Oh brilliant!... I find that I have sowed Rudbeckia seed into one of these trays. Never gave it a thought. That was 10 days ago and they have not yet germinated. Anything I can do to give them a chance or have I doomed them and I'd better get some more and retry?
so long as you don't overwater them, you'll be fine
Thanks Fairygirl. Apart from brassicas I buy all my compost as El Cheapo from Aldi normally, and assume it's pretty devoid of serious food, hence the use of fertiliser. Do you know whether my assumption is correct? Or do all composts have at least some goodness? Brassica plants go straight into the soil as soon as I get them home from the local market.
For germinating seeds, any multi purpose compost will do @nick615 . Some are better than others, and might have lumpy bits etc, but you can sieve that out if necessary. The heavier, more soil based, composts are best avoided too, as they hold on to moisture too much for tiny little seedlings. Most seeds do better with less water, rather than too much. It only causes problems.
By the time seedlings are big enough to pot on, they'll be going into a fresh amount of compost to grow on again. That will keep them going until they either get planted out, or potted on again. That will depend on what they are, where they're going, and the climate and conditions you have
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Going back to Culpability's original query, does anyone actually BUY seed trays? I find more than enough in what I process as Recycling Manager and a simple hole punch (plenty advertised on line) puts holes in them. My favourites, because of their depth, are the ones that mushrooms come in, but I use many others.
There's a policy of SOS, Sensible Opportunist Salvage, that recognises something that COULD be useful in the future, even though not identified at the time, because the day you want that item it's nowhere to be seen. If you find yourself with too many, the surplus can always head back to the recycling bag.
I have about 20 black plastic ones my father gave me about 35 years ago (almost certainly originally bought from from Wilko) and they're still going strong. I bought another ten about 10 years ago but no need since. I also use lots of clear plastic 'supermarket' containers which fruit like grapes typically comes in, and 3 of those fit nicely in a standard seed tray so useful for sowing smaller quantities of seed.
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
I've just salvaged the glass covers from our outside bulkhead lights, replaced during rewiring. Not sure what I'll use them for... but it seemed wrong to throw them away...
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
I use cheap cat litter trays to hold pots,small seed trays for watering and for emptying plants into that need dividing etc etc. They have steep sides which I find handy!
“Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
I use the large black trays that 5kg of mince/chicken comes in. But back to the OP's question. I often grow seedlings in trays with no holes. I start around 10 thousand seeds inside the house each year, and some of them inevitably end up being put on surfaces that I don't want getting wet. So I have probably about 30% of my trays without holes, it really doesn't matter to the seedlings so long as you watch your watering.
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thanks @Hostafan1
Most seeds do better with less water, rather than too much. It only causes problems.
By the time seedlings are big enough to pot on, they'll be going into a fresh amount of compost to grow on again. That will keep them going until they either get planted out, or potted on again.
That will depend on what they are, where they're going, and the climate and conditions you have
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Going back to Culpability's original query, does anyone actually BUY seed trays? I find more than enough in what I process as Recycling Manager and a simple hole punch (plenty advertised on line) puts holes in them. My favourites, because of their depth, are the ones that mushrooms come in, but I use many others.
There's a policy of SOS, Sensible Opportunist Salvage, that recognises something that COULD be useful in the future, even though not identified at the time, because the day you want that item it's nowhere to be seen. If you find yourself with too many, the surplus can always head back to the recycling bag.
They have steep sides which I find handy!