Hi all!
Sorry it's been so long since posting.....i keep meaning to, but then get sidetracked by something or other...but i thought i'd better start a glog for this year before i become sidetracked again!!
Sorry there's no pics as of yet, but they will follow in the next day or 2!
OK......
I started some seeds off about 6 or 7 weeks ago....but as we have a 2 year old here now i couldn't risk placing the germination tray on the modem as i did last year, so i purchased one of those germination trays that have heating included!
I must admit that i haven't gone too mad with the plants this year, as although it's gone past mid-winter here, i have a feeling that quite a few of my plants from last year are going to make it through the winter here...plus i still have a STACK of pods in the freezer from my 2012 grow! I did plan to use the info from the very informative "guide to over-wintering" thread.....but the reality is that i have just left the plants where they were from the end of summer, and have been quite surprised that a lot of them are still looking quite healthy! Just today i pulled a ripe pod from my Bishops Crown and noticed a few ripe pods on my Yellow Manzano! The most healthy of the plants from 2012 have sat under the shade cloth i put up last year, and maybe that's why they still seem to be looking so healthy as it's kept the frost off them? (we've been down to -2 here numerous times)
So yeah, hopefully when the weather gets better i will repot them in some decent soil and see how they go!!
Anyway, onto my 2013 grow and what i now realize i did wrong last year!!!
Last year i intervened FAR too much....and watered FAR too much....i can see that now!! (oh, hindsight eh!?)
I started a load of seeds about 7 weeks ago......some in Jiffy Bags.....some in Coir. One thing i have evaluated from doing this is that, although the seeds seem to germinate a LOT faster in the coir....they HATE it when you remove them and put them into potting mix. I will post a photo of my current grow tomorrow, but believe me, there's a HUGE difference in the one's left naturally to grow out of the Jiffy Bag and the early sprouting ones in the coir that i had to 'pull out and transfer'. So for me personally, Jiffy Bags (or Jiffy Pellets) are the only way from here-on!!
Once germinated, i pulled out my flouro lights that i bought last year and have set them up in the dining room again.
Now that i know NOT to be killing them with water, they are going soooooooo damned well!!! Last year i was watering once every other day, as i thought that's what you do with plants, right?? WRONG!!!!! After i potted them into cups in their Jiffy Bags, i reckon i've probably watered them twice in about 5 weeks, as i now know the signs that they need a drink!!! We live and learn!!!
I have about 50% that i know what the plants are, and the other half are mystery plants.....as Mezo very kindly sent down a MEGA package for me a month or 2 ago that contained a load of mystery red and yellow superhot seed, as well as a shed load of pods!!! Many thanks Meeez!!
I will keep you posted on the progress, and will take a pic of the plants tomorrow (promise!)
All the best from down under
Neil
Sorry it's been so long since posting.....i keep meaning to, but then get sidetracked by something or other...but i thought i'd better start a glog for this year before i become sidetracked again!!
Sorry there's no pics as of yet, but they will follow in the next day or 2!
OK......
I started some seeds off about 6 or 7 weeks ago....but as we have a 2 year old here now i couldn't risk placing the germination tray on the modem as i did last year, so i purchased one of those germination trays that have heating included!
I must admit that i haven't gone too mad with the plants this year, as although it's gone past mid-winter here, i have a feeling that quite a few of my plants from last year are going to make it through the winter here...plus i still have a STACK of pods in the freezer from my 2012 grow! I did plan to use the info from the very informative "guide to over-wintering" thread.....but the reality is that i have just left the plants where they were from the end of summer, and have been quite surprised that a lot of them are still looking quite healthy! Just today i pulled a ripe pod from my Bishops Crown and noticed a few ripe pods on my Yellow Manzano! The most healthy of the plants from 2012 have sat under the shade cloth i put up last year, and maybe that's why they still seem to be looking so healthy as it's kept the frost off them? (we've been down to -2 here numerous times)
So yeah, hopefully when the weather gets better i will repot them in some decent soil and see how they go!!
Anyway, onto my 2013 grow and what i now realize i did wrong last year!!!
Last year i intervened FAR too much....and watered FAR too much....i can see that now!! (oh, hindsight eh!?)
I started a load of seeds about 7 weeks ago......some in Jiffy Bags.....some in Coir. One thing i have evaluated from doing this is that, although the seeds seem to germinate a LOT faster in the coir....they HATE it when you remove them and put them into potting mix. I will post a photo of my current grow tomorrow, but believe me, there's a HUGE difference in the one's left naturally to grow out of the Jiffy Bag and the early sprouting ones in the coir that i had to 'pull out and transfer'. So for me personally, Jiffy Bags (or Jiffy Pellets) are the only way from here-on!!
Once germinated, i pulled out my flouro lights that i bought last year and have set them up in the dining room again.
Now that i know NOT to be killing them with water, they are going soooooooo damned well!!! Last year i was watering once every other day, as i thought that's what you do with plants, right?? WRONG!!!!! After i potted them into cups in their Jiffy Bags, i reckon i've probably watered them twice in about 5 weeks, as i now know the signs that they need a drink!!! We live and learn!!!
I have about 50% that i know what the plants are, and the other half are mystery plants.....as Mezo very kindly sent down a MEGA package for me a month or 2 ago that contained a load of mystery red and yellow superhot seed, as well as a shed load of pods!!! Many thanks Meeez!!
I will keep you posted on the progress, and will take a pic of the plants tomorrow (promise!)
All the best from down under
Neil
