Just wondering how everyone's seedlings are doing? When will you plant them out in the seedling bed? I have about 100+ seedlings. Some have died due to fungus gnats or damping off. There were 6 crosses that I had zero germination. Out of 80 crosses, I guess that this result is pretty good. I am hoping for warmer weather so I can get started getting the seedling bed ready.

Hi Karen,

Mine seem happy....not sure about germination percentage, but I would guess mid 80s. I will move them out in mid April, and then plant in late April.

I got a late start to mine this year because I tried using the paper towel method (in early February) to start my seeds and for weeks there was no growth whatsoever on most of my seed crosses (only two crosses showed sprouts with this method and, worse, I was fighting mold growth on the paper towels). I switched to the hydrogen peroxide/water method and within days I had sprouts on most of my crosses. That means most of my seedlings are only a week or so old, but they are still doing really well. Here is a picture of them at the one week mark:

Have not planted any yet. Usually wait till the weather gets warmer and plant directly in pots outdoors.

I just checked on the ones I planted outside last week (wearing my winter coat!) as they are covered with a freeze blanket!!! This is the stage where I'd really like to get the rest moved out of the house to harden off for planting. Comes a point where you really get tired of watering them in the house!!!

Started these last fall after soaking a week in good old H2O and hydrogen peroxide. They were then put in a styrofoam cup of bagged garden soil and put under a florescent light until they sprouted and produced their first leaf sets. Then, I put them in the pots they reside now. They sat out side all winter, If you want to call it winter. The coldest temps they saw were around 27°f...



It may be time to transfer to bigger pots...

for posting your progress.

Steve, can I ask how many weeks are your seedlings? Did you plant the sprouted seeds directly into the big pots or you transplanted the seeds to the big pots after they're grown a bit?

DND, I agree that the hydrogen peroxide solution works best for me too. I followed the method by Rich Howard on his About Me Page on the LA and most seeds germinated.

Cindy, I have saved some seeds to plant outdoors this spring too. I would like to see whether it makes a huge difference getting a headstart indoors or not. Also, just don't have the space to plant all the seeds inside.

Davi, how long did you have to harden off the seedlings before they were planted outside?

Stan, those seedlings look really green and healthy compared to my skinny seedlings grown indoors.

Thanks Karen. I will add that I only started giving them a little bit of half strength miracle grow a couple weeks now. Oh and I gave them some alfalfa pellets that was watered immediately. I don't like the alfalfa to sit whole due to those pesky rabbits! The seedlings were hungry and have responded wonderfully. Of course our temps have been mid 70s during the day and mid 50s at night until this week. The last couple nights we've seen temps in the lower 30s.

Soon, I will pot them in larger containers and they will go on the regular feeding cycle like the rest of my CVs. Which is more water than anything and a sprinkle of milorganite.

This is my first year starting seeds. What is the method for hydrogen peroxide and water?

I fill a small plastic bottle (16-20oz) with 2 tbsp of hydrogen peroxide and water. I shake it up and use the solution to moisten the seeds and perlite or vermiculite. If your seeds are in the plastic bag, fill it up with enough perlite or vermiculite to cover all the seeds. Pour a bit of the hydrogen peroxide and water into the bag. Swish it around so that everything is moistened. Then pour off all the excess liquid and seal the bags. Place them in the fridge. They should sprout within a couple of weeks. If they do not sprout while in the fridge, you can take them out after 3 weeks and let them sit in dark warm place and they should sprout within a week.

Germination is not a big problem for me, but fungus gnats or damping off is. Seems like I lose more seedlings to this than other problems.

I've had problems with fungus gnats and damping off also.

Although my seeds are kept in a small fridge year round, I did not do the water/peroxide seed soak in the fridge for 3 weeks like I normally do. I just let them soak at room temperature and I did not have as high of a germination rate. I will go back to soaking in the fridge next year.

I did lose several seedlings to the fungus gnats and dampling off, but things have improved since I put perlite on top of the seed starting mix. I will never again buy growing medium with coconut fibers for starting my seeds, it holds too much moisture.

Our temps will be dipping into the 30's the next couple of days, I won't be planting outdoors until late May, but will acclimate them on and off as temps allow.

Karen,

I started planting in late November, until about a month ago. I use a very complicated system of planting seeds. I poke about 8 holes in the soil in a pot and put the seeds in the holes. No soaking, no heat mat, no nothing.

A simple man

Seeing the seedlings above, I had thought that such results were achieved with great effort. Simple is definitely the way to go.

Here's one of my seedlings planted in the 3rd week of September.
You'll never guess what made it grow like this. In this photo, it is
12 inches tall, and I have trimmed the tops numerous times.
No artificial lighting, just a south-facing window, well, actually it is
double doors, so floor to ceiling. There are 97 pots like this with an
average of 5 seeds to a pot.

We will begin to acclimate mid April for two weeks, and plant outside
near the end of April or early May weather permitting.




The answer: After an application of liquid fertilizer that did nothing to help
the seedlings grow past their pale green 3 inches, hubby suggested we try granular 10-10-10.
He added a pinch carefully avoiding contact with the seedlings, in case it might burn
them.

It worked. The seedlings have been fertilized only twice all winter, and need no
further feeding.

On edit: The yellow coloration on the foliage is a reflection of the incandescent lighting
above. Nothing wrong with the plants.

Wow, those seedlings look awesome, Shirlee. What is the brand of the granular fertilizer that you used? Did he scratch it in? Or just sprinkle it? How often do you water them?

Karen, they have grown so much that watering is rather often. Especially now, as they
want very much to be outside. I suspect the roots are getting quite large.

The fertilize comes in a 50-lb bag, and is used for lawn, garden, fruit trees, shrubs, etc.
We buy from gardening stores. I don't know if the big box stores carry this. I haven't looked.
Anyway, the bag costs around $10-12.

Hubby just used a pinch of the granules, applying them to the top of the soil.
Then when watered, it gets down to the roots.

On Edit: I don't know the name offhand. We just ask for whatever 10-10-10 product
the gardening store carries in any given year. The brands can change depending on the store
from one year to the next. I'll check tomorrow to see the size of the bag and see if a brand name is on it.

Shirlee - you have concurred something that I am seeing as well. I use osmocote and added some to my seedling last year and saw impressive growth.

Hydrogen peroxide is used around my garden for so many things. I use it all the time when watering seedlings. Just a few squirts in the water. I've not lost any seedlings to damping off or root rot.

My seedlings have been outside for about a month now. I have to move older and bigger seedlings to another area so I have 2 raised beds to move the babies into. I just sowed more seeds. I must be crazy!! I need to do some serious culling. Or obtain more property ....

Becky, I agree with you regarding the positives with hydrogen peroxide.
We haven't tried Osmocote, but it sounds as if it is great for seedlings.
Yep, sounds as if you are indeed ready for some serious culling, and that
is so difficult to do, especially when the seedlings need to remain for 2-3
years for evaluating like it is here. I am fairly overwhelmed this year just
thinking about all the plant stats I will need to collect this season.

Karen, I was way off on the size of the fertilize. It is a 50-lb bag, not 10-lb for $10-12.
I edited the above post to reflect this. I checked and Tractor Supply carries it.

This is the second time we tried 10-10-10 for seedlings. Last year, I had tomato
seedlings doing poorly with the common brand of liquid fertilize, so the granular was applied, and the tomato plants responded with huge, lush foliage. Gorgeous plants.
We generally use this fertilize for trees, lawn, and garden.

I've been working on a project with my seventh graders, and decided to grow some seedlings out for them ahead of time, In hopes that they could take a near-blooming size DL with them at the end of their DL project. I started these in pots outside last August, then moved them to my garage, and finally to the new greenhouse for the winter. I was a bit anxious to put them in the GH since I've never had one before, and knew next to nothing about what to expect. I used a small space heater to keep the temps above freezing at night: the daytime temps were usually around 90.






Needless to say, the DL loved it, and I plan to use the GH next year for my own seeds. I also sprouted seeds inside the last couple of weeks and have been putting them in the GH as I see green leaves forming.





Edited to add pics from other camera

Very nice!!!