Yellow and Crinkled Leaves - Help!

Brand: Peatman
PH : 5.5-6.5
30% black peat + 50% white peat
Perlite 20% + Mud 1.4 kg
Peat resolution 0-20 mm.
NPK (14:16:18 ) 0.8 kg/m3
Wetting agent + Microelements 50 g/m3

Feed: Pure water for 2 weeks after transplant and last 2 feeds (every 3 days) were Biobizz light mix week 4 dosages. Still in veg so shouldnt have done that maybe, but it was looking hungry and pale at that stage so thought it wouldnt mind and flipping to flower asap. Never any runoff. The biobizz feeds didnt seem to have had much impact, it got a bit darker green maybe, but otherwise slowly down hill in similar fashion.

Just checked again and PH is showing 4.9-5.3 PH in different spots. All of the various pre bagged soils Im testing right now have a similar PH and all other plants are pretty healthy, as was this until 7-10 days ago, which is when i guessed the soil nutes ran out anyway, so perhaps its just a deficiency, but still such a low PH doesnt seem ideal for growth.

Main symptoms are the yellowing and wrinkled/crinkled cut styled leaves.

Peat moss is naturally acidic. In nature it's a pH of 4.0. I use Fox Farm Ocean Forest that claims a pH balanced soil of 6.5 but I have never seen this. It's always below a 6.0. It takes a month to balance out if you are pH balancing your nutrients After it is mixed up. I would continue a pH nute mix of 6.5 and it will balance. You can also flush a bit.

Another thing I have learned is the cheap pH meters suck. I use the API fish tank liquid drops in a glass vial. The cheap meters are always off by .5 pH at least. You have to get the expensive $60 one that is stored in a solution. If not please use the liquid drops. At least you could confirm what I already have.

This is coming from a synthetic grower point of view. I don't grow living soils. I add Kangaroots with mycorrhizae and bacteria, and feed Big Bloom with earthworm castings and bat guano, Floral Nectar (molasses), and calmag for my organics and supplements.

con1ey said:

Peat moss is naturally acidic. In nature it's a pH of 4.0. I use Fox Farm Ocean Forest that claims a pH balanced soil of 6.5 but I have never seen this. It's always below a 6.0. It takes a month to balance out if you are pH balancing your nutrients After it is mixed up. I would continue a pH nute mix of 6.5 and it will balance. You can also flush a bit.

Another thing I have learned is the cheap pH meters suck. I use the API fish tank liquid drops in a glass vial. The cheap meters are always off by .5 pH at least. You have to get the expensive $60 one that is stored in a solution. If not please use the liquid drops. At least you could confirm what I already have.

This is coming from a synthetic grower point of view. I don't grow living soils. I add Kangaroots with mycorrhizae and bacteria, and feed Big Bloom with earthworm castings and bat guano, Floral Nectar (molasses), and calmag for my organics and supplements.

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I have a Hanna soil meter. Not a cheap one.

Just feed at PH 7.

Next time will be a get some runoff and test that PH too + see if it clears the soil.

Is it just me or does the PH of the medium decrease once water has been added (regardless of the water PH) or this telling me something about my medium in general?

I use a 14 gallon shop vac, with the drain nozzle on the bottom, and nice big treys my grow pots sits in. I will water till I get an inch of runoff in the trey to test. I never have used a soil meter.

Runoff will come out more acidic than the water you put in for more factors than one. Of course peat moss is acidic. Another is flowering food is stored acidic. Example Fox Farm Tiger Bloom flowering fertilizer is stored at pH 5.0. If you get a lockout from over feeding, a build up of acid becomes the problem. Vegative fertilizers are acidic but much less than flowering ferts. I do not know your process just speaking of my experience. I would just stick to pH balancing the stuff you put in to mid 6's because the plant needs immediate availability to the nutes at that pH. Bad input gets bad output in my opinion

Early potassium deficiency

hotrodharley said:

Early potassium deficiency

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Thanks i was thinking same, either potasium or MG. and leaning towards Potassium.

Next feed will get some runoff and increase week 2 light mix biobizz dosage with more fish mix.

Actually looks there is not much potassium inside fish mix. Hmm not sure what to add?

Watered at PH 7 until about 15-20% runoff

Runoff PH was 5.8. Does this seem ok?

Following feed per/L as wanted to ensure enough potassium as realized with fish mix there isnt much inside:


grow - 2ml
bloom - 2ml
heaven - 2ml
alg-a-mic - 2ml
acti-vera - 2ml
calmag - 0.5ml (RO water)

Yeah. pH in high 5's is ok. Good range for most nutrients to be uptaken.

con1ey said:

Peat moss is naturally acidic. In nature it's a pH of 4.0. I use Fox Farm Ocean Forest that claims a pH balanced soil of 6.5 but I have never seen this. It's always below a 6.0. It takes a month to balance out if you are pH balancing your nutrients After it is mixed up. I would continue a pH nute mix of 6.5 and it will balance. You can also flush a bit.

Another thing I have learned is the cheap pH meters suck. I use the API fish tank liquid drops in a glass vial. The cheap meters are always off by .5 pH at least. You have to get the expensive $60 one that is stored in a solution. If not please use the liquid drops. At least you could confirm what I already have.

This is coming from a synthetic grower point of view. I don't grow living soils. I add Kangaroots with mycorrhizae and bacteria, and feed Big Bloom with earthworm castings and bat guano, Floral Nectar (molasses), and calmag for my organics and supplements.

Click to expand...

Im curious,, what are you using/doing to test the ph of your ffof potting mix?

farmerfischer said:

Im curious,, what are you using/doing to test the ph of your ffof potting mix?

Click to expand...

I just collect runoff from waterings. FFOF runoff will be a dirty brown, high PPM, low pH. I use pH droplets in vials. I don't trust the cheap pH meters, and I got one of those as well, so I just use the cheap TDS meters and liquid pH test kit. After about a month, FFOF will stabilize and you will be getting nice clear runoff, with everything in the right range.

I know there are other methods to testing soil. I just use the basic and easy runoff method.

con1ey said:

I just collect runoff from waterings. FFOF runoff will be a dirty brown, high PPM, low pH. I use pH droplets in vials. I don't trust the cheap pH meters, and I got one of those as well, so I just use the cheap TDS meters and liquid pH test kit. After about a month, FFOF will stabilize and you will be getting nice clear runoff, with everything in the right range.

I know there are other methods to testing soil. I just use the basic and easy runoff method.

Click to expand...

The run off wont necessarilly be acurate to what the soil actually is..
Ive used ffof off and on and never had ph problems with it... only after it was spent i would have to start ph'ing my water/nutes goin into it..