Tomatoville® Gardening Forums - View Single Post - Effective germination of tomatoes, peppers and eggplant

Neohippie · December 1, 2011

I use the paper towel in a bag method, but put them on top of the cable box in the living room, LOL. That thing gets pretty warm.

Then when they sprout I put them in soiless mix in pots on a heat mat in the garage. I don't have room in my house for a growlight setup, so it's in the garage. I'm not sure what the optimal growing temperature is for nightshades, but I just make sure they don't get frozen. I do let them get down to the 40's though. They grow very slowly if it's cold, but I figure that toughens them up.

Also, since here in Texas we can have those odd 70 degree days in the middle of winter, when that happens I put them outside. Sometimes I can have them out there for days at a time. They love that. I just have to pay attention to the weather reports, and put them back in the garage if it's going to freeze again. It rarely stays below freezing for very long here, so my seedlings can end up spending a lot of time outside in the winter.

Maybe one day when I have less time I'll figure out a method that's less labor intensive, but right now I like messing around with my seedlings every day, so all that bringing them in/setting them out isn't too bad.

December 1, 2011	#35
Neohippie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: San Marcos, Texas Posts: 77	I use the paper towel in a bag method, but put them on top of the cable box in the living room, LOL. That thing gets pretty warm. Then when they sprout I put them in soiless mix in pots on a heat mat in the garage. I don't have room in my house for a growlight setup, so it's in the garage. I'm not sure what the optimal growing temperature is for nightshades, but I just make sure they don't get frozen. I do let them get down to the 40's though. They grow very slowly if it's cold, but I figure that toughens them up. Also, since here in Texas we can have those odd 70 degree days in the middle of winter, when that happens I put them outside. Sometimes I can have them out there for days at a time. They love that. I just have to pay attention to the weather reports, and put them back in the garage if it's going to freeze again. It rarely stays below freezing for very long here, so my seedlings can end up spending a lot of time outside in the winter. Maybe one day when I have less time I'll figure out a method that's less labor intensive, but right now I like messing around with my seedlings every day, so all that bringing them in/setting them out isn't too bad.