first time gardener hereI think I was set up for failure… help! My MIL (who gardens) bought me this seed starting kit with indeterminate tomato seeds. The kit says to use “small rooted veggies” which I don’t think these qualify as. I also don’t have a grow light or heating pad.
We live in 6b where it’s still very cold and most don’t plant until after Mother’s Day. Any advice?
by babyeemuch
7 Comments
Lauuson
Get growing lights, get a heating pad, and get anything other than peat to start your seeds in.
GravityBright
I’d say they should work here as long as you plan ahead and don’t let them get too big. As a rule of thumb, I would sow three to four weeks before the target transplant date.
Further, you can probably transplant a bit earlier than Mother’s day. Tomato seedlings can live outside right after last frost, which in 6B shouldn’t be later than the third week of April.
FreddyTheGoose
I just feel like peat pots and tomatoes have never worked for me. After getting only 3 sprouts of 8 seeds, I took the pots out, made a germination mix to fill that tray – about 2:1 peat moss and potting soil – and sowed six seeds each in: 2 rows of Twyman’s, 1 row each of Boobies, Albengas, and Micro Dwarf Lille Lise. Almost every single one popped within 4 days and they’re all up now.
I used the peat pots for flower seeds and they were fine, but they don’t have any nutrients for the plant so I buy myself time with the germination mix, by not having to pot up so quickly.
Edit to add, for no good reason, that American Seed Company can kiss my ass, lol
Specializd1
What u have there is perfect. Indeterminates like everything else start small so u don’t have to worry about their full grown roots in that thing lol
MoltenCorgi
I mean that will kinda get you started but those things are a pain. The material around the coir sometimes doesn’t break down in the garden and will strangle roots or stunt growth, they aren’t really deep enough so you will need to transplant before they are ready to go outside. The trays themselves are flimsy and likely to buckle when you move them, especially if everything is too wet. Coir doesn’t have much nutrition in it and newbies have trouble getting moisture levels right.
You’ll have better success with good quality seed trays with lots of drainage. A seed mat isn’t required and is only needed up until germination, but it will seriously speed up germination times so it’s helpful.
A good quality light that can be positioned and moved is really essential. A cheap shop light can work but it needs to evenly cover the entire tray (or you need multiple) and you need to be able to suspend it inches from the plants to prevent them from getting leggy.
If you think this will turn into a regular hobby, you could invest in a better setup that will serve you for years. Or you could just find a cheap shop light and use some solo cups with drainage holes poked in them, but do order a heavy duty “1020 tray” (it’s the standard 10” x 20” greenhouse tray) without holes for keeping the solo cups in. It will make life much easier. I like the ones Epic and Bootstrap Farmer sell. And I have found sturdy ones at hydro stores too. Pick them up and flex them and make sure they are solid. The cheap ones that buckle look almost the same as the good ones.
North-Star2443
You can start tomatoes in that. Obviously having a heat pad etc is best but it’s definitely not impossible without them, have fun with it. I put mine above the radiator and next to a bright window. I use a regular lamp real close if it’s not a bright enough day. You will need to transfer into bigger pots once you have a few true leaves.
Tourist1292
This would work but far from the best way to start from seeds. Grow light and heat pad may be optional depending on your area. I started mine a few weeks ago with grow light and heat pad though. Since you the kit already, you should give it a try. I have used the larger one of this (with 36 larger pellets) and I got ~85% success from ~3 seeds per pellet. There is a Youtube video comparing different seed starting set up including this, and this is among the worse as it has no fertilizer in it. It works fine for me as I supplement with some transplant liquid fertilizer after 2 weeks.
7 Comments
Get growing lights, get a heating pad, and get anything other than peat to start your seeds in.
I’d say they should work here as long as you plan ahead and don’t let them get too big. As a rule of thumb, I would sow three to four weeks before the target transplant date.
Further, you can probably transplant a bit earlier than Mother’s day. Tomato seedlings can live outside right after last frost, which in 6B shouldn’t be later than the third week of April.
I just feel like peat pots and tomatoes have never worked for me. After getting only 3 sprouts of 8 seeds, I took the pots out, made a germination mix to fill that tray – about 2:1 peat moss and potting soil – and sowed six seeds each in: 2 rows of Twyman’s, 1 row each of Boobies, Albengas, and Micro Dwarf Lille Lise. Almost every single one popped within 4 days and they’re all up now.
I used the peat pots for flower seeds and they were fine, but they don’t have any nutrients for the plant so I buy myself time with the germination mix, by not having to pot up so quickly.
Edit to add, for no good reason, that American Seed Company can kiss my ass, lol
What u have there is perfect. Indeterminates like everything else start small so u don’t have to worry about their full grown roots in that thing lol
I mean that will kinda get you started but those things are a pain. The material around the coir sometimes doesn’t break down in the garden and will strangle roots or stunt growth, they aren’t really deep enough so you will need to transplant before they are ready to go outside. The trays themselves are flimsy and likely to buckle when you move them, especially if everything is too wet. Coir doesn’t have much nutrition in it and newbies have trouble getting moisture levels right.
You’ll have better success with good quality seed trays with lots of drainage. A seed mat isn’t required and is only needed up until germination, but it will seriously speed up germination times so it’s helpful.
A good quality light that can be positioned and moved is really essential. A cheap shop light can work but it needs to evenly cover the entire tray (or you need multiple) and you need to be able to suspend it inches from the plants to prevent them from getting leggy.
If you think this will turn into a regular hobby, you could invest in a better setup that will serve you for years. Or you could just find a cheap shop light and use some solo cups with drainage holes poked in them, but do order a heavy duty “1020 tray” (it’s the standard 10” x 20” greenhouse tray) without holes for keeping the solo cups in. It will make life much easier. I like the ones Epic and Bootstrap Farmer sell. And I have found sturdy ones at hydro stores too. Pick them up and flex them and make sure they are solid. The cheap ones that buckle look almost the same as the good ones.
You can start tomatoes in that. Obviously having a heat pad etc is best but it’s definitely not impossible without them, have fun with it. I put mine above the radiator and next to a bright window. I use a regular lamp real close if it’s not a bright enough day. You will need to transfer into bigger pots once you have a few true leaves.
This would work but far from the best way to start from seeds. Grow light and heat pad may be optional depending on your area. I started mine a few weeks ago with grow light and heat pad though. Since you the kit already, you should give it a try. I have used the larger one of this (with 36 larger pellets) and I got ~85% success from ~3 seeds per pellet. There is a Youtube video comparing different seed starting set up including this, and this is among the worse as it has no fertilizer in it. It works fine for me as I supplement with some transplant liquid fertilizer after 2 weeks.