Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog
National Nature Reserve


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have a home built propagator and grow the following from seed marigolds,
asters, calendulars, toms, cues, beans, onions etc every year (for the past
6). I use multi-purpose peat free compost (lasted lot from Asda which was
very cheap). I mix this with my own garden soil and my own compost. I sieve
all the components in a 1/4" sieve and can honestly say I have no problems
with dampening off.

The propagator is in the green house and the lid is always ajar from about
1/2" on a cold night to about 5" in mid spring.

AndyP

--
"Wisest are they that know they do not know." Socrates
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above
hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world" JRR Toliken, The Hobbit

Could it be that you keep your coir mix too wet? Coir without the Cheshunt
should do the trick and with Cheshunt should virtually guarantee good
results......other things being ok.......HW.
"Neil Jones" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog
National Nature Reserve


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
------

'Neil',

Any has the answer. Better and gradually increasing ventilation, both
night and day.

Regards,
Emrys Davies




"Neil Jones" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog
National Nature Reserve


----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------

I would like to see other responses to this one........over here(USA) soil
in a germination mixture is frowned upon......unless it is sterilized before
using.........HW.
" Emrys Davies" wrote in message
...
'Neil',

Any has the answer. Better and gradually increasing ventilation, both
night and day.

Regards,
Emrys Davies




"Neil Jones" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog
National Nature Reserve


----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------

"Neil Jones" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.



I have found that a lot of the fungal problems associated with seed
actually comes from the seed coat itself and in trials cheshunt compound
didn't give the results needed. I now sterilise the seed before sowing.
This needs to be experimented with,10% "Milton's" for 10 mins was
recommended to me..I only do this with choice and problem seed and don't
need quantities of seedlings.. Its easy to see what's happening when
sowing onto damp towelling which I often do.

Bell

Neil Jones wrote:

Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

What are you trying to grow ? Sterilising the seed surafce may be one way out.
(but then some plants need their fix of sympathetic fungi to grow successfully)

Any copper based fungicide ought to keep damping off under control. Better
ventilation will also help.
(or the other extreme completely sterile growing conditions but that is much harder
to do)

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

Perlite isn't bad as a near sterile medium (mind the dust). I find vermiculite
collpases and clags too easily.
It also regulates water availability too.

Regards,
Martin Brown

"Neil Jones" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.
I usually find mouldy seeds are caused by too much watering. Until the plant
has really got going it just likes to be moist. A seed hardly uses any water
at all beyond the initial re-hydration. I usually soak all seeds in warm
water for 24hrs and then water *very* sparingly until germination. Depending
on the seeds I then get them out of the propagator as soon as possible and
spray with copper fungicide at the first sign of any problems. Keep an eye
on them and remove affected seedlings immediately. Finally, don't sow too
close together as it impedes the air-flow and makes it easier for infection
to spread. Try sterilising the propagator regularly as well. If its similar
to mine (Sankey), I wash it and leave it to dry completely, and separately
soak the capilliary mat in boiling water to kill of anything living in it.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.
I think they are both made from some sort of volcanic product. Don't know
what but I haven't heard of any environmental concerns over the production
of either. I was thinking of trying (compost)+(thin layer of
vermiculite)+(seed)+(vermiculite). I'm wondering if keeping the seed off the
soil but close enough for the roots to reach it may help reduce problems.

Martin

Having read the other replies I ought to add the following to my earlier
post
I do not grow seedlings in conventional seed trays (too fiddly for my big
hands!) I use those large modular seed trays with a 1" square "pot" for each
seed. In hindsight this obviously allows for better air circulation. These
are then transferred into the 3" pots until planting.

As for sterilised soil, well I do sometimes get toms growing where marigolds
were sown! Hey that is all part of the fun. I even get toms in my hanging
baskets...and they fruited.

AndyP
--
"Wisest are they that know they do not know." Socrates
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above
hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world" JRR Toliken, The Hobbit

Neil Jones wrote:


Better
ventilation will also help.........if you mean better ventilation after
germination has taken place then 1000% agree......but not before germination
has taken place......HW.

"Neil Jones" wrote in message om...
Can anyone suggest a better medium to prevent damping off problems.
I have beein using coir fibre and I find that even with cheshunt
compound I am still getting problems with certain seeds going moldy.
This is particularly the case with my heated propagator.

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.

I actually use a peat based compost - all peat free compost I've tried show signs of needing more R & D before they will
compete with the best peat based ones. Having said that I see folks - some of them pros having damping off problems with
the materials and seeds I use. As many posters have already suggested this is down to other factors like managing
water/temp/ventilation. Another major factor is the time the seeds spend in the propagator getting too soft and the time
they they spend in the sowing trays too crowded. Wean out of the propagator asap and prick out as soon as they are
hardened off and big enough to handle (preferably before you see any true leaves on dicotyledons)
Do watch the temperatures, a propagator in the sun becomes an oven very quickly, and do remember the obvious - a
thermostat is no answer - all it can do is turn the power off it can't cool the propagator.

Rod

In article , Martin Sykes
writes
"Neil Jones" wrote in message
. com...

Vermiculite or perlite are possiblities. Which is best? I am a
conservationist and I love wild plants and their habitats too so I do
not wish to use any products containing peat.
I think they are both made from some sort of volcanic product. Don't know
what but I haven't heard of any environmental concerns over the production
of either. I was thinking of trying (compost)+(thin layer of
vermiculite)+(seed)+(vermiculite). I'm wondering if keeping the seed off the
soil but close enough for the roots to reach it may help reduce problems.

Vermiculite is expanded mica, which occurs naturally as thin sheets,
though under what circumstances it's produced I don't know.
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/

Anne Middleton/Harold Walker wrote:
I would like to see other responses to this one........over here(USA)
soil in a germination mixture is frowned upon......unless it is
sterilized before using.........HW.

Here too, apart from risk of disease it's an unknown nutrition-wise.

I invest in a small bag of quality seed compost, gp compost goes mossy
in my greenhouse. And sow thinly.

It was a dark and stormy night, and as the people of uk.rec.gardening
huddled around the fire, Annabel told them this story:

I have found that a lot of the fungal problems associated with seed
actually comes from the seed coat itself and in trials cheshunt compound
didn't give the results needed. I now sterilise the seed before sowing.
This needs to be experimented with,10% "Milton's" for 10 mins was
recommended to me..I only do this with choice and problem seed and don't
need quantities of seedlings.. Its easy to see what's happening when
sowing onto damp towelling which I often do.

When I was working with Arabidopsis seeds in the lab, I used the
following sterilisation procedu

70% ethanol for two minutes
Wash very thoroughly with water
10% Chloros bleach for one minute
Wash very very thoroughly with water
Dry out
Sow on sterile agar in a sterile hood (this might be a little difficult
for those of you without a lab)


I found that there was a very high loss using this procedure -- and woe
betide you if you exceed the stated times! I also found that
sterilisation was unnecessary when I grew on compost, though vital on
agar. I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a strong suspicion that
the seeds are contaminated with fungus.


Rhiannon