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bottom-heating germinating seeds

thez_yo

thez_yo

instigator
I'm getting some nep seeds soonish. Seeing as how I have a 0% germination rate just letting them sit as-is, I should bottom heat. What do you guys use, reptile heating-pads? I don't have an aquarium and don't really feel like buying one (for the old aquarium, inch of heated water, and egg-crating with nep seeds in a flat on top) unless I absolutely have to, because then I have to find someplace in my small apartment to put an unused aquarium when I'm done with toying around with seeds.

Thanks for any suggestions.
 
Cool...have you bought any of that company's black trays with clear domes? I'm contemplating using clear domes from those little greenhouse kits every site like that sells as clear saucers for my nepenthes so more light can get down to the second shelf down, but I'm wondering how sturdy the domes are.

What about bamboo stakes to prop up nepenthes vines...same place or ?
 
I never have. I usually stick with the sterilite shoebox containers and place my smaller pots inside of them, with the top sealed with saran.
Then I stick the heat mat under there (during the cooler times of the year) to get temps to around 80 in the day and it really kicks up the humidity.

I'm not really experienced with Neps but I just so happened to have one of those bamboo stakes laying around at home when I needed one...
 
So I just ended up buying this at amazon:

P3190252.jpg
 
i didn't think of that. Good luck with your seeds! I'm assuming they're subtropical/lowland species.
 
Yah, I should be getting N.albo seeds and D.burmanii. Even if the seller doesn't pull through (no feedback...hmm...) then at least I'll have it for the tamarind, sapote and papaya seeds I'm trying to start because it gets chilly here at night for tropical fruit.
 
that will be perfect then. good luck with them.
 
You can buy the heat pads at OSH. Lowe's used to sell the flat covers for standard seed trays but no longer do except as sets with the trays and those peat pellet thingy's. Your friendly neighborhood hydroponics store should sell the pads, thermostats, trays, flat covers and domes. The domes are vacuum-formed plastic like the trays and are not very sturdy although they come in a couple of thicknesses of plastic.

I use the pad to germinate almost all my seeds - temperate Drosera, Sarracenia included. All seem to benefit from the constant temperatures 80-85F. I've even germinated Darlingtonia seed on the pad but they died a few days after sprouting. I suggest not heating Darlingtonia seed or at least removing them from the heat source immediately after sprouting.

Some of the heat pads have a chart of optimal soil temperatures for common garden plant seeds.
 
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