lower leaves sagging and breaking off from stem

[bear4]

helo, total noob here. i read as much of the forums as possible before i began but all the info sorta gave me the case of spinny head. i seem to have developed the dilemma od perfectly green-looking leaves sagging and then detaching from the bottom of the stem and slowly working its way up.
i am using miracle-gro potting soil (21-7-14), ionized and filtered water interspersed with fox farm grow big nutrients (6-4-4) . for light i am using a jump start high output ts (24 watts, 2000 initial lumes, 64000 - full daylight spectrum) but it is only one bulb. The plant is currently about two feet high in a five gallon bucket. any and all advice will be greatly appreciate.

"The weight of centuries lies on children. I am certain of it." - Flannery O'Connor

 

[Jericho]

Hmm. ok i would say your going to need more light. That is something that will have to be fixed as one bulb is not going to be enough for a 2ft plant.

The soil your using might end up burning the plant, Miracle gro is usually rather strong for cannabis, With the powder nutes i use 1/4 the recommended to start and usually only get to about 1/2 before they start showing they don't like it.

How old is the plant?
Are the leaves a dark green or light green?
What size is the area that the light is in? WxLxH

 

[4u2sm0ke]

Im with Jericho...you will need more light..Im thinking the plant is 2 feet because of stretch?...and I wouldnt mess witht he micicle grow if ya have the Fox farm line run that...


take care and be safe

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Way more light.

Plants also need a continual supply of fresh air--do you have any ventilation?

It is also better to NOT use pre nuted soil. You should be deciding what your plant is eating, not the soil.

Can you post some pics?

 

[bear4]

jericho - the plant is about 3 months old, give or take
the leaves are a dark green. they seem perfectly healthy until they friggin' drop off which is the big reason i was scratching my head. i had assumed they would wither or yellow or something if there was a problem.
the area size is about 5 x 10 with a 12 ft ceiling

hemp goddess - i do use a fan kept on low because there isn't a lot of natural ventilation.

thank you all for your time and help. it is greatly appreciated.

"People, when left alone, can be very kind to one another." - Daniel Schorr

 

[Jericho]

Ok you are going to need to do allot of reading on the site. I will lay down some of the basics.

Lights
You need to have 3000 lumens per square foot for vegetative grow and 5000 lumens for the flowering period.

That means every square foot that that light is open to is counted. By the info you have given that means you have 128 lumens per square foot, Very under lit.

I would suggest you block off an area in the room like behind a wardrobe or big cupboard so that its just wide enough to put the plant in with out it touching the sides. If you cannot afford a HPS Light set up then you will either need to invest in some more t5s or CFl, T5s i believe are better if given the choice.

Also white walls are your friend. White reflects light so around the plant against the walls the light is open to you want to have it white, This can be done using cardboard i found works well if you cannot paint the walls. Make sure its flat white and not gloss.

Nutrients

The plant never usually needs nutrients for the 1st couple weeks, then it should be started at a low dose 1/4 or 1/2 the recommended and then build up with the plants needs. (Unless you know the strains need already)

This is why the Miracle grow pre nuted soil is not very good as you cannot regulate it and can end up burning the plant. It also it rather strong stuff.

Ventilation

The air inside the area it is growing needs to be circulated constantly. I used to leave the window open in that room and on the other side of the house so that air blew threw the room constantly. If this cannot be done then maybe open a window and put a fan blowing air in. Also you will need a fan blowing lightly on the plant to strengthen the stems and leafs, plus movement stimulates growth.

Hope this helps. Any questions just ask away.