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seeds Seedlings look like they are drying out

Bigwelshprop

Bigwelshprop

Sprouted the seeds in coir in the airing cupboard. Had some helmet heads, but others were free. Planted into plug tray on moist coir mixed 5-2-1 with potting mix and perlite. Into a box, lined on the sides with foil with 4 bulb 2 foot T5 acting as the 'lid'. Now the sprouts I put in look like they are dying and drying out.

Is it the dry heat of the T5?
 
     Is your soil dry, or just the plants? If the soil is dry, you need to water more. Seedlings don't like to dry out much - their root systems aren't very tough yet. If only the plants are dry and dying, you have other problems. (Pics help!) Maybe your lights are too close to your plants? Damping off? ...
     I don't think your fluoro bulbs are necessarily too hot for your plants. Sure they generate a little heat, but pepper plants like warmth. Just keep checking soil moisture by picking up the containers to see if they feel light. When they feel light, soak them thoroughly to encourage roots to grow throughout the container.
 
 
 
edit: One more question. How much airflow is there inside your grow box? If your lights completely seal the top, then it might be too warm inside. Got a thermometer?
 
PICS help immensely.
 
But based on your description, I would say good possibility. I do not like coir even for more mature plants. I feel it robs the media of any moisture retention properties, especially when you adopt the (wait till the leaves droop) before you water protocol. And IMO, using it in any way with germination or seedlings is just asking for problems. But thats just my take based on my limited use of coir.  Whats the temp inside you growing enclosure?
 
PICs would help
 
I have sprayed with water, cut a piece of corrugated clear plastic from an off-cut of the greenhouse build and placed over the tray to act as a 'loose lid' to the tray. It will hopefully act as an evaporation barrier and prevent the sprouts from drying. I will have a go at pics tomorrow but I'm hoping that this will help a bit.

Quick question - I have been leaving the T5 on 24 hrs since transplanting (2 days ago), in the hope that it will provide additional warmth and the light they need. Would I be better off giving them darkness when we sleep and relying on the temperature of the house to be warm enough (approx 15-20C overnight)?
 
did you say you fertilized with 5-2-1 a little soon i wait till second set of true leaves and then fert. but cut it in half of recommended dose . ( fish emulsion ) . how close are lights ? some bulbs run hotter than others like sylvania bulbs  . small fan blowing just across the underside of lights. 16/ 8 works let plants sleep when you do .
 
I was wondering whether using any potting mix at all would be too soon. I did use at least 5 parts coir to 2 parts potting mix, but I guess that still might be too much, too soon.

I also wasn't sure whether the 28-32C they needed to germ would still be needed once they popped? They are in my bedroom, so the very minimum temp would still only be about 12-15C - never close to the scary lows (0-5C).
 
Not sure if this helps, but I recently purchased a 4 bulb T5 system (4ft) and it puts out WAY more heat than my two bulb T8 full spectrum shop lights. The T8s only have a slight warmth, and I'm used to having them super close to the plants - even touching is ok. No way with the T5s.
 
Fortunately, I noticed my seedlings getting cooked right away. I roasted off a few cotyledons but true leaves were starting, so they survived fine. I have to keep the T5s at least 8 inches above growth, and water the seedlings about twice as much (they also cook the soil dry). The T5s seem to be vastly superior light, though, as the plants seem to be thriving with light at 8+ inches away. Not sure it that's true with all T5s, but mine definitely require a different strategy than T8s.
 
Bigwelshprop said:
I have sprayed with water, cut a piece of corrugated clear plastic from an off-cut of the greenhouse build and placed over the tray to act as a 'loose lid' to the tray. It will hopefully act as an evaporation barrier and prevent the sprouts from drying. 
Click to expand...
 
     You may have created an oven. How warm is it inside the box?
 
Coir does tend to dry out more quickly than sphagnum  moss. But, if that is factored into your regime, it can be a good thing.
I used pure coir with hydro nutrients to grow some as many others have. Since potting mix is a variable here, I wonder if it has any nutrients in it. 
Nutes are not the problem this soon though. Probably heat related.
But at some point, relatively soon, the plants will need some nutrients. I would get a bag of Sunleaves Seabird Guano(has 4% available N) and a little bottle of seaweed extract, and start feeding them weakly almost every day and pure water once a week.
 
Hybrid Mode 01 said:
 
     You may have created an oven. How warm is it inside the box?
Click to expand...
About 20-25C, so I am less concerned about the 'oven' effect as I have been about the 'grill' effect of having the lights over the sprouts.

As the soil was still moist though, I am wondering whether it is more a case of nutrient burn from the diluted potting mix or even just shock of transplanting.
JJJessee said:
Coir does tend to dry out more quickly than sphagnum  moss. But, if that is factored into your regime, it can be a good thing.
I used pure coir with hydro nutrients to grow some as many others have. Since potting mix is a variable here, I wonder if it has any nutrients in it. 
Nutes are not the problem this soon though. Probably heat related.
But at some point, relatively soon, the plants will need some nutrients. I would get a bag of Sunleaves Seabird Guano(has 4% available N) and a little bottle of seaweed extract, and start feeding them weakly almost every day and pure water once a week.
Click to expand...
Well that sounds encouraging! I just can't get over how floppy, withered and small they seem compared to how they looked coming out of the coir 2 days ago.
 
     I bet you anything it's a combination of transplant shock and 24 hour lighting. When you say you started your seeds on coir in an airing cupboard, do you mean you used a seed flat and then dug the sprouts out and transplanted them? If that's the case, the roots probably got a bit damaged and they're having a hard time keeping up with transpiration demand right now. 
     I'd just switch to 18/6 or even 12/12 for a while to give them a chance to catch up. While just being a little dry probably won't kill a seedling, it certainly stresses them. And stressed plants are more susceptible to other problems like pests or disease.
 
 
edit: Also, if your seedlings were germinated under some sort of humidity dome, they may need time to get used to lower humidity. 
 
The really weird bit was that 3 of the sprouts were Red Rocoto. I understood them to be really fussy germers, but they popped in the same time as 6 Red Cayenne, 3 F1 Supers, 5 Cherry Bomb, 6 Bonnets and 3 Numex Twilights. The bonnets popping before any of the others was also a surprise.

Here's hoping that 8 hours of sleepy time and a plastic evaporation barrier helps keep as many of them alive as possible.
 
Not looking good. Out of 26 sprouts, I can only see 4 that look halfway close to making it. Rest have withered and turned brown. I have to get the germ and transplant procedure down, as I have supers yet to pop.

Having checked the temps, it would have been easily warm enough to dry them out. That's my guess, that the heat of the T5 on them 24 hrs with no humidity dome at all has baked them. Thinking cap needed before transplanting again.
 
Yeah, I know. Putting pics up here is a pain in the arse though. Got to upload to another site, then use the script etc. I'm not that good at it to be honest!
 
Bigwelshprop said:
Yeah, I know. Putting pics up here is a pain in the arse though. Got to upload to another site, then use the script etc. I'm not that good at it to be honest!
Click to expand...
photobucket.com
(got to make an account though)
Drag and drop picture into the designated spot in photobucket
Wait 5 secs
Right click on the uploaded picture, choose "Copy web adress of image" (might be named differently, I just translated from my language)
click the image button in the editor of thp.com
ctrl+v
post
 
simple and quick procedure.
 
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