Planters Pride Pellets

[ddrsheden]

This year, as I was looking for Jiffy pellets to start my peppers in, I came across the Planters Pride pellets at Menards and thought I would give them a try. Here is my experience compared to Jiffy pellets. (experience from starting my hot peppers)

1. For some reason, low germination.
2. Seedlings show little to no growth, or very slow growning.
3. The white fiber netting is very difficult to remove, difficult to tear.

My advice. AVOID THESE PELLETS
Here is a link of one place that sells them so you know what they look like.
http://www.horticulturesource.com/pr...oducts_id=4629

Anyone else use these pellets? I am worried because I just seeded all of my tomatoes in them this week. And had to start some more Fatalii's in Jiffy Pellets.

[feldon30]

Why use any pellets? Just curious.

[BattleOfBennington]

I am using them with no issues.

Germination - 100%
Removing the outer "wrap" - no problems.

Originally Posted by ddrsheden

This year, as I was looking for Jiffy pellets to start my peppers in, I came across the Planters Pride pellets at Menards and thought I would give them a try. Here is my experience compared to Jiffy pellets. (experience from starting my hot peppers)

1. For some reason, low germination.
2. Seedlings show little to no growth, or very slow growning.
3. The white fiber netting is very difficult to remove, difficult to tear.

My advice. AVOID THESE PELLETS
Here is a link of one place that sells them so you know what they look like.
http://www.horticulturesource.com/pr...oducts_id=4629

Anyone else use these pellets? I am worried because I just seeded all of my tomatoes in them this week. And had to start some more Fatalii's in Jiffy Pellets.

[ddrsheden]

Well, I start all my plants indoors and found it a clean way to start them. I tried a seed starter mix and found it to be a royal pain and extremely messy. I have used Jiffy pellets for 6 years and have had great success with them. I just see the Planter's Pride pellets and thought I would give them a try. Just letting others know my experience.

[travis]

Originally Posted by feldon30

Why use any pellets? Just curious.

For mass seed starting where you want multiples of the same varieties to sell or to plant out, it's way more economical and practical to use plug trays to start the seeds and then move the seedlings up to 4 inch pots to hold until selling or transplanting outdoors.

For tomatoes, the large coir pellets come in handy for starting single seed plantings or like for varieties where you don't intend to grow multiples, and for those plants you intend to give away to friends who may want one each of several varieties. Coir pellets are just a clean, handy way to deal with that kind of thing.

Also, as has been pointed out, when you're operating in a kitchen or on your desktop, etc. coir pellets are a much cleaner way to start seeds than messing with bales of Promix or even small bags of Plantation seed starting mix.

[feldon30]

Alrighty, again I was just curious. I guess it's fairly easy to cut off the netting/webbing from each of the peat pellets?

Some tricks I use to keep seed starting mix from being too much of a mess:

In the kitchen sink, (or outside if it's not too cold) I dump the seed starting mix or Pro-Mix into a large bowl or kitty litter bin (thanks for this suggestion, Suze!). Then I add enough water and stir with a small trowel until it is moist. Then I take my empty seed starting trays and scoop the moist soil into them and smooth it out with my hands. Last, I wash my hands. Then I just have to sow the seeds and cover with the dome until they germinate.

[ddrsheden]

The netting on the Jiffy pellets tear very easily. The stuff on the Planters Pride... of a different material, very hard to tear by hand. Hard to explain what it feels like, but I have not tried using a scissors, but if I did i would have to cut on opposite sides to get it to come off easier. Seriously, it isn't fun to mess with it.

[BattleOfBennington]

DDR -

Interesting, I am on my second round for this year, and not had one problem with any of them at all.

Originally Posted by ddrsheden

The netting on the Jiffy pellets tear very easily. The stuff on the Planters Pride... of a different material, very hard to tear by hand. Hard to explain what it feels like, but I have not tried using a scissors, but if I did i would have to cut on opposite sides to get it to come off easier. Seriously, it isn't fun to mess with it.

[rnewste]

I stopped using the fabric enclosed pellets 4 years ago and went with a compressed tree bark pellet:



You can use them in a self watering tray like this:



Or just stand them up in a try to keep watered:



I get 90+% germination with these and will never go back to the Jiffy pots. They cost about $0.15 each from a variety of on-line sources.

Ray

[svalli]

Originally Posted by ddrsheden

1. For some reason, low germination.
2. Seedlings show little to no growth, or very slow growning.
3. The white fiber netting is very difficult to remove, difficult to tear.

I tried Burpee's coir pellets last year and got exactly same results. They look just like the ones on the website.

I have used Jiffy pellets many years, but now I am running out of them (I had a lot of them in a box when we moved). I have not seen them in any stores here, so I may have to start messing with seed starting mix and DH will get mad when the sink in laundry room is filled with soil.