6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
I have three of them, a two shelf, which is in my unheated garage. I put the plants I overwinter in them. I got a four shelf to start my seeds in and a three shelf that I put the seedlings in to grow in sunlight. I've had the two and three shelves for years and I don't put them outside. If I did, the plastic cover would cook them and I just don't find them sturdy enough for outdoor use.
Greenoe, I'm in Central FL, I start my seed, all heriloom, in late January using a Jiffy greenhouse in a southern window.
By the time they've developed their 2nd set of true leaves, I bury 80% of the plant in a 6" nursery pot in a mixture of either coir and garden soil or, if I have it, "Wonder Soil". I add rock phosphate to the hole (it can touch the roots) each time I repot or replant, depending.
Rock Phosphate develops STRONG roots. Burying the plant pretty much as deeply as you can, will ensure a monstrous root system as toms develop roots all along the stem.
I had a fairly large Roma snap in half in a storm last week. It's fine, I just dug down, planted it (already had the RP in from the first planting) to the bottom set of leaves, and voila! Big fat roots AND blooms! Not sure how that'll work out, trying to bloom and make new roots at the same time...
Anyway, rock phosphate's cheap. You can use bone meal which is also great for roots, but the phosphate is like a power booster when it comes to veggies.
Hope that helps.
Starting from seeds fits perfectly with my neurotic, control freak personality. I don't like to be at the mercy of the garden centers and what they have and when they have it. Granted, I can find the exact plants I'm growing already done and ready to plant, but it's that ONE TIME I want something and no one has it--that makes it all worthwhile.
Plus, you know where those seedlings have been!
Yes we are crazy. From all the money I spend on seeds, pots, potting soil, bug spray, fertilizer, little trees from the Nurseries, compost humus, sprayers and the list is long and you end up with 4 Apples and 6 Beaches not eaten by bugs, wasps or squirrels Each fruit cost $10. For my Vegetables what the rabbets allow to have probably each Cucumber cost $3. Not to mention my labor and my back acking picking up weeds. Yes we are crazy.
I agree with the other replies about the slugs.
However, it could also be a cat. Can you close a door so that your cats can't enter that room? If your cats are anything like some of the ones I've owned, they get into a lot more mischief at night sometimes. I wouldn't put it past my current cat to eat my plants at night. I had a new door put on to keep him out. I love him but I don't trust him, LOL!
starting seeds and potting up is not brain surgery. It is just that some things work better than others. when a kid we used garden dirt and old tin cans...now that was about as bad as it can get. You can save the starter mix for net year, use it to pot with or maybe mix it in with some regular potting mix. What ever feels good to you. You will learn as you go.
I would disagree with Al on the lettuces. I do not pot them on or single them but harden them off while still in multiples in the cells and then transplant straight into the ground by gently pulling the clumps apart. I find that the fact that they are different sizes and not all perfect large individual specimens means that they will grow at different rates and I can get a long succession of lettuce from a single sowing. I deliberately keep some back in the cells and plant out at intervals. You don't necessarily want all your lettuce ready at once. But this works in my climate because we have months of cool damp weather appropriate for lettuce. You may need to plant them all at once for a shorter cropping season.
There is no conflict my friend. When you sow the seed you cover it with 1/4 inch soil and this created darkness. When they sprout they need light 24/7. You give them that much light because they don't see the sun. I read in a book that 24/7 light under flourcent lamp is barley equal to one hour in the sun. As for heat as soon as my seeds sprout I take them off the heating Mat. By this way they grow short and fat (stucky) as opposed to very tall and thin on the Heating Mat. I learned that from some books and It works for me.
If you plant your seeds direct in the garden,climate permitting, you automatically get the fluctuating temperatures Park recommends. Many seeds will germinate much better with these conditions. Many use the "winter sowing method" which works, but the seed germinates when the conditions are right for the seed, not necessarily for the gardener. Al
The "crazy carrots" are the result of damaging the roots during transplanting. It also happens when you plant in ground and the root runs into a stone or something that gets in its way.
I don't know how deep an Aerogarden is. You might be able to grow Parisian carrots - they're very short.
I would tend to agree with you about the 54 degrees thing. Anything below 70 will cause pepper seedlings to have stunted growth & they will never be the same again. I tried putting mine out in a cold frame when temps were getting high enough last year. A little bit of cold destroyed every single one of them. Could also be a fungus though. Pinch off the bad leaves, get them warmer & give them a few days to see what happens.
- Steve
You should let them dry out a little, if they are constantly soaked it will cause them to yellow and rot their roots. They could probably use some fert. but be sure to start out with a dilute fert solution, so not to burn their already tender root system and you can even wait to do this until a little while after you plant them out. Also, if they are put outside to quickly and not hardened off properly then you could run into problems.
You might want to watch or tweek your watering regime. The compost will act much differently than a soilless mix...the compost may not move water throughout the container like you normally are used to. Bottom watering will become a whole different beast...so feel the weight of the container...don't go by looks alone.
Congratulations!! Like you, my first year was a bust but even so, it was a great learning experience. Despite all the reading and research I did beforehand, you don't know what you don't know until you dig in and give it a shot. My second year was markedly improved.
Your plants look absolutely gorgeous!! I guess the third time was a charm!
Here is a link that might be useful: my blog
Damping off will typically occur at the soil line, where fungi enter bruised tissue. Strange things on leaf edges means uptake of nutrients and water was poor, or it can be tainted water, etc. In their new home with plenty of light the seedings should be fine. Peat pots offer no nutrition, so moving them was the thing to do.
I have a PUR dispenser for drinking water. I have been using that at room temp to water all my seedlings. Should I continue doing this or use tap water? Once they go outside they will just get water from the hose anyway. I'm confused, I thought the cotyledons were supposed to give them enough nutrition for a while. Should I be transplanting the others that are in the Jiffy mix that doesn't have any fertilizer in it? I also have some in Miracle Grow seed starting mix, are those better off?
I was going to start tomatoes today and I had planned to use the peat pellets for those, in addition to also planting in the mixes for better luck. It seems at least for space I need to transplant the ones in pellets sooner but should I also be doing it sooner so they get nutrition? This is my first year starting seeds inside so I'm trying to learn as much as I can.
Yep, scroll down to the thread titled "A waste of money" and you'll see the sad accounts. The one I had pictured was wedged against a fence with a big cinder block on the bottom shelf to hold it down and the thing STILL blew over. I kept it against the east-facing fence so it would only get morning sun. That way, if it got hotter than expected while I was at work, the seedlings would be in the shade come 1:00 or so. But in the end, I stopped using it altogether. I had an extra freestanding shelving unit--the heavy duty plastic kind--sitting around. I moved it right next to this "greenhouse" and it has not blown over once, not even in the 65 mph winds we had a couple months back. I now set my seedlings on it instead and I don't have to deal with opening/closing the plastic "door". Honestly, I couldn't find a reason for having the plastic closed ever. It wouldn't keep the seedlings warm in cold weather, and on sunny days, I was too worried about over heating to ever leave it zipped up.
But check out the thread. I do recall one poster did have one of these and had much better luck than the rest of us.
Thanks all. Glad I haven't removed it from the box. Guess I'll try the "laundry basket method." Posted another thread on this. Any of you had success with this? I work all day so can't be carting stuff back and forth every few hours.