Roots Organic Soil

Hey Boys and Girls,

Has anyone expirenced a nutrient burn-like situation when transplanting seedlings into Roots Organic Soil mix? It's the one in the black and white bag (I forget the actual name). To date I've transplanted 9 seedlings into this soil mix and all 9 showed burn symptoms in varying degrees. Seedlings were in 10oz solo cups grown in seed pods. Watered with Poland Spring bottled water for just about 2 weeks. I transplanted to a 3 gallon fabric pot after the first true node was formed and roots started to run down the sides of the 10oz cup. To date there have been no added nutrients and no pH adjustments at any point during the grows.

I am a novice grower, so everything i say should be taken with a grain of salt.. however..

I recently sprouted 6 seeds in starter plugs. In the starter plugs they grew fine (abt 3 days)
As soon as i transplanted to roots organic soil i noticed the following:
4 Seedlings completely stopped growing
2 Seedlings took off.
Within a week the 4 seedlings that were not growing died. The other two remained alive.
Of the two that survived 1 showed yellow/brownish tips (it ended up being my female)
The other surviver was a male plant, and grew hearty from seedling until i chopped it down.

So the moral of my experience, and my opinion was this:
Yes i did experience nutrient burn-like situation on at least two of the seedlings.
I think the roots soil may be alittle too hot for seedlings, and it may depend entirely on the genetics you are trying to grow.
of the 6 seedlings 1 grew perfectly, 1 grew with moderate difficulty, and 4 showed minor growth and died within the week.

Like you i also did not add any additional nutrients.

Here is a thought based on what you posted... Using poland spring bottled water... I am not someone to chase PH readings around, especially in soil....
However there are some bottled waters that come with a relatively high, or relatively low PH. I would try and google the PH of the water you are using, or just test it.

Giving seedlings in small containers incorrect ph water may be causing a lockout scenario.

Hopefully something ^there helps. Good luck bud.

Roots is a capitalist corporation, therfore they mix their ingrediants up, bag it, and sell it(not to mention their bottle nutrient line). Problem is that u really never know if their ratios are what they say they are, also you dont really kno if they have composted or cooked their soil. Ur running into issues that almost every roots grower eventually runs into

foreverflyhi said:

Roots is a large corporation, they mix their ingrediants up, bag it, and sell it(not to mention their bottle nutrient line). Problem is that u really never know if their ratios are what they say they are, also you dont really kno if they have composted or cooked their soil. Ur running into issues that almost every roots grower eventually runs into

Click to expand...

I was fortunate enough to read up on roots organic soil before I used it. I use original and I just put a tablespoon of dolomite lime in my one gallon pots and I haven't had any problems yet man! Don't wanna jinx myself though lol

I did mix it throughout the soil though didn't just pour it in. I'd pour some soil, pack it down, sprinkle some lime, and repeat til it was full. Idk if that's how ya do it but it seemed to work.

Cool, next time use oyster shell for your buffer. You should be fine, however lime takes a long time to actually start working, need to compost it

foreverflyhi said:

Cool, next time use oyster shell for your buffer. You should be fine, however lime takes a long time to actually start working, need to compost it

Click to expand...

Ah really I did not know that this is my first grow as well. I just watered the soil til runoff the day before I put the seeds in there lol I figured that might activate the lime Lmao oh the joys of learning how to do this I love it thanks for the info man!

I use rainwater or if I run out, distilled water. I hear that regular bottled water contains sodium. harmful to plants.

Hey guys,

I have no idea about the above said brand or what they have in their soil mix. But I do know that it is much much (cant stress enough) much better to prepare your own soil.

A potting soil can be easily prepared by adding- soil(read sand for drainage), black soil (rich in humus, the vegetative stuff) and some neem cake/vermicompost/worm castings and some green matter. Let the soil be mixed and kept in a tray for a week or two outside. Use plain water to keep it moist(not wet). Try adding some small rocks(porous ones) for aeration and drainage too. This is my recommendation, on my experience. Try only if you have the view to experiment and learn.

Do read about various potting mixes and soils here in RIU and will expand your horizons.

The nute burn can be a possible cause of the soil being not composted properly.

Goodluck!

Peace and love,
Toker.

foreverflyhi said:

Roots is a capitalist corporation, therfore they mix their ingrediants up, bag it, and sell it(not to mention their bottle nutrient line). Problem is that u really never know if their ratios are what they say they are, also you dont really kno if they have composted or cooked their soil. Ur running into issues that almost every roots grower eventually runs into

Click to expand...

The Roots Organic original soil and their liquid nutes have all worked well for me. Tried the Fox Fire Happy Frog and switched back to R/O quick. Just my two cents. Peace.

I am using roots organics soil and nutrients on a grow right now and the results have been great

If you can build your own soil and nutrient line up that will always be the better option, but roots organics is one of the top commercial lines for sure