Moldy Seedlings? Help.

I just got a jiffy 72 plant dome. I set up the pots and I put in the seeds. After a couple of days I saw white "cobwebish" mold growing on them so I took off the top and put it outside. There is still some mold, but I am concerned about my plants. Will it be safe to eat them by the time they are ready to be harvested? Is the mold harmless? I have already put cinnamon on them because I heard that was good for this. Sorry I don't have pictures, I just watered them a little (because the leaves are starting to sprout! YAY!) so you can't really see the mold so well because it's wet, also most of it is gone. Please help.

Also, I am a very beginner gardener, so um, sorry if this sounds silly, but when do you move them to the real garden/ what do you do with them next? Sorry for my lack of intelligence in gardening. :(

hopemartin22846 - your vegetable WILL be safe to eat once you harvest them.

As to when to set your seedlings outside in the real garden. Find out when your last expected frost date is for your your zip code, and set them out about two weeks after that date. You can do this by clicking on this link:

http://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/

I will need to know what vegetables you are growing to be able to tell you what to do next.

No worries - we all started where you are at one time or another. I've been growing vegetable for 60 years and still have questions.

They are safe. Though the name of the mold escapes me, I have them all the time and have had no ill effects on my plants.
What I've done in the past is to take the dome off to allow the plants to dry on top. (I only use the dome till they germinate anyway.
As for when to set out, this depends on the plants. With the weather we're having in the midwest, I'm chancing that all the cool weather crops are OK to plant outside (cabbage, kale, broccoli, etc)
Unless you have a good way to protect plants from a sneaky late frost, I would avoid putting out the warm season crops (tomatoes, peppers, cukes, etc.)
If my memory is correct, I believe you could plant your warm season plants around Mothers day.

Don't worry about that at all. I have been Starting seeds for years and it still happens once in a while. What type of seeds are you starting? Do they need to be kept warm?

This will not effect your plants in the long run. But you need to keep them in an environment were they can germinate so you may need to bring the whole thing back inside so they can germinate. If anything prop a corner of the dome open so it doesn't get that humid.

My plants are: Watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumber, green beans, carrots, corn and sweet pepper.



This message was edited Mar 24, 2012 9:25 AM

I put them outside for a day or so to air them out. Also I removed the lid of the dome, and now they are growing like crazy! :) They are normally near a sunny window. My plants are cucumber, green bean, cantaloupe, water melon, sweet pepper, corn, and carrots.

Thanks for the help!
My plants are cantaloupe, water melon, green bean, carrot, corn, sweet pepper, and cucumber.

I had an issue with mold on my seedings too (and in the cardboard egg cartons I started them in). What I also noticed were these little GNAT-like bugs flitting around. Did the mold attrack them?

hopemartin22846 -

I don't know which zone you are in, but it seems too early to be sowing watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumber, green beans and sweet peppers. The carrots are probably okay. I don't grow corn, so cannot advise you on that.

I'm in zone 7b and will not be sowing watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumber, indoors for another week. I sowed sweet peppers indoors on March 13th because they take longer to sprout. Green beans will be direct sown around April 22nd - May 1st.

Your seed packages should tell you when to sow according to your last frost date. Count back from there and start sowing your seeds around that date.

You can add your zone to your profile here in Dave's Garden.

Hope this helps ^_^

I'm in zone 6b is that too early? I'm thinking so. How much longer should I keep them indoors... ?

I'm not sure, I didn't get gnats. But I did get them once when planting things in a terrarium. I think they just happen, because I didn't have mold in the terrarium with the gnats.

hopemartin22846 - I'm guessing your zip code is 22846 - if so click on this link and it will tell you when your first and last frost dates are.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/index.php?q=22846&submit=Go

This means you should start your seeds indoors around April 12th (4 weeks before your last expected frost date of May 12th)

Those are probably fungus Gnats, dont have to see the fungus to get them. There are differing opinions on how to treat them, and whether they do damage or not.

Hope-I see your zone but not where you are located. Every thing your planning on growing, except the carrots needs hot weather and warm soil to germinate and grow. I havent even started them here, I direct sow all you mentioned except the peppers which are getting planted out this weekend.I have found this eliminates the transplant shock. Watermelon does best with a soil temp of 70*, Cantaloupe 75* beans 60* and peppers at 70. Its seems really early in your zone but you know better then I do. I also forget that the soil temp has a lot to do with success too.