Snowhigh talks about this issue in a recent interview and my ears perked because I go through this with my seedlings in recycled soil.
You can sterilize the soil using turkey bags and microwave. Or you can just mix up a base seedling mix of compost/ewc, aeration, peat moss.
I mean I’ve had pretty good luck so far up until now and honestly the problem I believe lies in me misting the top layer of soil all the time. I read that I should leave the lid off for a while and it might kill the pathogen. Wouldn’t rotting roots act as an organic fertilizer? This was always my thought process. And I have adult plants growing in reuse just fine so it’s odd.
It is a bit strange.
I’d think a little decomposing root is ok but the rootballs I remember would be a big slimy mess.
If this was some lovely living soil filled with additives and mixed with love and sweat I’d say try to save it. But my two cents is if it’s just Promix go buy some more.
Interesting. I have been reusing soil for a while now with no issues. Thank you for the heads up, I’ll read more into pathogenic soil issues.
What kind of growing were you doing with it before and how long did it sit idle before being reused? Did it go hydrophobic? I ask because soil reuse isn’t inherently a disease-prone process. Typically it’s the opposite as soil systems mature and become more robust.
i’ve stopped all damping off with cinnamon, never had a problem since, every seed that cracks open lives, just a little sprinkle on top of the dirt after putting in and watering the seed, also, blasting my lights very close, or germinating in the sun, thats what works for me
everytime i mention this, im surprised nobody is like “oh yeah me too”
I always dispose of the rootball and stem separately so it’s nothing gross and I was always under the impression that organic matter just returns to soil in the form of some nutrient. The more I read the more I think I just overwatered the top of the soil and it activated something that wouldn’t have otherwise been activated. Ima let the soil dry a bit for now and see what happens. Hope these 3 make it.
Yes you could be on to something there.
When I’m germinating I soak 1L of Promix plant the seeds and then spritz daily until they spout. Then I let them dry out completely and then start watering as normal.
Best of luck.
What’s the humidity in that dome? Is there any air circulation?
80 percent basically and the only airflow is 4 tiny holes I drilled in the top of it. I was under the impression that seedlings didn’t need too much airflow. I open the dome a couple of times a day to renew the air and spritz the top of the soil.
Yes. Sounds like you have fusarium in the soil. You can spray it with sulfur but best to just get rid of it, clean all of your pots and tools and start fresh. Mold spores are microscopic so there could be literally millions in that soil and around it. Disinfect your tent as well
Stop watering around the stem : )
That’s what caused it along with high temps usually
Bottom feeding is great
Dunk pot 1/4 into rez quick in and out , depending on plant size and root mass dip longer deeper
I would also remove dome now that first leaves are there
There’s always a million different species of microbes in soil, that’s how it’s supposed to be, they are what makes life possible.
You’re probably overwatering, causing too high humidity which triggers high microbe and fungi activity, that’s all.
Don’t keep a dome over them, let them breathe.
Accept that some seedlings will die, it happens, that’s life.
Sowing companion crops along with your cannabis helps regulate and balance the moisture levels and gives “pests” the option to munch on something other than your cannabis.
Huh, I’m going to try this with some seedlings next time I put them in my recycled soil…might even do it to some that have been struggling since half damped off last week. I looked around and found this article about it, which is pretty interesting. I happen to love cinnamon, and spices in general, and I have a few different species of them in the pantry, it sounds like the the Ceylon works the best, I’m going to have to see if I have that one:
Man my best advice would be to start in a clean medium and transplant it into the used medium once it’s past the seedling stage.
haha i think this is the article that made me try it, made sense to me, if it said tumeric or cayenne pepper i woulda beleived it, spice kills mold? sure! but yeah i’ve never had a seedling die since cinnamon, i germinate in old ass, dirty ass soil all the time, usually freebies but if im pheno hunting packs i’ll get a bag of ffof and sprinkle cinnamon
Start seeds in seed mix. buy a bag for 6 bucks u can start seeds in shotglass size container .
I Constantly reuse my soil its awesome full-on life little critters running around worms centipedes ect. Whenever I transplant clones into it they just sit for a week or 10 days then its rocket ship vigorous lush verdant green growth but … if I try and sprout any seeds in it even 50% strength bad things end up happening . They damp off , lock out , alot of mutants dwarfs, ect .
Simple solution buy a bag of seed starting mix from Canadian mother fucker . Pro mix or no name don’t matter just stay away from the miracle grow brand. Its got fertilizer in it you know by some random.numbers on bottom like .5 -0.9 - .4
everyone know seeds have everything they need in them for the 1st few weeks .
You may want to try peroxide with your next watering . I agree 100% dry them out. Most growers would be amazed at the ideal moisture is actually pretty dry
I like those little peat pellets for starting them, you get a lot of them too.
I have some of those good idea 
get yourself a huge pressure cooker and a slightly smaller pot that fits entirely inside of it. you can sterilize a bunch of soil quickly with no concern about it burning. here is mine, i use the same technique to make weeknight tamales. personally ive had a huge issue with fungus gnats chomping on young seedlings, doesnt seem necessary for established plants but sterilizing coir has made a huge improvement to my seedling success.
