[oldman]

Mine average 4 days from planting on a heat mat. I don't use the dome because I use a spray bottle to keep things moist. I started a few flats to test potting mixes after reading about problems people were having this year.


I planted one with the cheapest mix available, one with the natural & organic starting mix and a third with the mix i use for peppers. The heat mat is 20X50 and keeps the soil temps between 75 and 85 depending on ambient temperature. If I put the domes on they can get over 100F which is the main reason I hand mist.


Everything had at least a few varieties up on the morning of the fourth day. The dollar store mix has about 80% germination today (day 5). It's doing best. The organic Jiffy mix doesn't do as well maintaining a uniform moisture. The flats get rotated to avoid one getting stuck in a hot spot, but the Jiffy tends to get soggy and sometimes individual cells dry out even though adjacent cells are wet.



Some of the seed was really old and might not germinate. All flats have the same varieties in the same position. So 72 varieties in three different soils. I don't expect any to have 100% germination of all types, but I do plan on having to give away some tomato plants this year. : )