Subject: Germination

From: [email-masked] (Brad Andrews)
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 14:32:42 GMT

I started several seeds inside in flat clear tupperware containers with
some plastic wrap over the tops to help keep them moist.  I am using the
expanding "pots" (little things you add water to).  I started things
this Sunday.  I planted 4 cucumbers, 4 bell peppers, 4 gourds, 8 First
Lady tomatoes, 8 Super Sweet 100's, and 8 of another cherry tomato (bush
I think).  So far, one of the cucumbers is growing like crazy, and I will
trim two of the three growths.  Another is making progress.

Nothing else is showing through at all.

The weather has been pretty dreary this week, so we didn't get the sun warmth
I had expected where we have them.  I also have put the lids to the containers
loosely over the plastic wrap to keep them dark, though I don't think
it has mattered.

Does anything here sound wrong?  When should I worry about non-germination?
I figured that 7-10 days was required given some other stuff I read, but
the cucumber plants that are shooting up have me wondering.

Also, should I take the cucumber plants that are growing out of the covered
container and into something else to ensure it gets light and such?

Any other advice will be appreciated.  I figure this year is a learning
experience, though I hope to get some useful fruit out of it.  :)

I will be interested to see if the cucumbers and gourds grow up the terrace
on the side of our deck where we plan to place them.

---

Brad Andrews
[email-masked]
All opinions are strictly mine

---

From: [email-masked] (Darius M. Kwiedorowicz)
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 95 16:17:54 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
Brad Andrews <[email-masked]> wrote:

>                                                    I started things

You are in Ohio, right?  

IMHO, you started the cukes too soon (I don't know about the gourds).
Cukes like really warm soil -- it will be a while before you can plant
them.  At that time, your cukes are likely to be too big to handle.

You are fine on the tomatoes and peppers.

>Nothing else is showing through at all.

That's normal.  Tomatoes take longer to germinate than cukes.  I use a
heating pad and it typically takes 5 days for tomatoes to germinate.

>on the side of our deck where we plan to place them.

I always grow the vining (rather than bush) types of cukes and let
them go up a trellis.  I always get straight fruit wthout yellow areas
that way.

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: 31 Mar 95 19:32:29 -0600

> loosely over the plastic wrap to keep them dark, though I don't think

Seeds need warmth, moisture and time.  Seedlings need light, so don't
darken the flats.
> the cucumber plants that are shooting up have me wondering.

Cowcumbers are fast and vigorous growers.  You may have been a bit
early with them.

> container and into something else to ensure it gets light and such?

Absolutely!
> experience, though I hope to get some useful fruit out of it.  :)

Starting seedlings indoors is a balancing act between keeping the 
humidity high enough to keep soil in little pots from drying out, and
having it so humid the fungi move in and kill your seedlings.  Watch
carefully for any signs of fungal growth, and if you see any, remove
the plastic wrap and increase air circulation immediately.

It may be instructive to try some experiments.  Get yourself some
small plastic pots, all the same size.  3 or 4" diameter is a nice size.
Fill a couple of them with ordinary garden soil.  A couple more get
sterile potting mix from some place like Walmart.  A couple more get
plain sand (like for a sandbox, or the stuff we carry around in the
trunk all winter in icy climates).  If you want to blow a little money,
buy a small bag of *milled* sphagnum moss (not peat moss!).  Make up
about 4 more pots of sterile potting soil, too.

Plant a couple of seeds of one of your surplus tomatoes in each pot.
And a couple cucumber seeds, and a couple of pepper seeds.  (Yup, all
those species in each pot). Cover the seeds in two of the potting
soil pots with plain sand, and two more with a thin (1/8"?) layer
of milled sphagnum.

So you now have 2 pots each of:
plain soil
sterile potting mix
plain sand
potting soil topped with sand
potting soil topped with milled sphagnum.

Put one pot of each treatment on top of the refrigerator, or some other
warmish spot, and the other in a windowsill.  Lay a loose cover of
saran or other plastic over each set of pots.

Which comes up the fastest?  Which seedlings seem to be more prone to
rot, damping off, and fungal diseases?  Which produce the best looking
seedlings?

If you take the time to try some simple treatments like this each 
year, you'll soon hone your gardening skills by figuring out
what works well for you.  True, these aren't statistically significant
experiments, but it gives you some ideas of places to concentrate 
your efforts next year.   And pretty soon, you'll be writing confident
articles for rec.gardens, telling newbies what worked well for you
last year!

Gardening is like anything else.  You need to think it through a bit
(for me, thinking it through from basic principles works best), do
a little reading, do a lot of trying.  You can't get to be a good
gardener without killing a lot of plants.  Might as well start with
some sacrificial seedlings now!

Kay Klier  [email-masked]