SOIL My plants are growing small new leaves and they are yellow.

[Stevepmd]

So I have 5 plants growing under a 400w so they are growing fast so I stopped by a grow store to pick up some bigger pots. these plants are 3 weeks old from seed so I wanted to transfer them to a bigger pot so this grow store sold me 5 pots and a bag of potting soil.
when I got home and started to read whats in the soil and there is 3 months of nutrients!! But I used it and now after 2 weeks the bottom leaves are turning yellow. I want a soil with no nutrients and then I can controll the feeding. So what is the best soil or medium I can you and whats a good A-B nutrience. Also when I do tne next transplant whats the best way to get rid of all the old soil with out killing or shocking the plants.
Thanks
Steve

[Colombo]

Welcome to GWE Stevepmd, you are at the right place to get your questions addressed. GWE growers have a proven track record for helping solve problems for the ultimate finish. I believe soil is a growers prefrence but Fox Farms Ocean mixed with Fox Farm Happy Frog and perlite seems to be the go to for new growers with Fox Farm nutes. General Hydroponics PH up/dwn. The soil you have you just water but is really made for veg/house plants. To get a better understanding of your problem can you drop a couple photos and some more info on your grow, lights, feed/water, strain ,water schedule etc. If you change soil you can transfer your plants but gently wash the root system with 6.5 ph ed water or leave minimal amount of soil around root system and plant. This soil will wash out after a watering or two because of the small amount of soil. Hope this helped you with your search for a smooth transition in your grow. Good Luck! Good Growing !!

[Stevepmd]

Thanks Colombo for those helpful tips! Here is some more information about this grow.
I started these 5 feminized seeds 1 White Widow and 4 Train Wrecks. I planted them in the first week of February.
I started each seed in a Jiffy peat pellet once they sprouted I put them under a 9W led grow light bulb. Once I could see all there roots poking through the Jiffy pellet netting I purchased 5 square pots the ones you see in the photos 5X5x5 and a bag of potting soil I took each seedling still in there Jiffy pellet and dropped each one into there own pot.
I have only used tap water so far. The light that im using is a 400W MH and Im not sure how old the ballast or the bulb is so I will be buying a new 1000W MH ballast and bulb this week.
So resently maybe 3 or 4 days I noticed the two yellow bottom leaves as you can see in the photos
I will take the advice from Colombo and transfer all 5 plants to Fox Farm soil and nutrnutrients.
Thanks again Colombo for your advice let me know if there is anything else I could do to help this grow.
Steve

[Colombo]

The girls look Wonderfull ! If this is your first grow your germination went well and the their filling in real nice. Color looks good also! The plant has moved on from the yellow leaves and the growth again looks fine. It looks like you have things going in the right direction. I mix my own growing media but you should be happy with your decision based on others use and knowledge here at the forum. Keep a feeding schedule and maintain your soil PH, they will be your best friend ! Good job with your
start! Good Growing !!

[Spidermite]

Dont worry about removing the soil. Just flush the plants really well in those pots and then transfer to your final pots. Id use at least 3 gallon pots preferably cloth pots or air pots. Never use soil with timed release nutrients in the future but Im guessing those are less than a gallon pots they are in now? If it is more than a gallon maybe remove any loose soil. The plants look healthy in those pics so moving to a bigger pot with Happy Frog or Ocean forest from fox farms should do it. I like the fox farms trio of nutrients but there are many that will work and some work better i think but I know how to use it so I stick with it.

I would say to remove as much soil as you could but you risk damaging the roots and slowing the plants down. I don't think the little bit of soil left after going to a bigger pot will hurt the final yields. Ive always grown in soil so its what I know. If someone disagrees that is fine. Just do what ever you feel the most comfortable with.

But your plants look great. Those first 2 leaves always turn yellow and fall off in my exp.

[Stevepmd]

Hey Spidermite,
Just a question, you said to use at least 3 gallon cloth pots what size should I go up to for the best yield? 5 gallon?
Thanks

[Spidermite]

When I want big plants I use 7 gallon pots. When Im trying to run more plants I use 3 gallon. But Ideally with space use 7 gallon pots.

[Spidermite]

Oh I left out that as stated above add more perlite to whatever soil you use.

[Guest]

Are u phing your tap water. ?

[Stevepmd]

Hi Mud,
No I have not tested my water for PH I do plan on buying a PH tester over the next week,

[Spidermite]

Checking you waters ph is one of the most important parts of growing mj. It is very particular and having the ph off is probably the biggest and most costly mistake one can make. It can cause problems that look like almost anything.

If you cant afford a ph pen (the one listed by nebula is under $30) use test drops and ph up/down. You can get the kit with all you need from General Hydroponics I believe on amazon for almost nothing.

Your gonna be fine...they look great.

[Stevepmd]

Hi Spidermite,
Thanks for that information I will order PH pen tomorrow.

[marpolo]

all you need is extremely cheap on Amazon, PH pens, get some PH down for your tap water. Use the easy directions on color needed to reach your proper PH. Which is 6.0 to 7.0 in soil, a little lower for hydro.. its around 10 bucks..

[buffalobuds]

Morning to all.........Are the girls auto ? If so I noted that they do most of their underground growth till around the second set of true leaves..Then it is a massive above ground growth for about the next three weeks. From then on its all bud. Because of this rushed life span a well rounded pre-made soil will give autos what they need for life. Give them lots of light and sit back and enjoy......Peace to All

[Colombo]

Thanks for that info buffalobuds, it has answered some questions I was trying to understand about the roots above ground and if this was part of the normal growth cycle. Do you cover them with soil as the grow out or leave alone? I will read into this more. If you do not mind me asking, by chance do you have any info on this ? Thanks again! Good Growing !!

[PhantomSulker]

I noticed that as well with my first Auto experience, the gal grew slowly and she is in her 4th week now and she is going crazy. I have a time-lapse on her and go back and watch her grow all the time.

[buffalobuds]

Columbo.............I refer to this site quite often......... https://www.smilinggardener.com/coll...ll-about-soil/ It pretty much explains things i never know existed and interacted with plants. In a nut shell he explains what organic gardening is all about . I create my own soil, amend and reuse it yr. after yr. and going into my 7th yr. out doors on the patio...no problems. Maybe I'm lucky but it works for me. Let me know if it helps..Make sure to check out the soil food web............Peace

[Spidermite]

I have not seen that site. Cant wait to read it. Even though ive been growing in dirt for well over 40 years I learn something new everyday. Now cant wait till the wife goes back to work so I can read it. Lol

[buffalobuds]

Spider excellent site , can get a little deep but the best reading on the soil food web

[Spidermite]

With me there is never too deep. My wife says im the Sheldon of weed if you watch big bang theory.

[Colombo]

Thats the kind of stuff you learn from to really go organic.

[Colombo]

Couldn't wait till tonight, had to take a peek and its all of what you said ! I will finish reading tonight for sure. This info is spot on for my needs and basic knowledge!
This is a great read for soil growers. Good Growing !!