help!! Liquid fert. Direct on veg starts made them wilt!
about a month ago I started growing vegetables indoors. I madde the mistake of putting liquid fertilizer directly onto my vegetables and now they are dying. I was planning on moving them into a raised garden bed this week. is there any way to save them because I don't feel like starting over. if you have any adivce, please share ! I'm desperate.
-
applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 30543
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
What is a "feeder"....?
I'm not sure if they can be saved at this point -- pic might help make a determination -- but what I would do is flush the soil out and rinse any fertilizer residue off of the leaves. You should also mist thoroughly. Use plain water -- preferably rainwater to de-chlorinated -- but use tap water if that's what you have available. You need to get the excess fertilizer salts out of the soil and help the plant hydrate.
When there is too much chemical fertilizer in the soil, there is negative osmotic pressure -- natural movement of water in the soil into the plant via the roots -- and the plants can't take up water. But they might still transpire moisture out of the leaves, so you need to keep them in higher humidity or keep the leaf surfaces moist. The excess fertilizer if too strong could also have burnt (damaged) the roots -- if so there is not much to be done except to hope they can recover and grow new roots.
To flush the soil, water the pots until water comes out of the drain holes, then water two more times with same amount of water. Don't let the pots sit in the drained water -- you don't want the fertilized water to be absorbed back.
...I hope I explained adequately...
I'm not sure if they can be saved at this point -- pic might help make a determination -- but what I would do is flush the soil out and rinse any fertilizer residue off of the leaves. You should also mist thoroughly. Use plain water -- preferably rainwater to de-chlorinated -- but use tap water if that's what you have available. You need to get the excess fertilizer salts out of the soil and help the plant hydrate.
When there is too much chemical fertilizer in the soil, there is negative osmotic pressure -- natural movement of water in the soil into the plant via the roots -- and the plants can't take up water. But they might still transpire moisture out of the leaves, so you need to keep them in higher humidity or keep the leaf surfaces moist. The excess fertilizer if too strong could also have burnt (damaged) the roots -- if so there is not much to be done except to hope they can recover and grow new roots.
To flush the soil, water the pots until water comes out of the drain holes, then water two more times with same amount of water. Don't let the pots sit in the drained water -- you don't want the fertilized water to be absorbed back.
...I hope I explained adequately...
I tried sending the pictures not sure if I did it correctly. let me know
- Attachments
-
- attachments.zip
- (205.89 KiB) Downloaded 203 times
-
applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 30543
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
I don't think that worked. Please read this and try again. 
Subject: How to Post Pictures & Photos on Forums
Subject: How to Post Pictures & Photos on Forums-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
If you click on the attachments link, it brings up a folder with five pictures. You have to click on each one individually to see it.
Several of them are very tiny seedlings that are not worth trying to save. You do not have much time invested in them, since they look like they just sprouted within the last few days.
The rest are incredibly elongated spindly seedlings that look like maybe they were force fed fertilizer under conditions of almost no light.
What kind of veggies are these? It is hard to tell from the pix.
Anyway, honestly, I don't think any of them are worth trying to save. Healthy seedlings aren't long and spindly, they are short and stocky and leafy.
tomato seedling
squash family seedling
Here's a thread about seed starting basics that you might want to look at before you start over. viewtopic.php?f=48&t=44183
If you use potting mix, most of it has Miracle Gro in it. That is all the fertilizer the seedlings need until they are big enough to put in larger pots.
Several of them are very tiny seedlings that are not worth trying to save. You do not have much time invested in them, since they look like they just sprouted within the last few days.
The rest are incredibly elongated spindly seedlings that look like maybe they were force fed fertilizer under conditions of almost no light.
- THG seedlings .JPG (39.31 KiB) Viewed 927 times
Anyway, honestly, I don't think any of them are worth trying to save. Healthy seedlings aren't long and spindly, they are short and stocky and leafy.
tomato seedling
squash family seedling
Here's a thread about seed starting basics that you might want to look at before you start over. viewtopic.php?f=48&t=44183
If you use potting mix, most of it has Miracle Gro in it. That is all the fertilizer the seedlings need until they are big enough to put in larger pots.