A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Plants and Flowers Forum Plant Propagation Trouble starting seeds!

Grrr! I have my lovely flats all flatted out, with soilless seed starting mix, my happy little grow lights, fresh seeds (some bought retail, some collected). But no blasted babies! UGH. The poppies have popped, and one other thing but I can't remember now. But the coleus and lavender can't seem to raise themselves from the dirt. It's been a month. All told, only two flats out of 9 has done anything.

Suggestions?

I have never had lavender seeds come up, the worst seed you can try grow I find. It seems like the seeds just don't form into anything, they rot before germinating. I was told that the lavender seeds need to be kept in the fridge for 3 weeks before planting..that could have been the culprit also....just leave them for a few weeks longer just in case.

I've never tried Coleus...but some seeds take a long while to sprout, they need moisture and alot of heat. I place my trays on top of the fridge, seems the heat from under them works better. Perennial seeds seem to take longer to germinate than annual.

yeah a constant bottom heat is key ......lavender is very very very tempermental about soil temps above 70 ....never had luck starting it ....but it does lovely in the garden in early june when the temps here are good .......

OK - maybe I'll wait and just plant it straight in the garden. Here's what I started on 2/13: false indigo, balloon flower, mini black-eyed Susans, lavender, coleus, twinkle star phlox (short, adorable), eryngium (sea holly), pink double poppy, cardinal flower vine, speckled swan gourd, and two varieties of columbine. Only the balloon flower and poppy have sprouted, and one false indigo but it damped-off. Maybe it's just too cold in my house. We turn the heat down when we leave for the day and at night, so it gets down to 55 degrees.

I'm not going to spend the $$$$$$$ on heating mats! The top of my fridge isn't really warm - maybe because the freezer is on the bottom? Do you suppose all my seeds have died or when it warms up will they sprout?

The cold has alot to do with it, seeds need heat to germinate.

Yup, a freezer on the bottom means no heat on top.

I'd wait it out to see...some might still pull through. They really do need some heat though.

I can say right off......You wont start poppys indoors.
Mine wont start at all.Cold lovers
I have only gro lite up , no heat .. under
there are lots germing.
my ballon flower is good.
tomatoes
peppers
onions
assylum
salvia

Try this
put some seeds in a paper towel, wet one
Put it in a plastic bag .zipped
Place it where you have the others.. In a few days you should see signs of germinating.. I am doing that , an planting them.
So grow like nuts .. Moss ross for one.

Last year I did the flat thing with a heating pad underneath. It worked extremely well, most seeds germinated. Problem was, when the seedlings were ready to plant, the garden wasn't! (Still too wet.)
Anyway, I used an older heating pad that I didn't really care about too much, but I was still VERY careful about moisture! Don't want any shorts! I put a small towel between the pad and the flats as I didn't want it to get too warm, and I checked almost daily for moisture and heat inside. I took the top off for a day once when I thought the air was getting warm.
Give it a try and let us know how it goes.
Good luck!
200 yds and growing!

Tee hee - the only thing that DID sprout were the poppys, and the balloon flower! So, does that tell you my house is cnilly? :) I'm taking the Master Gardener class right now, and I asked the hort guy what could be the issue. He said that I don't really need the lights until they sprout - the ambient light is enough. So, I have a three trays on top of the shelf with lights underneath, so they get the heat generated by the lights frtom the bottom of the tray.

So - I'm also wondering if I have a moisture issue. Sometimes the soil feels too dried out, other times it seems to soggy. I used a mister - I don't want to drown them. I use a lid until they sprout. Ugh. This shouldn't be so difficult!

Anyway - do you think they will sprout after it gets warmer or are the seeds dead after 4 wks? Should I just reseed?

THANKS!

ha ha
World apart in our issues.
Not on the same page.

I'd check one to see if the seed is o.k. or if it has decayed....

To check your seeds for germination chances.

Put them in a wet paper towel in a baggie.
In a warm spot.

Check in 3 days to see if there is ny changes. Then wait again.
I get lots of fun of watching,

Thanks - but these are all teeny tiny seeds - it's not like a large bean. It would be impossible to find any.

dO YOU WEAR SPECTIC?

i AM DOING TINY ONES IN COFFEE FILTERS.
i PICK THEM OFF WITH TWEEZERS AN PUT IN SOIL
wANNA SEE SOME///MOSS rose IS REALLY NUTTY WITH TINY .

B

hERE IS MY TINY MOSS rose seeds, IF YOU CAN LOOK WHERE THE RED LETTERS ARE. UP ABOVE IS SOME HAIRY TYPE GERMINATED MOSS rose..

TODAY