Seedlings w/100% gritty mix (Final UPDATE)
Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 7:50 pm
Hey folks, (this may get a little lengthy, lol)
Background -
I'm completely new to starting from seed, but have read a LOT of articles/threads on this subject. I have around 1000 Parodi Haselberghii seeds that I got from my plant. Using these to mess around with and work out my problems before I start the stuff I paid for.
I sowed 2 batches of 20 in 2.25" round plastic containers. Filled 80% of the container with 50/50 1/8"Turface/ ~1/8" Coarse sand, then top coat with ~1/8" layer of Turface fines (1/16" or less). Seeds are germinated on top. No cover layer.
The first container had 0/20, the second had 5/20. This is when I learned that you have to let the seeds dry out first to remove the anti-germination coating (thanks to this forum)
Getting ready to sow another batch with the now well dried seeds.
One of the few that sprouted. 2 weeks old.
Will be changing my setup over to a germination tray in the next week, and possibly a heat mat. Temperature fluctuates from 76-86F daily. Also providing 24 hour light at the moment.
And now for the questions..lol
1) Is a 24 hour light cycle really a bad thing? Or do you really need them to have a night time sleep?
2) I have read here that some people suggest possibly 90F in the daytime and ~72F at night. So is a heat mat really a requirement? I can raise the daytime temp just altering how I have the lighting set up and using it for the heat source, but this isn't guaranteeing I am getting the mix to that temp all the way to the bottom.
3) Since I am on a completely zero organic mix, what would be the appropriate time to start applying? And how often? Planning on 1/5 strength mix (Foliage Pro 9-3-6)
Last question
4) Fertilizer application - Soak the container from bottom up in the solution, or spray bottle top application? Not sure if the seedlings can take a foliage feeding at this stage.
I realize this is a bit much in a single post, but I think its still covering the basic topic.
Really looking forward to seeing the input on this
Thanks a lot for taking the time to look at this
Cheers
Background -
I'm completely new to starting from seed, but have read a LOT of articles/threads on this subject. I have around 1000 Parodi Haselberghii seeds that I got from my plant. Using these to mess around with and work out my problems before I start the stuff I paid for.
I sowed 2 batches of 20 in 2.25" round plastic containers. Filled 80% of the container with 50/50 1/8"Turface/ ~1/8" Coarse sand, then top coat with ~1/8" layer of Turface fines (1/16" or less). Seeds are germinated on top. No cover layer.
The first container had 0/20, the second had 5/20. This is when I learned that you have to let the seeds dry out first to remove the anti-germination coating (thanks to this forum)
Getting ready to sow another batch with the now well dried seeds.
One of the few that sprouted. 2 weeks old.
Will be changing my setup over to a germination tray in the next week, and possibly a heat mat. Temperature fluctuates from 76-86F daily. Also providing 24 hour light at the moment.
And now for the questions..lol
1) Is a 24 hour light cycle really a bad thing? Or do you really need them to have a night time sleep?
2) I have read here that some people suggest possibly 90F in the daytime and ~72F at night. So is a heat mat really a requirement? I can raise the daytime temp just altering how I have the lighting set up and using it for the heat source, but this isn't guaranteeing I am getting the mix to that temp all the way to the bottom.
3) Since I am on a completely zero organic mix, what would be the appropriate time to start applying? And how often? Planning on 1/5 strength mix (Foliage Pro 9-3-6)
Last question
4) Fertilizer application - Soak the container from bottom up in the solution, or spray bottle top application? Not sure if the seedlings can take a foliage feeding at this stage.
I realize this is a bit much in a single post, but I think its still covering the basic topic.
Really looking forward to seeing the input on this
Thanks a lot for taking the time to look at this
Cheers