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media Organic Jiffy seed starter ok?

M

marxxx

I could not get pro mix at Lowes today. I also hit kmart, but they all had the same stuff... miracle grow and jiffy. I settled on the jiffy because it did not have any fertilizer in it.

Kmart had their store brand potting mix that had a light fertilizer (just under 1-1-1).

So, do you think I will be ok using this in 3" pots @ 80'?

Thanks in advance!

Marxxx
 
Jiffy Mix seed starting mix is the second best thing I have used as far as being light weight and clean goes...I much prefer the Hoffmans...

IMO it is a waste of seed starting mix to put it in a 3" container to start seeds...one large bag (18 qts) of seed starting mix will fill up five 72 cell trays....thats a bunch of seeds and normally, the seed starting mix is much more expensive than regular potting soil...

If my memory serves me right, a 3" square container holds about a pint of soil so you see that eats up your seed starting mix...
 
jiffy works. A.J. is correct, you could start them in seed starter using very little, then pot up into different soil when they establish roots, but I think you'll be fine because you can leave them to grow for much longer without worrying about immediate potting up issues (some people will differ about growth potential being affected by starting in bigger pots). I did the same thing as you last year with Jiffy in 2.5" containers, then straight into the ground before any root bound issues and it worked out just fine for me.

There's a thousand more complicated scenarios that are possibilities, but simple and to the point works as well. Best of luck....i'm sure you won't need it.
 
I used Ferry morse from lowes last year with tremendous results. I think Jiffy and Ferry Morse are the same.
 
AlabamaJack said:
Jiffy Mix seed starting mix is the second best thing I have used as far as being light weight and clean goes...I much prefer the Hoffmans...

IMO it is a waste of seed starting mix to put it in a 3" container to start seeds...one large bag (18 qts) of seed starting mix will fill up five 72 cell trays....thats a bunch of seeds and normally, the seed starting mix is much more expensive than regular potting soil...

If my memory serves me right, a 3" square container holds about a pint of soil so you see that eats up your seed starting mix...
Click to expand...

AJ, where are you buying that Hoffmans at?
 
Ferry Morse and Jiffy are the same company, so most likely the same mix. Around here I think the walmart had Ferry Morse and the Home Depot and Lowe's had Jiffy or something like that. I used Jiffy mix for several years with good results and like it a lot more than I do the miracle grow starting mix. The miracle grow had a lot of heavy materials as well as sand. Plants just didn't thrive at all.This year I am using the Promix ultimate seedstarting mix, but had to mail order it from Greenhouse Megastore as I could not find it locally. It has mycorrhizae fungus in it. That is supposed to reduce transplant shock. It is also about twice the price as Jiffy. Never heard of Hoffman's though.

Happy Growing!
jacob
 
If you havent planted yet Marxxx, may I suggest you go back to lowes and get one of the 72 cell Jiffy Start kits with the heating mat? I saw them at my local Lowes the other night for about $40, with is a pretty good price since you get the heating mat, which you can re-use every year. You can just save the Jiffy mix for when you pot up. I am afraid you will have problems getting the heat penitration through the 3" pots. JMO though...
 
Mjdtexan said:
AJ, where are you buying that Hoffmans at?
Click to expand...

I get if from my local nursery...Archies Gardenland up here in Fort Worth...~10 bucks for an 18 Qt bag...
 
Ive used the jiffy seed starting mix and it has worked fine for me.
Ive also started seeds in MG potting mix and Pro mix with pretty much the same results, so im not to picky.
 
Thanks for all the input guys!

I went right to 3" pots to eliminate a step with transplanting later. I think I will try a regular 72 cell starter for the shorter season varieties in a few weeks. So far it went good, one bag did 49 pots (I think they are technically 2.5 x 2.5 x 3.5" tall). Not bad for $6.... I am using a full external thermostat with remote sensor and a heat light over a covered plastic tub. I will try to get photos as things get moving.

Again, thanks for all the input!!!!!

Marxxx
 
Another thing to consider is that the seedstarting mix has almost no nutrients. It will not be able to carry the plants through to transplant very well. You will need to fertilize once they start getting their true leaves. Some start immediately, others wait until first set, or second set. Just go with a diluted strength like 1/4 strength.

Good Luck!
jacob
 
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