Following @SuePJ 's excellent thread on honeyberries, I was drawn back to James Wong’s book “Homegrown Revolution” in which he makes loads of suggestions for non-mainstream varieties of plants plus uses for all sorts of plants.
One of the things he talks about is the use of cold chamomile tea when sowing seeds to prevent damping off. Has anyone tried this and is it any use? I did search for the topic before starting this but couldn’t find anything, so if anyone has already talked about this I’d be grateful to know!
Thats what I thought @JaneJones That stuff makes me retch although I know a lot of people love it… It’s also easier to get hold of, and cheaper, than a lot of proprietary products for damping off.
It’s when you sow seeds and they’ve just germinated nicely and you’re very pleased they’re all coming up, then they all keel over at ground level and die. It’s a fungal problem and really common in seeds that you sow in pots/trays. There are a lot of chemical compounds you can use to water the seeds with when you first sow, in order to avoid this problem, but they are mainly nasty, which is why I was quite interested to know if the chamomile tea solution worked!
Most veg seed I sow straight into the ground but not all and it’s a real risk with pot/tray sown ones.
Air circulation is supposed to be the answer. I know I don’t really get it, as soon as seedlings appear I take off any cover and only put it back on at night to keep them warm.
Yes indeed but I have still had it from time to time with the tricky things. I’m in the frozen north (Normandy) so things tend to be covered for longer. Not sure where you are?
I’ve seen an idea which I haven’t tried, which is to use plastic bottles cut through the middle, plant into the bottom half, slip the top half back on, but crucially without the cap on. Supposed to allow the necessary air flow.
Ahhh OK, maybe that is why I sprinkled all my seedlings soil with cinnamon, certainly never had any issues doing this. Maybe look it up? Bought a 1kg bag on eBay.
I did this very successfully for a few years, you can start them in December with this method. Really worth a try. If you get a hot day you need to open them though.
Not heard of that so I looked it up. No serious studies as far as I can see but it is an anti-fungal so may well work Looks like damping off is caused by a number of different funghi so it probably depends. I know I was always told to spray (copper sulphate at that time) onto the soil after sowing the seed so it would kill the funghi before it got going since one of them lives in soil.
Once the spores that cause Damping Off have become established in a particular location it is indeed time consuming, but not necessarily expensive, to eradicate them.
Cleanliness and Hygiene are the key. In late autumn or early winter it is a good idea to wash all pots and trays and the staging / shelving inside the greenhouse / conservatory with Jeyes Fluid solution. A solution of 10% bleach in water is a good substitute. Don’t forget to wash the inside of the glass and the underside of cold frame lights.
Of course you can use fungicidal sprays, but this can easily become expensive, and in any case I know that many of you don’t care to use chemicals when gardening.
An alternative is to change the location of your seedlings, perhaps to a table in front of the window in an otherwise unused room.
Regarding the compost used, perhaps you may care to consider telling your family and friends that what you would really like for Christmas / Birthday is a 20 litre bag of sterile seedling compost. I think @JaneJones idea of microwave sterilisation is a great idea for small quantities of compost.
Wherever the seedlings are grown it is essential to have good ventilation.
In the event of bad weather that prevents the opening of windows and doors, then a small fan to circulate the air within the greenhouse / conservatory helps a great deal. Of course that does need an electrical power source, but perhaps someone who loves you will help with this. A supply of electricity will also enable a light or a heating mat or two, and also a small heater on a ‘frost watch’ thermostat setting.
There are solar powered fans and lights which might make a good present for you to receive.
That stuff makes me retch although I know a lot of people love it… It’s also easier to get hold of, and cheaper, than a lot of proprietary products for damping off.
It’s a fungal problem and really common in seeds that you sow in pots/trays. There are a lot of chemical compounds you can use to water the seeds with when you first sow, in order to avoid this problem, but they are mainly nasty, which is why I was quite interested to know if the chamomile tea solution worked!