I start my seeds directly in a 150 gallon pot, and that's 30 times bigger.Jeebus
DAMPING OFF, NEED NEW SOIL??
- Thread starter TXskunkKush
- Start date
Herb & Suds
Well-Known Member
And hopefully you have much better watering techniques than some of these yahoo'sI start my seeds directly in a 150 gallon pot, and that's 30 times bigger.
NewGrower2011
Well-Known Member
If it were me trying to save the soil I'd use something guaranteed to kill off the fungus, maybe harsher than a fungicide. A strong peroxide drench or something along those lines, kill everything... The goal being to fully sterilize it and then restart the living soil with the good benies/fungi.
jela10
Well-Known Member
Damping off can be caused by fungus that arrived on the seed shell itself. I soak my seeds in a solution of 1.5tsp hydrogen peroxide and 1 cup of 78° water for 24 hours. Until I learned about this, most of my problems with damping off occurred when using Rapid Rooters/Root Riots. No more...I learned this from the folks who germ seeds that are really old, found in archaeological digs.
The last time I had damping off issues was with peat/jiffy pellets many years ago. Once your sprout sticks its head out of the soil you really don't have much choice except to continue keep the whole thing moist. If a peat pellet is allowed to dry on top, your plant is already dead because the pellet will be just as dry on the inside if you do. I avoid them like the plague now, and that netting stuff they use doesn't break down even after years outside in rich garden soil. I hate them.
Once a seed sprouts, a lot of people tend to continue with the same watering regime because they're unaware that even before they see anything happen on the surface, a seed sill first put down a root that you can't see. By the time you see a line of green loop emerging from the soil, that root can already be easily 2" of more in length. So it's okay to lower watering so that the top dries out, provided you use a soil medium that doesn't wick water as well as peat pellets do. This will prevent damping off no matter what size pot you start your seeds in.
Fungi that cause damping off can be found just about anywhere, on the seed-coat itself, on a paper towel that for those who use that method, on your fingers if you handle them, and even the air contains spores. While precautionary sanitary protocols can definitely help, for sure appropriate watering technique is likely the most important factor in avoiding damping off. In other words, when you see your seed beginning to pop out of the soil, it's time to water it like a real plant instead of an uncracked seed because it already has a long root that you can't see.