Seedlings are not thriving – lower leaves dying

[Alcippe]

Help! My seedlings are dying, and I can't figure out why. A few of them, that have always done poorly since they sprouted, seem to be dying for no apparent reason. There's less green and more and more yellow in the plant. They're planted in plain organic soil at the moment, and I've been giving them plain water at the right pH. But the lowest leaves of several of my seedlings have died and curled in. Even the best ones are still kind of a light-ish green. Any ideas what's wrong?

[Mr.furley]

Alcippe
Could you upload a picture or two of plants and setup

[Aloner]

By "lowest leaves" do you mean the round ones? Those are the cotyledons and it's totally normal for those wither up.

What kind of light are you using and how far from the seedlings is it? And are you letting the soil dry out between waterings?

[alltatup]

Are you drowning them? If so, the roots have no oxygen.

[Canyon Grower]

I have killed more seedlings by over watering, than by all other methods combined. Sometimes I think I have a brown thumb.

[Alcippe]

I've been trying like hell not to overwater them – only when I stick a finger down into the soil near the stem, and it feels mostly dry. I give each of the babies just a little bit of plain water right around the base of the stem, like maybe a quarter of a cup, and they are about 2.5 feet away from a 600w LED light. The temperature is usually a little on the high side in my tent, sometimes as high as 78°. Could that be affecting the seedlings too? Do I dare leave them alone for a few days and see if that helps? Should I add another fan?

[Aloner]

You want dry, not mostly dry. They'll come back from not enough water far faster than from too much water. Also, pictures would really help diagnose your problem.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Sounds to me like your soil is to rich an burning em up. What kind of soil are you using? Lots of people start their seedlings under cfls at first for a week or two then put them under LEDs. Got Pictures?