Catalogs are Rolling in!

[ninnymary]

Ok, this is how cold it gets in my laundry room. I would guess at night it's the same as our night temps. of high 30's? It's hard to guess what the day temps. are. My house timer is set for 67 during the day. I need it warm for the kids. But when I go down to the laundry room, which is downstairs, it's cold! Maybe high 50's? I'll try to remember to buy a thermometer to check the temperature down there.

So, with a heat pad, are these temps. ok?

I'm getting a little excited but still scared to spend the money and then end up giving up after one season. Oh, I wish I wasn't such a scarry cat.

Mary

 

[Smart Red]

To prevent damping off, I sprinkle straight peat moss over the top of the planting soil. Others I have "talked" to say the cinnamon sprinkled on top of the soil works well, too. I think the desired effect is to keep the damping off disease (mildew) away from the plant or bouncing up to the plant when watered. That's why watering from beneath is so important early on.

 

[897tgigvib]

Oooh Mary, being a scarry cat is at least half good!



It means you are a Cat!



And Cats are the best people of all!!

 

[digitS']

That's a little . .

. brisk(er) . .

. than what I expected, Mary. You might not really be all that much of a "scarry cat." I've got 1 or 2 interesting plants from commercial sources to choose from but I may just be jealous of your buying opportunities along with your climate .

Others with experience with heating pads should comment.

Steve

 

[897tgigvib]

Ok, heat pads.

Do not set the flat directly on them. That'll get the soil too warm for most seeds.

An old oven grill shelf thing or something to that effect should be over it so the pad is not in contact with the flat.

They use surprisingly little electricity, even for my off the grid.

They won't very much heat the air except maybe in a small enclosed setup such as those propagation covers.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

SeedObserver, that is QUITE the list! Some I've already saved, but I see some new ones I need to go browse....

SeedObserver - that's me! It's one of my favorite thing to do when I'm bored. I even go on seed-safaris! (Shh! *Don't move a muscle...* there's a whole pack-age of Brown-Speckled Bean Seeds just laying there on that wooden desk!...)

I haven't ordered from all of them. One that has exceptionally good customer service that I have ordered from, is My Patriot Supply. This is the place where I made my first ever seed order. Very helpful people there, they referred me to a different place to find these tomato seeds that I have grown before but didn't save seed from. The website even has a button that you can click to chat with the people there.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Mary, if the problem is just leggy plants from lack of exposure to natural elements, and not damping off; you may not have to buy a fan. I brush the tops of my tomato seedling a few times each day; this mimics the wind that the plants would otherwise be subjected to, but does not deal with damping off or blackleg.

 

[thistlebloom]

Mary, if you get a thermometer, I recommend one of those digital ones with a remote sensor. You could put the sensor in the laundry room and the part you read upstairs in a handy place so you can check it during the day to get an idea of how the temperature fluctuates. It will also record the lowest low and highest high, which you can reset anytime.
As long as your spending money all crazy like, you should pick up a soil thermometer also. That way you can check your soil temps on the seed mats.

And you know what, if you do all that seed starting and it doesn't seem like you want to keep doing it you can sell your equipment on Craigslist easy peasy.

 

[897tgigvib]

I have one of those digital hi lo therometers...

Make sure you study the manual! The LaCrosse brand is great, but you need multiple phd's to change the batteries. And don't lose that manual. Tape it to the back of the main part.

But it is awesome to have because it works great and sure. But twice a year is the IQ test changing batteries... (I'm up to 124 IQ on battery changing with it).

 

[thistlebloom]

I have one of those digital hi lo therometers...

Make sure you study the manual! The LaCrosse brand is great, but you need multiple phd's to change the batteries. And don't lose that manual. Tape it to the back of the main part.

But it is awesome to have because it works great and sure. But twice a year is the IQ test changing batteries... (I'm up to 124 IQ on battery changing with it).

Mine is just a cheapo Accurite, and all you need is a kindergarten certificate to operate it. I only have to change the batteries every other year or so. But it's great to know that my living room is often more than 30 degrees warmer than outside!