On 1/24/2015 1:33 PM, Terry Coombs wrote:
songbird wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:

As mentioned in my last post , I don't believe my seedlings get
enough light due to the type of insulated glass in the window . I
have a 250 watt halogen work light and wonder if that will work as a
supplemental light source . I can hang it from the ceiling above the
shelf so that I can adjust the height - these lights do put out
quite a bit of heat , which may be beneficial for the sprouting
phase .

not really, top heat isn't as good as a little
heat from below.

spindly tomatoes should not be a problem. plant them
deeper anyways so they will root out from the leaf nodes.

other plants you may want to time better so they are not
quite so tall. or are plants getting too much N to start
with?

if you want sturdier taller stems then the plants need
a bit of challenge to do that. an oscillating fan can
work (shift it around or rotate the plants so it comes from
different directions) but you do have to watch your moisture
levels closely when using one.

for the price of the electricity you'll be burning up
i'd look into LEDs. also, i'm not 100% sure but i think
that halogen puts out UV (can damage eyes and increase skin
cancer risks).


Just an idea to use what I have instead of spending money for a
single-purpose device . We also have several house plants that seem
to be doing fine with just the usual room lighting , none of them
are near a window ... but I don't have a fixture suitable for
hanging CFL's above the seedling shelf .

house plants are often shade plants adapted from tropical
places (and are not too likely to be fast growers either) so
i wouldn't compare them very directly to the needs of a
veggie plant (often selected for fast growth in full sun).

you may need to rig up a holder of some kind. clamps, few
extention cords, old drying rack or old lamp or ...


songbird

After reading George's post ... well , see my response to him . I'll be
using a flourescent fixture with grow bulbs . The shelf is about 4 feet from
the wood burning stove - this is a convection stove , not a radiator - so
it's probably plenty warm without being too hot . I had problems last year
with getting peppers to germinate , hoping the difference in temps due to
the ceiling fan will help . The ceiling fan keeps a continuous air current
there , enough to stir the curtains a little . The seedlings (most of them)
will be transplanted into 4" pots as soon as they're about 6"-8" tall
(depending...) and shortly thereafter will go out into the hot box I'm
planning for the southeast facing wall of the house . My goal is to have
strong plants 12" or slightly taller ready to set out in mid-April . Using
the hot box also gives me an opportunity to harden them off without dragging
them in and out - the window sashes I'll use for the top will be hinged .
If I get my timing right I can recycle the small pods to start some flowers
and herbs .

Snag
The next 10-12 weeks are going to be busy , fun , and interesting . I also
have a beehive to split this spring . Fortunately I have all the equipment
needed built and ready to go . YEE-HAW spring is a-comin' !


We're hopeful for spring here too, it has warmed up to low fifties F
today with lots of beautiful sunshine but still a chill northeast wind
blowing around.

I just came in from the garden and the broccoli and other winter crops
are still doing well but the green peas got a little frost bit. With
some decent weather it looks as if they will produce enough pea pods for
at least two meals. Radish, spinach, lettuce and beets are doing well.

The four by sixteen bed has been amended with another batch of Mel's Mix
and the old mix stirred into it well. The two four by eight beds will
have to wait until the fall crop is out and then will be amended.

Bought some more landscape timbers yesterday and, very soon, will build
a raised bed for the blueberry plants. We planted four plants of four
different named blueberries and two died from root rot. Decided to move
them above the five feet of clay under this property in the raised beds
with Mel's Mix plus lots of pine needles and peat moss and will get just
one more blueberry plant to replace the two dead ones. Reasoning is we
can get one larger plant to replace the two small deaders.

Now I've got to figure the needed materials to replace the cheesy pine
board fence that came with the house and is now almost eight years old.
Sorry material, sorry workmanship by a sorry builder. Will put in
better, more secure gates too. We've had a rash of break-ins by thugs
just walking in unlocked gates in our neighborhood. Generally they take
all the electronics, any jewelry or money they can find and then they're
gone. The thieving has slowed down since a neighbor happened to see a
vehicle parked at the back gate of another neighbor and wrote down the
license. Turns out they lived in the next subdivision over, four young
thugs are now in jail. I put up my security sign about that time.

"THIS PROPERTY PROTECTED BY COLONEL COLT AND MR. WINCHESTER." SECOND
SIGN SAYS, "OUR PIT BULL HAS AIDS."