# suggestions for root rot?



## 64yoda (May 4, 2015)

I realized root rot is what is causing my Blueberry Headband plant's leaves to wilt starting at the ends and turn brown and start curling upwards. I could never figure it out before that. i always thought it was a phosphorous deficiency, but I knew it was weird cuz I was adding plenty of phosphorous during feedings. Now it all makes sense cuz I know I have over-watered.

I just need some suggestions on something not too expensive to buy that might help for soil setups.

Any suggestions? I know root rot is probably not common, so maybe no one will have ideas. Thanks.

Edit: I read that Hydrogen Peroxide only lasts for about 24 hours and then it gets converted back to Oxygen, so that it would have to be diluted and added every single day, even if it was commercial grade H2O2. I'm hoping for a better solution than this. I don't mind spending more than that. Hydrogen Peroxide is super cheap anyway.


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## 64yoda (May 4, 2015)

I looked up several different kinds of root rot, all the different fungi and pathogens that cause it. I opened about 30 tabs and read everything. Took forever cuz many of them were threads that went on forever.

Seems that even using a tiny amount of bleach is a big no-no, tiny being 4 drops per gallon of water. And the people that had luck with it were using DWC setups.

I had not heard of people actually taking the plant out of the soil very carefully and inspecting the roots [also carefully] and cutting off anything that is brown or black. I suppose you gotta be super careful because sometimes brown can still be healthy in soil, just not so much the case in hydroponic. So, I think I'm gonna do that.

Also read that something high in Phosphorous is a good idea if you're in a real bind and don't have something to keep the plant from going in total shock after you cut roots.

Another tip was to trim off about 1/3rd of the leaves after trimming off bad roots and re-potting in new soil with a diluted bleach/water cleaned pot. I guess if your fan leaves are dying off from the bottom-up, then it's only a matter of time before it hits what's flowering at the middle to top and then the whole plant falls over.

I wish I had a bigger planter. Now that I know I gotta do this, with possibility that nothing will recover, it would seem to make sense to add a much bigger pot. Considering the Blueberry Headband is at about 71 inches now, I'm sure the planter is fairly root-bound, or at least was before the roots got all slimy and rotted.

After I trim off the branches that are already dying off, then probably trim some more, I'm gonna get the plant out of the soil (god, this is gonna take me all night), then I'm gonna trim off the bad roots, then do a 50/50 solution H2O2/tap water (considering tap water has a small amount of Chlorine in it), soak whatever is still hopefully healthy root-wise in the solution, then re-pot it in some soil with a lot more of something to keep those roots oxygenated. I don't have any perlite or vermiculite left, which totally sucks, but I think I might have some clean rocks that I never used. I gotta make due cuz I feel like if I put this off just one more day, then it's not gonna be able to recover. About every 12 hours, I see new leaves getting affected.

If she plant dies, she dies. My room was totally clean. I always sterilized my hands, I had bleach/water cleaned the entire area more than once. I never walked in there with shoes on. I never brought anything in there that wasn't already in there unless it was nutes and if it was I even sterilized the bottles. I was super careful. So, now I realize I just over-watered her and that's what did the job on the roots since I don't have a DWC setup and nothing is being exposed to light. I'm sure feeding her too often was also a problem since I read that too much salt-buildup will also propagate fungi and pathogens.

I'll post what happens. Wish me luck. :farm:


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## Rosebud (May 4, 2015)

Good luck. I guess you have probably already done this, how did it go. I have had to do that with other plants, not MJ. I take it out of the pot and let the roots air dry, then into a new soil in a bleached pot.  Hope it went well for you.


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## The Hemp Goddess (May 4, 2015)

Are you sure you have root rot?  This is not common in soil plants.


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## Rosebud (May 4, 2015)

It can happen. I had it happen to a christmas cactus.. But i saved it.


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## 64yoda (May 4, 2015)

Rosebud said:


> Good luck. I guess you have probably already done  this, how did it go. I have had to do that with other plants, not MJ. I  take it out of the pot and let the roots air dry, then into a new soil  in a bleached pot.  Hope it went well for you.



Haven't done it yet. Been awake for 36 hours now, still researching.  Went to my local greenhouse and got a ton of stuff. Went to Home Depot  and got a 5 gallon bucket for a new pot.

Realized I had to get  more H2O2 anyway. Got 1.5 gallons of that. Got 8 quarts of perlite. Got  some diachamoteous earth - I'm sure I'm spelling that wrong. Got some  rooting hormone for where I'll cut the roots. Got a second different  brand rooting hormone for the hell of it  Got a bonafide plant stake  instead of what I was using before (a wooden dowel) - gonna have to prop  her up somehow when she wants to fall over. Got some Epsoma Triple  Phosphate for adding to soil when I re-plant her (for transplanted  roots). And got some horticultural charcoal for adding to the soil for  better drainage and aeration around roots.

I realized later that I  guess I could do this a number of ways [or not]. I could lop off the  top half and save that for bubble hash and then put hormone on the  severed top, since the internodal spacing is pretty great below the top  half and I had already cut quite a few dead branches off. I could do  that and then maybe also put rooting hormone on the bottom of the  severed end of the top half and plant her too. I don't know. Never done  any of this before, not even with non-mj plants.



The Hemp Goddess said:


> Are you sure you have root rot?  This is not common in soil plants.



I'm not sure, but considering I watered every day, since I didn't  know any better, I don't know what else it could possibly be. It's not  heat stress. There's not enough heat outside my grow tent for her. I've  never seen nutrient burn make leaves curl upwards and turn brown. It's  not a mix of brown and yellow spotting, so I really don't think it's a  phosphorous deficiency. I've looked at so many images of deficiencies  and I haven't seen anything that did this. But when I saw root-rot  images, I thought that was exactly what it looked like. I'll post a few  pics in a bit. I don't want to get logged off while I go to take pics.


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## 64yoda (May 5, 2015)

I won't do anything until someone tells me what they think. If I can get by without doing all that I said I need to do cuz it might indeed not be root rot, then I'm not going to do any of it. I'll probably keep what I bought regardless for the next grow, but I won't need to use any of it now.

















http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww240/64yoda/MJP/05-04-2015/IMG_1009_zpsxw6ljooi.jpg

http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww240/64yoda/MJP/05-04-2015/IMG_1008_zpsxwmqaxdi.jpg


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## Kraven (May 5, 2015)

Poor thing, looks like its root bound and more than likley a pH issue.


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## Rosebud (May 5, 2015)

She does look like a poor thing. Is she in flower? Why did you think it was root rot? i don't think you could have root rot in that small of pot unless it never dried out.

If she isn't in flower i have some ideas, but if she is in flower i don't.  Looks like you have some thrip going on.

You have a lot of other issues we need to work on. When you are ready to start a new grow let us help you.


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## 64yoda (May 5, 2015)

Kravenhead said:


> Poor thing, looks like its root bound and more than likley a pH issue.



It's a 2.7 gallon container. I had heard about people growing in 5 gallon containers quite often, but I had no idea she was going to grow to 6 feet tall.

I didn't really start paying attention to pH until more than 2 months in, Kraven. There's probably a host of issues I'm facing here. Insects is the only one that I haven't had a problem with yet.



Rosebud said:


> She does look like a poor thing. Is she in flower? Why did you think it was root rot? i don't think you could have root rot in that small of pot unless it never dried out.
> 
> If she isn't in flower i have some ideas, but if she is in flower i don't.  Looks like you have some thrip going on.
> 
> You have a lot of other issues we need to work on. When you are ready to start a new grow let us help you.



Yeah, that's the thing. People always said, "The biggest mistake people usually make with growing anything is watering too often." I watered basically every day. Until I realized the reason water would spill out the bottom because the soil was already saturated, I didn't start watering less until then, and that was really only like 1 month ago. Whatever damage I did, it's probably done already.

What is thrip?

I don't know the difference between flower and pre-flower or if pre-flower is technically flowering.

If this is flower, then yeah, she's flowering =/






Sorry the images are kinda shaky. I just woke up after an 18-hour sleep marathon.


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## mindtrip (May 6, 2015)

Yup, those are flowers.  Most of the newer growth looks pretty good!


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## zem (May 6, 2015)

if you're sure its rot raise it above ground air its soil as much as possible if possible drill holes or dig ut the surface blow a fan on it let it dry out... i dont know wat you can add to it though..


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## 64yoda (May 8, 2015)

I took some pics, but just got a new job and I'm too beat to even move. Lol.

I ended up transplanting it to a 5 gallon container. There was no root rot, at least not on the outside, but it was most definitely root-bound.

I took it out, mixed up a solution of 1.5G of H2O2 and 1.5G of tap water and let it soak in there for about 7 minutes. It was bubbling like hell 

Then I took it out and mixed up the soil in the 5 gallon container. I added some of the soil I use - it escapes me what it's called now - and then some KIS Organics mineral mix, some Epsoma Rock Phosphate, some perlite, some bonemeal, some charcoal (horticultural) for aeration around the roots, and then packed it in really good. Then I added 1 teaspoon of Epsoma Triple Phosphate around the drip line. Then I added one quart of filtered water, 8 drops of Super Thrive, 3/4 tsp of molasses, and then this stuff for roots when transplanting.

So far, so good. No more wilting leaves   

Thanks for all the advice. I'll post the pics of the root-bound root-ball tomorrow or Saturday


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## frankgrimes (May 10, 2015)

you may want to look into some hydrogen peroxide water mixture and if you can add some high phosphate mixture in that will help too. i had algea/ rot in a DWC setup and mixed a bit of peroxide in and she got healthy within a week. good luck sir!


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## 64yoda (May 11, 2015)

Here's the pics of the root-bound girl (BBHB)  But she's all good now 






And then I turned her around 180 degrees and took this next pic.


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