I used Miracle Gro potting soil to start mine. I had close to a 100% germination rate and they grew like crazy.

Aside from the soil, have you considered the sun in your apartment? Pepper plants like lots of it and it can be hard to give them enough inside a building.

Angie

I think there can be more than one formula. Also, more than the starting mix, it is important how you do it, in terms of temperature, watering, air circulation. If something works for you, continue with it. In the other forum they are talking about Sterilized Starting Mix.
I made my own by mixing pine fine(instead of PM, about 35%), some MG potting mix(~25%), some perlite(20%) and vermiculite(20%).
I have been doing some test germinating and it is working fine.

Hi Angie,
I used one of those grow lights this last time around, link below. I had thought that this would perform better than being in the window in late winter and early spring. I'm not sure if the light was a problem, too...

http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-JSV2-2-Foot-Start-System/dp/B0006856EQ

I prefer using a soilless mix with nothing in it and simple cheap fluorescent lights. It's been working very well for many years. Also, when I start large numbers of seeds in one variety I start in coffee filters in baggies.

I had the best luck starting seeds in fafard 51 potting mix.

I add ~25% MG potting mix, b/c it already has some nutrients in it. This way, I don't have to start fertilizing very early on.

I should mentioned that I DO NOT germinate in the mix, but I do it in paper towel/baggy.

I use the jiffy "greenhouse", which really isn't fertilized.

They come up, but seem to take forever vs. tomatoes. This was improved by buying a couple of heat pads which bring the setup to about 80 degrees. 2-3 weeks to germination, then transfer to 3 " pots with Miracle Grow starting mix.

Then back to taking forever vs. tomatoes !!!!!!!

I use 3 parts promix bx, 1 part earthworm castings/EWC for all vegetables. Add texture/aeration amendents like perlite, vermicuite & pumice to your liking. It always works great for me.

MG Moisture Control Potting Mix with a little perlite added. Plain old MG Potting Soil is probably just as good. Results with MG can vary since the formulation varies by region.

Frankly, so long as the soil doesn't hold enough water to drown the roots and preferably has some nutrient content, it isn't that critical. I did have terrible results with the Jiffy products, though.

Dennis

P.S. I too use the paper towel method to germinate, then move the little sprout into soil.

This post was edited by DMForcier on Tue, Feb 4, 14 at 15:39

Has anyone tried growing seeds in Rockwool instead of peat pods? I actually had varying results with that. I did find it works best if you neutralise the ph first before you put them in the trays and add the seeds. After the seeds pop, I transferred them to soil (wool and all) and fertilized them. Roots shot through those like a "termite through wood".

I also heard of a method of using sponges, cut into squares, for seeds. I did not do it, but if someone tried it and it worked, I would love to hear the story.

Here is a link that might be useful: RockWool

This post was edited by RonnyB123 on Tue, Feb 4, 14 at 18:34

Im agree with RedRacoto on his Promix with castings and perlite. Promix on its own is very dependable and with added nutrients sounds like supersoil for starting chiles. This season im trying a 50/50mix of MG organic choice and perlite and Im having excellent germination rates on a heat mat.

I have tried just about everything listed in this thread w/ mixed results. This year I am going w/ FarFard Pro Potting Mix. Contains the key items:
Spaghum Peat
Perilite
Bark Matter

Am adding the Vermiculite separately.

So based on that I feel pretty confident that I have all the bases covered.

To echo Dennis' point above, I have found that MG does vary by region.

I know this thread is two years old but I thought I'd throw my .2 in...never start hot peppers in pellets or peat of any kind. The pH of peat does not work with pepper plants and will slow growth.