6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed

I have a couple dozen potted plants that are outside in the summer, in the same room. I have to assume that that is where they came from. Squishing them isnt an option since most of my seedlings are only at the 1st true leaf stage.

Taking them outside may induce the adults to leave the plants, but I dont see how it could help with any that are in the earlier stages of development.
I'll get some sticky tapes and if they get worse, I'll try some Neem oil.

Thanks

I think the point Dave is making is that white flies are a warm climate pest. In a greenhouse they are far more of a problem as it is always warm. There really is not a good pesticide for white flies. Every time one is developed that IS effective, in a few generations, which happens very fast with white flies, they have developed a resistance to it. If you can avoid them by causing the temperature to fluctuate, as has been suggested, it should be tried. If not in the greenhouse, for the home gardener, the sticky tape is the best solution. Al

In my zone 8 area the Frost Free date is around March 15th.

In my 8B, frost on 5-1 is not at all unusual....we're looking at at least a 6 week window for dates of last frost in Z8s :)

2 years ago we started inside and found we didn't have enough to fill the bed we wanted to fill. I planted seeds in every other spot when we transplanted. In 3 or 4 weeks you couldn't tell them apart. I won't bother starting inside again- really.

I'm a cut flower grower. I start them in 4-packs in a green house 3-4 weeks before planting outside. Easy to grow . Just lay seed down flat on medium surface and sprinkle a very little medium on top of them. I let the seeds peek through since light aids germination. Plant out before they get rootbound or they will be singles instead of doubles. They also don't like their roots disturbed.

check your email noinwi for pics of the coldframe.

Dave

I'm not a cold frame expert but I think it is a very nice set-up. Since your toms are indeed separate from your peppers, I'd move the heating pad from under them(toms)as more of them sprout. Since the temp in the frame is consistent, they will continue to pop up without the bottom heat. With peppers, it could take longer than 10 days even at 85 degrees, so you may have to be a little more patient as Susan suggested.
Depending on how much light gets in there during the day, you could raise the trays up a bit closer to the windows(set them on a box?)and lower them as the plants get taller.
Posting the photos in the forum here if you can would get you many more responses.

The purple is phosphorus related, not a deficiency but an uptake issue and is actually quite common for young seedlings. Their circulatory system is still developing.

While it is more pronounced in some varieties than in others it poses no threat to the tomato plant and quickly disappears as the plant develops and goes away completely once they are transplanted to the garden.

Some say that using warm water to water the plants will help but I've never found it to make much difference.

Dave

No Jon they are not leggy because they are outside in a cold frame since 10 days ago where they receive sun all day. I just placed a light in there today because it is raining and they will not get any sun.

That is very helpful, thank you. One of the reasons I am interested in growing my own food starting from seed is for survival technique. If there were ever a large disaster, being able to start seeds indoors through grow lights would not be an option, unless you have some sort of off the grid electricity system to provide enough power.

I did include the components used in my potting soil in my first post.

If there were ever a large disaster, being able to start seeds indoors through grow lights would not be an option

You are absolutely right. In that situation we'd have to substantially increase our sun exposure to the max by any methods necessary and do much more direct seeding.

I did include the components used in my potting soil in my first post.

Sorry but what I was getting at was what is the brand name if this is a bagged mix or is this a made-up mix of your own? There are potential issues associated with each of those ingredients when it comes to both germination and growing on - depending on the amounts of each.

Dave

I would just leave them alone. Cut back on the water and watch them carefully. The planting tip was just for future reference. This lot, I think, need some peace ;-) When you start with seeds it's like the first baby. You fret over every sniffle. With subsequent kids you toughen up and they just have to get by on benign neglect. They usually manage OK.

It seems that the black spots are not getting any bigger, so far so good. I'll let you guys know if anything changes.

Thanks again to all of you.

Oh dear, Jerry Baker strikes again. I had hoped he'd crawled back into the woodpile where he belongs since we hadn't heard anything about him for several years.

Lesuko - you need to start your own post here with all those questions so we don't get way off track on this one. Basically Jiffy mix needs to be well wet in a bucket first (soaked in warm water overnight) then wrung out in your hand, fill the cells, plant the seeds, cover until they germinate and break the surface and then uncover.

Dave

When I'm going to plant a flat of seeds, I fill the cells with dry germination mix (it's easier to fill them dry) and then water well with boiling water. After an hour I empty any left in the bottom of the flat. I then leave the flat, unseeded, overnight. That way I know the water is well absorbed and distributed through the mix before I plant my seeds.

ricjo22: I will have to open up a pot when I go to transplant to see if that's the case. If so I may not use this method next year. Thanks for the tip.

Dave: My plants are doing well, they have grown quite a bit and appear to be happy. Mold has greatly reduced, I can see a few spots here and there where the pots are touching, but otherwise looking good. Thanks a million for the advice! One question, the flats I have are 11"x22"- how much water would you generally start with when you bottom water? I have never used this method, and don't want to end up over watering again. Thanks :)

Aime

Scratch that question, found my answer. Thanks again for the help :)

Aime

Agree. No domes and do not leave them sitting in any water either - no moisture tray. Temperature in cold frames can get very hot if not properly monitored and it is easy to boil/kill seeds and even seedlings in soil that is too wet and too hot.

Dave

Where can I get a detailed planting schedule for a wide variety of both Annual and Perennial Spring flowers that relates to zone 8?

Thank you

Jim

tommyr said "I can't plant my seeds by the moon, it's too far away."

LOL

I read about it in this years farmer's almanac. I thought I'd give it try and forgot about it. I have already planted lots of stuff. And, I was able to retrace my sowings on a few of my plantings and I did notice better than expected results twice. No way to tell if it means anything, but I am curious to try to keep track in what I do in the future. Hey, if it looks like it helps, I'll do it. I am just afraid it is too limiting. I fight the weather as it is, much less trying to plant with the moon too.

Thanks Dave! I will try that with a few of them. So far, they look really healthy, so I am excited to see how they do this summer :)
Tara

I grew wave Petunias from purchased seed last year. I pinched them back regularly while they were still in plastic cups. partly because they were getting big, partly because I wanted to plant the cuttings. I popped the pinched off bits in pearlite, and almost everyone of them rooted. I ended up with lots of petunias! I am doing the same this year.

@Greencubes: thank you I will look up the book.
@Macky77: thank you. I read your other post re: the seed locks as well.

Making some blocks for the first time tonight using the micro 20. I'm using Eliot Colemans recipe with Azomite instead of glacial rock dust. The ingredients are tough to find. I have not seen any info on planting depth for the micro 20. I am planting spinach in the micro 20 dimple which usually go 1/4 inch deep. Should be interesting.