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Hi Kate, just to make clear, the only seeds i germinated on the heat mat were toms, chilis, aubergines and peppers this year. All early salads will be started off in an unheated greenhouse at the garden. My first sowings in late January will be Lettuce, Red Knight Mizuna, Kyoto Mizuna, Pea shoots, Wild Rocket, Claytonia and Orache, all in modules or for picking out into modules, all planted in the tunnel except the lettuce. Mid Feb onwards, Spinach, Boltardy for leaves, more Pea shoots and Orache, Sorrel, Parsley etc, all for outside apart from boltardy as leaf quality is much better in the tunnel. Hope this helps a bit! Not long until it all starts again!! Have a look in Charles’s Salad Leaves for all seasons p.168- this will be helpful i think.
Hello Kate, I think the advise from Habistat is probably wise! I didn’t put anything under the seed trays but suppose water and electrics aren’t best friends! Having said that the mats are laminated in plastic and i didnt water the trays while on the mat- just soaked compost before sowing, cling film or glass will retain the moisture. Forgot to mention in last comment that this was on a window sill at home as i have no electric at the garden. Will definatly be using them again next year assuming my mate doesn’t get another unusual pet and want it back!
Hi Sringfellow, think the last two replies from Mart and Charles cover which plants really benefit from some extra warmth in the tricky early spring sowings but just thought it might be useful to add a couple of things. Last year i started all my toms peppers chilis etc on a heat mat lent to me by a friend who used to keep a scorpion! The mats are made by a company called HABISTAT. Mine measures 23″x11″ and is 28Watts. These mats are very cheap compared to others mentioned however have no thermostat. I had no idea what the soil temperature was but everything germinated incredibly quickly and evenly, toms only taking about 3 or 4 days! I use small seed trays for each differant variety being started, sowing the seed only around 1cm apart onto the surface of moist compost, gently pushed in but left uncovered. The trays are then covered with cling film or a sheet of glass and placed directly on the mat. Differant varieties germinate at differant rates so can be taken off the heat as soon as the first white shoot starts to appear. Check the trays at least twice a day as seedlings will become streched and leggy in just a few hours on the heat. Once the critical part of germination has happened continue to grow on your windowsill until large enough to prick out into individual pots. This mat was big enough to cope with all the plants for my tunnel and about 400 plants for sale. Robin
Hi Matthew,
I continue every year trying new varieties of peas to use for shoots. I have always found hurst greenshaft very reliable, cropping longer than other dwarf varieties. Due to the super warm autumn i fear winter salad might finish earlier than expected so did sow some greenshaft from saved seed mid nov which will hopefully overwinter for early plantings late winter and fill any gaps from oriental leaves or rocket. 3 seed per module, planted 20×20 in the tunnel. RobinHi christina,
I inherited an ash tree when i took on my new allotment. I had to dig over the garden initially to clear buried rubbish and found the roots from the tree travelled many feet in search of moisture. I would cut it down and dug out the largest roots. Ash makes great fire wood even unseasoned so wont go to waste if you or a friend has a burner! Why not plant a fruit tree in its place. Robin