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| I finally have the right tool for the job, and oh what a treat it has been. I have always been cursed with cloudy days through a window sill and insufficient light from 4' fluorescent bulbs. Germination wasn't a problem now that I have purchased a 400W Metal Halide light, set 18" above the tops of the trays. A box fan set on low dissipates the heat well enough, and the tops of the trays reads between 75-82 degrees, depending on how far from directly under the light you get. I measured it with an infrared hand held thermometer. (not just for making sure your pan is hot enough anymore!) I'm serious, this year I want my veggies to be ready for production *before* june, and last year I had hardly picked anything by the middle of may. |
Here is a link that might be useful: My Blog/Journal
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Oh, crap, forgot to add, those guys are 18 days after emerging from the soil, 23 days after seeding. The #1 piece of advice I can offer is to get yourself a pH test kit, and verify the pH of the water that you are using. The water coming out of my tap (after running through a brita pitcher to remove the chlorine) read at an astoundingly high 8.6 pH.. which is why I saw almost no growth the first week after they emerged. Almost all of the above growth is after I added a pH downer, an acidifier to my water for them, or about the last 12 days or so. |
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| Mostly my super hots. 25 varieties!! |
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| They look amazing, how far along are they? BTW, I'm jealous of your shelf setup. Where did you find a shelf like that? |
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- Posted by thebutcher (My Page) on Wed, Mar 6, 13 at 19:42
| 2nd year Vegtable grower here *but new to seed starting this year" and I saw my first sprout from a pepper plant (Burpee rainbow mix). This happened after 6 days since put in a Jiffy Peat Pellet.. I rigged my own heating source by using an old computer to put the Jiffy Pro seed starting kit on top and kind of trapped the heat with cardboard and a trash bag. I guestimate the temp to be around 75-80 F. I think this is accurate because the room temp is about 70 degrees and the bottom black pan from the jiffy starter is a bit warmer with heat that it is sitting on and come from the exhust fan.. Now out of the 12 I planted this was the first to spring up (more photos will follow). Below is the photo below and... Today I put it under a jumperstart Hydrofarm light with out the protection of the plastic cover with my trusty GoPro and set a TimeLapse of a photo every 60 seconds. I will update this with a video time lapse soon. |
This post was edited by thebutcher on Wed, Mar 6, 13 at 19:43
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| This is from 1 month ago. I guess I need to take more pictures. Most have been transplanted since this picture has been taken. They are now all in my temporary greenhouse. |
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| Here is my current picture. I guess I have a lot of starts now. |
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| This is the first year I've grown any seeds indoors, so it's certainly been an interesting experiment! I've learned from a lot of mistakes but I'm not giving up just yet.
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Veggie Seedlings
Box - Top Shelf
Tomato
Sunflower
Sea Oats
Middle Shelf with Roses
Love Lies Bleeding
Lobelia
Lettuce Mix
Johnny-Jump-Up and Alyssum
Impatiens
Grow Box Contraption
Dianthus
Coleus
Cauliflower
Cabbage 
Brussels Sprouts and Broccoli
AlyssumHere is a link that might be useful: My Blog
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| I'm not a regular here, but I have a few pics of my seed starting setup. These are all from previous years, since it's a little too early up here in northern Michigan for most of my stuff. This is my light rack. It has a fourth shelf that wasn't yet being used when I took the picture. The bottom shelf is for starts that like it cooler.
A few flower plants --- don't know what they are.
When the shelves get full, I start moving things out to my little (too little) greenhouse. It's not heated, so I move trays back inside during our frosty spring nights. These are all flowers of one type or another. This pic was taken in early May.
I hope this gives you something to think about, good or bad. :) ThinMan |
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| Its always fun for me to see other people's set ups. Thanks for sharing. I started quite a few things early this year. Mostly annuals, but also salad stuff that I am harvesting about once a week, and a few slow growers like onions and asparagus. this is my main set of shelves, which is a converted closet. the styrofoam boards over the lights are intended to increase reflective light
A few of the little guys who are about ready to get re-potted - Impatens, Lisianthus, Petunias, and Coleus.
I have a couple of more lights suspended over a table, which has my salad, and a few geraniums and asparagus.
And another set of shelves where some of the taller plants have moved - mostly bedding sized Dahlias, with some begonia cuttings and a few different kinds of basil.
I seem to have to add a few more lights every year - right now I have room for 36 standard flats. |
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| Growing and overwhelmed.... Jack |
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