I know many have heard of this and if not have certainly experienced it at one time or another. Damping-OFF is when your seedlings suddenly fall over or the collapse of the stem. It is caused by fungi and is preventable with a few precautionary measures.
Use commercial soilless mediums or if making your own mixes steam heat the mix to 180 F for 1/2 hour or more to kill the fungi that causes damping-off,
The simple way to treat your soil or mix is to put soil in a pan that is 4 or 5 inches deep and bury a small potato in the pan. Bake this at 200 F until the potato is done at which time the soil will be sterilized and ready for use.
No one like losing seedlings to this very annoying but relevant problem.
Damping-OFF
Baking the soil works, but oh my, it smells terrible!!!
Josephine.
Yeah burnt dirt has a very peculiar smell but I sort of like it. I have found that the steam method is just a wee bit to messy to do with when planting on a large scale.
Also, keeping air moving around helps prevent damping off since cold and damp promote it. I have been running a fan in the room (on the floor, directed away from the plants, yet still moving the air) I've got my seedlings in.
you can also spray seedlings with a tea made of chamomile to get rid of it.. I believe I read somewhere that you can use hydrogen peroxide for the same thing but Im not positive about that one...
I use H2O2 for my seedlings.
okay now, you need to translate for us that have forgotten most of our chemistry....us being ME!!!!...lol..
One of the main causes for damping off is too wet growing conditions.
H2O2 is hydrogen peroxide.
I use H2O2 for my seedlings.
SO how do you apply the Hydrogen Peroxide? Spray the plant? or mix in water? Thanks in advance.
I mix it with water the bottom water.
I mix it with water the bottom water.
What percentage of HP/water ? (roughly, of course...)
Jerry, here's a website that someone shared with me:
http://www.using-hydrogen-peroxide.com/gardening-with-hydrogen-peroxide.html
Ooops, sorry I wasn't more clear Jerry. That is a great link, those are the concentrations I mix at.
Jerry, here's a website that someone shared with me:
http://www.using-hydrogen-peroxide.com/gardening-with-hydrogen-peroxide.html
Great! Thanks Carey. I have had Dampening Off problems in the past and have been looking for this info. I still have a few flats of cucurbits starting in my greenhouse that will get treated a.s.a.p.
THANKS too, to catzgalore for your valuable help...
Jerry
Excellent chart, thank you very much.
Hydrogen peroxide is pretty cheap so I will definately try it. I lost all my brazos penstemon to damping off. Good news is I see some coming up from the parent plant.
I started using it on my veggies and herbs waiting on getting in the ground. They perk up a lot faster than usual!