Nut Deficiency or burn? Tried self diagnosis but no change

So first off ive tried to diagnose the problem myself using: https://www.rollitup.org/marijuana-plant-problems/488004-guide-nutrient-deficiency-toxicity.html
However this is only my second grow and found things still abit confusing.

I stay in South Africa in a southern town where the weather is great for outdoor growing!

Growing medium:

1. Grown outdoors in the ground so not sure of how far the roots can go.
2. Watered every 2-3 days using normal tap water that has sat for at least 2 days (Ive heard this allows the chlorine to evaporate?).
3. Late into flowering season about two weeks left till winter. Temperature still ranges from 20 to 27 degrees Celsius (68f-80f). Rains about once a week.
4.
Soil mix:

1/2 of mix ( 2/3 peat moss, 1/3 Soil less potting mix)
1/2 of mix (2/3 Perlite, 1/3 Vermiculite)

Added Nutrients to soil mixture:

half a cup of bat guano
3 tbl spoons bone meal
2 tbl spoons Dolomite lime
half a cup of multipurpose fertilizer with NPK of 13:3:8 with trace elements

I have given each plant a dose of 2 tbl spoons of bone meal during flowering roughly 2 weeks into flowering and then again 2 weeks later. I have been using a flower bulb fertilzer with a NPK of 3:9:17 which i use about once a week with a watering.

I have a fairly cheap pH meter that tells me my soil pH is at 7

Plants have been healthy and green up until about 2 weeks ago when they first started showing symptoms. Basically from researching other threads I figured out it must be a potassium (K) deficiency as it has seems to have all the symptoms im having. So in my first attempt to give the plant more potassium i gave it about 3 tbl spoons of bone meal and about 2 tbl spoons of bat guano early last week and watered it in with alot of water. This seemed to help slightly making the really yellow leaves have abit more green in them but only for 2 or 3 days then things started getting worse again. In my second attempt at a
solution I figured maybe its a calcium issue as this is whats said in the self diagnosis thread. Therefore I used about 2 tbl spoons of my flower bulb fert and about 2 tbl spoons of dolomite lime. This was yesterday.

Im struggling to figure out whether ive given the plant too much potassium which is causing the horrible leaf yellowing and spotting and burnt, brown and curled leaf tips. Or if not then why the plant wont seem to sort itself out when I gave it a good dose of potassium? If ive given the plant too much potassium can it be saved so late into flowering? Would the easiest solution be too flush the plants?

please any help will be greatly appreciated im busy shitting bricks here as ive got no clue what to do..

Here are the images of the most affected areas. Please let me know if any other info is needed to make a better judgement.

Hey man in my experience I quadruple check my pH. I also use coco not soil. When growing outside the plant roots can be deeper in the soil than the plant is tall and they also spread atleast as wide and the plant stretches. In the ground, roots will also search for the best source or water and nutrients. The natural pH of the soil could possibly be the issue...since you have a fairly cheap meter you are probably only taking surface tests or max a little bit under the soil. Unless you know what's in the ground who knows what stuff a plants roots are getting in to. Try giving it a really good wating with just water and a flushing agent...then resume normal watering schedule, easier done when growing in pots.
Sorry I couldn't be of any specific help man....when ever something is wrong with my plants it's almost always pH so i flush and restart with little stunting even during flowering.
Hope the girl turns around so she's nice and plump in the end before the slaughter! HAHA


after a few more glances i want to say you're burning her...the nutrients you use, are they meant for herb specifically or are you utilizing your perennial/annual flower fert for roses or whatever other stuff to put in flower beds?

definitely not burnt, it's deficient. i suggest you up the nutes or feed more often. also looks like they're going through some dry spells as well.

Fresh 2 De@th said:

definitely not burnt, it's deficient. i suggest you up the nutes or feed more often. also looks like they're going through some dry spells as well.

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Well it IS south africa.....I hear its quite dry...

Mattemil said:

Well it IS south africa.....I hear its quite dry...

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very valid point.

Im no pro,but if your leaves are turning yellow and falling off consistently with that ph reading id say its nute locked. Flush well and shoot for a ph reading of 6.0. This just happened to me because my ph meter failed.I bought a new meter and flushed good.They returned to normal. Im done with soil.Back to hydroponics for me.

I did that but it wasn't very clear on my printer. I will just use that image. Thanks for the reply.

Jimdamick said:

I did that but it wasn't very clear on my printer. I will just use that image. Thanks for the reply.

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I keep all my pics at photobucket,it's free

kyle109 said:

I have a fairly cheap pH meter that tells me my soil pH is at 7

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your soil ph is a little bit high. Add to your waterings a small amount of a complete water soluble ferts with an even NPK balance. Use it at 1/4 of the label recommended dosage. When you Water do it abundantly so that it penetrates at least 12 inches into the soil, the more the better as long as your soil is draining.

This will help to flush through your soil and even out any nute imbalances.

From your pics my observation is that your probably deficient (or locked ) of some of the mobile nutrients. N, P, K, Mg, CL, Mo.

thanks all for the quick replies! Big ups to the RIU members!!

Still undecided of whether its actually a deficiency or a burning however ive pretty much figured out its got to do with potassium (Ive got a copy of the nutrient deficiency chart and checked the 420 magazine post on nutrients before) From what ive heard is it can be mistaken for a calcium deficency so I went and got myself some epsom salts today. Think il give it that with my flower bulb fertilizer (None of my fertilizers are specifically for cannabis they where all bought at the local garden store).

I have suspected that my pH meter is fucked for sometime now as every soil mix i stick it into it gives me 7.. but unfortunately dont have the cashish right now to replace it... Really worrying I know but hey im a poor african

From the general consensus I think ill give it a flush, wait 3 days then give it double the amount of nutes its been getting depending on whether i see changes or not.

updates to follow

kyle109 said:

thanks all for the quick replies! Big ups to the RIU members!!


From the general consensus I think ill give it a flush, wait 3 days then give it double the amount of nutes its been getting depending on whether i see changes or not.

updates to follow

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so you are gonna give it a flush and then go right back to doing what you were doing before and hope that fixes it? Doubt that will work.
stop using that flower bulb fertilizer. Way too much K and you are having problems. Get some balanced complete ferts for general growth and get them on the plant asap. Something like DynaGrow Grow formula or even Miracle-Gro Water Soluble Tomato Plant Food. Something with the NPK numbers are close to 1-1-1 ratios. You have a nutrient imbalance with one or more of the mobile nutrients lacking and flushing with a weak dosage of a complete balanced formula will fix your problems quickly.

thanks PurpleBuz i thought it was too much K.. my main worry was if the plant can be saved if ive been burning it with potassium..

Checked on them this morning and saw things seemed to be getting worse... (leaves more yellow and all serated edges on plant getting brown..) flushed them this morning with like 20l each of tap water. Got work today but will see if i can make the garden store afterwards to organize the neutral fert. Then will maybe add the complete balanced fert tommorow morning?Ill obviously add half the amount the box recommends and run water over it to soak the ferts into the soil? Wait 2-3 days for changes and if i dont see any retry?

If any of that was wrong plz correct me and again thanks for setting me on the right course

will show updated photos tommorow

PurpleBuz said:

your soil ph is a little bit high. Add to your waterings a small amount of a complete water soluble ferts with an even NPK balance. Use it at 1/4 of the label recommended dosage. When you Water do it abundantly so that it penetrates at least 12 inches into the soil, the more the better as long as your soil is draining.

This will help to flush through your soil and even out any nute imbalances.

From your pics my observation is that your probably deficient (or locked ) of some of the mobile nutrients. N, P, K, Mg, CL, Mo.

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Why would one introduce Chlorine into their plants knowingly?

As a preventive measure I will add 1 teaspoon epsom salts per gal food/water at signs of yellowing maybe twice. You can add all (nutes) you want if its not uptaking it ain't getting it.

from your pics, there isn't any burning going on. for some reason your plants are not uptaking the nutrients fast enough or at all.
being that you're organic, i got to ask, what are you using to help breakdown that organic matter?

Figong said:

Why would one introduce Chlorine into their plants knowingly?

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Chlorine is actually one of the essential plant micronutrients
From http://www.clemson.edu/public/regulatory/ag_svc_lab/soil_testing/downloads/micronutrients.pdf

"There are 7 essential plant nutrient elements defined as micronutrients [boron (B), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), molybdenum (Mo), chlorine (Cl)].

Chlorine is an essential plant nutrient element, existing in the soil as the chloride (Cl-) anion.
This anion is abundant in nature and chloride excesses are more common that its deficiency.
Crop quality can be affected by the use of chloride-containing fertilizers. For tobacco as well as
potato and tomato, either potassium sulfate (K2SO4) or potassium nitrate (KNO3) is the
recommended potassium fertilizer source rather than potassium chloride (muriate of potash,
KCl). "

use 1/4 the amount on the label. Later you could increase to half, but may not need to since your in flowering. I would keep applying in your regular watering at low rates until a week before harvest.