6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
Oh, yes you are right... Thank you again for the intro to Geo.. what a great place.
My Corkscrew vines are pretty big and starting to curl around my lights. They sure are doing well. I hope they get about 12-14" before I get them outside so they can peak over the Iris' and get to the sun!
Keriann~
No problem! Glad to share the Geo love. :) We've finally had a spell of nice weather here, so that is just making my seed obsession worse. It's been 60 and sunny, I got all the beds and yard cleaned up, sprinkled some poppy and lupine seeds around, and I've been taking the seedlings out to lounge in the sun on the deck every day. Come on, spring!! :)
As mentioned above....your prices are high. You might actually want to consider some online shopping and see if you can get free shipping. Your prices are basically twice as high as I've seen in stores.
I have two 4 foot 2 bulb set ups (I just bought a new fixture and bulbs at HD for a TOTAL of less than $15.
zippity,
I'm not sure where you are right now, or what the temps are there right now, but I'm sure that some of the plants you started are more cold hardy than others. If you could put together a cold frame (about as low-tech as you can get), try putting some of the "extras" out there, to see how they fair. If your evening temps are too low, you can always bring them in at night.
Cold frame: If you have any old windows, just lean one up against the south side of your house, and put some kind of a wind barrier on the sides. It doesn't have to be fancy to be effective. If it is not air tight, that's ok for the day time. The sun will heat the frame QUICKLY if it is all closed up. So, air leaks aren't a big problem during the day. They ARE a problem at night, as they wouldn't hold the heat at night, and so the temp inside will be the same as the outside.
Hope this helps a little. Cold hardy crops are greens, cole crops, onions, etc. Tomatoes and peppers are heat LOVING plants, so these guys would not be the first choice for the cold frame.
digdirt...I have been transplanting at the cotyledon stage too, but I only started doing that last week so I don't know yet if I have been successful. Nothing has died yet. I put them in a 1020 flat with 36 cells. Do you think that's ok? anything else I should be careful about? I really love not potting up the plants until I know they've germinated.
The 36 cell are awfully big for cotyledons. Got anything smaller? 72 cell size is perfect at that size.
If not just take care with watering as a cell that size will hold a lot more moisture than they can handle right now. Use the "stick in your finger" test before watering. And transplant them deep - to just below the cotyledons.
If nothing smaller an alternative would be to use the 36 cells but only 1/2 full and then fill up as they grow.
Dave
I'm using promix seed starter and the cells are 2.5" deep, though the mix doesn't come all the way to the top. I don't think they're developed enough for the taproot to be an issue, but if they like consistently moist soil, that would definitely be an issue.
Lupines like cool weather. Is there any way you could get them ~50 degrees? I bet they would take off for you. Mine do well in any soil, but I would get them into a larger pot to keep their roots cooler while they are waiting to be transplanted in the Spring, but don't plant them deeper then what you started them at, they can not handle it.
I hope that hepls
Keriann
I am glad you enjoy the process as well! It is half the fun : )
Texas tends to have alkaline soil and alkaline water. Collecting rainwater would a good source for acid-loving plants (rainwater is slightly acidic, you won't have to treat it).
Below is some info on growing them in Texas.
Sue
Here is a link that might be useful: Growing blueberries in Texas
I agree. Try and keep the light within a few inches. My onions are actually touching the fluorescent light sometimes. For a great onion thread, go to the allium forums and click on 'onions from seed - my progress'. She initially had the same problem as you. And there is a wealth of information there. I learned a lot.
Kim
If you soak them and then nick them with nail clippers, they will sprout in no time. I did that to the morning glories and just put them inside wet coffee filter and baggie and placed them over a warm radiator. They sprouted the next day! Maybe you can try just one and see how fast they germinate for you in the baggie and then you can decide how soon you want to be starting them.
This is the first year I am growing from seed/under lights and my budget is pretty tight as well. I purchased a 4-foot shop light at Wal Mart using 2 "regular" fluorescent bulbs as recommended on this site...working fantastic! Price was right...less than $15. I am now considering adding another one, as I have transplanted some of my starts into larger cups and will soon be running out of room.
I installed this light suspended by 2, 4 feet sections of light chain over a dresser in a spare room...now just have to figure out a way to add another light...I am thinking of mounting them together in some fashion so that they can be moved up and down with the chains. (I am still trying to keep the $$$ down so that I may spend on other gardening supplies later this spring ;-)
I can easily see how this is going to be addictive!
I was searching the web and came across a site that talked about using cool white (more of the blue spectrum lights)and regular flourescent (more of the red spectrum) bulbs side by side to give you more bang for your buck. In theory it would cover the same light spectrum as the grow lights. Since most people use shoiplights with 2 bulbs in them, you just get one of each. $10 for the 4 foot shop light and about 2 bucks for ewach of the bulbs...now you have the equivalent of growbulbs. However Ican't say if it is really any better than just a regular flourescent bulb yet, because I am just now trying it out.
if i plant seeds from these fruits, will they germinate
Probably not. Due to the moisture in them ice crystals have form and the cells in the seed embryo rupture as they thaw. In addition, the fruit were most likely harvested before being mature and ripened artificially as is the common commercial practice. So the seeds inside will likely be immature.
So the time and effort isn't worth it to most of us but if you want to try some you may luck out with a few that will germinate.
Dave
thanks, dave. luckily i haven't bought yet any of those frozen fruits (i don't like to eat thawed frozen fruits!!!). perhaps i might be lucky by finding those fruits in some other stores some day.
btw, in your zone how do you manage to plant tropical fruits? do you grow them in a large greenhouse or are they growing in pots that you can shelter when needed?
even here in calif (45 miles north of los angeles), most tropical fruits wont't survive. every year my bananas die back by december or january and come back again, so for the past 18 years i never had a fruit from a banana plant that i obtained in boca raton. but by a fluke one of the bananas, that i thought totally died out more than a year ago, came back from half the stem and fruited last mid-august. i covered it with black plastic every night and they're still surviving, yet the fruits aren't ripe yet, which makes it more than six months and still not ripe to eat!!!
i purchased a manila mango more than a year ago and it is still alive. i planted it very close to the hollow block wall for protection. all others (macadamia, lychee, jackfruit) perished.
archie
thanks Dave :)
Tomatoes and peppers are the only things that I start early. Other than the annuals and perennials, that is. All the other veggies are sown in situ or planted as plants purchased from a local garden center. We have some good options around here for selection.