'm not sure what's going on here? All three of my adult Reapers have developed yellowing of the leaves. One of the plants is producing flowers. Any idea about what's going on?
 
I've been feeding them hydroponic water (at every feeding), and there are about 30 or so pellets of Osmocote Flower & Vegetable fertilizer on top of the soil. They are watered about once a week, or whenever the moisture meter shows that they are getting dry. Again, the lights are on 24/7.
 
Sorry, but I've tried drag-n-drop, embedding, and all of the icons, but I still can't get images uploaded to this site. If anyone could enlighten me, I will quit linking to photos in my Picasa Album.
 
Here are the links to two photos of the plants in question:
 
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/tluN_I8itNmeQy92sTI2f0rddJZ5aiXnJ6LQDJzyJIU?feat=directlink
 
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/iLtAGywoPdjEGKM3uZKTSErddJZ5aiXnJ6LQDJzyJIU?feat=directlink
 
 
Click to expand...
Why not use Imgur?
IhOeXE6.jpg
idvECxY.jpg
 
Zoey, I would seriously consider cutting down on the nutrients. In my previous post I mentioned my Aerogarden issues and when my basil was overfertilized it exhibited wavy leaves like that. And when I cut the nutes in half the leaves are flat and normal. Feeding with hydroponic nutes in soil (if I'm understanding you correctly) should be done in much lower concentrations at around 200ppm check their site agin I think it has a recommendation for soil use. Also maxi has a good amount of calcium already in the mix.

I would give them a good break from the nutrients only water. No supplements. And go to an 18/6 light regime IMO.

http://thehotpepper.com/topic/48699-brown-veins-under-leaves-and-more/

If you are hesitant, try it on one of the plants and see if it makes a difference. Also, you could look for some signs of tiny insects but I'm almost positive this is a nutrient issue.
 
Thanks for posting the photos, and I will look at Imgur.
 
Yani, a friend of mine sent those photos over to his agricultural professor, who came to the same conclusion as you. Too much fertilizer!  I will certainly give the plants a nutrient rest, and see what they do over the next few weeks.
 
I didn't know that there was a recommendation for Maxi soil use, so thanks for the tip. I'll do some research! I do have periodic aphid issues, but check the plants weekly so as to keep on top of the little buggers.
 
Wonderful. I'm glad I didn't give you false advice as I'm learning as well.

The info for fertilization amount is in the link I posted previously and from what I remember somewhere in very small print is a soil recommendation amount but if not I would just cut it by some fraction or just fertilize periodically like once a week.
 
I took a screen shot of the Maxi nutrient dosing, but don't see anything regarding soil recommendations. I'll stop the fertilizer for a few weeks and see what the plants do. If they are better, maybe I'll start with 1/4 of what Maxi suggests for hydro.
 
Funny you should ask. I was going to post an update, but didn't think anyone would be interested. I will post some photos when I get home late tonight. More advice is needed as some new issues have popped up.
 
Thanks for asking! I really appreciate the help from everyone!
 
I finally took some photos tonight. As you can see, the leaves are curling up a bit, and there are yellow spots. All three adult plants have been dropping leaves. The flowers also look a little droopy. I checked the soil moisture, and my meter says "wet". Makes me wonder if I'm over-watering them? I've been watering once a week.
 
WUvZcEal.jpg

 
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M42L5bPl.jpg

 
I've been battling aphids all winter long, but two days ago I noticed that the little f*&#@rs had migrated to my seedlings.
 
On a side note, look at the difference in growth rate between the potted Reapers and the one I have in rockwool with hydroponic nutrients (The container with the greenish-looking top)!!  They were sprouted and moved to containers on the same date.
 
wsEAPk6l.jpg

 
 
 
 

BTW, thanks for the tip about using Imgur. Made uploading so much easier.
 
I would say yes, they are getting too much water, especially since the meter seems to be reading wet. I would wait a bit longer, and since you have a meter don't water until it shows the soil is on the dry side. I had the same issue with my tomato plants and for a little while with my peppers last year during the growing season. It took me a while to figure out what was going on because the top of the soil looked dry but when I bought a probe from eBay to measure the soil moisture it showed the deep roots were on the wet side. Since you're growing indoors evaporation might be lower than growing outside – the plants may need some more time to go through the water. 
 
Unfortunately, leaves curling up can mean other things as well from what information I've been able to gather in the past, and often times, for contradictory reasons (i.e. too much water or too little water).  
 
Thanks Yani! Well, maybe I'll just let things dry up a bit, and when the plants start "showing" me that they are getting a little parched, I'll give them a little less water than I have been.
 
I thought "gardening" was supposed to be relaxing? Relaxing to whom? Aircraft Control Operators?
 
Plant them up and let them fully dry out. Never use full strength nutes on plants that small. I don't even recommend full strength to mature peppers.
 
It's so hard to not over love beloved plants/seedlings. I have to expend a serious effort of just letting them be.
 
As usual, my ignorance is shining through, but what do you mean by "Plant them up"?
 
I'm still astonished at the growth rate of the plants in rockwool/hydroponics. The roots are already several centimeters below the bottom of the baskets. None of the potted plants have a root system anywhere close to this. I kind of wish I had done this with more of the peppers.
 
"Plant them up", I would assume, means to plant them in larger containers, or ones larger than what you have them in now. Again, I'm not an expert but I would advise against this at the stage you are at now until the plants are consistently drinking all of the water every couple of days from the container you have them in now and need replenishing. If you plant them in bigger containers now you run the risk of overwatering since the root system is too small and will not be able to cope with the amount of water present in the soil. Since you are watering once a week and the plants still seem to not need more water, I would think this is a sign that the root system has not yet "grown into" the size container you have for them currently. If you are having to water the peppers every 2 or three days, then I would assume the root system has become sufficiently large to merit going to a bigger container.
 
Leaves drooping is also a sign of overwatering, which is kind of unintuitive since almost the same thing happens when the plant has too little water; however, the difference I've found is that the main stalk will start drooping when the plant receives too little water whereas too-much-water-droopiness results in only the leaves sagging down.
 
Use the soil meter and let that be your guide for now.   
 
What you could do, without much risk of damage, is the next time you water one of the plants, crinkle the cup around the sides evenly and gently then turn the plant upside down and tap out the whole thing from the solo cup (put the stem of the plant between your middle finger and ring finger while cupping the soil or the top of the cup like you were trying to get the root system out to transplant it). You will be able to see what the roots are doing and how big they are. I've done this many times to take out the guess work. If you see a lot of roots circling around the perimeter of the soil, you can plant up to a bigger container. But, if there is only a few roots showing, leave it in the same size container for a while longer until the roots are better established. 
 
Also, I may have missed how you've set up your hydroponic peppers? is it just sitting in water like a kratky setup or do you have an air pump? They are looking good! 
 
I'm thinking the same thing regarding transplanting. At least until they develop a better root system. Good idea to check the roots. I've just been peeking in the holes in the bottom of the cups for signs of roots. Maybe they are low enough to start bottom-feeding?
 
Thanks for the tip about watering and leaf-drop. It does seem backwards. I've been checking the water with my meter. It shows that, towards the bottom of the container, it is wet. In about the middle, it shows dry, so I've been watering. The soil is a mixture of draining material and other stuff that holds water, but it's not a homogenized mixture. I wonder if this is causing issues with moisture evenness?
 
The hydroponic plants were pretty simple, and I came across the idea on YouTube (Khang Starr). It's nothing more that a baby formula container, rockwool, a 3" net pot, and hydro nutrients. I put a seedling just below the surface of the rockwool and filled in the rest of the pot with rockwool. I cut a hole in the top of the formula container, and the net cup sits within this hole.
 
I filled the formula container with hydro nutrients until the fluid just touches the bottom of the net pot. The wool sucks up the fluid and keeps the seedling moist. Heck, I haven't even changed the fluid since putting the seedling in the container. Aside from the aphid problem, they are as happy as a clam, and are growing at about twice the rate as the potted plants.
 
Every week or so I just top off the hydro fluid. It's far more simplistic than frequent watering of plants in cups. The only drawback I see is that the containers take up a lot more real estate.   
 
I'm also going to try giving the plants a break from the light. I've pretty much had them on 24/7 since planting. Maybe it's time to invest in something like a WeMo?
 
You could buy just a cheap timer. I'm using a mechanical $10 timer that I was able to find for sale for $4.50. I do 18hrs on.
 
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