Growing in Electric Propagator

[Aunty Social]

Hello, all - if this is in the wrong section, apologies -

Last year it was watering, this year it's this bit of kit that I'm stymied by: I bought a Garland Fab 4 heated propagator, but destructions on how to use it seem low on the ground.

Once my seeds have germinated, do I open the lids of the seed trays (and how wide? a bit each day?), or remove the trays altogether from the propagator?

I am (hopefully) growing peppers & chillis, later on tomatoes. Thanking you in advance.

Best wishes,
Confused in the countryside

[veggiechicken]

Once they've germinated, take them out of the prop as they don't need heat any more.

[Tripmeup]

Manufacturers generally supply instructions not "destructions" so that wont help

As VC says, once germinated they will need light so depends on where you have everything located..Rule of thumb is to remove but be careful of just putting things on window sills now when frosty nights can possibly do for them...If worried you could cover/remove from colder window areas by night...

[Aunty Social]

Thank you both.... Electrical engineer husband calls them 'destructions', which they often are! My favourites usually come from China

[veggiechicken]

Didn't think anyone read the In/Destructions!!

[chris_m]

I remember in my first job at an electronics company I had to package up a piece of kit before sticking it ion the car and taking it to meet the customer at a motorway junction on his route to wherever he was going.
Anyway, I was furnished with the box, packaging materials, component parts of the product and a printed, details set of instructions for how it should be packaged;
1) line the box with the plastic bag
2) put in, in this order; Instruction manual, monitor, packaging material around the monitor, cables on top of packaging material
3) fold the sides of the bag across and tape.
4) Seal the box.

Now, my normal job was as an engineering technician so, having not used one of these monitors before I was curious enough to read the instruction manual - the first entry in which was "Unpack all the contents of the box"

The irony of an instruction to do something which one had to do to get hold of the instructions to tell you to do it was somewhat lost on the dispatch manager when I pointed it out ;-)

[Small pumpkin]

Thank you both.... Electrical engineer husband calls them 'destructions', which they often are! My favourites usually come from China

I call them destructions too

Yeah as already mentioned as soon as the little fellas pop their heads up they don't need as much heat any more. They need as much light as you can give them. But I have found it very useful on occasion when plants have started sulking ( usually just after potting on ) that if you sit the pot in the heated propagator for a couple of hours it helps them a lot. It's usually tomatoes, chillies and aubergine that do the sulking, but not always.

[ESBkevin]

Thank you both.... Electrical engineer husband calls them 'destructions', which they often are! My favourites usually come from China

His name isn't Chuck Manual is it?

[Snadger]

I call them destructions too

Yeah as already mentioned as soon as the little fellas pop their heads up they don't need as much heat any more. They need as much light as you can give them. But I have found it very useful on occasion when plants have started sulking ( usually just after potting on ) that if you sit the pot in the heated propagator for a couple of hours it helps them a lot. It's usually tomatoes, chillies and aubergine that do the sulking, but not always.

Destruction's by name and destruction's by nature!

[DannyK]

Also beware direct sun. You can end up with cooked veg!

[Deano's "Diggin It"]

For what it's worth, this is my take on it!

Seeds like to germinate in a nice warm, sweaty environment, a little like I would love to raise on a Sunday morning! (Fat Chance)

The bottom heat of the damp compost and the clear plastic/glass top with vents closed letting light in, causes this warm damp, sweaty, condensation rich moist climate within this little dome. (Ideal conditions)

But once up! (Hello my little Beauties)

That's when the vents are opened to stop the condensation forming on the inside of the lid which in turn drops onto the seedling causing damping off!

But then the prop as done it's job! There up!

Whip the seedling out!

Now let be light!

Deano 5 Chapter 3

[geepee]

I call them destructions too

Yeah as already mentioned as soon as the little fellas pop their heads up they don't need as much heat any more. They need as much light as you can give them. But I have found it very useful on occasion when plants have started sulking ( usually just after potting on ) that if you sit the pot in the heated propagator for a couple of hours it helps them a lot. It's usually tomatoes, chillies and aubergine that do the sulking, but not always.

As stated by SP as soon as seedlings have germinated, they need light , otherwise they will just go 'Leggy' ie strangly, white stems and not produce leaves etc.
AS soon as Germination takes place you need to put the seedlings in or under a good light source, Rarely, but not impossibly , is a windowsill enough, for seedlings this early of the types and varieties you state , will need some 'Artificial' / grow lights to thrive , Not rocket science......ordinary fluorescent bulbs will do or LED are better but cost more to buy ,never the less cheaper to run.
A wealth of info on Google available.
Gp

[jackarmy]

I grow every year on a windowsill once started off in a prop and always have strong healthy plants.
The trouble with windowsill growing ( in my opinion ) is people believe in the " south facing" thing.
At this time of year you need max light and that is generally from the east to south , so any window facing the east at sunrise will be in with a decent shout.

[geepee]

Also beware direct sun. You can end up with cooked veg!

Agreed..in summer/late spring , but unlikely in jan to April wouldnt you say ...?

[Aunty Social]

His name isn't Chuck Manual is it?

How did you know???