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Ct

I bought this mini greenhouse recently and now that I look at the holes { 72 of them} they look kind of small for planting my tomatoe and pepper seeds. The holes measure 1.5"X 1.5" X 2" deep. Too small for starting seedlings?

2/2/2010 7:42:20 AM

ExtremeVegetables.com

No.
For commercial tomato plant sales seeds are often sown in plug flats which are the same dimensions as the flats you are using. These plug flats can have anywhere between 200 and over 500 cells per plug flat.
The plugs are then transplanted up to cell packs for retail sale, usually 1204 or 1203's.
The flat you have is caled a 1206. 12 packs of 6 cells per pack.

2/2/2010 10:10:58 AM

Ct

Wow , your good! Thanks for the info Duane. One more question - how close should I hang my grow lights to the soil surface?

2/2/2010 11:16:46 AM

Wv

i use them for lots of things, but like tomatoes i to 3in peat pots and if weathe is bad i keep moving them up in pot size, that little green house has helped me start plant i never could get a good start from, skullcap i never had any luck with them three years ago i used the little greenhouse and they all started, my klip dagga never much luck tried the little G.H all started, i use a heat mat but i love the thing, just dont let them root bound, you have to move tomatoes pretty fast, the seeds i talked about were very very small and slow growing at the start. GOD BLESS, TREETOP

2/2/2010 11:20:53 AM

Ct

Is there a certain height the seedlings should be at before I move them to bigger pots or is it a matter of yanking one plug out and seeing if it is rootbound or close to being rootbound?

2/2/2010 11:57:09 AM

Wv

you know once you do it a time or two but not long for tomatoes, your grow light should stay 6in above plants all the time, it helps make them stocky and not leggy, i dont use my light till they sprout, if you still get leggy on you when your ready to plant lay it down on its side and plant with just the leaves out,the long stem will go to roots. treetop

2/2/2010 1:47:04 PM

ExtremeVegetables.com

Keep those lights as close as possible without burning the tips. I normally keep mine 2 to three inches away from my flourescent fixtures. Flouro's are rather cool, I've had them grow into the lights with no problems. The closer, the better. Also, it's a good idea to have some air circulating around the seedlings, this will help strengthen the stem of the plant and reduce the chances of damping off.
Planting up is a matter of choice.
After seeing some of the commercially available plugs I've purchased over the years, I don't believe there is a such thing as root bound. I've seen tomato plugs that were so full of roots you have to wonder what happened to all of the soil that used to be in the cell.
At my website, www.perrysgreenhouse.com I have a thread posted in the general gardening forum titled "starting lots of seeds in small places". I think you would benefit from reading it.

2/2/2010 3:38:02 PM

Ct

This greenhouse kit I bought came with 72 soil plugs, they seem awfully spongy though so there is another material in there. I'm wondering about the nutrient content in these plugs, also I will not be using them untill April so i'm a bit concerned about mold by that time. Am I better off buying a bag of quality seed starting mix? I'll check out the link Duane, thanks.

2/2/2010 4:14:15 PM

Boise City, Oklahoma, USA

I hate preform peat pots for anything... for eaters I start them in open flats and transplant at 4 leaves to 4" pots. The competition ones I've started direct in 4" pots, and uppot as needed. The 7.18's are in 10" pots already.

Lights at 1" when they're threads and raised once or twice a day. Big ones are running 1-2" under their fluoros at the moment, and I need to rehang the lights tomorrow as tonight they'll grow right into them at 'night'

See my diary for 'just about perfect rootball IMO' for uppotting for greatness... eaters I let get a little more white. :) My .00002 cents worth

2/2/2010 8:50:42 PM

Boise City, Oklahoma, USA

Thanks for the detailed hints on how to sucker propagate, Duane, I just ordered the Clonex Gel. :)

2/2/2010 8:52:57 PM