What's Happening?

[riolman]

I noticed something was wrong a few weeks ago. It started with the very first set of leaves that my plant grew. They turned yellow and then brown and started to die, so i just cut them off. After a week or two i noticed that the set of leaves above the original ones started to turn yellow, and now the set above those are turning yellow also! Take a look at these pictures and tell me if you might think you know what's going on. The bud on my plant looks fine, but if the leaves are dying then the plant can't be that healthy, right?

 

[desertrat]

the plant will naturally turn yellow from the bottom up as you get later in flowering. some people add an x-0-0 nute to their bloom formula as the yellow is a nitrogen deficiency, but honestly you don;t need to add anything.

 

[smokeybandit22]

looks hungry

 

[riolman]

Thanks for the info Desertrat, that actually makes me feel a lot better lol. I know its not hungry cuz it gets fed everyday, it's a hydro system. Is there a way to tell when its time to collect the bud from the color of the leaves?

 

[brasmith]

I noticed something was wrong a few weeks ago. It started with the very first set of leaves that my plant grew. They turned yellow and then brown and started to die, so i just cut them off. After a week or two i noticed that the set of leaves above the original ones started to turn yellow, and now the set above those are turning yellow also! Take a look at these pictures and tell me if you might think you know what's going on. The bud on my plant looks fine, but if the leaves are dying then the plant can't be that healthy, right?

looks hungry

I'd go with Smokey on this one. Even though they are in hydro and eating all day every day they may not have enough to eat. Turning yellow this early into flowering (2-4 weeks right?) is not normal unless there is a deficiency. Flowering girls should stay green until closer to the end of their life cycle. Your plant appears to have a couple deficiencies going on; nitrogen most obvious and mg and cal creeping in. I'd say up the levels of you nutes just a bit because this is a time when your plants will eat more aggresively and then towards the end slow down on their eating. Luck and hope this helps.

 

[Budda_Luva]

well bottom leafs die off naturally no matter what phase there in so i would say no wirries

 

[MrFishy]

Seems to me that the vegetation on most fruiting annuals gets all kinds of ugly as that fruit grows and ripens.
I know there are growers able to keep their plants green thru flower, but in many, many years, I've never once beat the yellow yet, inside. (in dirt)

I suspect part of it (in my case) would have to be the move from 24/0 to whatever flowering #'s . . . it just makes sense that the plants fade, at least to lime-ish, in half the light?

 

[Consciousness420]

agree with desertrat.. its true that most of the time yellowing is a nit deficiency, depending on the genetics, some plants do drastically avert resources from unnecessary leaves other parts of the plant to use for bud production, it happens.. do the plant a favor by CUTTING OFF the yellow leaves, especially the large ones toward the bottom of the plant that are not needed anymore.. playing around with your nute ratios right now is not really something you want to be doing now that you are into flowering... good luck!

 

[riolman]

Thanks everybody. I'll prolly cut those leaves off. I was wondering though, when you cut off leaves should you do it as close to the main stalk as possible, or does it really matter?

 

[Budda_Luva]

juss give em a lil tug n if they dnt come off than leave em till the do

 

[desertrat]

Thanks for the info Desertrat, that actually makes me feel a lot better lol. I know its not hungry cuz it gets fed everyday, it's a hydro system. Is there a way to tell when its time to collect the bud from the color of the leaves?

nope. get a cheap hand held microscope from radio shack and check the trichomes (look in growfaq for how to do this)

Thanks everybody. I'll prolly cut those leaves off. I was wondering though, when you cut off leaves should you do it as close to the main stalk as possible, or does it really matter?

if you're going to cut them, leave 1/4 inch of stem so you're sure not to hurt the main stem. personally, i wait until they are easy to pull off or they just fall off as they do no harm and still help if they are the least bit green.

 

[Consciousness420]

best to swab some scissors with hydrogen peroxide and snip the fan leaf branch instead of pulling/ripping it off ..
but this is splitting hairs.. you can also just let them brown and die and fall off - its natural and the plant will be fine.. cheers

 

[smokeybandit22]

wow, u r guys are leaf murderers. there are still penty of available nutes inthose leaves. u should leave em especially since u r going N deficienct too early. and Brasmith is right, you have more than N def going on-that could be Mg. but what do we know. dont feed em and cut off those 'useless' fans and Im sure u will be happy with your final yeild.

 

[Consciousness420]

hehe, usually depends on how full the plant is.. but if they are already necrotic, the plant just wastes energy trying to save them.. Im not aware of any data supporting the notion that the plant redirects N levels from dying leaves to living tissue - I think its the other way around (though not sure), which is why its usually good to murder those things.. in the end I think it must be a ratio of nute uptake rate vs ratio of dead tissue (and degree of necrosis) to weight of entire plant (err something like that, just guessing)...

 

[smokeybandit22]

hehe, usually depends on how full the plant is.. but if they are already necrotic, the plant just wastes energy trying to save them.. Im not aware of any data supporting the notion that the plant redirects N levels from dying leaves to living tissue - I think its the other way around (though not sure), which is why its usually good to murder those things.. in the end I think it must be a ratio of nute uptake rate vs ratio of dead tissue (and degree of necrosis) to weight of entire plant (err something like that, just guessing)...

those leaves are NOT necrotic. I am going to have to strongly disagree with ur reasoning here. why is it that when in flowering the fans will yellow and the new growth remain healthy green? surely it cant be because their is N flowing into the dying leaf as u suggest. The reason the leaves die is because the stored nutes are flowing out of that leaf and directed toward the newer growth/buds/bud sites. That is thought to be the exact purpose of the fans during last half of flowering.
I havent checked but I am 100% sure that there is a ton of data supporting exactly what u r claiming not to be true

 

[ganjaboii024]

i dont want to take over but this is breaching a question id like answered, if the older bigger fan leaves are yellowing and wilting, thus covering new fresh growth, should the bigger older yellowing leaves be cut to let light get to new healthy growth?? (these plants are in veg)

 

[spiked1]

Nitrogen is a mobile nutrient, meaning it can be redirected by the plant when needed, and in natures wisdom it takes it from the least important part of the plant.
It's far better lo leave the effected leaves until they fall of or can be removed with a light pull.

 

[smokeybandit22]

THANK YOU spiked1