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Old April 25, 2010   #1
kerry.heafner
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Default Jiffy Seed Starting Mix

Have been away from the board for a while. Just wondering if anyone out there in Tomatoville has had problems with the Jiffy brand seed starting mixes this year. Our seeds have been sluggish this year, and the seed starting mix has been hard to wet, prone to molding, and just generally leaving a lot to be desired. Planted two flats of Mortgage Lifters and Millionaires last week in Pro-Mix, and they were germinated in four days.
Anyone else encounter problems with the Jiffy seed starting mix?
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Old April 25, 2010   #2
Sherry_AK
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I found the same … very hard to wet (it always is, but this year was worse) and seedlings had very poor growth. When I started transplanting into ProMix, some of the cells were dry as dust. I didn’t have any mold though.
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Old April 25, 2010   #3
coloken
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You shure make me wonder. Earlier I started a bunch of tomatoes in miracle grow potting mix with great results. More recently I tried a few more in jiffy starting mix and am having all most no germination. I blamed the seed or the moon was wrong.
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Old April 25, 2010   #4
peggyneckfarms
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I had the same problems. Had many no germinations and sluggish starts. Next year will be pro mix for sure. Southern States has 3.6 bail for $22.95
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Old April 25, 2010   #5
danwigz
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I used Jiffy mix for a few of my seeds and I didn't have any problems with germination, however I did have problems making sure the mix stayed wet; it seems to repel water instead of drinking it up like I'd expect.

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Old April 26, 2010   #6
b54red
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I had great luck with the first two bags of Jiffy seed starter. I also started some in two other mixes and neither did as good as the Jiffy. One got moldy real quick,even before the seeds could pop up and the other dried out too quick.
I used the hot water in the bag to wet mine and after that had no trouble keeping it wet. The one thing I did notice is that even when it is wet it tends to look dry which is better than the Miracle Grow seed starting mix which looks wet when it isn't.
I'll be starting some seed with the Jiffy this week and will see if this recently purchased bag has problems.
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Old April 26, 2010   #7
coloken
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The more I think about it, I am convinced it caused me problems. 12 days since 6 seeds in a tray..2 little sprouts. Another variety in 3 inch pot with 2 seeds, no anything. My usual is 4 to 5 days with a heat pad. I moved the 2 sprouts to a MG pot and replanted the other with my old stand by MG potting mix. It could be its water holdiing, or not holding that is makeing it touchey. Any way, the rest of the bag is dumped out on the garden.
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Old April 26, 2010   #8
Barryblushes
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Last year I used Jiffy Mix and had no problems germination wise.But there was all kinds of sticks,and twigs in it.Think I even found a '68 Chevy bumper near the bottom of one bag .This year my wife got me 2 Ferry Morse Mix bags, and very few sticks and twigs.On the Jiffy Mix, I added some Perlite last year,this year I didnt add it.I found no difference in germination.But Im sticking to the Ferry Morse brand for sure. Barry
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Old May 8, 2010   #9
coloken
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I will sure go with what b54red says. My best has all ways been MG potting mix. But this week i needed to start some more that I was short on. This bag of MG potting mix is nothing like what I am use to. Big chunks an such. I should have screened it but i did not. Now I worry that I may have a problem.
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Old May 9, 2010   #10
pacmanJohn
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Pictures speak for themselves. This picture was taken 4 weeks after sowing. On the left is Miracle Grow and on the right is Jiffy. Multiple varieties of tomatoes all seeded on the same day.
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Old May 9, 2010   #11
coloken
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Man! That is proof enough for me. At least in your case.
Not to say that it applies to every bag, or just certain bags of jiffy.
Like I said, my last bag of MG potting was nothing like I am used to. It left much to be desired.
Could you guess that the problem is some thing with the way it handles water, or is the stuff just plain toxic to seeds?
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Old May 9, 2010   #12
ASFx2600
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I make my own all purpose mix which works extremely well for germination as well as potting up. I also use it for my self watering containers which works very well. I stay away from miracle-gro products since they are not organic and have chemicals in them.

What I do is buy large bags of peat moss, vermiculite, and perlite, and mix them at a 70/20/10 ratio (in that order). I mix them in a large 25 gallon plastic tote outside, the put the lid on and bring it in the house near my seed starting area. Making my own mix is much cheaper than buying pre-bagged stuff. It's enough to start thousands of seeds, pot them up, and get them out to the garden.
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Old May 10, 2010   #13
pacmanJohn
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Thanks for the info on the 'mix your own'. Nice to know. Will have to try that.

I will say that when I put the seeds in the mix I thought that I would stick with Jiffy as it was much 'finer' and was easier to cover the seeds as the MG has more clumps of 'stuff'. But I have to say that I have used Jiffy in the past that I'm once burned twice shy now. I repotted all of the plants shortly after the picture and and all rebounded. I did get a late bunch of seeds that I started probably end of March which have all been at about one inch tall with tiny leaves for for over a month. I used MG Cactus soil as that's all I could find at that time. Even though I'm sure these are all great products (and we all know there are others) I will either mix my own as suggested or use Miracle Grow Seed Starter, period.
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Old May 12, 2010   #14
camochef
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About the only seed starting medium I use anymore is Ferry Morse. I do utilize a few "tricks" with it. I never use this years bags! I always keep a supply from the year before or even better two years before that is kept dry in my garden shed. Then I fill my trays a good month or more before I begin to sow any seed. I soak it really well and cover with the clear plastic domes. It will become it's own little eco-system and condensation forms on the cover and falls back into the medium. I'll add more moisture as needed.
After at least a month of this I'll plant my seeds on a good moon sign and they usually germinate within 3-4 days. I keep them in the gas oven where the pilot light supplies enough heat to keep temperature ideal. Once germinated they go under the lights during daylight hours and back into the oven at night.
Have had almost 100% germination doing this for a few years now.
I would never buy any miricle grow product ever again. It used to be decent but lately I have had all sorts of debris, including large pieces of wood, stones, metal and lots of old used peat pots, but what really convinced me to stop using it was a large shard of glass that was in a bag and wound up it my hand as I was reaching for an additional handful.
I also make sure any bags I buy are dry inside. Too many places allow them to sit out unprotected and they freeze during cold weather and develop mold, once wet, from either condensation or outdoor storage.
Just little things that one picks up over the years. I've also done comparison tests between different mediums, planting at the same time, and treating all equal. there are major differences from one to another!
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Old May 12, 2010   #15
kath
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That's quite a system, Camo! Whatever works, though, right? I am using ProMix for the first time and haven't had any problems yet. Is the Ferry Morse brand found in local stores in PA? What difference did you notice that makes you prefer to 'age' it first?
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