Advice needed on struggling pepper starts.
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
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- 4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoHosanna Fox thanked daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
- 4 years ago
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Need advice, going to try and start seeds indoors again
Comments (24)I have the same shelf as zenman, but I don't use a heat mat. I buy the mylar blankets from the sports dept at Walmart. They are in a small box hanging on a rack and the cost is about $3. I drape this small blanket over the top shelf and attach it with clothes pins to cover down to the next shelf. I don't use any lights on the top shelf, and because heat rises, the heat from the lights on the second shelf heat the area above that shelf. The blanket holds the heat in and the tray with the dome cover holds the moisture in the tray. At the first sign of germination, I remove the dome and move the tray down under the lights and drop the lights down until they almost touch the plants. I grow in a building that is well insulated and will only add heat if the outside temp is below freezing. The lights create some heat, but I intentional grow tomatoes on a cooler shelf. Peppers, on the other hand, need to be on one of the open shelves that has a light under it as they will benefit from the extra heat that rises from that light. I also have my light fixtures plugged into surge protectors so that I can control all of the lights by just flipping a switch rather than plugging and unplugging cords. The sports blankets that I use look a little like aluminum foil, but are soft and almost transparent. When I first start the plants I use another blanket to wrap around the shelves because the silver color tends to reflect more light onto the plants (I think). Sometimes I remove it from the lower shelves and some years I just add a small fan to make sure there is some air movement on the plants. Later in the season, I remove it because I don't want the plants to be too hot, but I leave the top part covered and continue to use it as a germination chamber. I am attaching a picture, but the light wasn't on in the room when I took the picture so you have to look closely to see the top shelf which has no lights. I have watered from the bottom, from the top, and misted and I never have had damping off, so I can't say which is best. I would never mist if I wasn't running a fan though. Here is a link that might be useful: My shelf...See Morenovice - need advice on when to start....zone 5/6.
Comments (11)Yes, peppers continue to produce for a couple months in Zone 5. You can usually start getting some green jalapenos or other unripe c. annuum in July, and can harvest peppers right up to first frost. Some varieties have heavy intermittent crops, some are more continuous. I would never deliberately stagger my pepper plantings since our season is so short. I plant all my transplants as soon as nighttime temps are reasonable. However, I always grow a few extra seedlings in case of hail, freak storms, or critters that like tender pepper seedlings, so sometimes I end up staggering my plantings anyway. But that is only for putting in replacement plants over a couple week window in late May and early June. It's pretty much not worth transplanting peppers in Zone 5 after June 15....See Morenovice pepper gardener needs advice
Comments (1)In mny limited experience, the hot peppers from the Andes region actually like it kind of cool. Rocoto is VERY cold tolerant, relatively speaking. In the Andes, its a cool, but long day. Still, that having been said, low 40s is a bit chilly for capsicum. You risk stalling the plant's growth. If the plant gets too cold, when it warms up again, it looks like some sort of acid burned the leaves....See MoreNeed Advice - AC Temp Control Struggles
Comments (4)What is age of AC? What size is your AC? When was the last time it was serviced? How long have you lived in home? Has it always been unable to maintain your temp comfort level at high outside temperatures? Just curious but why have you not called a dealer? Your situation is not normal for a properly sized and correctly operating system. You will get some supply temp variances within a home but 5 degrees is too much. That could indicate some ductwork leaks. How many returns do you have? Sorry for your trouble....See More- 4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoHosanna Fox thanked daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
- 4 years ago
- Hosanna Fox thanked daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
- 4 years ago
- 4 years ago
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LoneJack Zn 6a, KC