I need tips on starting tomatoes and peppers from seed!

[HotPepperQueen]

I have started banana peppers and beef steak tomatoes from seed before- about 90% of them didn't make it to the garden. And the ones that did make it were very strange looking, to say the least. They did produce though! Last time I didn't use heat mats or grow lights at all- just pure mother nature. This time I have some great heat mats and grow lights that are working wonders for my herbs that I propagated. I would like some tips from all of my easy gardener friends! Let the information start rolling :coolsun

 

[Ridgerunner]

My tips. The soil needs to be warm for the seeds to sprout, especially for the peppers. I had pretty good gemination in mine with a measured temperature in the low 80's in the soil itself. Air temperature in the house was less. It is not as important after the seeds sprout, but warm soil makes a big difference in germination. Warm soil helps with growth, but it is not as important as in germination.

Another comment is on moisture control. It's where I have the most problems. During germination, you want the soil fairly moist. Not necessarily wringing sopping wet, but you don't want it to dry out. Those seeds are not started very deep so surface moisture is important. But after they sprout, you don't want it as wet. You obviously don't want the roots to dry out, but if the soil is too wet, especially near the surface, they can die. And you can drown the roots.

The other comment is try to get as much light as near to them as you can. Don't make them stretch to try to get to light. I try to keep mine within two inches or less. And hit them with light from as many different directions as you can.

 

[ducks4you]

Many seeds benefit if you soak them overnight in a small bowl before planting. It helps to break to protection around the seed and happens with volunteers in your own garden after numerous rains. Like above, they are warm weather plants and will do little if the soil isn't warm.

 

[catjac1975]

I have started banana peppers and beef steak tomatoes from seed before- about 90% of them didn't make it to the garden. And the ones that did make it were very strange looking, to say the least. They did produce though! Last time I didn't use heat mats or grow lights at all- just pure mother nature. This time I have some great heat mats and grow lights that are working wonders for my herbs that I propagated. I would like some tips from all of my easy gardener friends! Let the information start rolling :coolsun

Your plants will never look as good as store bought grown in commercial greenhouses. I have found my seedlings grow better in the garden than the store bought. I believe they are over fertilized so they look good. Have you ever found they just sit in the ground after you plant them?
Your new tools should give you better plants than you last ones. Have fun!

Why did 90% of you plants not make it to the garden?
Was it damping off? Pests?
Watch for fungus gnats, white fly , and aphids.

 

[HotPepperQueen]

They just kind of...died. I don't really know what happened! I did everything I was told to do by what I found on the internet and from friends who do this all the time. I'm thinking maybe I had bad seeds. Who knows!

I have started banana peppers and beef steak tomatoes from seed before- about 90% of them didn't make it to the garden. And the ones that did make it were very strange looking, to say the least. They did produce though! Last time I didn't use heat mats or grow lights at all- just pure mother nature. This time I have some great heat mats and grow lights that are working wonders for my herbs that I propagated. I would like some tips from all of my easy gardener friends! Let the information start rolling :coolsun

Your plants will never look as good as store bought grown in commercial greenhouses. I have found my seedlings grow better in the garden than the store bought. I believe they are over fertilized so they look good. Have you ever found they just sit in the ground after you plant them?
Your new tools should give you better plants than you last ones. Have fun!

Why did 90% of you plants not make it to the garden?
Was it damping off? Pests?
Watch for fungus gnats, white fly , and aphids.

 

[digitS']

Bad soil mix . . ?

I'm afraid to change the soil I start seeds in. Oh, I've used the sterile starting mix but, only with reluctance. The general-purpose, organic potting soil - Black Gold - has worked for me with hardly a hitch.

I once picked up some off-brand stuff at the hardware store and started with that. I don't know what came over me!! The picture of the cartoon daisy on the bag is burned into my memory . That stuff very nearly ruined my entire season.

Steve

 

[swampducks]

I second the advice on getting the light as close to the plants as possible. I keep a pair of fluorescent lamps about 4 inches above the seed tray, it hangs from a chain, then raise it as the plants get closer. It's been a while since I've grown plants from seeds, but I think I also bought those daylight bulbs, NOT the ones that claim to be grow lamps.

I'm going to plant seeds in my basement March 1st so I'll be re-figuring it all out then.

 

[HotPepperQueen]

I must be doing something right- my jalapenos and hungarian wax peppers have already sprouted after only 4 days!

 

[ducks4you]

Don't be afraid to leave the lights on all night and day for the first week or so. I've done that and gotten really good germination. ALSO, I've heard from many tomato afficionados that you repot 3x before they go into the garden. Bury all leaves except the top ones. They will turn into roots and give your plants an excellent root system. When they are tiny handle them by the leaves so you don't break the tiny stem and kill the seedling.
Give them well-tilled and well fertilized garden soil. IF you can't till, then do what I did before I had a good tiller--dig them 2 ft. deep holes--DEEPER if the roots are longer. This will make them drought-proof. Put manure or fertilizer--I have used fresh manure, in the past bc I have both horses and chickens--at the bottom of the hole and fill in around your transplants with the loose soil you just dug up. Working a little sand in is a good way to loosen up the soil. If you only have loose soil around your plants, the hard clay sometimes helps to keep some weeks from taking root.
RE: Peppers, I have put rotten sweet peppers in soil before inside and had about 30-50 sprouts per pepper. I would have had a bumper crop of peppers that year, but it was before I learned about raised beds and loose soil, so many didn't make it that year.
One more thing--I have bought tomatoes many times with multiple plants in a little pot, which can happen when you start indoors. Often people recommend 3 seeds/pot and sometimes all germinate and we don't always thin them.
If you soak the pot in a bucket of water while you do other garden work for about an hour, it's pretty easy to pry the roots apart.

 

[HotPepperQueen]

Thanks! That's a lot of great info