I am discovering a lot of uses for my electric roaster (a very inexpensive WalMart purchase when I was in charge of concessions at a small high school a couple of years ago). DH wanted to buy heating mats to start his pepper seeds. I experimented and marked the spot on the dial that would maintain 85 degrees. The seeds sprouted in a week. Yesterday I put it on the covered porch and sterilized seed starting mix at 180 degrees with no odor in the house. Do you have other ideas?
electric roaster and gardening
Sorry, I don't have ideas right now, just curious and full of questions. What a great use for something that get used only a few times a year. Do you line the inside? Use individual pots when germinating plants? Multiple layers? Cover?
The roaster has a removable pan, so I am not using any additional lining. If I ever want to cook food in it, it can be sterilized. (If I had been concerned about the finish on the pan, I could have used aluminum foil to line it.) I did start the peppers in individual pots that can be easily detached from one another. They come 36 to a flat, and I was able to fit 24 in the roaster at a time. I had not thought about layering, but if I used a rack, there's no reason that would not work. Good idea!
I did keep the roaster covered for both seed starting and soil sterilizing. The cover kept the moisture inside for seed sprouting and helped the soil cook better in sterilizing. The sprouting plants have to be moved to light as soon as they start coming up, of course. The peppers really surprised us and were a bit leggy and yellow when we found them, but we put them under good light for a couple of days.
That is a great idea! And I always see these things for sale around Thanksgiving time. Next year I'll have to pick one up.
:) Kim
We had a 2nd hand store and saw many of these come thru used. Might be a good place to look for more ~ cheap...
Patrob,
I'm about to germinate some of the following seeds: bell peppers, squash, Kentucky wonder green beans and okra. I hear they prefer heat for better germination. Please advise on use of your roaster to do this. Thanks in advance!
Linda
P.S. A pic of your roaster would be helpful, too!
Looks like 80-85 degrees would be a good temp for all the veggies you listed. That's what I used for tomatoes and peppers. Here's a chart I found with recommended temps for veggies that are often transplanted into the garden. http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/2005/2-11-2005/transplantguide.html
Here's a photo of a roaster like mine. Wal Mart had them for about $30 when I bought it two years ago.
http://www.gehousewares.com/action/browseproduct?content_id=246
The first mark is for 150 degrees, so I turned the dial just until the light came on and left a cup of water and cooking thermometer in it all afternoon. It was just right, so I made a mark on the oven with a permanent marker. The light does not stay on much, but the oven maintains a constant 85 degree temperature. Everything else is just like for seed starting anywhere else: same pots, same soil mix. Seeds pop up quickly, and the little plants need to be moved into the light as soon as they sprout.
Good luck!
Thanks, Patrob!
You went above and beyond with the info! Especially the part about the viners NOT liking to be disturbed. This means no uppotting from the peat pots, and direct sowing the peat pots to the final destination!
I don't use peat pots as we had problems with rootbound plants some years ago, but I normally start the viners in ground. I am experimenting this year and think I can pop a rootball out of a plastic pot and transplant successfully. We shall see!
Patrob,
Would you advise using the pellets instead of the peat pots, then loosening the netting and sinking the whole pellet into a 5-gallon bucket or directly into an EB as a final up pot? This wouldn't disturb any roots. Please advise. I have 34 pellets left.
OK! I never roasted the turkey in it as I meant to... now I know what to do with it besides give it away. Thanks Patrob!
I think either the pellets or peat pots would be fine if you cut the netting or pot when you transplant. Ideally the peat pots would disintegrate after being planted, but they do not do so quickly in our sandy, very well-drained soil. If I had peat pots or pellets, I wouldn't waste them!
I use plastic pots now because a friend whose son was selling a nursery and throwing stuff out gave us a huge stack of flats and liners with 36 cells.
Hmmm.....any chance you could spare some of those at the roundup? I'm always looking for flats and cells.
:) Kim
What a fantastic idea for the roaster! I have one exactly like that and only use it a couple times a year. I also have a HUGE crock pot that would probably work, too.
Sharon