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Old 21-03-2012, 03:45 AM posted to rec.gardens.edible
David Hare-Scott[_2_] David Hare-Scott[_2_] is offline
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First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Sep 2008
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Default Advice needed on sowing seeds

tarantula_123 wrote:
'David Hare-Scott[_2_ Wrote:
;953677']tarantula_123 wrote:-
'David Hare-Scott[_2_ Wrote:-
;953578']tarantula_123 wrote:-
'David Hare-Scott[_2_ Wrote:-
;953493']tarantula_123 wrote:-
Hi all im Dale and new to the forum,

I need some advice on sowing some seeds ive bought off the internet.
These include atlantic giant pumpkin, goji berry and brandywine
tomato.

The advice i need is:

what compost do i need to sow these,-

Nice rich soil would be good. One does not need to grow in pure
compost.
-
what equipment do i need to sow them in,-

Why do you need any?
-

I am fairly new to gardening, but am very experienced in growing
runner beans. I usually sow those every year in 3.5cm pots.

However, i haven't got much idea on how to sow these seeds i have.
The brandywine tomato is said to be one of the best there is, so i
want to get them perfect. Do i use a propagator? If not, what size
pots, i.e. the plastic bag over the top to act as a propagotr. When
people say use a propagator, they never state how. There is various
types of bottoms to the propagator itself, or you can put small pots
in etc that are seperate from other seeds. I know some use no pots
and just the bottom of the propagator itself, and remove the
resulting germination by hand, which i dont like doing.-

Why do you need a propagator? What is your climate?
-

So, along with this, this brings me to my pumpkin seeds, which i have
never ever grown. Do i sow these in a propagator, if so, again, do i
use seperate seedling trays, if so what size, if not, what do i use.
-

Generally they don't like to have their roots disturbed. Either sow
them
directly or use tapered seedling tubes, one each tube.

David-

Hi there,

My climate is the midlands in the United Kingdom.
-

That tells me where you are, not if it is warm enough for seeds to
germinate. What will be the daily temperature range in the place
where you
want to start your seeds?
-
There surely has to be some equipment to sow the seeds in.-

Why surely? You seem focussed on this. You need a propagator only
if you
are trying to germinate seeds when it is too cold for normal
development.
If it will be warm enough without it you are wasting time and money.

Pumpkins i-
know can be planted straight into the ground like runner beans, but
the other two seeds i have wont grow like that im thinking.

You mention tapered seedling tube. What are they? Where do i get them
from? Do you just mean tapered seedling trays?
-

No I mean tubes. They are about 15cm high and wider at the top than
the

bottom, the cross section is square, made of plastic, sit in racks of
about
40. They are used to start tube stock: ie trees, shrubs and the
likes.

They have the advantage that the roots don't go round and round and
the

whole root ball comes out easily in one chunk allowing it to be
planted

without disturbing the roots. Ask at your nursery.

Your climate (amongst other things) will also determine how well
these giant
pumpkins do. You will need a lot of space in full sun, with a long
warm/hot
growing season for them to become impressive.

David-

Hi again,

The average temperature in the midlands at the moment is around 13/14
degrees at its highest, moving down to 6/7 at its lowest. Hope this
helps.
-

That seems to be the outside temperature. Is that where you are
going to
start your seeds? Is there no sun-facing window in the house where
it would
be warmer?

D


Hi again,

No i dont plan on starting the seeds outside. Yes it is much warmer
inside, and i have space on windowsills. I do have a plastic cover
type greenhouse which is set up and ready if that helps.

Cheers,
Dale.


You could take the temperature of this indoor spot for a few days (and
nights) and if it is warm enough just plant away, if not you may need a
heated propagator to get that head start on the season. There are tables on
the WWW that list the preferred germination temp for many cultivated plants
that will help you decide, sorry I seem to have lost the link that I was
thinking of.

D