Small plants and wierd color

Hello everyone,

I’m new here and could really use some advice!

This is my first grow, and I’m noticing some issues with my plants. They’re 18 days old, but they seem unusually small and have some odd discoloration.

For the first 14 days, they were in small fiber pots. I recently transplanted them into these larger pots. My light setup is a Kingbrite LM301H 3500K with Epistar 660nm, currently set at 40% and positioned 22 inches away from the plants. Could this light intensity or distance be causing problems?

I’m also wondering if I might have overwatered them—could that be the issue?

I’d appreciate any insights or suggestions on what might be going wrong and how I can fix it. Thank you!

It's way too much light. Back it off. Go to like 36"-48" if you're running 240w at 40% power. Or turn it way down. Little seedlings can't keep up with that much light. I use a 65w light dimmed way down for my seedlings.

MtRainDog said:

It's way too much light. Back it off. Go to like 36"-48" if you're running 240w at 40% power. Or turn it way down. Little seedlings can't keep up with that much light. I use a 65w light dimmed way down for my seedlings.

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Ok thanks man!
I put the light @ 37". Is the light being too close causing this color?

deadkilla said:

Ok thanks man!
I put the light @ 37". Is the light being too close causing this color?

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I think it's very likely, yes. Plants have a metabolism. And excessive light is like if you or I excessively worked out. A small plant can't eat enough to keep up, so it has to metabolize itself, which causes the lightening of the leaves. I'd probably give them a little feed at this point. They'll be fine with 1/4 - half strength feed.

MtRainDog said:

I think it's very likely, yes. Plants have a metabolism. And excessive light is like if you or I excessively worked out. A small plant can't eat enough to keep up, so it has to metabolize itself, which causes the lightening of the leaves. I'd probably give them a little feed at this point. They'll be fine with 1/4 - half strength feed.

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I forgot to mention my seedlings were intially grown in some kind of soil made for seedlings. These bigger pots have different soil. The soil is nutrient-rich, I think. Containing:

1. Organic materials: Peat, composted poultry manure, horse manure, wood fiber, and bark.
2. Key nutrients:
   • Nitrogen (N): 120 mg/l
   • Phosphorus (P): 90 mg/l
   • Potassium (K): 600 mg/l
   • pH level: 6.5 (slightly acidic, suitable for most plants).

My plan was that they would have enough nutrients for a while from the soil. I have some biobizz grow and bloom for later. Unfortunately, the fertilizers are about 2½ years old, so I might need to replace them with fresh ones. I also have some seaweed extract. Meaby if i give them nutrients it is too much?