Seedling disaster.

[Ricard with an H]

Presumably damping-off is not the dunce-disaster I first thought if there are concoctions to deal with it and from reading the contributions to this thread over-again it's clear to me damping off catches even experienced gardeners occasionally.

Whilst this thread is still warm can we associate 'No-shows' to something similar to damping off.

Right now I have a 'No-show' from a sowing of Basil and oregano together with some bulbs that were pot-planted last autumn. I dug into the pot to find all the bulbs rotten yet the other pots all have healthy bulbs of various type.

My autumn sowing of garlic and onion is doing better than I expected but in the last couple of days i'm beginning to wonder about the onion to the extent I bought more sets. I better dig an onion up.

[Monika]

Basil and oregano, being mediterranean herbs, love warmth and sunshine, so I would not sow them until well into May, in order to provide both, even under cover!

On he overwintering onions and garlic: I too have lost quite a few overwintering onions (Radar), but the garlic and shallots are now coming on slowly.

Your flower bulbs were probably too wet over the winter, Richard. Tulips in particular, will rot off if kept too wet.

[Arnie]

hi Johnboy,

Are you sure Cheshunt compond has been withdrawn as I have seen it on sale today in fact took photos of it, waiting for tech support to help put photo's on here, Son's not home from work yet

Regards

Arnie

[Geoff]

Cheshunt and Bordeaux are both withdrawn. I thought it was because of concerns about Copper in the environment, horticulture/agriculture worldwide use 150,000 tonnes of Copper Sulphate annually, but now I am not so sure. Researching around this thread I realised the approved chemical from Bayer that I quoted is another Copper salt. So is the lack of approval for these simple solutions mainly because there is no money in them so nobody will fund the approval process? If so surely basic commonly available substances should be approved in another way.
Not got to the bottom of the chemistry properly but it is not as simple as using Copper Sulphate. In the case of Bordeaux the Copper Sulphate and the quicklime react to release Copper and that is the active agent, also why you make up and use the solution immediately. I assume the Ammonium Carbonate in Cheshunt works in a similar way, you also use that fresh, but can't find a reference to confirm it.
Must try and find out what the wine growers use, after all that is where the Bordeaux and Burgundy formulations were developed in the 1880's to combat mildew.

[Johnboy]

Hi Arnie,
I am fairly sure that Cheshunt and Bordeaux mixtures have been withdrawn. If you saw that on sale today it is surely illegal!
JB.

[Johnboy]

The one thing of great importance which has yet to be mentioned on this thread is ventilation.
It is imperative that seedlings must have good ventilation at all times especially when in a heated propagator. Plants need a dry situation to prosper and be fungal infection free. There are a few exceptions to that but these are not in the vegetable kingdom.
The only seeds I raise in a heated propagator are Parsley, Tomatoes and Peppers and everything else is raised at ambient temperature.
With regards to the cleaning of pots I dump them in stacks into a bath of Jeyes Fluid and leave for about half a day and then place them to dry down. I work on the principle that any soil particles left in the pot can be treated as clean soil after the Jeyes has done its work. Mostly plants come out of my pots without leaving many deposits but there are the odd occasions and this is simply tapped out before use.
JB.

[Ricard with an H]

The one thing of great importance which has yet to be mentioned on this thread is ventilation.

It looks like i've been guilty of just-about all the sins illustrated during this thread and particularly the overcrowding and ventilation. It looks like I managed to recover a few seedlings by taking your suggestion of scraping out the dead seedlings and shuffling the remaining ones around so they have more space to breath.

None of the seeds I put into the cell trays failed which proves the point.

[Ricard with an H]

I just got to share this eureka-moment with you-all and whilst it might seem simple to you this is just another example of me spending my life learning by falling-over or bumping into things.

Today is potting-on day for a number of seedling, first to get the treatment are marigolds for complimentary planting, the centre of the seed tray was looking poorly with dead seedlings whereas the edges and corners had healthy 2 inch tall plants.

Overwatering.

When I dug the plants out of the dry edges and corners they all had healthy root systems. All I have to do now is address the reason for the purple-tinged leaves.

I have fed these seedling once with a multi-purpose liquid feed, to be be honest I was nervous. Do you wait for plants to tell you they are too-dry, too-wet or need feeding and I had always thought that underfeeding shows as yellowing leaves. If thats the case i'm over-feeding.

I'll get there, just need to share with you people the ups-and-downs because back-here people swerve to avoid me as if I suffer some sort of obsessive-disorder.

[Geoff]

I wouldn't expect to feed anything before pricking out so strange behaviour is either it doesn't like the compost or the conditions - not much help really!

[Ricard with an H]

not much help really!

Your comment suggests I fed a little early or too strong. I thought I had done a half strength mix and only fed the seedlings because they were sulking.

I think they were sulking because they were damping-off.

This time I have potted-on into peat pots and mixed sand with the mostly peat-based compost. If anything the seedlings will now dry out very quickly.

One thing I learnt last year with peat-free compost was that it dried-out more evenly in clay pots. In plastic pots the top inch was bone dry and the remaining compost got overwatered.

Isn't there a gadget that you push into pots to measure moisture level ? Is watering and feeding a black-art ?

[FelixLeiter]

All I have to do now is address the reason for the purple-tinged leaves.

Purple-tinged leaves are a sign of stress. Stress, though, can come from many directions: too wet / dry, too cold / hot, under- / over-feeding. Watering can seem like a bit of a dark art when we are faced with particularly challenging conditions such as this spring with, until recently, low light levels accompanied by brutal cold. Normally if we get our seedlings a bit too wet, a sunny afternoon comes long to dry things out. Until recently, we have had no such luck. It also means that ventilators remain tightly shut, which makes maintaining air circulation difficult, and fungal diseases ensue. I would not beat yourself up over any casualties: you have done what you can in difficult conditions. Now that the weather is finally on our side, you''re bound to see an increase in all your seedlings' health.

You do not need to feed your seedings. There is sufficient nutrient to support them up to when they are pricked out. I would be sure that your plants are nicely filing their new pots before feeding.

[Westi]

Richard

Why are you feeding seedlings - good compost should keep them happy each time you pot them on! Marigolds are pretty hardy - & will grow where they blow kind of! Maybe a bit too early sowing them, poor light etc?

Westi

[Ricard with an H]

You do not need to feed your seedings. There is sufficient nutrient to support them up to when they are pricked out. I would be sure that your plants are nicely filing their new pots before feeding.

Richard
Why are you feeding seedlings - good compost should keep them happy each time you pot them on! Marigolds are pretty hardy

I'm afraid whilst i'm putting a lot of effort into this gardening-progect, have had and am having some success, I am such a novice in the most important areas. Last year I learnt a few more things and this year i'm learning yet more.

I have learnt stuff over the last ten years though mostly this has-had to do with planting in the coastal conditions and stony soil. Most of last years failures were down to wind, even on summer days the dessicating effect of three days of strong salty air puts paid to a lot of hard work.

So, I am learning and being able to share things with you people is such a comfort, my only mentor in the area gave up after two seasons but he did help me to set up with raised-beds and encourage me on the basis of his failures.

keep up the good work.

[Westi]

No Richard - you keep up the good work! Believe me we've all done things that made our neighbours chuckle but your on your own up there with so much more difficult conditions than we will ever experience.

Your salty sea spray does ask me though - got any asparagus in?? They are originally a coastal plant and love a top dressing of seaweed. (& have you seen the price in the shops?? ) I estimate my asparagus crops actually pays for my lottie for the year - and even better wasn't that keen on shop bought but gave in to hubby to plant it - now walk around nibbling it raw!

Keep us posted - hope your wind break hedge takes & next year you'll be flying - be like a posh walled garden.

Westi

[FelixLeiter]

Marigolds are pretty hardy - & will grow where they blow kind of! Maybe a bit too early sowing them, poor light etc?

Depends on which sort of marigold. What sort are you growing, Richard? The pot marigold (Caldendula) is hardy and seeds itself, but the tender ones are French and African (Tagetes). These need bringing on under glass. They readily tend towards purple if they get too cold, I find. They grow out of it, though, when things are going their way. I would be thinking about sowing them about now, ideally — not too early — although you will soon see them in gardening centres, who like to push stuff.