Information and discussion regarding garden diseases, insects and other unwelcome critters.
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
February 7, 2015 | #1 |
BANNED
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Land of the White Eagle
Posts: 341
|
chamomile tea for dampening off??
|
February 7, 2015 | #2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Ontario
Posts: 3,898
|
I haven't used chamomile tea BUT I pour off any leftover black or herb tea as well as leftover coffee into my inside watering can which I use to water my seedlings.
I use sterile potting mix and I don't put a dome over my seedlings. So far, so good for many years. Linda |
February 7, 2015 | #3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: North West Wyoming
Posts: 466
|
I use chamomile tea in a spray bottle and run a fan for air circulation. I am very careful to not over water. I only have had dampening off a couple of times. I did have it in a flat of cucumbers last year and I tossed them and started over.
Barb |
February 7, 2015 | #4 |
Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a
Posts: 21,169
|
Way back when I was posting in the AOL tomato Forum in the early to mid 80's the subject of Chamonile tea came up. One of the persons there was a lab tech and offered to do tests to see if it helped prevent damping off.
She used different concentrations of tea with several different varieties, no way can I remember which ones now, and found that it made no difference at all. Since cinnamon had also been suggested she used that as well and found it made no difference. Carolyn
__________________
Carolyn |
February 8, 2015 | #5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: South Carolina Zone 8a
Posts: 1,205
|
I've heard of folks using a dilute hydrogen peroxide spray, or sprinkling baby powder on the soil surface; but I have no idea if they work or not.
|
February 8, 2015 | #6 |
BANNED
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Land of the White Eagle
Posts: 341
|
Thanks guys, it sounds like a superstition....
|
February 8, 2015 | #7 | |
BANNED
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Land of the White Eagle
Posts: 341
|
Quote:
|
|
February 8, 2015 | #8 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: NJ, zone 7
Posts: 3,162
|
Diluted hydrogen peroxide (1 H.P. to 3 water) is safe for plants as disinfectant and antiseptic spray. It is great to deal with gnats as well. While growing seedlings I water them once a week with HP diluted mixture.
Marigold is great as a companion plant to tomatoes and peppers. I never used it as a tea to water my seedlings. Something I considered but never got around doing. It is known to help with Root Knot Nematode problem when planted side by side.
__________________
Ella God comes along and says, "I think I'm going to create THE tomato!” |
February 8, 2015 | #9 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Alabama
Posts: 7,068
|
As someone who dealt with the heatbreak of damping off nearly every year for 35 years I can say that the only solution that has consistently worked for me is planting in DE. I use UltraSorb from Auto Zone and have had almost no damping off since using it despite ideal conditions for damping off. There is a whole thread on this site started by Ray devoted to using DE as a seed starting medium. If damping off is a recurring problem then I suggest looking it up in the seed starting forum.
Bill |
February 8, 2015 | #10 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: MN zone 4
Posts: 359
|
I've tried chamomile with no success.
However, for several years I've used dried sphagnum moss (not sphagnum peat). The milled type is more expensive but much easier to use. I use seed starter on the bottom, with about 1/3-1/2 inch of milled sphagnum moss on the top so the stem where it comes out of the "soil" is surrounded by the moss. It has made a huge difference in how many problems I have with damping off. |
February 8, 2015 | #11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: wauconda Il.
Posts: 15
|
To solve your dampening off I suggest you try to cover your seeds with
Milled Sphagnum Moss, A product of the Mosser Lee Co. in WIs. I raise and sell hundreds of plant every year ,started useing this product about 30 years ago , I do not have a proplem with damp off. After I sow the seeds on the soiless mix I shift ( with a flour shifter) the moss over the seeds sprinkel a little water on the moss put them in a plastic bag then on to the heat mat. I suggest you get a small bag and try it, I buy it in their 2 buschel bag and that lasts about ten years. The name of the product is NODAMPOFF |
February 8, 2015 | #12 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
Posts: 38,539
|
I used to sprout seeds in sterilized play sand and never had a problem.
It really isn't hard to prevent this problem as soon as they sprout stop watering them so much. I have also used plain old yard dirt. I guess at the time I was too stupid to know better. Worth |
February 10, 2015 | #13 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Alabama
Posts: 7,068
|
I still have a few bags of the NODAMPOFF left from when I tried it without much success. It did help but not enough. The humidity in my greenhouse gets so high that the moss would stay wet by absorbing moisture in the air and then the damping off would start. So far the closest thing I have found to a guarantee of not having a major problem with damping off is to use the UltraSorb as a starting medium. Despite using the DE I can still get it some if I over-water and the conditions are ideal for damping off. The beauty of the DE is that the surface of the medium will quickly dry enough to prevent DE if the seed starting container is not left in a watering tray to keep absorbing moisture.
There are some problems and quirks to deal with when using DE as a seed starter. If allowed to dry too much it can suck all the moisture out of a very young seedling and kill it. This means daily monitoring of the plants and bottom watering them when the DE gets dry. It has no fertilizer so seedlings need fertilizing much sooner than with most other seed starting mediums. If you live in an area with normal or below normal humidity then by using a sterile planting medium and not over watering, damping off should not be too much of a problem for you. Bill |
February 10, 2015 | #14 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Germany 49°26"N 07°36"E
Posts: 5,041
|
Actinovate works well and it's organic.
__________________
Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting ‘...Holy Crap .....What a ride!' |
February 13, 2015 | #15 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: NC - zone 8a - heat zone 7
Posts: 4,930
|
How about Hydrogen Peroxide ?
The source/cause of damping off is BAD soil ant too much water. It creates an environment for things like fungus gnat and other problems. ( me thinks). The soil that has high moisture retention and high PWT perhaps should be avoided.. Peat moss based media have very high PWT. Bark based media, on the other hand, have much lower PWT, especially when about 20% perlite is included. Gardeneer |
|
|