Skoorbmax
Cool Member
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 5:38 pm
Location: NY

rainbowgardener wrote:skoorbmax - I know the stores about now are full of seed starting stuff, just another way they lead people astray. You are actually getting kind of a late start. I planted pepper seeds (indoors of course) in Jan, because they are slow to sprout and grow. You can plant them now, but be prepared to be getting your first peppers about the end of your season. You might want to just buy some pepper plants this year.

I've never grown cauliflower, but it is a brassica, in the same family with broccoli. It is a cold weather crop, very tolerant of cold and frost, but doesn't like heat very well. I planted broccoli also in Jan and transplanted the plants in the ground several weeks ago. They've been snowed on a couple times since then and are fine. I'm a bit south of you, so my season may be a little different from yours.

You are a little behind on tomatoes, but not as badly. Corn and beans you can plant directly in the ground after all danger of frost is past. Squash, melons, cucumbers you can plant directly in the ground after all danger of frost is past AND the soil has warmed up some, or you can start it indoors just a couple weeks ahead of your last frost date.
You guys must be warmer :) I guess I must be late on a few things, though. It slipped my mind entirely while watching the snow fall! last year I started seedlings now and it was definitely not too early for tomatoes and cucumbers because they were leggy but perhaps that was more lack of light than anything else (grew them by windows with a mirror). Some of the tomato seedlings in the stores in May were much larger, though.

I'm hopeful that with 2X40W flo lights I could get some better growth. Maybe use the same lights for lettuce throughout the winter...?

jordanleereynols
Full Member
Posts: 25
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2011 2:33 pm
Location: Sussex County, Delaware

I have the exact light as the one in hydro's first picture. I got it all set up and put my first plants under it last week. Some tomatoes and some peppers. They are looking really good. I realized one problem though. It's not warm enough in my basement. Probably about 65 degrees. So yesterday I went and bought some plastic and built an "enclosure" around my table and light. Today, I'm going to buy a timer for the light as I have been running it 24/7. The in-laws gave me a really nice space heater that has a thermostat on it. When I get the enslosure done, I'm going to set the heater for 80 degrees and put the light to 16 hours. I went down there this morning and just the little bit of heat the light puts off already raised the temp in there, and the enclosure isn't even done yet. So I am confident this will work. Planning on moving 10 more tomatoe, 10 pepper, and 30 watermelon plants under the light within the next couple days.

I will try and get some pics this weekend to share. My confidence is really high now that this will be successful. Hopefully I will be picking fruits and veggies a month earlier than usual this year! I am still a good month away from putting anything outside.

On a side note, a good wet week last week followed by some cool yet sunny days, and my 30x50 pea patch is looking awesome. And I dug up one of my potatoes and they seem to be coming along great as well. Should see some germination next week when we should see steady 60's with a 70 degree day mixed in.

Skoorbmax
Cool Member
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 5:38 pm
Location: NY

jordanleereynols wrote:I have the exact light as the one in hydro's first picture. I got it all set up and put my first plants under it last week. Some tomatoes and some peppers. They are looking really good. I realized one problem though. It's not warm enough in my basement. Probably about 65 degrees. So yesterday I went and bought some plastic and built an "enclosure" around my table and light. Today, I'm going to buy a timer for the light as I have been running it 24/7. The in-laws gave me a really nice space heater that has a thermostat on it. When I get the enslosure done, I'm going to set the heater for 80 degrees and put the light to 16 hours. I went down there this morning and just the little bit of heat the light puts off already raised the temp in there, and the enclosure isn't even done yet. So I am confident this will work. Planning on moving 10 more tomatoe, 10 pepper, and 30 watermelon plants under the light within the next couple days.

I will try and get some pics this weekend to share. My confidence is really high now that this will be successful. Hopefully I will be picking fruits and veggies a month earlier than usual this year! I am still a good month away from putting anything outside.

On a side note, a good wet week last week followed by some cool yet sunny days, and my 30x50 pea patch is looking awesome. And I dug up one of my potatoes and they seem to be coming along great as well. Should see some germination next week when we should see steady 60's with a 70 degree day mixed in.
I bet if you keep your enclosure tight enough the heat from the bulb would heat it up that 10-15 degrees, wouldn't it?

WinglessAngel
Green Thumb
Posts: 381
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2011 11:51 pm
Location: NE Ohio

Just a thought...my fiance rigged up on my mini greenhouse two fish tank lights and they work great...also have one stand up very large UV light in the living room lighting my other sprouts....both work great and now that I have half my sprouts in the ground he has been using the greenhouse rigged fish tank lights for his bonsai trees and some wild pea plants we started. just a thought :)



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