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seeds Just started seeds with heat mat and humidity dome.....

BurninBob

BurninBob

Yes I know, its late to be starting, but I just got back from vacation and I wanted to wait until I got back to start them.

So I used seed starter mix in the six pack trays. Made a hole about 1/4" deep in each and put a seed in there. I put water in the tray that holds the six pack trays and let it wick up into the seed starter mix until they were all visually moist. I have the dome on, I noticed the dome has a wheel on the top that allows for venting. Right now I have the wheel closed so there is no venting. The inside of the dome is covered with little droplets of condensation, so its definitely a humid environment.

Right now I have the setup in my living room near a window so it gets indirect light. Is this ok? I was thinking of moving them into my grow tent and put them under my Sunleaves Pioneer VIII on half power. Should I do this? Any other helpful hints?

Bob
 
You shouldn't have to worry about light at all until they have sprouted since you already have a warming source.  It won't hurt anything though.  Sounds good otherwise, it might be a good idea to measure the temperature.  I keep seeds at 85º
 
Keeping them moist not wet is worth adding also make sure they don't totally dry out if you keep them under stronger light. A little b vitamin wouldn't hurt but not necessary.
 
Good luck and stop checking on them every 15 minutes as they grow faster that way!
 
Ok, I should have mentioned that I have some other vegetables in there too, and they are actually starting to sprout. So I'm thinking I should move it under my grow light now? I'm thinking running it at half power until I get a lot of germination? Also, should I keep the vents on the top of the dome closed? Its quite humid in there now, dome is completely covered with moisture/condensation.
 
It might help to dump the condensation elsewhere if there's a possibility of it running back into your seeds to help prevent rot.  If your peppers haven't germinated it's probably a good idea to keep the vents closed though.  What kind of light are you using?  Half power can mean a lot of things depending on the bulbs in it.
 
It might help to dump the condensation elsewhere if there's a possibility of it running back into your seeds to help prevent rot. If your peppers haven't germinated it's probably a good idea to keep the vents closed though. What kind of light are you using? Half power can mean a lot of things depending on the bulbs in it.


I have a Sunleaves Pioneer VIII high output T5 with grow bulbs in it. Half power would be 4 bulbs, full power is 8. I have it set up in Secret Jardin DR120 48"x48"x80" grow tent.
 
Sounds like a plan, You could even germinate on top of the light if you needed more seedling space ;)  I run a 4 bulb 2ft T5 in a grow tent 12 inches above my plants and can keep them around 75º-85º They're uncovered, even ones with just cotyledons.  Big thing is temperatures.
 
Sounds like a plan, You could even germinate on top of the light if you needed more seedling space ;) I run a 4 bulb 2ft T5 in a grow tent 12 inches above my plants and can keep them around 75º-85º They're uncovered, even ones with just cotyledons. Big thing is temperatures.


Aha yes good idea! I have two humidity dome setups, one for my girlfriends vegetables, which have already started germinating, and one for all my hot peppers, which I know can take up to 30 days to germinate. So perhaps I will put the hot pepper dome on top of the light if they take longer to germinate. Sounds like the big thing I need to monitor is temperature.
 
Heat mats can cook your seeds before they sprout, so if you don't have a thermostat on it already, I'd recommend you get one. 
 
Heat mats can cook your seeds before they sprout, so if you don't have a thermostat on it already, I'd recommend you get one.


Can you recommend a specific product?
 
BurninBob said:
Can you recommend a specific product?
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I use a meat thermometer and just stick it into the soil, seems to read pretty accurate and dirt cheap too.
 
From reading your original post I would say it sounds like you are absolutely on the right track.  Just be sure that if you are growing any hot varieties to keep that soil temp at 80-85 and you should be set.  If it was me, i would leave the vent on top open.
As far as lights, you'll want light on them as soon as they pop up, but I don't think presence or lack of light during germination will make any appreciable difference.
 
BurninBob said:
Can you recommend a specific product?
Click to expand...
Just google "heat mat thermostat for plants" and several will come up.
 
casweet8, a thermostat will regulate the temperature for you - you set it to what you want then it turns the heat mat on and off automatically. You can only check the temperature with a thermometer, but you have to manually turn on/off the mat yourself if you don't have a thermostat. 
 
Good luck and stop checking on them every 15 minutes as they grow faster that way!


Haha, so true! When can I expect to start seeing some germination? I have a second humidity dome that I used for my girlfriend's vegetable seeds, and a lot of hers have all ready sprouted (Kale, cucumbers, zucchini, tomato). I've moved these into my grow tent. I know hot peppers take longer, but hoping to see some action after 7 days or so?
 
Depending on what you have in there, it could be a while. Took 3 weeks for a couple Bhut Jolokia and Moruga Scorpion seeds of mine to put out a tap root, then add a few more days under the soil before seeing them rise again from their burial. So not always will you see something quick.
 
ok im gonna have to be patient!

i have some thai dragon peppers from last year that i dried using a food dehydrator. can i use seeds from these? or did the temperature from the food dehydrator ruin the seeds for growing?
 
BurninBob said:
ok im gonna have to be patient!

i have some thai dragon peppers from last year that i dried using a food dehydrator. can i use seeds from these? or did the temperature from the food dehydrator ruin the seeds for growing?
Click to expand...
It depends on how hot the dehydrator got, anything more than around 100-110 degrees has a potential of killing the seeds...Consider temperatures that are found in nature in the habitat of a wild pepper.  I say though, try it anyways!
 
"The man who expects nothing is never disappointed" - Buddha
 
Ok, so I've got some sprouting happening, so I moved the a few six packs into the grow tent.  The six packs only have 1 or 2 sprouts, so I have some leftover Aerogarden biodomes that I placed over the ones that haven't germinated yet.  Its not air tight, but I'm hoping it will be enough for the others to sprout. 
 
So how close should I have my light to the sprouts?  I already have some other vegetables in the grow tent (cucumbers, kale, cone flower, tomato) that have already sprouted.  Its definitely hot in there, my thermometer recorded a high of 100 degrees today.  So I put a clip on fan on so its exhausting air out of the tent from one of the duct openings in the top.  Right now I have the light a few inches above the tops of the sprouts.  I was thinking maybe I should cut the light output in half (i.e., only turn on 4 of the 8 T5 bulbs)?  Any advice greatly appreciated. 
 
a T5 puts off a lot more heat than you might think.  My sprouts and teenage plants both do fine with my 4 bulb 2 foot light at about 12"  If yours is a 4 foot fixture 12" would probably work as well on half power I would think.  I did have them at about 6" earlier in February and coupled with dry winter air I was losing seedlings left and right.  85º seems to be the magic number for me personally.  100º seems a bit hot for young plants.
 
ikeepfish said:
a T5 puts off a lot more heat than you might think.  My sprouts and teenage plants both do fine with my 4 bulb 2 foot light at about 12"  If yours is a 4 foot fixture 12" would probably work as well on half power I would think.  I did have them at about 6" earlier in February and coupled with dry winter air I was losing seedlings left and right.  85º seems to be the magic number for me personally.  100º seems a bit hot for young plants.
Click to expand...
 
I lowered the light back down to about 6" and have a clip on fan blowing on low across the area between the light and the seedlings, seems to be working pretty good, my temperature is a consistent 88 degrees.
 
Ok, here are some pics of the setup in the grow tent
 
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