Principles of seed sowing

This thread is super helpful. I've been mixing perlite with my MPC for my seedlings recently and the germination seems to be good. Is this a practice that others follow or am I simply just wasting perlite?

 

Hi Sam - I suspect that a lot of people don't do it - because they don't know about it. However I think that it is good practice as seeds need good drainage as they require oxygen around their roots. You can use perlite or sharp sand (from a builders merchant). I have generally used sharp sand because perlite in small bags is quite expensive. But more recently I have bought it in 100 litre bags for about £16, which was much cheaper.

I have been using 2/3 multipurpose compost and 1/3 sharp sand for a long time. Then a while back I read a entire book about experiments on seed germination written by an American University department, and I was pleased to see that for all their experiments they used the same mixture.

 

Sam as Peter said perlite is a bit expensive in the small bags I buy . So as a rule of thumb I use a perlite + seed compost mix for what I consider trickier seeds . For all the rest I mix some sharp sand into the mix.
I'll also use perlite + MPC in my baskets , but in my containers MPC + sharp sand.

 

If I do I use bean bag filling - much cheaper! Mostly I use it when it is a seedling with tiny roots or one that I know dislikes root disturbance. A light mix is a godsend in those instances come pricking out time.

 

Thanks for that both. Really glad to hear it's correct!

Like you say I noticed 10l in Homebase was £7! I bought 100l on Amazon for about £17 I think and that's a LOT of perlite

 

Brilliant - why hadn't I thought of that.

No its not. Little plants get bigger, and when you have a number of plants in 35 and 50 litre pots - you can get through a lot of stuff.

 

I hadn't until I was offered some for free. But 283 litres is £19.99 from Argos so it is good value for what I use it for.

I was given about 500 litres of insulation Vermiculate too. It is a bit larger but good for potting up plants with.

 

10 litres is about £3.75 in Wilkos ( perlite and vermiculite ) Where would we be without Wilkos !
http://www.wilko.com/compost+composters/wilko-compost-perlite-10l/invt/0300454

 

That still sounds expensive per litre Harry when compared to buying in bulk!

 

Not really Sam a bag will last me the season , and I really don't want to store 100litres of the stuff.
I suppose 100 litres is expensive if you compare it to the 1000 litre bags . etc etc

 

Anyone tried cat litter?

 

Not me but @sal73 has.

 

Yup. Very true. I've got an industrial size bag in my greenhouse larger than my composts!!!

 

Used or un Used

 

You'll have to ask him yourself although he is probably still celebrating Sundays results!