so im about 2 weeks away from harvest and everytime i open the door it reeks of musty odor. i dont mean dank must its like wet jeans after a week in a car trunk. it screams mold in my nose but iv gone over every inch and find no mold at all even gently seperated flowers for a peek. its been suggested to me that either 1) they are going back to veg. or 2) its just the leaves yellowing and dying and the 'must' is gas. personally i think my soil is 'rotten' as iv had bad problems with water retention in a foolishly placed layer of vermiculite. (iv learned that lesson for next time, i kno i messed up) now again imagine a pile of dirty clothes from summer swimming left in a trunk, best way i can describe with the lack of smell-o-forums. i smell no 'good' odor unless i sniff flowers directly. am i right? my cheap waterlogged soil has 'turned'? and should i rush harvest to protect what precious buds i was able to create before they absorb this horrid stank?also im using 'general organics' (squid oil turned?)

do plants show signs of over watering, you have good ventilation? are you picking your dead foliage? not doing so in a enclosed environment can lead to some mold issues. do you know the humidity and have you tried to drop the humidity in the room? good way to slow down a mole problem. have you actually smelt the soil, thats a good way to see if there is a problem there..
just my 2 cents.....

they have been over watered and overfertilized but iv tried my best to correct that problem. as i said i have visually inspected each inch of plant matter but find no mold. this batch was my first go alone with organics and soil (previous hydro farmhand experience) and as such is purely R&D for me. i kno what went wrong and how to avoid it next batch. but my main concern now is SHOULD i chop immediately? i dont want to ruin what little i have. upclose they smell delicous. and yes i do vent/fan them 12 hours a day. unsure of humidity my dog ate my guage but it never got too high before then and i feel no difference.

The smell is not mold its bacteria...If your soil has stayed wet for a long time its probably growing some bad microbes and they are producing the smell. Let things dry out and make sure you have LOTS of fresh air in the grow space.

they have been over watered and overfertilized but iv tried my best to correct that problem. as i said i have visually inspected each inch of plant matter but find no mold. this batch was my first go alone with organics and soil (previous hydro farmhand experience) and as such is purely R&D for me. i kno what went wrong and how to avoid it next batch. but my main concern now is SHOULD i chop immediately? i dont want to ruin what little i have. upclose they smell delicous. and yes i do vent/fan them 12 hours a day. unsure of humidity my dog ate my guage but it never got too high before then and i feel no difference.

ahhh yes that dreaded stuff.

thanks puff i assumed it was something like that i was just worried about damage this close to home plate. the bacteria wont 'invade' the plant matter? and would a dash of hydrogen peroxide help when i do rewater?

Whats your RH in the room? This should eliminate mold if your RH is below 45-50%

if its higher then that, a sulfur burner will kill mold and mildew instantly, being so close to harvest you may want to use drastic measures like this.

Not being a soil guy i couldnt tell you anything but what Puff has said does make good sense

Vaper

As Puff indicated, the problem is not bacterial, but fungal. This makes a difference when you try to treat the infection. The best advice was already passed on by others: let things dry out. DRY, not just damp. Problem is, fungal spores will be everywhere, particularly in your media, so when you water again in a few days, make sure to do so fairly heavily (till you get some runoff), then do not water again till the plants are dry.

Hydrogen peroxide will help: make sure you do not use too strong a solution as it may harm the plants. Google this to find the right amount to add (never done this myself, but I would guess it's quite low...say 5-10% h2o2 in water).

Goodluck.

By the way, if your room itself is infected, i.e.drywall if fungal, you're pretty much toast. You may need to replace the panel(s) or perhaps paint over with a specialized covering that handles mold....