A question from a fellow grower:
My seedlings have stagnated and stopped growing after the 1st 2 leaves sprouted.
They started life in a peat disc and the transferred to a 5 gallon bucket of potting mix.
I’ve been careful not to overwater
These have approx 12 hours sunlight
7-8 direct sun (summer here)
Any thoughts?
They are building a root system it’s going to stall for a little while then take off
It definitely looks like you are overwatering, though. At this stage, you should just give 2-3 spritzes of water 3 times a day with a sprayer. Then, cover them with a humidity dome to keep the air around the plant humid.
A popular and easy humidity dome is a soda pop bottle cut in half and turned upside down over the plant.
Oh - you should also put a couple of toothpicks in there right away to prop those plants up. They look like they are just about ready to fall over - the base is weak from overwatering.
And don’t forget, a little air circulation is a must.
Actually, at this stage it’s not necessary. They will be under humidity domes in their own little private environment.
What little air they need they will get when they are uncovered to be watered throughout the day.
I don’t use humidity domes once the first set of pointed leaves appear. Keeping the humidity is good in the beginning because the cotyledons (the first set of round leaves) absorb water since the roots aren’t mature enough to do the job yet. I learned the hard way - expensive way - by almost murdering my babies. Too much humidity and the growth stalled badly. The ones that lived are recovering, doing great now, but I lost seven plants…Oh, well, live and learn.
My main point is don’t leave the humidity dome on too long…
Did you say they only recieve 12 hours sunlight?
What was your recommendation for humidity level? At this stage
I dont use humidity domes for seedlings at all, I do use a high humidity environment for my clones, but not my seedlings. Have not had an issue yet.
