Bottom leafs seem to be dying - Copy&Pasted + picture

[ThePastTense]

Hey Community!

I've been growing my first batch and on my biggest plant, the bottom leafs are starting to die. It's not the absolute lowest 2 leafs, but the ones right above it who have 3 spears. I've read that bottom leafs dying is rather normal as the plant grows. I don't think its nutrient deficiency or over fertilizing since the tips of the leafs are not yellow, and its ONLY those two leafs that are showing signs of yellowness. Check attached photo.

I copy pasted a troubleshooting for y'all to see Thanks!


What is your experience level? (first timer, novice, experienced...)

Your Equipment:
1) Type and wattage of lights. (MH, HPS, CFL's, tube fluorescents, LED's)
2) Distance from tops? 3-5ft.
3) Reflector type? (cool tube set-up, bat wing, enclosed reflector, bare bulb...)
.4) Is there a consistent fresh air supply? Yes
.5) Do you have an exhaust fan and a circulation fan? Door is ajar + rotating fan
.6) What are the bulb wattages, kelvin ratings, and schedule? 24-hour, 400W

Your medium:
.7) Specific brand and type of soil Mixture of several soils, with rocks at the bottom.
.8) Size of container? 5 Gallon
.9) Did you use peat pucks (or similar) to root clones or germinate seedlings? No

Your nutrients and water:
10) Source of water? Tap water, boiled pH = 7.5, after nutrients ~7
11) Method of checking water ph. (ph pen, test strips, aquarium test kit...)
12) Method of adjusting water ph. None at the moment
13) Specific brand and N-P-K ratio for each bottle. 15-30-15, everyday directions say 1/4 of a teaspoon, I'm doing 1/8 at the moment to get plants used to the nutrients.
14) How often are you watering between feedings, and how much per watering? I water them everyday with 1/8 of a teaspoon nutrients
15) Any additives or tea's? No
16) Are your ph levels stable, or do they fluctuate? Stable
17) What is your ingoing water's ph? ...your runoff ph? Ingoing is 7~, not measured outgoing
18) Do you foliar feed? Do not foliar feed

Your growroom:
19) Indoors or outdoors? Indoors
20) What size of closet, room or hut? Large closet
21) What are the temps and humidity levels while lights are on? Temp is at a stable 75F
22) Have you seen signs of insects in the growroom? A lady bug once or twice (yellow)

Your strain:
23) What strain are you growing? No clue
24) From seeds or clones? Seeds
25) Is this an autoflower strain? Autoflowering

Disclaimer: Everything I have written and posted is strictly fictional and photos are edited and taken from the web.

- TPT

[Rusty Trichome]

Going to need you to copy-n-paste a picture of the whole plant, but I went through your form and noticed a few things...


Hey Community!Hey.


1) Type and wattage of lights. (MH, HPS, CFL's, tube fluorescents, LED's)
2) Distance from tops? 3-5ft.
3) Reflector type? (cool tube set-up, bat wing, enclosed reflector, bare bulb...)
.6) What are the bulb wattages, kelvin ratings, and schedule? 24-hour, 400W
Your lights are too high. Or is that the distance from the bulb to the lower leaves? I go with 18/6 in veg.


Your medium:[/B]
.7) Specific brand and type of soil Mixture of several soils, with rocks at the bottom.
Mediums are not all the same. What kind of soil(s) are you using? Regardless, it's a bad idea to mix mediums. Same goes with nutrients. Pick a brand and stick with it if possible. Some are buffered differently, some are heavy on organics or nutrients, some aren't...


Your nutrients and water:[/B]
10) Source of water? Tap water, boiled pH = 7.5, after nutrients ~7
11) Method of checking water ph. (ph pen, test strips, aquarium test kit...)
Why do you have to boil the water?
ph is a tad too high. It would be better to adjust to 7.0, then add nutrients. More on that in a second...


13) Specific brand and N-P-K ratio for each bottle. 15-30-15, everyday directions say 1/4 of a teaspoon, I'm doing 1/8 at the moment to get plants used to the nutrients.
14) How often are you watering between feedings, and how much per watering? I water them everyday with 1/8 of a teaspoon nutrients
I've never heard of a nutrient with a daily application rate. Or are you just using your nutrients to adjust your ph daily, and the application rate is 1 tsp per week? Kinda sounds unlikely though...the 15-30-15 N-P-K ratio sounds more like an every two week application nutrient. All right, I'll bite. What are you using, and why are you using a flowering nutrient during growth stage??

Although it's common, the disclaimer at the bottom of your post won't do anything except show paranoia. If "they" are after you, "they" are laughing right now. But if it makes you feel better, I'm not laughing. < lol >

Anyway...the leaf you copy-n-pasted looks like it's the victim of water damage. When watering, I often have to wend my way through branches and leaves, and if I leave the nutrient solution on the leaves, that's what happens. Plus, the washed-out look is likely from a lack of (useful) light, plus, the plant is scavenging nutrients for delivery to the rest of the plant.

Your plant would perform better with the proper tools for the job. (Consistent medium, proper nutrients, ph adjusting solution...)

The picture of the whole plant would be helpful. Old leaves are old news.

[ThePastTense]

Thanks for a quick response. I answered your questions right below.


Your lights are too high. Or is that the distance from the bulb to the lower leaves? I go with 18/6 in veg.

~3ft from the bulb to the very top of the plant.


Mediums are not all the same. What kind of soil(s) are you using? Regardless, it's a bad idea to mix mediums. Same goes with nutrients. Pick a brand and stick with it if possible. Some are buffered differently, some are heavy on organics or nutrients, some aren't...

Soil: Scotts and Miracle Grow
Nutriets: K-Gro All purpose Plant Food


Why do you have to boil the water?
Because there is chlorine in the water and other impurities. When boiling it I sterilize the water as well as burning off the chlorine. I also let the water stand 24hrs to make sure the chlorine is completely gone.


Anyway...the leaf you copy-n-pasted looks like it's the victim of water damage. When watering, I often have to wend my way through branches and leaves, and if I leave the nutrient solution on the leaves, that's what happens. Plus, the washed-out look is likely from a lack of (useful) light, plus, the plant is scavenging nutrients for delivery to the rest of the plant.

I attached another photo of the entire plant. I make sure all water just gets on the soil. I never let the water sprinkle on leaves.

If I am not mistaken the light being used is a 400W high pressure sodium. And the entire room including the floor is painted white.

And yes, a tid bit paranoid, haha saw the disclaimer thing on another post. Thanks for the help so far!

[Rusty Trichome]

I was keeping my 400w HPS batwing at about 18". Granted, being in the desert I run a bit higher with temperatures, but in the winter I was keeping it to about 12-14". Are you familiar with the 'back of the hand' method of determining distance the light should be? Likely the light is too far to promote growth in your original leaf. Maximum effective range for a 400w is about 3 feet, but you don't want it that far away. The closer the better, without burning anything.

Would pick a medium and stick with it. Makes life easier if you run into problems. Same with the nutrients. You'll want a growth nutrient for the veg phase and a flowering nutrient for...flowering. The main difference is in the N-P-K ratios.

Nutrients don't last long once in water. Are you mixing nutrients every day?

Are you using your nutrients to adjust the ph? If so, there is a better way. (phDown)
What if they need more water on a hot day? Or less water when humid? Are you going to overdose or underdose 'em? Not a good idea. When you follow directions and feed per provided schedule, you get the flexibility a garden demands over the long haul.
Mixed nutrients should be used asap. If left to sit-out, it begins to degrade.

Painted the floor, too?