Germination, 2nd Try

I gave germination a second try. This time I followed advice from our local nursery. His technique was to put some planting soil in a pot and put the seeds directly on top of the soil then cover it in vermiculite and then cover it with plastic. The theory is that the seeds start in the pots they will stay in and thus will not need replanting. No pods needed. The plastic keeps things moist and perhaps a little warmer in the pot. So here goes:

1) fill pots with potters soil. I bought a bag. I hate the idea of buying dirt but the number of bugs one brings in from garden dirt can be high. And given the problems I had with aphids on my over-wintering ghost pepper, I decided not to risk it. I then watered pots with warm water.

2) place seeds on top of wet soil

3) cover with thin layer of vermiculite

4) water vermiculite. I used a spray bottle to keep the vermiculite and seeds from floating away. Then cover with plastic

5) put in grow box. My growing box is hovering around 80 which might be a little on the low side so I increased the number of hours the light is on. This will keep the seed around 80 for a longer period. I’d need a higher wattage light to keep it warmer.

grow box getting full.