Rotting seeds

I know I'm too late now for this year but looking for advice please....

The past few years I've sown seeds in a windowsill propagator - green beans, courgettes etc - but the seeds tend to rot. I haven't had much success in growing from seed. Really frustrating.
This year all I've managed to get is 3 green bean plants and 3 aubergine plants, that's grown at least 30 to 40 seeds :(

Any tips please?

 

P.s. I'm not doing anything any different to I have done for the past 8yrs and had great success in my first few years of growing veg from seed.

 

Well I use a few slightly different methods for different things, but for the seeds you mention I would fill my containers with compost, water them then allow them to heat overnight in the propagator. Dibble a hole, sow seeds (flat seeds on edge), re-dibble or fettle the top to cover using the pre warmed compost, put back into the propagator.

Sounds to me either your compost is too cold or over wet, you could try the method I use for sweet peas.

Fill your container 3/4 full with compost, water and allow to drain. Now fill up with dry compost and sow your seeds into that. It will take a few days but the dry compost will "wick" or "draw" up the moisture from the lower watered compost.

Steve...

 

Agree with Steve, too wet and /or too cold.

Is your propagator the the electric heated type of just passive ?

The electric full size seed tray ones are under £20 and really worth it imho.

 

Just a bog standard plastic one, not electric.

I think soil too wet by sounds of your comments.
Is it worth trying again now or just waiting til next year?

 

Are you putting the compost directly into the propagators base or using small pots ?

If the former , I would suspect that your propagator does not have any drain holes in it, so its always going to be way to easy to waterlog the compost.

Not too late to start anything off, but if not doing so already, use small pots and plant two seeds in each, so at least one should grow ok; just nip out the smaller, if both emerge.

Water the small pots, but leave them out of the propagator for an hour so any excess water has time to drain away.

With the weather so warm, you can really just stand the pots outside, no real need for the prop for such strong seeds as those beans and courgette etc; they could be up in just 3-5 days !

If you plan to use it again next spring for more finer seeds, then make sure you buy a proper seed compost which has a lot more sand in it, and so more free draining, or add some perlite/hort sand to a standard compost.

 

Thank you. Small pots in the prop but they had sat in overflow water to begin with mauve for a couple days.
I think I'll try again but not put the lid on this time

 

Success!!!! 6 green bean seedlings already! No sign of aubergine or courgette yet but still early.

Thanks everyone