New set-up for baby seeds

Tue Mar 08, 2011 3:23 am

Might be a silly question, but what's a pence? :lol:

I tried to google it, but all I was coming up with was a penny and I wasn't sure how to use a penny to accomplish my task since they seem so much bigger than the seedlings themselves. xD If you did mean a penny I feel like a dumdum now haha.

Tue Mar 08, 2011 3:42 am

I'm the dummy. I misspelled pencil twice. :lol:

Sing a song of sixpence, blah blah blah.

Eric

Tue Mar 08, 2011 3:59 am

Okay, I'll give it a shot, hopefully I won't destroy my baby seedlings, though if I do mess up I have a whole bunch of seeds left and apparently they grow in like, MILLISECONDS haha.

When constructing a cold frame, could I go to someplace like Lowe's or Home Depot for a bit of help/instruction? Their commercials boast the ability to help with home improvement and the like, but do you think they'd be able to help me out, or should I just scour the internet for some really good instructions? The people in the garden section at my Lowe's don't seem to really know much about gardening and appear to have been placed there since they also didn't know about the other home improvement areas.

Tue Mar 08, 2011 4:44 am

Take a look at these. I just Googled Cold Frames.

http://www.sunset.com/garden/backyard-p ... 000018537/

http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/reso ... hp?cat=388

Many different designs.

Eric

Tue Mar 08, 2011 5:51 am

DoubleDogFarm wrote:Take a look at these. I just Googled Cold Frames.

http://www.sunset.com/garden/backyard-p ... 000018537/

http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/reso ... hp?cat=388

Many different designs.

Eric

Oh wow! Thank you! When I tried to Google it I looked at the Wikipedia page and a few other less helpful sources.

Is it okay to keep it above ground? I see these instructions say to place it underground, but I think the property manager might get a little miffed if she came by to see a giant box in the middle of the lawn area. :lol:

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:17 am

arisachu,

If you look at the Sunset.com design, it has rope handles. Even though the articles talks about burying 10", you can see this one in the photo is made to be moved around.

I think it's a rather attractive design also.

Gets me thinking. Do I build 12ft wide by 20ft long High Tunnels or a bunch of cold frames. Hmm :?:

Eric

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:22 am

Oooo High Tunnels look like fun.

What are the pros to building these High Tunnels?
:sigh: If only I had the space for bigger things. Then again, maybe it's best to have concrete limitations, otherwise I'd get way ahead of myself. (There I go obsessing again

)

That is a very attractive design.

A bit big for my scale, but I'm sure I could adjust accordingly with that newfangled math nonsense everyone talks about.

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:27 am

Looking at the Sunset design. I would not do the goofy back frame with the rope and pulleys. I would prop open with a notched stick system or lid prop.

Eric

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:36 am

High Tunnel is similar to a greenhouse, but easier and cheaper to build. You can build both over concrete. :wink:

Basically a season extender. Plant earlier and grow longer into the winter. You can stand inside and work. Try to do that in a cold frame.

Eric

Tue Mar 08, 2011 2:45 pm

Nice play on words there.

As for soil to put in the cold frame, what would you suggest I get to put inside the box since I can't put it underground?

Tue Mar 08, 2011 3:50 pm

That's a good idea.

I had thought about stopping by the greenhouses on campus and seeing if there was anything I could volunteer for. :3
Not sure about senior centers around here, I'll have to look into it. There's this really cool park area in town, a little bit farther away from home, but it's very nice and I know they welcome volunteers.

I'll go check them out.

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:06 pm

Just to make sure I'm not slowly killing them, are these guys looking good? I've just moved them to the window for much better lighting. Today's weather looked promising, but alas.
If I put them outside, should I cover them?
Picture is kind of blurry, my phone doesn't do so hot with close-ups.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 12:20 am

I put this off because I didn't want to be the bearer of bad news.

Your Brussels sprouts are very leggy. This is do to not enough light. I suggest that you start over and put the light right over the pots.

Eric

Wed Mar 09, 2011 12:27 am

DoubleDogFarm wrote:I put this off because I didn't want to be the bearer of bad news. Your Brussels sprouts are very leggy. This is do to not enough light. I suggest that you start over and put the light right over the pots.

Eric

That's what I though.

It's okay to be the bearer of bad news, because the earlier I know, the earlier I can get new ones going and have happy, healthy plants.

I'm glad you said something.
I re-potted them to house one seedling per pot and planted them deeper, do you think they are at all able to be saved? They will be getting dedicated sunlight from here on out to try and make up for my neglect, just in case they can be saved. I saw a few other posts around here about leggy plants and they all seemed to be hopeful souls.
This is what happened to my flowers a couple years back when I tried planting them from seeds, and they were next to a window all the time! I wonder if I really do just have a black thumb of plant death.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 12:41 am

You may find out that this time of the year your window will not work either. Give it a try. Also bring the soil all the way up to the top of the pot. Being down in a hole maybe shading them also. :wink:

and no fertilizer! I use a simple mix of peat moss and perlite nothing else.

Eric

Wed Mar 09, 2011 2:38 am

DoubleDogFarm wrote:You may find out that this time of the year your window will not work either. Give it a try. Also bring the soil all the way up to the top of the pot. Being down in a hole maybe shading them also. and no fertilizer! I use a simple mix of peat moss and perlite nothing else.

Eric

I'll add some extra soil to the top of the pot, and when I went ahead and re-potted them most of them got soil farther up. I just went to see my friend's basil plants at her apartment and her's look pretty similar to mine, only further along, and she said she was just doing what the greenhouse kit said to do. She puts her right up at the window, too. I'm getting this feeling that no matter what I do I won't be able to get it to work out. :/
I used your pencil trick and it seemed to work well.

I hope I didn't mess them up and hurt the roots or anything.

I'm thinking about going into the plant science building on campus with my tray of seedlings and just wander around teary-eyed until someone helps me. :lol:

I'll try putting the seedling tray on a box and get them close to the light and see if that works.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 11:26 am

They were looking really stretched, but they are also tiny babies, that haven't even opened their seed leaves yet, much less true leaves. So they can certainly be saved if conditions are corrected. If you do some browsing around this section, you will find lots of pictures of people's seed starting set ups.

Even though they sell window sill seed starting kits, for most people and most plants window light just isn't enough, especially this early in the season, when there are still not lots of hours of daylight. If you happen to have a south facing window that is not shaded by any other buildings or trees AND you live in a sunny climate, you probably can start seeds by a window.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 1:56 pm

The one good thing I've got going is that I do have a south-southeast facing apartment. Today is looking dreary out with no sun so I'm going to make good use of those schoolbooks and prop thee seedlings closer to the light.

They are looking even more leggy today I don't know how to contain the crazy night growth, as that seems to be when they do most of their growing. Cross your fingers for me that I can find a way to not kill them.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 5:34 pm

I don't know how to contain the crazy night growth, as that seems to be when they do most of their growing

It's like when someone is watching over your shoulder while you work, it makes you uncomfortable. Stop fussing and staring at them during the day. :wink:

Eric

Wed Mar 09, 2011 9:24 pm

But I thought all the eager carbon dioxide that I emit from my giant pie-hole was good for 'em!

I moved 'em up this morning using my ever-so-useful textbooks

and they seemed to be enjoying the light, but those darn seedlings on the outer edges were practically clawing for the light when I got home just now! I wish I could rig a way to hang the light overhead instead of mounted on the wall. Instead my solution is to just keep turning the container every hour or so in order to try and prevent them bending. xD My methods are so MacGyver-ey. :lol:

(<3 Richard Dean Anderson)

But the light at the end of the dark, dreary weather tunnel is that it will be super nice out this weekend! I'll be able to stare at them ALL WEEK LONG next week on spring break.

Thu Mar 10, 2011 4:47 pm

One cilantro and the thyme seeds sprouted last night. I'm afraid that I'm killing them, too, even though they just germinated. xD Today I have some homework to do, though, so they're going to be a bit farther away from the light. :lol:

I built another book mountain for the second tray since so many are popping up now. They should be close enough to the light, I'd say about 6" give or take. I'm running out of textbooks, though. :lol:

This is the cilantro. It seemed to grow this big practically overnight. :shock:

Does it look like it's doing okay?

Sorry for all the picture spams, I'm not great at describing things. More of a visual learner.

Thu Mar 10, 2011 5:08 pm

Still looking kind of thin and stretched. But that sometimes happens when seeds pop up in the night. Give it a couple more days and see what happens. But 6" is still a lot. I have fluorescent tubes about 2" over my seedlings.

Thu Mar 10, 2011 5:10 pm

Alrighty. I'll find some more books to prop them up on.

I'm probably going to go out and get another light to put on the back wall. Should I get another grow light, or a regular fluorescent?

Thu Mar 10, 2011 5:16 pm

I'll quote Rainbow, :wink:

I have fluorescent tubes about 2" over my seedlings.

I keep hearing they are about $15. fixtures.

Eric

Fri Mar 11, 2011 2:44 am

Oh derp

putting 2 and 2 together is obviously not my strong point today. :lol:

I'm going to wal-mart tomorrow so I'll grab a light there.

Thanks guys

Fri Mar 11, 2011 5:50 am

Sorry for all the picture spams, I'm not great at describing things. More of a visual learner.

I like pictures. Have you seen some of my post? A dozen photos or more. I know some are still using dial up, I can't help that.

Post more pictures, I'm visual also!
Eric

Fri Mar 11, 2011 1:44 pm

Okay.

Good to know others around here are also visual people.

Two of my B. sprouts died yesterday.

I know I shouldn't be too surprised, but it's still a little sad. I'm getting one of those mini greenhouse kits because my friend's plants are looking way better than mine so maybe that will work better for me. Can I leave the plants outside in those things?