I have always done mine in the basement. It's cooler down there but I keep the lights close and they always germinate faster than the packet says too. Keeping a lid on creates a bit of a greenhouse. I run my lights 24/7 until everything's sprouted, plus I don't need fungus gnats in the rest of the house so it's best for me to keep everything in the basement.

Oh crap !

Am I destined to get fungus gnats? Are they really really common?

I don't even know what the darn things look like. I better do a search. Hmmm. They should have a warning in the Growing from Seed forum. =:)

I've had mine in various rooms over the years. Right now they're in the patio door in the living room and i'm not using lights, just sunlight. The flats have their domes and i put a sheet of plastic over the whole shelf thing so that adds a bit of a "greenhouse effect".

Lynn, fungus gnats are the little flies that you sometimes see flying out of the soil in your houseplants. You can water your plants with peppermint tea - that helps control them. And you can also water your flats with chamomile tea to ward off damping off.

Yup, they are a lot like fruit flies. They're not gross but a bit annoying. I get them every year. You can buy sticky strips that catch a lot of them and your hair and clothes also. But you never really get rid of them until you plant the seedlings out.

Lynn, another thing you can do for fungus gnats is put up sticky yellow traps. That's what I do. You can either buy them at Home Hardware or make your own. Just buy some poster board (the yellow art paper that kids use in school, just make sure it's yellow), cut it into rectangles, smear with petroleum jelly and catch the gnats. This trick also works for white flies. If you have thrips, do the same only with blue paper. Marg

Mine are also in the basement, cool but not cold. I find they don't get as leggy as some I have upstairs in the window. But with everything that I have started if the weather does not improve dramatically I will have to have every windowsill available too.

Great idea to make your own sticky traps instead of buying. Do they work on fruit flies? I always get them in the kitchen in the summer. I tried a container of apple cider vinegar, but that only caught a couple. C

I've used them for most flying isects. It's amazing how fast these guys get caught! Marg

So much to watch for. I'm enjoying the learning curve though, and really appreciate your expertise.

Are thrips those things that look like a tiny piece of hair? You know those little bits that your hairdresser leaves on your face and/or neck? I had those on my daylilies last year, outside of course.

Oh, I had some Dame's Rocket barely sprouting this morning. The teensy tiny stems were a bit fuzzy, but I wasn't sure if that was how they started or if there's a bit of fungus, so I watered them with garlic water, and put them downstairs.

I digress........

I leave them on the dining room table til they poke through the soil, then they go on shelves under the lights. So far nothing I've grown has required bottom heat.

So far I've only started 3 things, so they're in the garage with the dahlias. But if I plant things that need warmth, they'll be on the dining room table, or in front of the patio door, where ever conditions seem most right. Sometimes I've had flats in almost every room in the house.

http://www.flowerpotheaven.com/insect-pictures-pests.html
Thrips is #7.

Thanks for the website Marric. I guess I've never had thrips. I wonder what my "pieces of hair" things are?

I guess I'm the only one who germinates seeds in the bathroom. My diningroom table has papers all over it right now, we have no patio door, but we do have 3 bathrooms........

There's no room in our bathroom, unless i used the tub.... LOL

I use the kitchen/dining table as well until the seeds germinate then I move them to the basement where my grow lights are.

I didn't realize the little bugs flying around down there in the basement were fungus gnats. I too thought they were fruit flies. I'll have to try the yellow paper smeared with petroleum jelly trick to see if I can get rid of them.

Re: Thrips - they have a wiggly larval stage that tunnels in leaves, and a flying adult stage. I have only had them once, on some gladiolus bulbs I bought one year.

The piece of hair things could be some kind of nematode. Are they doing any damage? There are many, many kinds of nematode but most are harmless.

I place newly sown seeds trays on the basement floor, it has infloor heating and is ideal for seeds that require extra warmth. I then bring them up and into the sunny south window and later into the solarium.

+12 C today ... finally feels a bit like spring!

Terrance