I got this too, never done it as I'm away for 4 weeks at the end of the month. Won't be back till late March. May try it then.
2014 Chilli Growers Thread
- Thread starter Noxia
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I got this too, never done it as I'm away for 4 weeks at the end of the month. Won't be back till late March. May try it then.
Hello all,
I received a kit for Christmas which included Cayenne, Scotch Bonnet and Jalapeno seeds, compost and 3 small pots.
Would an office that is kept at around 20 degrees celsius with a south facing window be good enough to start the seeds off in pots straight away or am I best using one of the other methods described in the thread?
I received a kit for Christmas which included Cayenne, Scotch Bonnet and Jalapeno seeds, compost and 3 small pots.
Would an office that is kept at around 20 degrees celsius with a south facing window be good enough to start the seeds off in pots straight away or am I best using one of the other methods described in the thread?
I'm not qualified to answer this but I think they'd like to be closer to 25 than 20 and they would also need to be warm at night. I don't think you can go wrong germinating with the paper towel method personally.
Regarding my plants, I am not a home owner yet so I have to make do with those little PVC greenhouses, had great success with them last year though and they are relatively cheap.
This year I have purchased a 3m PVC 'Poly tunnel' as I need more floor space than I do height and this is plenty big enough for my 12 plants (hopefully). Just have to hope for some good weather.
Also, today I have a sign of life on 2 seeds
I'm not qualified to answer this but I think they'd like to be closer to 25 than 20 and they would also need to be warm at night. I don't think you can go wrong germinating with the paper towel method personally.
Regarding my plants, I am not a home owner yet so I have to make do with those little PVC greenhouses, had great success with them last year though and they are relatively cheap.
This year I have purchased a 3m PVC 'Poly tunnel' as I need more floor space than I do height and this is plenty big enough for my 12 plants (hopefully). Just have to hope for some good weather.
Also, today I have a sign of life on 2 seeds
When I opened the pack of seeds I found I had enough to try all three methods for each type, so I thought "why not?".
The office is warm all throughout the night, but the temperature is a little concerning now.
Although I have no experience whatsoever, that picture looks promising!
It's been a lovely day here today and I've spent a good few hours in the garden.
Part of that was getting the chilli seeds sown.
I've put in the Hungarian Wax, Ancho and Jalapeno I mentioned above as well as some Serrano seeds taken from the chillis that are still going from last years harvest.
I also sowed some San Marzano tomato seeds. Tried them last year pretty unsuccessfully - I think part of that was because they weren't in big enough pots so became pot bound and were drying out too quickly when it was really hot.
I've got some 40 litre tomato planters this year so fingers cross they will work better.
Part of that was getting the chilli seeds sown.
I've put in the Hungarian Wax, Ancho and Jalapeno I mentioned above as well as some Serrano seeds taken from the chillis that are still going from last years harvest.
I also sowed some San Marzano tomato seeds. Tried them last year pretty unsuccessfully - I think part of that was because they weren't in big enough pots so became pot bound and were drying out too quickly when it was really hot.
I've got some 40 litre tomato planters this year so fingers cross they will work better.
Getting quite annoyed now with the Sciarid flies, had loads of plants last year indoors and didn't have any, then around winter they started to appear. They are in the soil and I'm slightly worried they will eat my seeds roots but there is nothing I can do about ti from what I've read. It's actually putting me off growing this year because they will fly on to my phone screen at night if it's the only light on and are rather annoying.
I have some natural pesticide that contains Pyrethrins and it does seem to kerb them a lot but I don't really like spraying it into the soil on something I shall end up eating.
I have some natural pesticide that contains Pyrethrins and it does seem to kerb them a lot but I don't really like spraying it into the soil on something I shall end up eating.
Aye, I'm hoping that I can get rid when they are ready to transplant into pots, I'm going to try putting some of that moisture retaining stuff on top, always forget the name, and getting more dishes so I can water from the bottom as you said..
The soil has to be moist at the moment as I'm cultivating the seeds in the propagator.
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Also you can try adding a covering of perlite to the top of the plant pot, as the pests don't like it. A covering which is total but not very deep will do. I wet perlite first, or use a face mask as breathing the dust is not recommended. I never use chemical pesticide.
Thanks, that is the thing I was thinking of.
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Perlite is for adding drainage for plants which don't like it wet
Vermiculite is for retaining water for plants which don't like it too dry
The use of perlite as fungus gnat / beastie repellent is nothing to do with the water drainage properties. Mix up compost as you like (vermiculite or perlite, if required) and put a layer of perlite on top.
Vermiculite can also be used in the same way (a layer on top) to deter slugs/snails, as they don't like the fact that it sticks to them.
Neither perlite nor vermiculite is required for growing chilli's, but it can be beneficial depending on the type of compost you are using.
Vermiculite is for retaining water for plants which don't like it too dry
The use of perlite as fungus gnat / beastie repellent is nothing to do with the water drainage properties. Mix up compost as you like (vermiculite or perlite, if required) and put a layer of perlite on top.
Vermiculite can also be used in the same way (a layer on top) to deter slugs/snails, as they don't like the fact that it sticks to them.
Neither perlite nor vermiculite is required for growing chilli's, but it can be beneficial depending on the type of compost you are using.
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Thank you. I shall get a bag of each because it can't harm to have it.
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I found this comparison of using growlights (LED vs HID Metal Halide) for chilli plants to be useful, at least for anyone considering using lights for all, or part of, their chilli grow.
13 parts to watch if you're interested. Here is part 1....
13 parts to watch if you're interested. Here is part 1....
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videos like that make me think im not taking this seriously enough
I have seen numerous threads/posts about torches and LED's, so I thought it would be fitting to post the comparison for LED growlights vs Metal Halide growlights, but the results are not very supportive of the newer LED's, at least not yet. I love advances in technology like this but I guess people do this because they are ultimately growing things in the wrong climates. Like this Finnish chilli head and the things he gets up to....
http://fatalii.net/Bonsai_Chiles_Bonchi