Nice work, Smith.
I use the cheap stuff from Menards. It’s a black bag mostly with a bit of blue color spots. It’s thee only Promix I’ve seen at Walmart or Lowes, & Home Depot.
Dax
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I didn’t add fertilizer:
I use this and topdress it heavy Andy. I would guess 2-3 heaping Tablespoons is what I’m adding to a 4 x 4 x 30" Treepot. Crumple, scratch and water it in. I would probably add at least 2 heaping Tablespoons to a 1-gallon potted anything.,
And they got a cheap 2-3 months version (different coating) Osmocote Blend 12 - 6 - 6 (2 - 3M)
You need micronutrients. That’s what you gotta look for when purchasing fertilizer, or add it yourself. That’s a mess waiting to happen in my book.
Dax
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I went to a workshop where Lisa Ziegler demonstrated this method. She runs a cut flower business in eastern Virginia and uses blocks most of the time.
She has a lot of experience with this and I think she sells her own blocking tools.
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I used soil blocks for a few years before going commercial. It is not viable for producing thousands of seedlings. I get 1020 No Hole trays with 1801 and 1204 cell inserts from Morton Products. Caution that they are out of stock currently but expect to have them available in early March.
Properly made soil blocks grow very good seedlings. The trick is in getting the soil mix right. Also, you really need to sterilize soil and clay components. A simple mix almost anyone can make is 4 parts Promix BX or MPX combined with 1 part worm castings and 1 part red clay soil. Promix is steam sterilized. Clay soil and worm castings are not. I use a stainless steel container with a grill in the bottom sitting on a turkey fryer for heat to sterilize the clay/castings then mix it with Promix. Clay soil varies quite a bit. If this mix does not stick together, add more clay until it adheres but is not tightly packed. I used quart size blocks to produce squash and watermelon seedlings that were outstandingly successful.
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Thanks Darrel ! This is useful as I would have just gone ahead and used ProMix alone.
I’ve watched a few of her video’s! I became familiar with her through Nicole Pitt’s channel, Flower Hill Farm. Nicole has participated in a few remote video’s with Lisa and Dave Dowling and she has taken both of their courses. Nicole was a local TV reporter, so she’s very comfortable with a camera in her face, she’s funny and very personable, as well as a go getter. She purchased a local nursery and is renovating it, set to open this spring after some soft openings this past fall.
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Pepper Geek on YouTube was recommending something similar. I like the durability of them, and the design looks good, they have the hole in the bottom to make unpotting easier. Looks like they would be good for a few years use, less waste.
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I’m trying out two new trays this year. These from Amazon are much sturdier than the usual jiffy start kits. The top is also stronger and has two rotatable disks on top to help control humidity. I think they will last a long time. They hold both the large or medium peat discs.
I bought these pop out trays at a local Co-op and haven’t tried them yet. They have silicone on the bottom of each cell to pop out the plant. They are fairly sturdy. There is no humidity lid. The base serves as the watering tray.
BTW the tags are cut from plastic table mats I got at goodwill. I’ve seen the same thing at the dollar store. I cut them in various sizes and my sharpie pen is working well on the back surface. One mat would yield 50 or 60 tags depending on the size. I cut the bottom to a point.
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I have just bought & am trying these US made items:
the only place I was able to buy this unfortunately was:
Amazon.com : Toteline 1105085116 (available green & gray; I bought 3 of ea)
and this insert:
via:
(available in 50 & 72; I was too cheep to buy two because it’d toggle the shipping cost to the next level, so trying the 50 now…)
The only regret this far is that the green of the trays isn’t eh ‘1960s green fiberglass turquoise’ color I’d hoped for (more of a flat med green).
I don’t like broken plastic & even more don’t like adding it to the trash so hope these things will stay usable for many many years.
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Well, I’ve got them, for a few days now…
The trays seem good & sturdy (which of us-hands up here-have some sort of old 40-50 year-old fiberglass cafeteria food tray or the like around? So guessing these’ll last a lot longer than plastic).
The insert - I’ve got it loaded up with Allium spp (leeks & onions & Welsh o.). Sturdy of course, seem to hold dirt - er, potting mix, well enough & not get stuck between. I’ll see how easy it is to tease the seedlings out when ready to transplant (the plastic is at least now pretty smooth so looks not too difficult, but in 5 or 10 years will they hold more?).
I wish they were a grid pattern so there were no ‘wasted’ spaces at all, but alas.
First impression is “I’m relieved this isn’t more throw-away junk”. So I spent ~$65 on the 6 trays, and (if I buy another 5 inserts) $90 on those so $150. But if they last the next 10-15 years or so… cheaper & less hassle dealing with throw-away junk every year.
But I guess I’ll be harvesting as many of the throw-away ones from the local feed store in June for free again. I’ve got a lot of stuff winter-stratifying in the ‘enough’ of them I thought I’d gathered last year.
I’d like to see some US made permanent plug flats though instead of those crappy crinkly throw-away ones. Do they exist?
Another idea I saw mentioned somewhere is to use pieces of those ‘last forever’ political yard signs made out of that sort of corrugated cardboard but plastic material (feel free to harvest them all on public lands where they’re illegal) cut into dividers in the open tray. Dirtier & no drainage, but optimizes space. If I had any of that material around I’d give it a try… not sure what other material cheap/around might work as well.
But I think I’ll be loading up the other 5 trays with peat pots. Just starting to be the time to plant early stuff here in the UP.
Plus I need to rig up more shelves to put them on, as my zaniest Cat has taken a great liking to my nice S-facing sunny view window shelves… She appreciates the plant lamps & heat mat also - doubtless will same the ‘mini-portions of play dirt’.
My garden is only going into year 3 now (moved around constantly whole life before this), & going full speed ‘getting rid of the lawn’ entirely. So hopefully in a few years, once I get all these things (fruit, hardy this & that flowers, wild stuff, etc.) planted & the lot filled out, I’ll be able to get by with the 6 trays for the seasonal vegetables.
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I like blocking for tomatoes, summer squash and cukes. I can tell right away when they’re ready to go up to big pot or outside.
I’m trying herbs in them this time.
I also have the plastic square starter kit things a friend gave me as a solstice gift. I think she wasn’t sure what a “garden person” could want, so I got the full kit from her. seed tray, thin plastic water catch tray, lid and heating mat. I use all of it, of course
I do a lot of the heavier watering trays and sow rows in them, no division just rows. then as they’re ready to transplant out I pull them gently up and replace with a new seed.i also use any and every discarded container: coffee cups, broken Tupperware, bins, plastic grocery containers, cups and bowls from fast or frozen food (my stepson likes convenience foods). I’ll just leftover half milk jugs I didn’t winter sow
really just anything dirt can go in.
I’ve got a few little shelfs with lights for the starts. my problem is impatience, there’s always one or two batches I start too early that end up large plants in pots indoors or taking up hoophouse space until May (last frost)
I usually sow every week all spring up until it’s high summer. get a month off then start the fall crops indoors out of the blazing heat
container variety, soil blocks with thyme in them
the yellow block tray is sturdy and I really want more of those. I paid for that one, they cost more.
the flimsy stuff was all gifts or garbage
shelves with lights and mats.
big guys waiting to go outside.
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oh those signs! I hate them
I wonder if you could fold them into trays, folks the edges up then use a bit of silicon tape to seal the corners. I bet they would last way longer than the black crinkle trays