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emcd124

Newbie thrill: MacGuiver heating & sprouts!

emcd124
11 years ago

This is my first time ever trying to grow peppers from seed, and you all have me so excited about all these neat new varieties that it looks like i'm practically starting a pepper farm. The DH got me a Parks Biodome for valentines day, so last week I put it into action, planting some of the seed I had.

...and then learned that peppers really like heat, and that I might need grow lights, two things I didnt have.

So I got some advice, did some thinking, and started MacGuivering the heat source to help them germinate. Every time we ran a load of dishes, I'd pull out the bottom rack and stick the seed tray into the steamy back of the dishwasher. Then i realized that crock pots are made to give off continuous low heat, so I put about 2 C of water into the bottom of our crock pot, put it on low, covered it with a towel, put a metal cookie sheet on top with the seed tray...viola! heat from below in an energy efficient form.

This morning to my complete astonishment I realized that about 50% of my seeds are starting to unfurl. EVEN THE PEPPADEWS (pic below), which I had pretty much convinced myself would take three months to peek out. The jalapenos are the only one of the hots that are breaking out so far, but I've got high hopes that the rest will follow. I'm sure this is old hat to you guys, but I feel like Merlin just worked a major magic getting these guys to sprout. I'm doing a little gardener happy dance, so I just had to share.

Tray on crockpot (left) and Peppadew seed unfurling (right)

I have plans to run some trials to evaluate different MacGuiver heat options. So far I'm thinking of on top the crock vs in the crock (heat then turn off and insulate in a towel to retain) vs in a yogurt maker (max heat is lower there, close to 105, so either vent the top to dissipate heat or turn on and then off. I'm going to use my thermometer to test how long it takes the crock and yogurt maker to heat to the right range, and how long they retain heat when turned off and wrapped in a towel. If only I had a high schooler looking for a science project!

Now, to work on that lighting problem....

Comments (13)

  • beetle_2007
    11 years ago

    Nice Going!! Its so rewarding seeing them germinate and grow on!

  • woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a
    11 years ago

    emcd:

    105 is a bit TOO warm. I found that out a couple weeks ago when I found out my thermometer was off by 26 degrees. 85-87 seems to be the concensus for ideal temps, but a tad lower and higher, I think would be fine.

    Nice to see you're having success with good ol' ingenuity.

    Kevin

  • jifjifjif
    11 years ago

    Very cool, em. I love the ingenuity.

  • ottawapepper
    11 years ago

    Great you're having success but what woohooman said, 80 - 87 is the sweet spot. If you can settle in the 80 -87 range you should see better germination rates.

  • emcd124
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Yeah, the idea i'm working towards is to figure out how long it takes the crock or yogurt maker to head to, say, 90 degrees, then to shut it off and wrap all in a towel to insulate for a bit. I might also play around with plugging them into one of those "away from home" timers that is supposed to turn your lights on and off, but have it turn the crock on and off so it cycles down to say 75 and then back up to 90. The only bummer is having to work the temperature to time conversion the first time with my thermometer. at least, thats the hope :)

  • DMForcier
    11 years ago

    You can't babysit the crockpot 24/7. Find some other heat source, like the light in the oven. Turn it on (the light, not the oven), stick the thermometer in there, and wait a couple hours for the temp to stabilize. If the oven has a pilot light, you won't even need the appliance light.

    If it's warm enough (in the 80s), remove the oven knob and insert babies.

  • 2ajsmama
    11 years ago

    I use an old warming tray (for a buffet table) from the 60's that was my mom's. Got an AC thermo at auto parts store (right range to check soil temps). Cover the glass-topped tray with towel, put flat on top and kept checking soil temp (not towel temp). Don't go over 90 (I tried to keep it in 80 degree range). Mist at least once a day, cover with plastic tray (better than plastic wrap though I've used that before). Only problem is my warming tray is shorter than a 1020 flat. No problem leaving it on 24/7 for 10 days, but if you get a new one make sure it doesn't get too hot and catch the towel on fire. New warming trays might be like the new crockpots and get hotter than the old ones.

    I've used this 2 years running now, works great. Just moved peppers off a couple days ago and stuck tomatoes on today (I haven't tried this with tomatoes before, but I got the mix a little too wet).

    Lights - clamp-on work lights (I have a "baker's rack" type 4-shelf mini greenhouse) with 6500K CFLs. I hit a 20% sale at Big Lots on the bulbs back in Jan, think I paid less than $1 each. Again, used the CFLs (from TSC, more $ and 1 blew out) last year. You just have to have some place warm (70 is OK) you can set the pots and clamp the lights to. I didn't use a timer last year, just a power strip so I could turn them all on/off at the same time.

    You might even use the lamps with incandescent bulbs (underneath the wire shelves) for the germination - again, make sure there's not a fire hazard.

  • Bill_Missy
    11 years ago

    Key words from DMForcier...

    REMOVE the oven knob!!! :)

  • uncle_t
    11 years ago

    I sprout mine on top of our hot water tank. And that's no crock. ;D

  • Ohiofem 6a/5b Southwest Ohio
    11 years ago

    Also remember that they don't need bottom heat or plastic covers once they sprout. They need to go under light, which can warm the soil by itself. I started nine different peppers two weeks ago today. Most sprouted within 7 days, so I moved them off the heat at that time. Within a few days the last one, Jimmy Nardello's, sprouted. The temperature under my T5 flourescents gets close to 80. I left them on the heating pad too long one year, and some of them suffered.

  • emcd124
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Sorry to be dense, but the bit about removing the oven knob...is that just so that no one starts preheating the oven with the seedlings and tray inside? or is there some other function there?

  • Bill_Missy
    11 years ago

    Yes so no one turns on the oven. Ask DMForcier

  • DMForcier
    11 years ago

    Hey, it wasn't me that did it. But someone did. There is a recent thread with really horrible pics. [shudder]

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