Seeds have sprouted but now I have a problem

I was hoping you folks could help me here. I started my seeds indoors a few weeks ago....now I admit I don't have a fancy set up with lights etc....I just have them near a sunny window. I have noticed that white whispy stuff (probably mold) has started showing on the earth in my peat pellets. Is there anyway to get rid of it or minimize it? Please tell me it won't kill my seedlings! Please!

TIA
Dawn

If it's mold that's bad news, but it could just be salt buildup. White and wispy sounds more like mold though (a picture would help confirm) I'd try spritzing it with some dilute hydrogen peroxide, and back off on the watering, let them dry out a bit more in between waterings. Sometimes you can save them and sometimes it's too late, never know until you try (if the base of the seedlings' stems is looking pinched in, then they're suffering from damping off and probably won't make it, but if the mold is really just on the soil then they may recover fine)

You also might want to consider getting some lights--you don't need fancy ones, plain old fluorescents do just fine. You need to keep them no more than a few inches above the tops of the seedlings and leave them on for 14-16 hrs. Light from a window just isn't bright enough (and in the winter and early spring there's not enough hours of daylight either). If they don't get enough light then they'll get leggy.

Hi Dawn,
This is my first go at growing from seeds as well. The first attempt was in a window and exactly what Ecrane wrote happened. They were so leggy, I was jealous. LOL.

I have a cheap set up now with your basic 4' shop light and plain florescents. My seeds germinated in record time and are looking good. I too have something that looked like mold and the H202 spritzing worked great. Lighting position was key as well.

If you use a domed setup, be sure to remove the top when germination begins. Some people slowly aclimate the seeds by removing the dome a little at a time. As I was facing a mold problem, I removed the sucker and added a little fan to circulate the air. I lost a few, but still have hundreds growing. I don't know what will work best for you, but trail and error seems to route to go. Environment surely plays some role in how the seedlings will react.

Hope this helped some.

Dawn, I like a 5% Clorox spray for things like this. It won't hurt the seedlings and will clean up any mold right off the bat. I don't know if Hydrogen Peroxide and Clorox combine to make a lethal cocktail, but I would choose one or the other.

Some people have under counter fluorescent lights in their kitchen or bathrooms, if you have those, maybe you could have some seedlings under them?

I think most of us who have been growing from seed for a while absolutely HATE the peat pellets for this reason, so you are definitely not alone in having probelms with them.

Suzy

Don't you hate those peat pellets. I hate those 2 1/2" ones too. I finally threw some out today . Finally realized they just weren't going to germinate.!!

I like peat pellets and have been using them for 25 years. I never use a dome, though. I think a dome encourages fungal problems, especially if you overwater like I do. I have gotten mold once or twice--last year when I was growing some henbane in pellets in a cold, damp basement, for instance, and noticed white mold growing around the base of the seedlings. I watered with tepid chamomile tea, which is a good antifungal, and the mold was killed and the seedlings lived to tell the tale.

Sometimes, though, if the seeds mold right off they were just dead to begin with. That has been my experience on the few occasions it has happened.

Thanks a lot for your help everyone!!! I really do appreciate it. I might just look into those lights I suppose. Is it too late to use them now - even though some of my seedlings are over an inch tall?

It's never too late...they'll just keep getting leggier the longer they go on growing without lights. Putting them under lights now won't reverse any legginess that's already there but you can prevent it from getting worse.

that white whispy stuff could be other seeds germinating also.

I got the shop lights at Wal mart and they were fine, aboaut $8.99 each Wish I could have had a really nice setup, but the wal mart ones put the same amount of light on them. Maybe next year I will have a really cool setup. Nah, then nothing would grow. The flats have to be on books and stuff to get close enough

So are you saying then it is worth it to get a light? Dh said it would be fine to get one to install in the basement but I don't want to bother if it isn't going to save what I have now??

Absolutely. From my perspective. Mine are in a room where sun just pours into the room from big windows on 2 sides and I've always thought that was enough. I got lights this year after everyone here told me to, and I can't believe the difference.

I got the 2 light fixtures for one spot and ended up getting another, so maybe a 4 light? If you just have a couple flats 2 is fine. I needed to put 4 , so I had to get another.

It's definitely worth it to get the lights...it would have been best to have them as soon as the seeds germinated, but it's better to get them now than never.

Ecrane do you put yours under lights while they germinate. I've heard yes and I've heard wait till you see sprouts. I usually put them under lights when I first plant them, but am I not doing it right. I'll go jerk em right out from that light if they shouldn't be there

You folks have been soooooo helpful!!! What a great bunch! Thanks - I am heading out today to home depot to get a light!!! I can't wait!!

I put them under lights before they germinate too (most of the seeds I start need light to germinate). They might germinate on their own, but I figure it can't hurt them to have the extra light.

Ok folks I got everything for my grow-op LOL LOL

Now I just have to convince dh to set it up for me today - hopefully I can coax him to do it! LOL

The reason we can't use peat pellets is because the peat never dissolves in our soil once it is planted so the roots just go in circles inside the peat.

Maybe you are thinking of peat pots? I usually pot up seeds growing in peat pellets. I did this yesterday, and as usual I had a number of seedlings that were sending roots outside of the pellet already. For instance, the artichokes had roots several inches long coming out of the bottom of the pellet (I knew I should have potted those up sooner!).

I think you may be right, paracelsus!!! I have never used peat pellets I don't think.
That seems like a waste though monetarily or what is the advantage of using peat pellets as opposed to soil less germination mix? With germination mix, I just harden them off and put in the ground.

I don't know what other advantages they have, but they're neat & easy...I use seed starting mix anyway, but I always make a terrible mess and it always takes me a while to fill up the seedling trays with the seed starting mix. With the peat pellets you just plop them in and water and you're done, no potting mix all over to clean up!

Might try them for ease...............thanks

One thing I like about the pellets is that if you have some seedlings bigger than other (I always do) that need to be potted up or that can go in the ground, you can just pick it up and do it. When I use cellpacks, it's a pain to do that. They are a bit pricey, but I buy them in bulk from Harris Seeds. They have lots of different sizes. The extra deep one is good for starting veggies to put outside directly instead of potting up. I know some people don't like peat because if it dries out, it's really had to re-wet, but I have a heavy hand with the watering, so it works well for me.