Damping Off Disease

Now that spring is creeping closer I thought since it's time to start your tomatoes and peppers or other seeds in general I would talk about damping off disease. Damping off disease is one of the major causes of seed starting failure. The disease is actually caused by a variety of fungi that can kill seedings and germinating seeds. Here are some tips to live by when starting seeds to prevent damping off disease

1) It's in the Mix
One major component of preventing damping off disease is to use a sterilized seed starting mix. DON'T ever use garden soil ever!!!! Also don't use regular potting mix, or even worse potting soil (I never use potting soil for anything, it's crappy) to start seeds. Commercial seed starting mixes aren't necessarily sterile so as an extra precaution you can bake your seed starting mix on baking sheets in the oven at 200 F to kill the the spores of the mold and fungi.

2) Don't over water
Once the seedling start to germinate cut back on the water a bit. Overly wet soggy conditions create the right environments for some nasty mold growth.

3) More Air
Circulation of air around seedling also reduces fungi and mold growth. It also prepares seedling for lie outdoors where the air is not still. This can be achieved by using a fan on your seedlings.

4) Look for Signs
If you see signs of mold growth or seedlings flopping over and dying there is still hope if you catch it early.

5) Treatment
You can spray your seedlings with one tablespoon of 3% hydrogen peroxide mixed with a quart of water. This will kill most kinds of funky fungi and mold that might grow in your seed starting trays. Also a strong Chamomile tea works as well, chamomile has anti-fungal properties.

Look What Arrived in the Mail Today!

      The other day I commented on a post that was on the Botanical Interests Seeds Facebook page. The post was about growing poppies. I tried growing some Lauren's Grape Poppies and California poppies last year with not much luck. I planted them too late apparently. I should have planted them in the very early spring before the last frost. The Lauren's Grape poppies never came up and my California poppies never bloomed, very sad I know.

      Anyway I commented on the post about my past misfortunes with poppies and the owner of Botanical Interests commented below and told me to e-mail him and he would send replacements. So I was expecting just a pack of seeds in the mail and to my surprise I received a box that contained several different types of poppy seed, as well as a mouse pad, a calendar, and a note pad. Anyway it really made my day and I appreciated it very much, gotta love free goodies, lol.

      Botanical Interests is a great seed company. I have ordered from them for many years and have never been disappointed. Check out their site it's in my links of my favorite companies if your interested in them, they specialize in heirloom and organic seeds and they have signed the no GMO pledge.