My first try at germinating seeds.

jasie · February 14, 2007

Ok... being a total noob, I bought the wrong kind of "soil" to germinate seeds.

The guy at the nursery had assured me that what I needed was vermiculite even though I was asking for potting soil or seed starting soil. I also got this seed starting tray thingy that is reallllly flimsy- comes with tray/compartment and lid. I started some of the seeds that spud gave me (grandpa charlies, galinas, and kimberly) + some habanero seeds that hubby bought (for fun). I don't know if it'll actually germinate in vermicullite alone.... but here goes? There's 1 seeds in each compartment, I put a little cardboard to note which seed I have in each compartment (they look like grave markers....). Oh, and that bright blob is a regular household light over it to err.. make it warmer. its sitting atop my printer where its also semi-warm- and in my bedroom where its the warmest part of the apartment.

Sorry for the REALLY crappy pic, used a cellphone to take the picture as I couldn't find my regular camera. Planning to buy some actual potting soil tomorrow at home depot to start some other seeds in case these don't grow. *crosses fingers and hopes for the best*

P.S. any tips welcome as this is my first time doing this.

dcarch · February 15, 2007

Seeds will germinate just about in anything when wet.
Since vermiculite has no nutrients in it, you will need to feed the seedlings with a well balanced fertilizer.

dcarch

**carolyn137** · February 15, 2007

I think I'd put more than one seed in each of those cells, which are pretty big.

YOu have no idea of seed age, or anything else having to do with your new venture, and you got the seeds free anyway, at lest the ones from Bill.

You've not going to be growing your plants to outside transplant size from a single seedling that comes up in a cell. You're going to want to transplant that wee seedling to another cell or whatever, b/c if you don 't it will grow as a tap root and not as a fibrous root structrure which is what you want.

So I don't know when you seeded that thing, but I think I'd do a few things.

First, maybe tuck in a couple of more seeds/cell and second, prop up that dome NOW. Do it at one end, so you don't build up moisture and heat and cook the seeds.
And third, as dc says, vermiculite will suppoer plant growth without added fertilizer. I'd get whatever you want to, organic or not, but make it more dilute than the instructions say and don't use it every time you water.

And next time go to a different nursery for advice.

I could scoop up some gravel and get tomato seeds to germoinate in that, maybe, but that's not saying what's optimal, and vermiculite is not optimal. Next time look for one of the many soilless seed starting mixes that you see folks here referring to.

I like Jiffy Mix, with or without added micronutrients, Pro-Mix, Fafard, for example.So relax, it will all work out and with each passing year you'll learn more and more and more as to what things work best for you in your own situation.

jasie · February 15, 2007

Thanks for the advice.

dcarch: LOL. Glad to hear that!!

Dr. Carolyn: I put 1 seed in each because errr... I'm gonna do balcony gardening. Won't have that many plants (Max of 10 plants total I think). LOL. Might as well make use of the space.

Just doing 1/pod to see what germinates and what doesn't.

I went and got some miracle-gro seed starting mix today at home depot. So I'll be starting some seeds in that.

Will update more on seeds plantings when I do some seeding tonight or tomorrow.

DavidinCT · February 24, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcarch

Seeds will germinate just about in anything when wet . . .

I should have realized that rather than blame the potting soil. Shouldn't have discounted Carolyn's (numerous) warnings about cooking seeds either (I couldn't be doing that!). This morning after having three small batches of seeds over the last month germinate at a rate of 25% to 35%, I did what I should have done with the first batch: stick a digital meat thermometer in the soil.

88 degrees.

Certainly hotter in spots when I had the lid closed. Been germinating in a mud room on a wooden shelf/cabinet which has a small old cast iron radiator inside. Had no idea the wood was that warm. The day before I tested, I bought a bale of ProMix (a 30 miles drive to get it) because I was 100% certain (and wrong as it turned out) the soil had to be the problem.

Should have spotted the problem when I pondered why seeds which did germinate came up in clusters. Two right next to each other...then a dead zone across the tray to another little cluster of live plants...then another dead zone and so on. What there were of live plants were mostly near the edges of the tray. Nothing in the warmer middle. I wasn't cooking the entire tray. Just 65% to 75% of it. Left an oasis here and there for the seeds to live. At least that is my theory.

Oh well...Got lots of ProMix now and won't need a heating pad for those peppers I havent started because I thought the mud room and shelf were too cold for peppers.

garnetmoth · February 24, 2007

Jasie- I appreciate your spartan planting, but very few people or seeds have that much reliability. Even the best growers will need 2-3 seeds of a variety to get it to "take"

I hate killing seedlings, but you'll have more choice of what is doing well if you plant a few of each.

good luck!

February 14, 2007	#1
jasie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 8	My first try at germinating seeds. Ok... being a total noob, I bought the wrong kind of "soil" to germinate seeds. The guy at the nursery had assured me that what I needed was vermiculite even though I was asking for potting soil or seed starting soil. I also got this seed starting tray thingy that is reallllly flimsy- comes with tray/compartment and lid. I started some of the seeds that spud gave me (grandpa charlies, galinas, and kimberly) + some habanero seeds that hubby bought (for fun). I don't know if it'll actually germinate in vermicullite alone.... but here goes? There's 1 seeds in each compartment, I put a little cardboard to note which seed I have in each compartment (they look like grave markers....). Oh, and that bright blob is a regular household light over it to err.. make it warmer. its sitting atop my printer where its also semi-warm- and in my bedroom where its the warmest part of the apartment. Sorry for the REALLY crappy pic, used a cellphone to take the picture as I couldn't find my regular camera. Planning to buy some actual potting soil tomorrow at home depot to start some other seeds in case these don't grow. crosses fingers and hopes for the best P.S. any tips welcome as this is my first time doing this. __________________ Jasmine, the noob gardener wannabe

February 15, 2007	#2
dcarch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: NY Posts: 2,618	Seeds will germinate just about in anything when wet. Since vermiculite has no nutrients in it, you will need to feed the seedlings with a well balanced fertilizer. dcarch __________________ tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato

February 15, 2007	#3
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	I think I'd put more than one seed in each of those cells, which are pretty big. YOu have no idea of seed age, or anything else having to do with your new venture, and you got the seeds free anyway, at lest the ones from Bill. You've not going to be growing your plants to outside transplant size from a single seedling that comes up in a cell. You're going to want to transplant that wee seedling to another cell or whatever, b/c if you don 't it will grow as a tap root and not as a fibrous root structrure which is what you want. So I don't know when you seeded that thing, but I think I'd do a few things. First, maybe tuck in a couple of more seeds/cell and second, prop up that dome NOW. Do it at one end, so you don't build up moisture and heat and cook the seeds. And third, as dc says, vermiculite will suppoer plant growth without added fertilizer. I'd get whatever you want to, organic or not, but make it more dilute than the instructions say and don't use it every time you water. And next time go to a different nursery for advice. I could scoop up some gravel and get tomato seeds to germoinate in that, maybe, but that's not saying what's optimal, and vermiculite is not optimal. Next time look for one of the many soilless seed starting mixes that you see folks here referring to. I like Jiffy Mix, with or without added micronutrients, Pro-Mix, Fafard, for example.So relax, it will all work out and with each passing year you'll learn more and more and more as to what things work best for you in your own situation. __________________ Carolyn

February 15, 2007	#4
jasie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 8	Thanks for the advice. dcarch: LOL. Glad to hear that!! Dr. Carolyn: I put 1 seed in each because errr... I'm gonna do balcony gardening. Won't have that many plants (Max of 10 plants total I think). LOL. Might as well make use of the space. Just doing 1/pod to see what germinates and what doesn't. I went and got some miracle-gro seed starting mix today at home depot. So I'll be starting some seeds in that. Will update more on seeds plantings when I do some seeding tonight or tomorrow. __________________ Jasmine, the noob gardener wannabe

February 24, 2007	#6
garnetmoth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: cincinnati, oh Posts: 492	Jasie- I appreciate your spartan planting, but very few people or seeds have that much reliability. Even the best growers will need 2-3 seeds of a variety to get it to "take" I hate killing seedlings, but you'll have more choice of what is doing well if you plant a few of each. good luck!