Tomatoville® Gardening Forums


Notices

New to growing your own tomatoes? This is the forum to learn the successful techniques used by seasoned tomato growers. Questions are welcome, too.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old March 6, 2011   #1
jrypka
Tomatovillian™
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Alaska
Posts: 5
Default Question about cold treatment

First off I've gotta say I wish I'd found this site years before. What a wealth of information. Thank you all!

I've been reading about the cold treatment for starts and I have a question. Does the temperature have to vary during the day, or can it be constant? I was thinking about putting my starts in my crawl space after germination since I have plenty of room down there and it'll be easy to hang plenty of lights. However the temperature is fairly constant during the day and night, normally around the low to mid fifties. It'll come up to about 60 by May, but still will be constant during day and night. Is it OK for the starts if day and night temperatures are the same, or do they need variance during the day?
jrypka is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 7, 2011   #2
amideutch
Tomatovillian™
 
amideutch's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Germany 49°26"N 07°36"E
Posts: 5,041
Default

Good Question. I will check my reference when I get home tonight from work. Ami
__________________
Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
totally worn out, shouting ‘...Holy Crap .....What a ride!'
amideutch is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 8, 2011   #3
Sherry_AK
Tomatovillian™
 
Sherry_AK's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Alaska Zone 3/4
Posts: 1,857
Default

Hi, jrypka. Where I live in Alaska, if I set up grow lights in the crawl space, the authorities would be knocking on my door! (I live in the Mat Valley.)

Welcome to Tomatoville.

Sherry
Sherry_AK is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 9, 2011   #4
jrypka
Tomatovillian™
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Alaska
Posts: 5
Default

How true! We actually looked at a house in Kasilof to buy that had a whole grow room, 16x16, plastic lined, humidity controlled and everything. And they didn't even bother to sweep up all the leaves before they left! (We didn't buy that place...never know who's knocking on your door at midnight!) Would have made a great place for starts though. I've been monitoring the temps in the crawlspace and they range from 52 to 55 right now, so I'll probably give it a try, I was just curious if folks think that'll work or if they need more temp variation than that.
jrypka is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 9, 2011   #5
ddsack
Tomatovillian™
 
ddsack's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3
Posts: 3,218
Default

If you set up some kind of partial barrier or reflecting baffle around your plant trays, I would think that just running your lights close overhead would be able to warm up the temps over your seedlings a few degrees while they are on, so you'd be able to get the drop in temperature when you turn them off at night. It'd be easy enough to test with a thermometer.
__________________
Dee

**************
ddsack is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 9, 2011   #6
amideutch
Tomatovillian™
 
amideutch's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Germany 49°26"N 07°36"E
Posts: 5,041
Default

OK. After the first seed leaves (Cotyledons) unfold expose to temperatures of 52 to 56 deg. F. for ten days. Cold temperatures during both day and night are effective.
The duration of the cold treatment is determined by the time for the plant to develop to the two-leaf stage. Under fluorescent lights ten days should be sufficient. Ami
__________________
Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
totally worn out, shouting ‘...Holy Crap .....What a ride!'
amideutch is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 10, 2011   #7
the999bbq
Tomatovillian™
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Belgium
Posts: 191
Default

aha ... cold treatment is good ?! I was stalling my sowing this year because 'family matters' drove me from one of the rooms inside to an unheated one outdoors (happens to quite a few of us hey ;-). Previous years that room temperature would be fairly constant at 15°-16°C, in this new "nursery" night temps still drop to 10° even 5° if it continues to freeze outside. But ten is appropriate for the cold treatment then ?? I guess the young seedlings will not die as long as they are above 0°C ??
Change in routines after so many years is quite exiting though ;-)
the999bbq is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 03:52 PM.


★ Tomatoville® is a registered trademark of Commerce Holdings, LLC ★ All Content ©2022 Commerce Holdings, LLC ★