Refrigerator Germination process

[DeanRIowa]

Do I just plant the tomato seeds in starting soil, then put the container on top of the refrigerator till the seeds emerge, then put the container under lights?

Is this the correct process?

thanks,
Dean

[Hairy Moose Knuckles]

That's what I do dean. I put saran wrap over my cups till they sprout then off witht the saran wrap and under the lights they go. I keep my lights on about 16 hours a day.

[DeanRIowa]

How long does it take on average for the seeds to germinate?

2-4 days, or 1-2 weeks?

Dean

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by DeanRIowa

How long does it take on average for the seeds to germinate?

2-4 days, or 1-2 weeks?

Dean

First, I would never cover a seed germination pan or whatever with saran wrap or anything else unless one end is propped up.

Even though one uses an artificial mix there can still be spores of the three fungi that cause damping off of seedlings, and there's pre damping off where seeds are destroyed as well as post damping off where the new seedlings are attacked at the place where the stem meets the soil.

As to germination, it depends on the seed age, the mix, how warm the containers are kept at, the humidity level, etc.

Good fresh seeds , like 2007 seeds for this season, should germinate at a high level, with all else being correct about germination conditions, in less than a week and usually less than that.

There are also some varieties that just simply take longer, even with fresh seeds. Mirabell is one example. Even with fresh seeds it takes about two weeks.

As long as the artificial mix is nice and damp, I never take off the cover, which is a baggie propped open at one end, until I'm ready to transplant to cells.

[Granny]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

First, I would never cover a seed germination pan or whatever with saran wrap or anything else unless one end is propped up.

I do get excellent germination by putting my seedling trays into the extra large size plastic ziplock bags until the seedlings start to rear their heads. (Note that I do not squeeze the air out of the bag.) Acts as a mini-greenhouse and I have never had anything damp off with this method. I do unzip the bag the very second I see seedlings.

Now those little Jiffy pellets - I've never once had anything not damp off in those!

[Hairy Moose Knuckles]

Thanks for the info, I learned something myself. Although, I haven't had any problems, it's good to know that I was doings things wrong and problems could have popped up.

[Tomatovator]

"As long as the artificial mix is nice and damp, I never take off the cover, which is a baggie propped open at one end, until I'm ready to transplant to cells." From Carolyn.

Are you sure this is what you wanted to say? Do you leave the baggie on even for the 1 or 2 weeks the sprouts stay under the lights after they popped up? I thought the cover was to come off when the seeds first popped out of the mix and they then got transplanted after they got their second set of true leaves. Please correct me if I'm doing it wrong.

[dice]

There is a lot of latitude here. I sprouted 95% of mine
last year on an unheated shelf in an indoor room (62-72F)
with no saran wrap or baggie. They took from 3 days to 2
weeks to sprout. Some stubborn ones needed the plastic
cover, and I did pull it off as soon as I saw the seedling
pop up.

Seeds known to be more than a couple of years old
(or that I only have very few seeds of) I sprout in wet
paper towels in plastic baggies, then transfer them
to a small pot with already moist soil in it and sprinkle
a thin layer of loose starting mix on top.

Works for me.

(Note that I start seeds at least 8 weeks before plant-out
and have a growing season that is short but not sharply
delimited by very cold or very hot weather. Anything a few
weeks late is still plenty early enough to put on some growth
and develop a root system before transplant.)