• Do you need help identifying a 🌶?
    Is your plant suffering from an unknown issue? 🤧
    Then ask in Identification and Diagnosis.

water I'm OK or No? Overwatering?

coachspencerxc

coachspencerxc

Newbie here. Lot of gardening experience but have never successfully started peppers or tomatoes from seed. I may be a little too ambitious but I've started 2 flats already, planning on starting 1 more flat at the end of November & 2 more flats around January 1. Last frost here is about April 10. I figured with these first 2 flats, if I got 50% germination, I'd be satisfied. I know it takes awhile, but I'm a little worried...
 
Started some in bags & paper towels October 26. Put those in soil (most had grown a tiny tail) & started others directly in soil between Nov. 1-7.
 
I have 14 sprouts popped out... out of 96 cells in the flat. I've had Scotch Bonnets, Aji Lemon Drops, Trinidad Scorpion Sweets, a White Bullet Habanero & a few others sprout whereas annuums haven't really sprouted. I assumed annuums might be the first to sprout. 
 
Soil was nice & fluffy but I went out of town for the weekend & got a little paranoid. Filled the trays up with about 1/2" of water before leaving. No water in the tray when I got back but the soil was wet & heavy. Put a couple of halogen lamps over them, and now, the soil is drier but kinda crispy. Most of those that have sprouted sprouted very quickly but only a couple have since this overwatering incident.
 
Should I just relax and be patient or did I make a big mistake? No need to panic, I know. Plenty of time to start over if need be. 
 
Advice would be appreciated. I left home today putting clear domes on the trays, thinking I'm about where I should be with water, but the soil is kinda wet and bricklike if that makes sense.
 
 
Patience!  You're starting early enough to give them more time before worrying.  I would have expected the annuums to sprout first, but wouldn't be surprised if they don't.  
 
I'm not sure what type of soil you are using, but it sounds like it could use "something".  To turn "bricklike" after being watered and drying sounds like it could use some perlite or vermiculite or something.
 
Personally, I have always started seeds in plugs due to the ease, but this year I was going to try some different ways.
 
For your situation, I would suggest waiting a while longer to see how the seeds in the one tray do.  Before starting the other trays, maybe play around with your soil mix some.  Maybe put some in a cup, water it, then set it under your lights to see how it reacts with different mixtures.
 
I'm sure there are threads on here that deal with different mixtures that folks have used (and will be searching for them myself soon :) ).
 
Hope your younglings turn out well :)
 
Annuums usually do sprout sooner than chinenses - much sooner. Since you've had chinenses sprout I wouldn't say you are necessarily doing anything wrong - it could be the seed stock itself is the problelm. Where did you get the seeds? Some people buy green jalapenos at the grocery store and then are surprised they get little or no germination. But green = unripe = seeds not always ready yet (though some may sprout.) Also, sometimes the seeds have unseen pathogens on them - did you soak them in hydrogen peroxide (or h2o2 plus water) before putting them in the soil? If not, wetting them would reactivate any pathogens. Try to gently dig one or two up - if you can't find them at all they likely got moldy and you're not finding them because they are now black. If you find them and there is absolutely no sign of change taking place, they're probably duds. Best case - if you find them and a root is starting to peek out of at least one, then patience is in order.
 
If they're duds, you might try contacting the seller (assuming you purchased them) and see if something can be done about it.
 
When I planted my first Chinese seeds,some took a month are more to spout.Patience as Papa Bill said.Whatever you do,don't put seeds in paper cups or peat cups.The paper cups will hold water and the peat drys out to soon.Maybe,the peat will work for you.I not going to use them anymore. As always read the pros post,that's the best way for us newbies to not make mistakes.
 
I have the worst luck with annuum seed. None of my jaloros, bananas, cali wonders, bells, ever sprouted.

What annuums did sprout came after chinense.

That was this summer though. We'll see how well my plants sprout in plugs.

Pepper seeds take forever, don't keep it too damp. Just moist is fine. I had a lot of germed seeds rot in the soil this year because they spend a lot of time working there way out and up out of the soil.

Just keep checking em and relax :) most will come up.
 
Just as food for thought, I always try to germinate at least twice as many seeds as I plan to grow just because sometimes shit just happens. I never know why 2 seedlings side by side with everything being equal will give me 1 stronger than the other or 1 damping off and the other not. Put the strongest ones in ideal spots and leave the rest on the fringes and hope for the best for them.
 
Thanks for the responses so far. I mixed several pre-mixed bags- one pretty ideal, one high in compost, one high in peat, some straight vermiculite. I'm thinking I could've used more sand in the mix. Maybe more perlite. I very cautiously planned to start seeds in 3 waves in case it didn't work out so well the first try. 
 
Would be nice if peppers grew with seeds the size & germination time of squash, beans or watermelon, but that would make for some bad eating. :)
 
Some are rocotos and I know to expect them to take forever. Nearly every seed that sprouted, I took from pods. Most that haven't came from reputable sources, so I don't think the issue's bad seeds. I'm confident I'll hit 50% germination, which was my goal anyway. I hope the next 4-6 days will bring some nice results. By January 1, I will have planted 250 seeds. Do I even want more than 50% germination?? :confused:   Already thinking of clever ways to stash plants here & there. 
 
Thanks again!

geeme said:
 did you soak them in hydrogen peroxide (or h2o2 plus water) before putting them in the soil? If not, wetting them would reactivate any pathogens. Try to gently dig one or two up - if you can't find them at all they likely got moldy and you're not finding them because they are now black. If you find them and there is absolutely no sign of change taking place, they're probably duds. Best case - if you find them and a root is starting to peek out of at least one, then patience is in order.
Click to expand...
I did use peroxide. Will probably do some delicate excavating around Friday/Saturday if results aren't better. Thanks!
 
My pepper seedlings did poorly in sandier soils, but maybe it was because I used fine grain. I think it caked on the roots.
YMMV.

I feel you. I know I don't have enough containers or soil for everything yet, space notwithstanding. They sit around fine in solocups though, I have several flowering in them now.
 
Swampy_NZ said:
What is your temperature range?Keeping a good even temp(75-85F) is key in my opinion.
Click to expand...
I've been about 78-86. Got up to 90 with a halogen lamp when I tried to dry it up a bit, but not for an extended period. Thanks.
 
I get mine to sprout easily on top of the cable box. 
I just brought in the last of the plants for overwintering, and I'll be starting most of my seeds in a week or two. Although our last freeze might be the middle of April, I start hardening them off in March where i put them outside on the deck during the day and bring them in at night.
 
Grass Snake said:
Man! everyone starting seeds already is making me feel like I'm slacking.
Click to expand...
You, sir, are definitely slacking!  ;)  Ha! I spent roughly my first 30 years in TX so am familiar with your weather - you can plant out waaaaay sooner than those of us in the frigid north (got white stuff coming down today, as a matter of fact.) I don't start mine until the January - March range because we can't plant out before May. What's your excuse?  :lol:
 
geeme said:
You, sir, are definitely slacking!  ;)  Ha! I spent roughly my first 30 years in TX so am familiar with your weather - you can plant out waaaaay sooner than those of us in the frigid north (got white stuff coming down today, as a matter of fact.) I don't start mine until the January - March range because we can't plant out before May. What's your excuse?  :lol:
Click to expand...
I have an excuse and its a good one. Let me just reach into my grab bag here .................................Ahhh yes, one of my favorites! There was alot of traffic this morning.
 
I feel for ya coach, i'm in the waiting game myself at the moment. I have never germinated anything, and it feels like I want them to sprout yesterday...only a few days now, so I need to be patient too hehe. I put mine in paper towels inside a ziplock and placed them on the keyboard of a laptop that gets quite warm (80-90 ish). Can't wait to see the little tails! Keep up the good work, and let's keep patient! Cheers,

HB
 
Glad to hear it's going well for you after all. Admittedly, when I germinate seeds I check them every day. EVERY day! I know I need to be patient, buuuuut……. Ha!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top