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Location

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ENGLAND

Do you use Store Bought, Home Made, a "Secret" Mixture etc etc. Seed Sprouting has been covered very well on these Boards but what is your favourite Mixture ? I used to use a Mix of 50% John Innes No1 & 50% Sphagnum Moss Peat.

Mike

1/23/2005 9:35:01 AM

Indiana

I use miracle grow mis it has worked great the past two years

1/23/2005 12:21:11 PM

this past year i mixed one part each of peat, perlite, vermiculite, and potting soil. Seemed to work fine.

1/23/2005 3:24:06 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

1/3 Fine Milled Peat
1/3 Vermiculite
1/3 Perlite

Just moist enough so a couple drops sqeeze out if you really sqeeze hard.

Never had a seedling disease using this mix.

1/23/2005 3:38:17 PM

Rexburg, Idaho (brianchristensenmd@gmail.com )

Miracle grow works great for me

1/24/2005 8:33:42 AM

Syracuse, NY

http://bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryView.asp?season=2004&grower=24151&action=L

the pumpkinpal2 diary for '04

Scotts potting soil for seed-starting.
one bag o' this mixed with one gallon of warm water in a
5-gallon bucket....perfect every time!
followed by the germination method described therein....lol..

1/24/2005 6:57:35 PM

Butler, Ohio

Pumpkinpal, I was looking at your bucket germinator, pretty cool. Can you email me a parts list/instructions?

1/24/2005 8:04:50 PM

Deer Park WA

Equal parts of Worm Compost, Perlite, Vermiculite, and Peat Moss. Wet not soggy in 1 gallon split and duct taped pots.

1/24/2005 8:59:38 PM

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

I used coco coir last year and will again this year. Great Stuff! For a container I used the container shown at http://pumpkinlog.wickless.com. It worked very well. I didn't get a chance to put hinges on all of the containers, so on some I used duct ties, which worked quite nicely too.

1/24/2005 10:20:12 PM

Indiana

Same as Steve on this one

1/3 Fine Milled Peat
1/3 Vermiculite
1/3 Perlite

I learned this from Ray Waterman's instructions when I first started growing.

Tom

1/24/2005 11:36:18 PM

Syracuse, NY

MP Hauler---i'm glad you like the Gerry Germ-Buck!
i tried to detail the way they are made in my diary there,
so if you can thoroughly read that you should be able to make a heck of a copy. the only thing to REALLY worry about is mounting the light bulb fixture high enough off of the bottom of the bucket, like maybe 2 inches is where the center of the hole should be, i THINK, and be sure to use the aluminum foil in the bottom of the bucket, and make sure the thermostat is able to be positioned anywhere in the arc that contains each of the light bulbs---you want the thermostat to be ABLE to be directly above each light bulb, but in operation, it is positioned BETWEEN them,
but ABOVE them, about 4-5 inches. this is so that the thermostat is actuated by BOTH of the bulbs and not just one...in case one goes out on you while you're at work or something. i will re-read my description in my diary tomorrow, and you can also email me with any pertinent questions if you'd like at: ekg@bbl-inc.com
these things make germination very interesting!
later-----eric g.

1/25/2005 2:48:08 AM

Cornwall UK.(50N 5W)300ft.

John Innes recipe for me with patch soil instead of loam,with the Calcium but no base fert because of the nutrients already in the soil.

1/25/2005 3:11:30 AM

Syracuse, NY

oops--forgive me--:

uhhh,
1-5 gallon plastic bucket.
METAL would be even safer! metal, wood be...lol...

1-"Y" light-bulb adapter, the screw-in type.

1- screw-in light socket--could be the kind that has the two prongs on it for just plugging-in a light bulb wherever there's a socket. this item has the threads for the light bulb on the INSIDE. you will make a hole at ***2.5 inches***
from the bottom of the outside of the bucket big enough for
this thing, and you will secure it with a big enough hose clamp, automotive type.

1-hose clamp, automotive type. i'm guessing 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter.

1--water heater thermostat--the kind used in a standard, home water heater, usually turns on at 90 F* and off at
God knows where, lol! try for the kind that has the adjuster, made of white plastic, that sticks out about
an inch.

2--75-watt regular light bulbs.

miscellaneous wire, maybe like 1-1/2 feet of like 10 or 12
guage SOLID copper wire. preferably stripped of its insulation. the hole for this is made at 7 inches from the outside bottom of the bucket---this piece of wire wraps around the thermostat and goes through the hole and is wrapped around a drywall screw or similar on the outside of the bucket, which is screwed into the bucket.

1---ADJUSTABLE hole saw. set it for 1/2 inch less than
the diameter of the top edge of a 4" peat pot. i dunno that measurement. okay, i checked...the optimum hole diameter will be 3 and 3/4 inches. make four equally-spaced holes around the lid of the bucket. it is a four-seater!!!


and you'll need one, let's say, 9-foot extension cord, just to be sure.

i'll try to add to this tomorrow. it is 3 AM....ZZZZZZZZZZ!!

1/25/2005 3:15:15 AM

Syracuse, NY

man, talk about a HIJACK!!!

1/25/2005 3:16:22 AM

Syracuse, NY

one tidbit:
the wire to wrap around the thermostat should STILL have its insulation on. maybe i'm living dangerously.
the thermostat i have used
had like a channel of sorts right around the middle of the thing, so it made it easy to just wrap the wire around it at least once, twist it like a garbage tie, and then stick the other end of the wire out through the hole at 7 inches from the bottom of the outside of the bucket, and wrap it around the waiting drywall screw. then the wire is snipped-off and the tip of it bent out of the way.

1/25/2005 2:02:11 PM

Syracuse, NY

two tidbit:
the last one for a long time:
the light socket used in the Germ-Buck
in the diary was one that had an on-off switch right in the
assembly. all that was needed to mount it was about a
1/2-inch hole into the side of the bucket at 2-1/4 inches from the outside bottom of the bucket. i think the construction is explained pretty well in the diary, but any pertinent Qs? email me! eric

1/25/2005 2:10:52 PM

ENGLAND

So,Eric, What potting soil mixture do you use then ???

1/25/2005 3:18:29 PM

Syracuse, NY

literally, and i won't be posting here anymore,
Scotts Potting Soil for seed-starting,
mixed with ONE gallon of warm water.
boom. done. works. lol.

1/25/2005 3:53:16 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Why?

1/25/2005 5:57:11 PM

Butler, Ohio

sorry about that guys, didnt mean to mess up the thread

1/26/2005 6:32:32 PM

Syracuse, NY

oh, i just went (lol)
---weighoff the subject by talking
about my Germ-Bucks.

1/26/2005 6:37:00 PM