Emmdemeester
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Joined: Sat May 20, 2017 11:03 pm

Help! I'm worried my seeds won't germinate

Hi everyone!!

So I can planted my veggie garden yesterday. I planted in plastic pails. My neighbour in the basement went to turn the water on for me and the faucet sprayed everywhere and I couldn't turn it off. So he had to turn the water off in his suite so I have no access to water back there.

I have forty 5-gallon pails of plants, plus 400 pea plants all along the tops of my fence and I've been having to run inside, fill up my tiny watering can, come out, water a couple plants, run back in etc. I also have a crazy almost two year old who I had by myself today, so I didn't get a chance to water at all today (aside from 8 this morning).

I know because they are pails, and because it was sunny and because I didn't water them enough in the first place I should have done it a couple more times today, but I barely had time to breathe today, the little guy kept me so busy.

So when he finally went to bed, first thing I did was run out to check On the plants and my heart sunk a bit...everything was dry. So in and out I went again, watering away. It's now 9 pm so the sun is down, I'm sure they will stay moist over night, but I have no idea how long they were left to dry out during the day.

Any guesses on if my seeds will germinate or not now? I'm not worried too much about the plants, they seem fine. I but I did the majority of planting by seed and I spent a combined 12 hours in 2 days to get it done. I'd be pretty upset if I messed it all up.

Any advice/tips/suggestions appreciated!

Cheers!
~Emm

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applestar
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I would be more concerned if you sowed the seeds a 2-3 days ago. If you only sowed/planted them yesterday or the day before, and they have not had the chance to be thoroughly soaked, I think most of them would not have suffered -- only the earliest germinating seeds ... maybe radish or peas, but ONLY if they have been thoroughly soaked as in 4 hours or more are likely to begin the germination process and be hurt from completely drying out. But you said the peas are plants not seed, correct? Otherwise, seeds will sit tight and wait until all conditions are favorable to germinate. Outdoors especially if temperature is not optimal, this might take a week or more for the fastest seeds, 2 to 3 weeks for others.

Why don't you list up what you planted so we have a better idea.

Let's talk about your watering situation. Is there any way of running a garden hose or even thin aquarium air line from your room to the garden? Do you have access to a window above the garden where you could keep some kind of a reservoir of water in a tub or large bucket? All you would need is a way to use the gravity to get the water down there. Maybe an aquarium air pump if the water needs to be lifted.

First step is to think of some way to have a water reservoir that can then be used to supply the garden with water -- either inside or outside.

Then there might be a simple way to automate the watering process -- not necessarily completely as in a timer, but at least once you turn on the "system". And maybe not thoroughly water unmonitored, but at least enough to keep them alive when you can't be running in and out.

Can you give us a better idea of how your garden is set up? Did you say top of the fence?

Emmdemeester
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Posts: 9
Joined: Sat May 20, 2017 11:03 pm

applestar wrote:I would be more concerned if you sowed the seeds a 2-3 days ago. If you only sowed/planted them yesterday or the day before, and they have not had the chance to be thoroughly soaked, I think most of them would not have suffered -- only the earliest germinating seeds ... maybe radish or peas, but ONLY if they have been thoroughly soaked as in 4 hours or more are likely to begin the germination process and be hurt from completely drying out. But you said the peas are plants not seed, correct? Otherwise, seeds will sit tight and wait until all conditions are favorable to germinate. Outdoors especially if temperature is not optimal, this might take a week or more for the fastest seeds, 2 to 3 weeks for others.

Why don't you list up what you planted so we have a better idea.

Let's talk about your watering situation. Is there any way of running a garden hose or even thin aquarium air line from your room to the garden? Do you have access to a window above the garden where you could keep some kind of a reservoir of water in a tub or large bucket? All you would need is a way to use the gravity to get the water down there. Maybe an aquarium air pump if the water needs to be lifted.

First step is to think of some way to have a water reservoir that can then be used to supply the garden with water -- either inside or outside.

Then there might be a simple way to automate the watering process -- not necessarily completely as in a timer, but at least once you turn on the "system". And maybe not thoroughly water unmonitored, but at least enough to keep them alive when you can't be running in and out.

Can you give us a better idea of how your garden is set up? Did you say top of the fence?
Thanks for the reply!

The water situation has (hopefully) been taken care of. My landlord came to replace the tap last night, but the tenant downstairs still hasn't come home to turn the water on. So as long as the tap doesn't leak when he does turn it on, that shouldn't be a problem.

Now what you've said has me worried, as I did soak the peas for 8 hours before planting them, then they had a good water and went all night being wet, then I watered again in the morning so they were wet again, and then at some point during the day they dried out. So they were wet the longest. Everything else I planted by seed (carrots, beers, beans {yellow bush, green bush, purple pole} spinach, kale,) I feel like I'm forgettting something but that's pretty much all of it I think, was watered the night I planted it, was damp all night, then watered in the morning and dried out sometime during the day. Now, the dirt wasn't SO dry it was cracking or anything, and there is a chance that the surface had just dried up and underneath was still a bit damp but I was so panicked about it that I didn't even think to check, I didn't even think of that until now actually.

So everything I planted (seeds and transplants) I planted in 5 gallon pails on the ground. What I mean on my fence, I have a ledge all the way around my fence and I set planters on them and that is where I planed the peas, so that they'll hang down my fence.

So to sum it all up, my seeds all soaked for at least 12 hours before drying up (not sure exactly as I don't know what time of day they dried up) and my peas soaked in water for 8 hours then in soil for approximately 12.

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applestar
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The pea is "meaty" for lack of another word and can hold water for a while in the seed. So it is less likely to have dried out dried out (yes I said it twice) than tiny seeds. When I pre-germinate pea seeds for planting (I like to pre-germinate so I KNOW they are going to grow where I planted them), I soak, then drain completely, so they are not in water for overnight - 8 hours or more. They are rinsed and drained 2-3 times a day until they germinate and roots begin to grow. In soil that is not dried out, there IS moisture. The soil will only steal moisture from the seeds if it is drier than the seeds.



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