plastic fantastic

Hi,
I would like to have a go at raising my own bedding plants from seed. The packets say sew feb but obviously they will need protection from the elements.
I have a shelf under the shed window I could use or get one of those plastic arch shelved units.
Are they any good? Don't have room for full time greenhouse.
Would either of these options be worth the effort or should I invest in plug plants later.
Cheers
D

 

I think it depends what you want to raise for bedding, Exlabman
I can see you having problems trying to raise from seed in February - too cold and not enough light - but some bedding plants do need that early start to get them up to planting size for the summer. I'm thinking Begonia semperflorens and Antirrinums. They're best left to the professionals and just bought in as plants.
Some things will do well from a mucher later start.
Bedding Dahlias will do well from an April sowing and flower in July. (They're short day plants so won't flower before then so no point in rushing them to start.) Although Dahlias are not frost hardy they are quite tough plants and the seedlings can be raised mostly outdoors and taken indoors at night.
Pansies and Violas will also do well from a late sowing.
If you tell us what you would like to grow I'm sure you'll get more opinions.
See what other suggestions you get.

 

You need two things: Light and Heat

Germination is basically at three temperatures

1) house central heating (but can be a problem if you are out during the day and the house gets cold, or if you have windows that are poorly insulated and the plants are on the windowsill (see light below!)

2) warm - the sort of thing that you can get with the cheapest propagators that just provide some bottom warmth. Putting the pots in the airing cupboard until they germinate will be OK, but check them twice a day and get them out as soon as they germinate.

3) hot - only needed for tropicals

and (4)! some things need a spell in the fridge, but that doesn't apply to bedding plants.

Light

This is more difficult, particularly in February. I use a windowsill propagator (long and thin), and I cut a cardbox box in half, longwise, to make a "wall" on the room-side of the propagator and I line it with tin foil - so the seedlings get light from the window, and reflected light from behind.

Otherwise it is very likely that the seedlings will get "leggy" reaching for the light.

South facing window in full sun not ideal either as they might overheat - mine is West facing, gets the sun from about 11am onwards.

Other thing is to make sure you get a decent number of seeds for your money. Might be worth looking at Moles - who tend to do bulk packets, but fewer varieties. The seed will probably keep until next year, and you should sow it thinly, but it might be wise to have enough for a "second go" if you are trying this for the first time.

 

I agree with Alice ,
probably best to say what you would like to grow and then you will get more opinions as to timings etc ..Ther is such a vast range of 'bedding plants' to suit all needs .

Dave

 

I have found that the temptation to start sowing is almost irresistable. I suggest that you listen to Kristens advice and really give some thought to what you are going to do. Alice also offered what I regard as sound advice.

My opinion is that you should have a think about what you would like to grow. Then think about what space you have got. Have you a budget in mind for what yuou want to do? If there is very little money available, maybe you could start by trying to find suitable materials to make up something yourself. I have seen some of these plastic greenhouse items and was not very impressed by the product quality. I kow you said you don't have space for a full greenhouse, have you considered one of the smaller polytunnels?

I can vouch for what Alice said about Violas. I have about 160 in my polytunnel that I bought as mini plugs in September 2010. They all survived the heavy frost and snow. Most of them are now in flower and look lovely. I put six in each of two window troughs about the end of November, When the frost and snow came I really thought I would lose them all. I didn't lose one of them.

Hope I have helped. Good luck.

Chopper.

 

I've had one of those four shelf arched mini greenhouses for a couple of years now, it had a clear plastic cover with it when I bought it and when it came out of the box the platic had creased in places whilst it was folded. 12 months later those creaes became tears/rips in the cover, they where repaired with duct tape and it lasted another season. Then I bought a replacement cover for it although this time I went for the green reinforced type..it has a grid like mesh in it.

I also bought a five shelf one last year, and I used both to cope with the overflow from my 8x6 greenhouse, so both are used for either trays of seeds to germinate, or seedlings or potted on plants.

Word of warning with them though, they are light as a feather and will move around with the wind, I have heavy paving slabs on the bottom shelf of mine and I take the covers off them when not in use over winter.

Steve...

 

Thanks guys. I haven't made it to the shed yet to get the names of the seeds.
It's a space issue rather than money, a greenhouse just won't fit.
I bought plug plants last time but wanted the challenge of growing from seed.
I'll try and write them down before work tomorrow.
Cheers
D

 

Do have a go at growing from seed exlabman - its great fun. But I would agree with the others that there is no point in rushing. I always quote Christopher Lloyd who said that he started his sowing on 1st March.

If you have a heated propagator you can get seeds to germinate in January or February. Thats not the problem. The problem is what you do with them after they have germinated and grown up a certain amount. It will not be warm enough to put them outside and they will suffer inside.

Remember also that that its warmer and lighter in March and April. You might typically get three times the light level in March compared to January. What that means is that plants may grow up to three times faster in March. So three weeks of growing in January is only the equivalent of one week of growth in March. So an early start is not really as good as it sounds.

 

Hi,
right my seeds are...
trailing lobelia
night scented stock
sweet sultan
nemesia
verbena

It is the last two I'm particularly interested in as I really liked these last year. They did get damaged by late frosts though.
The stock I usually sprinkle directly into tubs late spring. Never heard of or tried sweet sultan but the boss liked the pics on the packet, big fluffy balls of colour.
If I can plant them later than the packet says then great, however the covered shelf things would give some late frost protection before going in the beds?

Cheers
D

 

Well I've plunged in and ordered one.
I want to use it for growing on bedding plants before planting.
Will I need a fleece on frosty nights?
Do fleeces need to be removed during the day?

Cheers
D

 

Hi exlabman,

Though I cannot claim that my methods are the correct way of doing things, I will tell you what I do in my polycarb greenhouse...

If the nighttime temperature is forecast below 2 celcius, I use a small paraffin heater, and cover seedlings with a few layers of fleece (one sheet folded over)

If nighttime temperature is forecast below 5 celcius, I just cover with fleece, with no heater

If nighttime temperature is forecast 5 or more celcius, then I dont bother with fleece at all.

I always remove the fleecing after breakfast and put the fleece on (if needed) at dusk.

I would say that unless we have an extreme cold snap, you should be ok, however, others may correct me on this!

Also, remember to heed steves advice regarding anchoring the shelving with something heavy... like concrete slabs.

Good luck with your seedlings!