Pepper seeds/seedlings question

[Woodenzoo]

I've started 14 varieties of pepper seeds and have 6 of those sprouting now. (1/2 sweet peppers and 1/2 hot peppers).
I started them in a (12) cell pack and 2 small plastic cups on a heating pad. The temp was about 90F., but now down to about 80 (since the weather has gotten cold again). I've removed the plastic dome, and wondering if I should also, at this time, remove the heating pad?
They are in my basement so the room temp is probably around 65 to 70F.
I'm thinking it may be better to leave the heating pad in place since it's gotten cold, but don't want to cook any seedlings either.
Any advice?
Thanks!
Cathy

[Rena]

I would probably remove the pad if all have sprouted.

[2FrontFeet]

I took mine off of the pad hoping it would slow down growth. Not sure it works, but I was afraid of having to transplant trees by the end of May.

[Woodenzoo]

Nope, they all haven't sprouted yet, so I'll wait to remove the heating pad.
Thanks for the advice!
Cathy

[feldon30]

Originally Posted by 2FrontFeet

I took mine off of the pad hoping it would slow down growth. Not sure it works, but I was afraid of having to transplant trees by the end of May.

There is no chance that seeds this month will be trees in May if they receive sufficient light (to avoid leggyness) and are not overfertilized. At least in my experience, peppers are SLOW even with heat. Next year, I plan to start seeds for peppers on December 15th to plant out March 1st, whereas my tomatoes will be done December 26th. Those tomato seeds I started on December 26th were perfectly sized in gallon pots ready to transplant on March 1st.

[Love2Troll]

Cathy,

For what it's worth, I remove new sprouts from the cell tray and put under lights in 60s temps. 86° is what I strive for when starting seeds and I think a little cooler is better than warmer.

Temps in the upper 60s produce a stockier plant in my experience. Another thing that makes for a sturdier plant is air movement or even just brushing the seedlings a couple times a day with your finger. This is something I learned maybe 6-8 years ago from one of the Tomatoville moderators. Thigmotropism. It truly works. Wally*World sells a very modestly priced oscillating fan that I program a timer to run for 1 minute periods 3 times during the 16 hours that my lights are on.

Fertilizing is another issue. I have several friends that grow peppers commercially. They don't fertilize seedlings. Plants are first fertilized by a Florida grower when get 6-8 true leaves. The other two (one in Indiana and the other in Texas) wait until the seedlings are planted in the field.

And a leggy pepper plant is no big deal. Strip off lower leaves and plant deep just as you would a tomato plant. For fertilizing I prefer a 15-30-15 formulation at half recommended strength.

I also swear by inoculating with a mycorrhizal fungi.

Hot regards,
jt

[Woodenzoo]

Thanks jt!
I only planted 2 seeds each of 14 varieties to begin with and then re-seeded 6 of those on 4-10. I now have sprouts and/or signs of sprouts of 11 of the 14.
I used Hoffman's? seed starting mix and have not fertilized.
They have been on a heating pad and under lights. My tomatoes - I started under lights only.
The temp is about 85 now and I gave everything a good soaking today.
I'll be happy to have these 11 varieties grow and to plant out, but I'm disappointed that the Sweet Chocolate, Anaheim Chili and Sweet Pimento seem to be no shows or else late starters for my growing season.
I didn't think those varieties were difficult to grow, and all those seeds are from com. sources.
Will be potting everything up within the next week.
Thanks again to all for your replies!
Cathy

[montanamato]

Glad things are getting better...May just be coincidence, but pimento and Anaheim varieties always germinate a little later than my other peppers too...
Jeanne