Seedlings Falling over Help!!!

[GDS StonerBoy]

I have 3 papaya seedlings and 1 South African Durban Poison x Skunk#1 seedling. All of these seedling for some reason are getting soft and falling over except for one. I had 5 papaya seedlings but one died from this can anyone tell me whats the problem pictures will be provided asap of needed!

GDS StonerBoy Reviewed by GDS StonerBoy on 08-07-2007. Seedlings Falling over Help!!! I have 3 papaya seedlings and 1 South African Durban Poison x Skunk#1 seedling. All of these seedling for some reason are getting soft and falling over except for one. I had 5 papaya seedlings but one died from this can anyone tell me whats the problem pictures will be provided asap of needed! Rating: 5

[stinkyattic]

Don't bother with pics, I bet you have damping off.
Are they under a humidity dome? Is the soil very wet? It's a fungus. Next time use sterile soil and no dome!!! And bleach your pots before then, or run them through the dish washer.

[GDS StonerBoy]

I dont have a humity dome and the soil isnt very wet as a matter of fact i give them a spray once or twice a day because the soil on the top looks as if its drying off! That may be my problem. But im using miracle gro seed starting soil. One of them looks like it is in perfect shape, the rest are barely growing and their getting soft and falling over. I used paper cups instead of pots to start my seedlings off, could this have been the prob? Now it looks like if these dont pull through i'll have no choice but to grow the c99!

[stinkyattic]

Shoot. The softness is a sure sign of damping-off though. How deep in the cups was the soil? Like, was there any space between the rim and soil surface?
Do you have any shitty mexi bag seeds to practice on? Do a test run with your setup and bagseed before you try with expensive seeds!!!

[GDS StonerBoy]

Yeah there was a little space between the soil top and the cup top. Theres not much space now that i have packed soil around the stems to keep them upright. So when this damping off happens are the plants gonna surely die?

Yeah the mexi bag seeds is a good idea i should go out and get an ounce im pretty sure it'll be an ounce of almost completely seeds. I'll just use the little pot thats in their for compost hell it only cost me 40 bucks so i'll give that a try.

Then like you said i'll give the c99 a shot instead of just ruining some expensive seeds then going and ruining more!

[GDS StonerBoy]

Does damping mean that they'll die? and is their no way i can fix this?

[stinkyattic]

Sorry, yes... it's deadly.
You should sterilize your seedling soil in the oven at 400 degrees for about 30-60 minutes in a lasagne pan if you have ANY doubts as to whether it is safe to use. Generally the stuff from the garden store that is meant for seedlings is okay.
Also, try watering by standing them in a tray of water and letting them absorb it that way- let the pots suck up the water, then take them out. This leaves the surface dry and the lower part that matters wet.

[GDS StonerBoy]

Crap ok thanks i have definitely learned my lesson atleast i still have one happy seedling!

[ohkelly]

Stinkyattic is likely 100% right about the disease and the cure, which is prevention.

To be sure, look at the base of the stem at the soil line. In the first stages of damping off, the stem will look water-soaked and a little narrowed, then it will look pinched and dead and the plant will fall over like a tree when it's cut. Some of the seedlings may not get that bad and may survive, but they will be weakened.

Hygiene is the most important preventive, and stinky gave you some good pointers there, but temperature and moisture control are almost equally important. Damping off fungi thrive in cool temps, high soil moisture, and high humidity. You want to keep the soil somewhere around 80 degrees. Higher isn't bad within reason, but you'll be watering more often.

Also, follow her advice on watering. You don't want the top layer of soil to stay moist all the time, so misting them every day is actually the worst possible way to water them. Wait until they are just barely wilted, or the pot/tray seems lighter than it should when you pick it up, then briefly water from the bottom. You don't want the soil soaking wet, just moist.

Other things you can do if you're anal:

Soak the seeds for ten minutes in a 1:10 solution of household bleach:water, then rinse. This will sterilize the seeds themselves and also speed germination.

Before sowing, dust the seeds with a powdered fungicide, such as Captan, that is labeled for damping off.

Bottom line is that damping off is much easier to prevent than to treat. The only treatment I know of is to drench the soil in a mixture of Captan and water, and that doesn't work well.