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i have these bonsai mums they are approx 6-8 mo old they were rescues i had them looking real good after about 2 mo then they took a turn they are in soil........about a week ago i took some cuttings and trimmed them up,fed them some botanicare pro blend gro and they have started to go down hill big time.........they are in 1 ltr pots about 7-9 inches tall.they look like they are N, mg and mabe zn deficiant but the whole plant is chlorotic, less so where the light is blocked by larger leaves (lamp is 400wtt,14in from tops) with older leaves showing some necrotic patches and more severe yellowing......BUT , before you go and give the "nutrient deficiant" diagnose listen.....the tips of the plants all over are yellow or burnt, and the growth is stunted it seems. the PH is 6.5 approx and i water only when the plants are dry (every 2-3 days) temps around 75-84f RH 20-30%............WTF HELP!!!!!!!!!
It is generally a bad idea to give nutrients to a fresh cutting. They need to build a sturdy root structure before they will take well to feeding, so that may be the main problem right there. Generally, I would not suggest giving nutrients to a cutting until at least one to two weeks have passed.
Also, you should never let the grow medium (soil, rockwool, etc) get completely dry, especially for fresh cuttings. It is important to maintain a humid microclimate for the roots which will allow some oxygen to permeate the grow medium, so don't keep them sopping wet either!
Your overall humidity of 20 - 30% rH is also way too low for fresh cuttings, as these plants must draw moisture from their surrounding environment since they do not yet have roots to draw moisture from the grow medium. Cuttings should be kept in an environment with 80% rH or higher.
Edit: I just realized you're probably talking about the mother plants going down hill, not necessarily the clones... in which case, you should flush the soil with three times the volume of your container's worth of clean pH balanced water. Let them fully drain and allow at least a couple of days for the soil to rid itself of excess moisture. After that, you can begin feeding with a light (diluted) nutrient solution, applied as often as directed for the specific nutrients you intend to use.
If you are spraying your plants with anything (plain water, foilar feed, pesticide, etc), make sure you only do it at light's out so that the liquid droplets won't cause light from your HPS to burn the leaves.
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