Potting mixture for transplant & pests?

[jhouse]

Hi all,

My tomato and pepper seedlings are doing well, have several sets of true leaves and I need to transplant into cups -- have about 4 weeks before putting in the garden.

I read some threads here about potting soil, I'm tempted to just go with Miracle Gro since it's locally available, but have seen reviews that the soil was sometimes contaminated with gnats & other pests -- I would love to know what more experienced growers do, should I microwave the soil before transplanting, or are there some soils that never have pests in them?

Thanks for any info! And, where can I get PromixBX that's the real thing?

Jan H.

p.s. just saw the thread about the poor fella that lost all the seedlings, I may reconsider Miracle Gro. . .

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by jhouse

Hi all,

My tomato and pepper seedlings are doing well, have several sets of true leaves and I need to transplant into cups -- have about 4 weeks before putting in the garden.

I read some threads here about potting soil, I'm tempted to just go with Miracle Gro since it's locally available, but have seen reviews that the soil was sometimes contaminated with gnats & other pests -- I would love to know what more experienced growers do, should I microwave the soil before transplanting, or are there some soils that never have pests in them?

Thanks for any info! And, where can I get PromixBX that's the real thing?

Jan H.

p.s. just saw the thread about the poor fella that lost all the seedlings, I may reconsider Miracle Gro. . .

Where to locate PromixBX

https://www.pthorticulture.com/en/di...tors/?type=pro

[jhouse]

Thanks Ginger2778, I found a store fairly close for Promix, they also carry Fox Farm Light Warrior that someone here likes a lot.
It's a bummer about MG. Maybe fungus gnats etc is something that could happen to anyone depending on how product is stored. . .curious about the microwave idea, or whether that would kill any good stuff in the soil?

[oakley]

I did a germination test in January to not only test my own saved seed but to test
my seed starting soil for this season. All good.
ProMix, fresh bag, potted up a few early March seedlings to test that as well. Far ahead
of my main seeding trays. All good.
I still lost most of one tray out of 6, yet to be determined what happened, but I can cross off seed and soil quality....
If you can't test your potting-up soil due to timing, get the best you can afford from a
reputable source...You can wet it for 24-48hours and give the sniff test. Should smell clean and earthy, not diaper funky.
I have a small bag of FoxFarm, garaged, an overwintered outside half bag of Sungrow, totally soaked
wet, and my fresh ProMix. All did fine side-by-side but I would never use old wet soil
for tomato seedlings. I used the rest of it for refreshing outside deck salad and herb containers.

[jhouse]

Thanks oakley! I wound up buying some Fox Farm today, there's a hydroponics store in Dayton with that and Promix too.
Lol I seem to have lots of decisions to make this year without anything quite optimal -- my new T5 lights are good but raise the temp for the seedlings into the 80's, even at 10" away -- I moved the rig down into my basement today, it's 10 degrees cooler down there to start with, but also higher humidity, in the 50's or 60 per cent.
. Not sure how that tradeoff will work out. I don't know if the seedlings are better off a bit too warm, or a bit too humid.

[brownrexx]

Any soil can have fungus gnat eggs. I bought a seedling at a greenhouse and discovered fungus gnats after I put it with my seedlings. Grrrr.

I have also seen fungus gnats flying around bags of soil at stores so I am sure that they lay their eggs by going in through the breathing holes in the bags.

I bought generic mosquito dunks and the material was in clear packets. I broke one open and sprinkled on the soil of all pots and in a few days there were no more gnats. It is a bt product. You could also use Mosquito Dunks and break them apart.

[jhouse]

Love that idea.

My husband and I went to a local "shred day" run by our local bank -- they handed out snacks, and also mosquito dunks to lower the mosquito population in the county.

My husband told those were "the worst cookies ever" lol.

[brownrexx]

My husband said that too about the dunks. Must be a man thing.

Some people put them in their watering cans but they didn't dissolve in mine and the granules sunk to the bottom so that is why I sprinkled mine on the soil. Mosquito Dunks brand might dissolve better. Mine was a different brand.

bt kills the larvae which are in the soil, not the adults, so it may take a few days for all of the adults to die off.

[ginger2778]

For those not aware, there are 2 different kinds(actually more) of BT that are used as an organic garden larvacide/caterpillar killer.
The one for fungus gnat larvae and mosquito larva is Bacillus Thuringiensis Israeliensis, found in Gnatrol, Mosquito bits, and Mosquito dunks.
The one found in Thurcide and Dipel is Bacillus Thuringiensis Kurstaki, this is used to organically control hornworms, fruitworms, and other caterpillars.
They are not used interchangeably.

[maxjohnson]

You probably have Menards in your area, they have Promix under a roof.

I avoid buying potting mix that has been sitting outdoor and received rain, I could be wrong about this, but a lot of brands have breathing holes in the bag, maybe that allows them to lay eggs in it.

MiracleGrow is synonymous with fungus gnats, you should expect it whenever you buy their potting mix.