Vermiculite and watering

[marialittlebzz]

i have sown in a mix of vermiculite and seed compost, and my seed tray ( actually they are eggs boxes! ) are in the window sill... I mist them everyday with a spray bottle because the vermiculite seems always dry, I am just wondering how much water do my seedlings really need ?
It is quite dry in my house, and still a bit of heating on the evening, do I need to keep the mix really moist even if the seeds are sprouting now ?

How much and how often do you water yours (seeds)?

[terrier]

It could be that the egg boxes are wicking away the moisture. If the compost is drying out, try putting the boxes in a plastic bag or covering with glass. The seeds only require damp conditions, not too wet. The temperature for germination is more important and it should tell you that on the seed packet. What seeds are you trying to germinate?

[marialittlebzz]

at the moment just flowers ( Love in a mist ), I did put them in a clear plastic bag...but they took almost 2 weeks to germinate, since I water them more often... but once they have shown their head should I keep watering as much ?

[terrier]

Even as seedlings they only require damp compost, too much water will drown them, as long as they don't dry out completely. At the seedling stage they only require light, as much as possible but not direct sunlight.

[mrs dog]

Bless you but you can just scatter love in a mist where you want it and off it goes. Lovely show and nice seed heads too. I use egg boxes to chit my pots. Nice to think that you are reusing things isn't it.

[Dibber]

Does anyone water vermiculite or perlite from below? I have trouble with it floating off. Even when I mist it the spray tends to blow it about. If you think I don't know what I'm doing you're right. Ta.

[Cutecumber]

Basically, if you water the seeds into the compost and then put the tray, or cells, into a plastic bag, they do not need to be watered until the seedlings come through. By adding more water before germination you are just increasing the risk of the seeds rotting.

Once the seedlings are showing, remove the tray or cells from the bag and leave until they are genuinely drying out. When it's impossible to keep them moist, they need to be potted up.

[DebbieC]

perlite going brown

Hello

I've never done this form thing before - almost feels like you are eavesdropping on someones conversation - i was following your thread and wondered whether anybody knows why perlite placed on top of a seed tray can turn brown....plants are fine ? Cheers deb

[Trignorton]

This year ive tried planting sweetcorn in toilet roll tubes filled with compost - so far so good and are growing well, the bottoms are nice and open allowing the roots to go into the ground when I finally plant them outside. I have tried many various types of bio degradeable pots, but these are easy to get hold of and are free. I hate waste and will re-use whatever I get my hands on! my wife is getting concerned I will turn into a hoarder.