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PunkRotten
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Any problem with starting with big pots?

Hi,


I see people using small pots and transplanting to bigger pots gradually atleast 3 times. Could you cut to the chase and just start with bigger pots? What is a proper size for things like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, melons, basil, and other herbs? And what is a good seed starting soil mix?

Thx

CharlieBear
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Cuccumbers, melons can just be directly planted where you want them to grow, otherwise make a newspaper pot by wrapping around a soup or vegetable can and use that with general non fertilizer added potting soil 2-3 weeks before plant out.
Tomatoes and peppers are pricked out and potted up several times to get better root structures. I prefer to plant single seeds in small cells of plastic seeding trays and then transplant those up rather than pricking out, but that is just me. You don't need any fertilizer in the intial planting,the seeds have what they need to get them started. Some people have their own blends like 1 part leaf mold to 1 part coir or spagmum moss to 1 part vermiculite or perlite. I generally just use something called nursery mix if I don't have what I need to mix something up. There are also seed starting mixes, but they are often not much more than pulvarized spagmum peat moss at big expense. These plants are alway planted deeper each time they are potted up. I am sure others have their preferred mixes etc.

FlowerPowerGirl
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I like that newspaper pot idea. Thanks for the tip.

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Ruffsta
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I start my seeds in translucent mini plastic cups (similar to dixi bathroom cup size).. with organic potting soil.. after they have sprouted and have 2 decent sized leaves I'll transplant them to a small pot.. then trans plant them to a bigger pot later and then much later finally planting them outside.

personally I find it a waste to start off seeds in big pots.. waste of nutrients too..


but yes agreed.. transplanting often - does give better roots

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PunkRotten
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Well I thought about the bigger pot because that is where the plant will eventually end up and I was thinking you can skip all the smaller steps. I mean, you want a tomato plant to get about a foot atleast before transplanting outside. So I was thinking with a bigger pot you can do that and wouldn't be so much of a waste on soil/nutrients.


I have a few things going in newspaper pots right now. What do you guys used to seal it so the pot keeps its shape? Could you use tape and then rip it off right when you transplant?

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Ruffsta
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nutrients break down after awhile especially if they are not being used.. so best advice is just go through the stages of transplanting.. newspaper breaks down right in the soil, so there is no need to remove it as roots will tear right through it anyways.

as far as holding it together.. a fold-in method or a piece of tape.. I mean there is really no specific way of doing things.. basically trial and error..

what works for one person may not work for another.. so it's really based on how you wanna do things and how many things/methods you want to try out.

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PunkRotten
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But is tape a good thing to have in the soil?

Susan W
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Some pot up gradually as a logistics measure. Say you starts indoors in winter, outgrowing cell, gets bumped up a notch and still a few weeks away from going outside. I am doing this with basil starts. Have had seed starts ongoing since July, usually in peat pellets. If I have pots ready may go directly into those. If not, at least get to 4" pots. Of course this isn't the cold thing as in spring, but a logistics situation.

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Ruffsta
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PunkRotten wrote:But is tape a good thing to have in the soil?
a small piece won't do any harm and it will break down eventually.. you can always just rip the tape off right before planting... use paper clips and remove them before planting... it's all up to you... again there is no perfect or specific solution... trial and error :)

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rainbowgardener
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Big pots with a lot of soil tend to hold water too long, keeping everything too moist... And they take up a lot of room and soil. Since I start tons of seeds every winter for planting out in the spring, I wouldn't have room under the lights for everything if I had them in big pots. The ending size for tomatoes is at least a 5 gallon bucket. What would you do with a bunch of those trying to start a lot of seeds indoors? Really most little seedlings do not do very well in big pots...

I transplant most things three times... from crowded in little cells to one per cell, to 3 inch pots to the ground or big pot they are going to stay in. Sometimes I skip either the first or second step (not both).

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PunkRotten
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Alright I will be sure to do that when the time comes.

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Kisal
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Punk, I do it the way you're talking about. When my starts are about a foot tall, I transfer them to the pot they will stay in for the duration. I plant them deep, filling the pot only part way with soil. As the main stem grows longer, I strip off a few bottom side stems and add a few more inches of soil to the pot. Eventually, the container is full of soil, and my plant is nice and deep with a good root system. Plus, it saves on the plant suffering setbacks every time it's uprooted for repotting. Just be careful not to overwater and the plant will do fine. :)



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