Hey grandma, I am a new grower also! When I found your journal I had no idea what I was in for. I have spent the last 3 days catching up and found myself captivated, so much so in fact that I have poured over every word and it certainly has been a roller coaster ride! I found myself praying for you when you did you first transplant, I knew the deed had already been done, but geez what a harrowing moment. I couldnt have imagined doing my first transplant, not so long ago, without being able to see, I was very nervous but you did great.
I have been astounded by the generosity of this community during your grow and through all of the other journals I have read. It warms my heart to think how blessed you must feel to have met such a wonderful group. I have no doubt in my mind that if I start having trouble with my grows that help would not be too far away.
My disclaimer, I am a new grower but have a fair bit of vegetable gardening experience, please take my advise with a grain of salt. Like I said I have poured over your journal from start to finish over the course of 3 day, I feel like that gives me a unique perspective because I have been able to condense what has been said into my short term memory for analysis. In my opinion, alot of your problems are due to an arid climate. When plants are young they rely on RH for water intake, they are literally drinking water from the air through their leaves. Several people have suggested that you mist your plants, you can do this until several weeks into flowering. I have been battling low humidity as well as I live in a colder climate and my furnace is running all the time. My RH is into the teens, so I mist twice a day, some days when I have too much time on my hands I do it more but some days I forget completely. I think of it as taking a load off the roots and putting the leaves to work, in 2 months of doing this I have not had any burning. Just make sure to avoid getting your lights and other electronic things wet.
Another byproduct of living in an arid climate that I have noticed you having is watering issues. The top of your soil is drying faster than the bottom. Although this is whats supposed to happen it seems as if the top of your soil is drying too fast. I would suggest an inert mulch like clay pellets or rocks, but stay away from mulch you would use in your garden or anything else organic, you don't need additional nutes leaching into your soil that already has everything your plant needs. Mulch will help your soil retain its moisture by preventing evaporation.
Other than that, it looks like everyone has gotten you dialed in, when your new growth looks supple and green there isnt a problem that cant be overcome. God bless.
