How do you warm stratify without having mold growing on it?
Heruga (7a Northern NJ)
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
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Addison in VT z4a
3 years agomorz8 - Washington Coast
3 years agoRelated Discussions
seed growing gizmos & gadgets you can't live without...
Comments (37)I agree a zillion times on the heat mats! I have 12 of them and need more of them. I do like the idea of using a heating blanket, never thought of that, it would be perfect size for starting flats of Caladiums this year, as last year I didnt have enough heat mats for them and it took forever for them to sprout. Lights are also vital for me, I have way way way too many of them in our home, occupying 4 different "grow rooms". Other gizmos, I use a large turkey baster for watering individual plants. The baster seems to let out just the right flow of water, as the watering cans seem to spill water into individual plants that dont need watered. This can be time consuming, but necessary until flats are all drying out at the same time. I bottom water all seedlings until they have been transplanted. I also use, well it isnt a gadget but it is a technique really, a gallon water jug where I mix my fertilizer at HALF STRENGTH with water, and I will use equal portions of this (as needed) with WARM water, which gives me a 1/4 strenght fertilizer for all seedlings/plants that get watered. As you know, you should never water with cold water, but if you mix a batch of fertilizer and then dont need to use it all right away (say, a gallon amount), it gets cold in its container. So, I allow the gallon jug to get cold and then just mix with warm water, whatever amount I think I may need. I just use a second water jug and mix equal parts. No fertilizer waste! I also use valve action markers in different colors that I use to right on my pots, so I know what is in them. I dont actually right out the whole name, such as Petunia 'Tidal Wave Silver', but I will simply write a small TWS on the pot, so I know what it is without using tags, because tags can (and do!) fall out. In the off season, after I scrub my pots, I use a black valve action permanant marker and mark over these labels so that the next season they are ready to go. I also have jillions of pie plates, muffin tins, and pot pie tins which I use for sowing seeds. These are the perfect depth for planting almost all seeds. Though, I am now beginning to use more commercial plug trays, I still use lots of the muffin tins for planting up to 25 seeds. I also use cut up sections of plug trays for "jimmying" up the different containers to reach the light. For instance, right now I have several containers with impatiens seedlings and several with petunia seedlings, which are about an inch difference in height. I jimmy up the petunia seedlings in the flat so that they are the same height as the Impatiens, and all plants are the same distance from the lights. My plants almost touch the lights! I also use little tiny baby toothbrushes for scrubbing plug trays and bottle brushes for cell packs and pots. My husband designed some "free standing" grow light racks for me for when my plants have outgrown the shelves. We drape several chains over a table and hang the lights under the table, and I can keep growing on my plants when they are quite tall. I can raise the lights up to two feet if I wanted to! Most plants dont get that tall though before getting hardened off, but the height is nice for getting containers going early. Anyone can build this, just get a good old sturdy table. I also do the wet toothpick trick! Works great for "smashing" pellets also. I like to smash my pelleted seed so that they all germinate at about the same time. Another thing to do with the toothpick--if any of you are like me and want to conserve every single seed that germinates, I get frustrated when I have a container of ready-to-transplant seedlings and I look closely and see several seedlings that had just sprouted. Especially with seed that was expensive, like impatiens! What I do is, I keep an eye on the flats and I will use a toothpick to remove some of those tiny germinated seedlings from the container, and move them one by one into a new container. Since they have just germinated, there is only a very tiny root system, so you dont hurt it at all by moving it. If I did not move them, they would get ruined when I transplant the larger seedlings to cell packs. I also keep an eye out for ungerminated seeds,in particular with impatiens or seeds that I spent a lot of money on. I dont quite understand why they dont all germinate at the same time, but it happens all the time! I will use a toothpick to pick up the seeds, put them in a new container and back under the domes for germinating. This also keeps me from losing those baby seedlings I mentioned before. Tedious? Sure! But I strive to get everything I canfrom what I spend on seeds! Anyway, those were my gadgets! Neat post!...See MoreGrowing stinging nettles... stratifying seeds, etc.
Comments (49)I have two stinging nettle plants but they aren't growing hardly at all. I guess I made the mistake of planting the well rooted cuttings in 3 gallon pots instead of 1 gallons to start. The tea is very sweet. Such a joy to drink it. I made the mistake of trying to eat the leaves after I made the tea. Big mistake. Nothing like stinging tongue. Thank God it only lasted a few minutes. I hope I will have some to share next year. I don't know how to make it grow any faster in pots....See MoreHow do you warm things up w/o rugs and curtains?
Comments (16)a skirted table [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/charming-manor-traditional-entry-minneapolis-phvw-vp~526812) [Traditional Entry[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-entryway-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_741~s_2107) by Minneapolis Interior Designers & Decorators Lucy Interior Design you can paint stripes or other designs on the walls and painted rugs on the floor [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/marilynn-taylor-and-allan-dallatorre-for-teen-project-contemporary-bathroom-los-angeles-phvw-vp~698709) [Contemporary Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2103) by Los Angeles Photographers Erika Bierman Photography more stripes or color blocking with paint [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/heritage-at-stapleton-traditional-basement-denver-phvw-vp~3949747) [Traditional Basement[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-basement-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_747~s_2107) by Denver Home Builders Wonderland Homes [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/new-construction-bethany-beach-del-contemporary-bedroom-philadelphia-phvw-vp~295838) [Contemporary Bedroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-bedroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_715~s_2103) by Wilmington General Contractors Dewson Construction Company [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/calming-green-master-bedroom-contemporary-bedroom-portland-phvw-vp~74260) [Contemporary Bedroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-bedroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_715~s_2103) by Portland Interior Designers & Decorators Ragan Corliss [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/beach-chic-design-kid-space-contemporary-kids-jacksonville-phvw-vp~3066855) [Contemporary Kids[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kids-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_24653~s_2103) by Ponte Vedra Beach Interior Designers & Decorators Beach Chic Design notice how the floor is bordered in the shape of rugs but there are no rugs, you could do this with paint on the hardwood in a latex paint or with tape to simulate area rugs blocking off spaces that would have a rug [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/frisco-european-transitional-entry-dallas-phvw-vp~1555896) [Modern Entry[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-entryway-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_741~s_2105) by Frisco Home Builders Hensley Premier Builders [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/living-room-traditional-living-room-chicago-phvw-vp~151886) [Traditional Living Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-living-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_718~s_2107) by Rockford Interior Designers & Decorators KannCept Design, Inc. faux painted wallpaper [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/distressed-stripes-mediterranean-bedroom-phvw-vp~3637990) [Mediterranean Bedroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/mediterranean-bedroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_715~s_2109) by Morris Plains Artists & Artisans Periwinkle Skies, LLC [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/dining-room-eclectic-dining-room-baltimore-phvw-vp~898722) [Eclectic Dining Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/eclectic-dining-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_722~s_2104) by Baltimore Interior Designers & Decorators Robin Hiken Interiors...See MoreSurviving without a kitchen - how'd you do it?
Comments (20)I dreaded, dreaded, DREADED being without a kitchen, and I scheduled our reno to the T so it would be quick. Needless to say, it didn't happen that way - last-minute changes, contractor getting really sick, another contractor's family tragedy, and various other unforseen issues. We had our tear-out the end of October and we still aren't finished yet. But we are actually okay with it. I think the main thing, as others have mentioned, is being set up near a sink. You don't realize how much you miss water until you don't have it handy. I don't have a laundry or utility sink, so I am set up in our upstairs bathroom where we have a big counter with double sinks. Across the hall I have our food and microwave set up in a spare bedroom. It works out very well, but I wouldn't be able to wash anything large. I originally intended to use my crockpot, but I don't because I don't want to wash it. I also don't do anything that involves real prep or cooking because for me personally it would be too much of a PITA. But like others also mentioned above, we have discovered the prepared foods. I never really looked in the frozen food cases, but you can find just about anything to microwave these days, even brownies! So we are eating bagged salads, fresh fruit, canned soups, sandwiches, supermarket chicken, cereal, instant oatmeal, ramen noodles, and all kinds of frozen stuff. I feel like a college kid again! On the rare occasion we eat out, we try to order a lot of food that can be good the next day too. The biggest downside is that DH and I have gained probably 10 pounds each! So I do look forward to having my kitchen back and cooking and eating more healthfully again. One last thing I would do differently, I would have gotten a small fridge off Craig's list to keep in the bedroom if I'd known how long this was going to be. It is a little inconvenient (and cold) to run down to the garage where our fridge is now. But all in all, it's been pretty painless. We usually eat at our desks or in front of the TV. Now, you didn't mention if you have kids in the house, and I think that would make a big difference. If that's the case, I'm sure others will have better tips for you. The last thing that really helped was making a mental decision to not let things get to me. It wasn't easy at first when things starting getting off track, but I made a mental decision to be okay with it, and that has helped me be comfortable living this way. So my advice is prepare yourself mentally to go with the flow, prepare your physical surroundings so you don't feel too disorganized, and know that life will be back to normal one day, but with a beautiful new kitchen! Here's my set-up: the bathroom/kitchen: the bedroom/pantry: That's how we're surviving. Hope this helps!...See MoreAddison in VT z4a
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoHeruga (7a Northern NJ)
3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
3 years agoHeruga (7a Northern NJ)
3 years agoUser
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
3 years agoUser
3 years agoHeruga (7a Northern NJ)
3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
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3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoUser
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoUser
3 years agoAddison in VT z4a
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3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoHeruga (7a Northern NJ)
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