So, I am fairly new to gardening and planted four different types of seeds in small starter pots made of compressed compost. I planted 6 of each of the four different seeds consisting of two watermelon varieties, a pumpkin and a cantaloupe. It has been three days since I planted them and there are no signs of growth. I actually dug out two of the seeds and they have no sign of sprouting.
I think that it most likely has something to do with my soil composition, but it might just not be enough time. So.. my soil is mainly peat moss with equal parts black cow, cow manure and a soil mix.
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applestar
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Soil mix sounds too rich. Nix the cow manure and add sand or perlite for better drainage.
Check out this thread. watermelon and melons started 4/19 last year. It took longer than three days for them to germinate. It would take even longer to sprout out of the soil.
Subject: 2014 pre-germinating/sprouting experiment Peas, Corn, Curcs
Check out this thread. watermelon and melons started 4/19 last year. It took longer than three days for them to germinate. It would take even longer to sprout out of the soil.
Subject: 2014 pre-germinating/sprouting experiment Peas, Corn, Curcs
applestar wrote:As I mentioned in the other thread, I decided to pre-germinate the corn before planting this spring.
...I don't know why, but I decided since I also wanted to start these squash and melons inside this year, I might as well pre-germinate them as well. I tossed them all in the same sprouter because I can tell the corn apart and I'm not going to worry about the squash and melons -- I can tell the kind of seeds apart, and the same crop are going in the same beds since I'm not concerned about saving seeds or cross pollination with these.
Corn and small squash 04/19/14 Seed sprouter
Corn (Bloody Butcher, Cherokee long ear; Experimental Hybrid Sweet from Early Bird Garden), squash (Japanese Pie mixta, Seminole moschata, and Red Kuri maxima) plus melon (Ananas D'Amerique A Chair Vert), watermelon (Early Moonbeam, Sugar Baby, Charleston Grey) These other group of squash are ones that are susceptible to SVB's and I'm planning to try something to protect them, so they went into a separate sprouter:
Protect from SVB squash 04/19/14 Seed sprouter
Pepo - Kakai, Delicata Cornell's Bush; Maxima - Guatemalan Blue, Red Kuri, Uncle David's Also, due to the long winter and roller coaster weather, etc. I'm trying to plant some late peas in a hurry so pre-germinating these:
Peas, Tall Telephone 04/19/14 Jar sprouter Peas, Green Beauty snow 04/19/14 Jar sprouter Peas, Sugar Snap and Sugar Daddy 04/19/14 Jar sprouter [/b]
The Green Beauty peas look like they might be ready to sow in the morning.
Three days is not that long to wait. if your soil is still cold below 55 degrees it will be slower. Give it at least 7 days. Be careful not to over water or you may run into dampening off problems.
Some people say they do not have issues with compost, but it does not work for me. It just holds too much water.
I prefer to start my seeds in potting soil. I make my own with 50/50 peat moss and perlite with a couple of tablespoons of osmocote in a 5 gallon bucket, and a handful of vermicast if I have it. Wet the media first so it is damp and not dry or dripping wet. Plant seeds 1-1/2 -2 times its width deep. Small seeds can be scattered on top and pressed into the soil or a thin layer of potting mix sprinkled on top. Keep media moist but not soggy. Soil temps above 65 degrees will aid germination. Unless it specifically says that the seeds require darkness to germinate, most seeds do better with lots of warmth and light.
I start my seeds in community pots to save space and transplant to individual 3.5 inch pots when they have true leaves. Many people do use seeding flats, but I they take up too much of my space and I do not get even germination, they dry out quicker, but for me are harder to manage watering, and I am used to using community pots and know how to manage them better.
Some people say they do not have issues with compost, but it does not work for me. It just holds too much water.
I prefer to start my seeds in potting soil. I make my own with 50/50 peat moss and perlite with a couple of tablespoons of osmocote in a 5 gallon bucket, and a handful of vermicast if I have it. Wet the media first so it is damp and not dry or dripping wet. Plant seeds 1-1/2 -2 times its width deep. Small seeds can be scattered on top and pressed into the soil or a thin layer of potting mix sprinkled on top. Keep media moist but not soggy. Soil temps above 65 degrees will aid germination. Unless it specifically says that the seeds require darkness to germinate, most seeds do better with lots of warmth and light.
I start my seeds in community pots to save space and transplant to individual 3.5 inch pots when they have true leaves. Many people do use seeding flats, but I they take up too much of my space and I do not get even germination, they dry out quicker, but for me are harder to manage watering, and I am used to using community pots and know how to manage them better.