Can "damping off" be stopped?

Aaargh, I think one of my seed flats has "damping off" and I'm wondering if there is anything I can do to halt the death of my little babies! I used the Miracle Gro Organic mix, and have watered it with a *little* (like 1 tsp. per quart) H202. The tougher seedlings (like the tomatoes) look fine, but the fine, threadlike-ones (nemesia, nigelia, heliotrope) are all getting really thin and curled over at the soil line. I bottom-water, only when it is getting dry, and have them under my fluorescent counter lights. Is there anything else I can do?

Unfortunately didn't read about sterilizing the starting mix until after I'd done this tray. I did that on the later trays.

Booker

I bought some "No Damp" from a Canadian website and it seems to have stopped any further dampning off. I don't know if it will cure the dampning off that has already happened.

I think once a seedling is already showing those sympteoms you can't reverse things. But you can probably save the seedlings that don't have it yet with some sort of antifungal--you could try bumping up your peroxide concentration a bit or try chamomile tea, or there are some commercial products that also work to kill the fungus.

I lost some seedlings in my trays (also underflorescent lights) but when I added a little hydrogen peroxide to the water (like you, I water from the bottom) the then unaffected seedlings in the same trays went on to thrive. I may simply have been lucky.

Donna

I think that having a small, light duty fan running in the room helps by keeping the air moving. Doubt it will have an effect once the damping off has begun but offer this nugget of information for future seed starting.

I have used chamomile tea, bottom watering and the fans and have not had any damping off in three separate seed starting sessions.

GL and HTH.
Mary

Thanks. I'll try the chamomile tea. Does it have to be only chamomile, or is a mixed herbal tea that is mostly chamomile do? (I only have Tazo "Calm")

Thanks for the encouragement. I'll start a fan and hope for the best!
Booker

Dunno, probably won't hurt - here's the ingredient list:

Chamomile Flowers, Hibiscus Flowers, Spearmint Leaves, Lemongrass, Rose Petals, Blackberry Leaves, Safflower, Peppermint Leaf, Sarsaparilla Root, Lemon Balm Leaf, Licorice Root

but personally I would stick with just chamomile. Biggest help may be the air circulation.

I noticed quite a few of my seedlings keeling over from damping-off (Jiffy pellets!!), and because so many of them had taken so long to sprout and I was so looking forward to having them in my garden, I decided to take drastic action and transplant the remaining healthy, tiny seedlings into sterilized seed-starting mix. Some of them were no taller than 1/2", roots included, but I took my chances and now I have many, many thriving, healthy seedlings. If you're looking to salvage what's left, I'd suggest transplanting!! Just make sure you hold the seedlings by their leaves and not the delicate stems.

Good luck!

You can also use hydrogen peroxide at 1 tablespoon per quart (assume we're talking about the usual 3 percent concentration).

Despite my taking all the usual precautions, I lost about half a tray of transplanted lobelia to damping off last month. :-( In desperation, I bleached the holding trays, wiped down the bottom of the pots and the shelves with chlorox wipes, and sprayed some antifungal / antibacterial spray around (even on the plants, figuring if it didn't kill them it might cure them.. and they were going downhill fast). I've had some odd problems this year... looks like some kind of little bug is munching on some of my pepper seedlings, but I can't find the culprit. But (knock wood) I still have plenty of good looking seedlings coming along, too.

Booker, what kind of soilless mix are you using? Is it peat based?

We are seeing a lot of reports about damping off and I don't understand it.

I have one pot of questionable seedlings, Nemesia, as a matter of fact, but it isn't damping off, as the stem is the last part of the plant affected and the leaves are the first part. I lost about 50 seedlings and have 50 left. It might be a case that Nemesia doesn't like crowding...are yours crowded, by any chance?

Suzy

The leaves were the first part affected on some of my plants also... and frankly, I'm not sure if it's a damping off issue or an insect issue with some of them. Cotyledons on some peppers in one seed starting tray were definitely chewed (just a little nub left on some). I had some fairy snaps a couple of weeks back that looked like they'd been beheaded -- definitely not typical for damping off. But I can't see any sort of insect activity at all, not even the fungus gnats that are usually present (a few anyway) by now.

It was Miracle Gro organic. . .I threw the empty bag out, so can't go back to look up whether it was peat based. I didn't like it--seemed awfully coarse for seed-starting, but it was what the lady at the garden center recommended, so I tried it (once!). I got much better germination in that than in those wretched peat pellets (never again. ..), but now am losing so many of them!

The nemesia were definitely not crowded--only 1 or 2 sprouted per cell. I planted maybe 30 seeds, about 8-10 germinated, and now all but 3 have curled up and died. The leaves never seemed to curl up. It just seemed like the stem got really thin and almost mushy looking right at the soil line, then started to curl over. I'm pretty disappointed!

I won't have time to go buy new soilless mix today, but hopefully tomorrow can get some (have a bunch more seeds to start!), and will try transplanting some of the survivors. I will definitely sterilize the soil first this time!

Thanks for all the suggestions, and good luck to everyone else who is battling damping off/bugs/other mysterious seedling deaths. Is this the plant version of SIDS--SSDS (Sudden Seedling Death Syndrome)?

Booker

Your description definitely sounds like damping off. Yep, I'd say it's the plant version of SIDS... that's how I think of it!

Did you find my DG article on preventing damping off? It's got a pretty good summary of the things that seem to work for people, plus my microwave method for sterilizing potting mix.

Yeah, damping off, for sure.

You need to use something commercial with more peat. Peat has built-in anti bacterial and anti-fungal properties.

Once having said that, I used it and still had problems. The mother pot is a mess, but the babies I pricked out are big now (in fact they are outside enjoying the pretty day (in the 50s, but at least the sun is back)

Suzy

I had an Echium that started damping off, and I stopped watering it completely. After a week, it was fine! I think it's luck, all the way, but maybe keep those seedlings and ignore them for a few days and see. This hasn't always worked, but it can't hurt to try.

Critter, I just wish I'd read that article back before I did that first wave of planting. I read it before my second set, and tried the sterilizing and such that time, and no signs of damping off in those containers. I'll go back and re-read it before I start my next group of containers, which needs to be SOON! I just don't know where on earth I am going to put any more containers. LOL I already have my window sills, the shelf on the sun porch, my kitchen counters, my fridge top, and the top of the dog crate covered indoors, and several containers of WS on the picnic table outside! No signs of life in my WS containers yet, but then we are still getting frost and cold temps at night, so those little seeds probably know exactly what they are doing.

I learn more every day here at DG. Now I just need to work on REMEMBERING it all!

Booker

Suzy, can you point Booker to that thread where you just posted that great explanation on putting some of the hardier seedlings outside now to make more room inside? I'm watching several of the threads you're posting on, and I don't remember where you posted that... but it was really good! (I want to bookmark it, too!) Thanks.

Booker, The post Critter is referring to has to do with a bunch of us in the Cottage Garden Forum not having enough room inside under lights. What to do? I wrote the following post, but I neglected to ask Meredith a real important question: When is your last frost? It turns out it is Memorial Day -- the END of May. This info wasn't pertinent for her, but it should be for you since yours should be between Apr 25 & May 5th - ish

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=4741338

Then sort of an update:

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=4742054

The whole thread is waaay long, but if you want the link it is,
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/828967/#new

If you have a question or comment, just post, it looks like a closed group, but isn't. More like a group of Chatty Cathys. I like to post on that thread because no one I know cares how many seeds I started that day, or what they are, how well they did in the cold the night before, and who they came from. :))

Suzy

P.S. Check your Ws containers, I betcha a bunch sprouted today!