Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I'm new to AP but have started seedlings for many years in peat pots, and find it very convenient. Since there is mention of peat lowering pH, is there a problem with just sticking the seedling in the Jiffy pot directly into the gravel and leaving the seedling in the peat during it's growth in the bed? This would eliminate transplant shock and I think the plastic mesh would keep the peat inside, but the plant roots could grow through.

Has anyone used this?

HB
Purranoia: The fear your cats are up to something...

Peat can lower pH, it can also tint the water brown, and it is possible that they could stay too wet in an ap system.

However, I say give it a try.

Since it is only a small amount of peat we are talking about, it isn't likely to affect the pH or water color in a system too much. As to being too wet, I have started seedlings in compost and even transplanted handfuls of the compost with the seedling in it without any major trouble with the system.

Just make sure you have something to buffer the pH of the system in case it does start dropping. Keep an eye on the seedlings in case they take to damping off, if that happens, you might just need to adjust your methods.

Let us know how it goes.

+1 but I have to ask why you don't just use seed raising mix to start things early,( I expect this is why yr using jiffys)
...it washes off nicely in water before planting.

I make my own seed raising mix with 1/3 perlite, 1/3 vermiculite and 1/3 medium river sand. There is some shock when you transplant into the beds, but this can be minimised by giving them some shade in the first few days and also giving them some water to wet the upper area of the gorw-bed medium that may not normally be wet (as this may be where their early roots are).

While it is not always possible or practical to sow directly into grow-beds, I have found that (as with soil gardens) these are the plants that do best. If you sow thinckly you can just thin out the excess or tansplant some to other parts of the beds once they reach a decent size. These plants too will get some shock though.

I use the jiffy pellets for seeds and cutting. When you see roots you plant it. But lately I've just been planting the seeds directly into the GB's. Even the cutting go straight in now. And since I put the shade cloth up I've had 100% strike rate.

Direct seeded / cuttings are the best

I've used the peat plugs but they get kind of water logged. Direct seeding works pretty well.

+1 for direct seeding.

I have started many plants in cubes then moved to gravel, but they do seem to get set back.

Transplanted some more plants that were started in soil. Just dunk them in a bucket of water and 99% of the soil falls away and then put them in the gravel. They look okay today.

My biggest problem with direct seeding is that I forget what I put where and tend to disturb the area when I'm planting other stuff, if I don't re-plant an entire bed all at once. I have the most trouble with seeds that tend to talk a long time to germinate as it is difficult to leave a spot empty when you don't know if the seed took or not and even more difficult to remember exactly where it was so as not to disturb it by accident.

I suppose the main challenge is that some small seeds tend to fall through the cracks when direct seeding. Methods for these little seeds might be to use a little tissue or paper towel to hold and wick moisture up to these seeds while waiting for them to germinate.

One method that seems to be working for me so far is to make a little trench across a bed and sprinkle my salad seeds in it. This helps mark where I planted a row. I planted out most of a bed like this not too long ago so it is all striped across with little trenches now. I should get a picture and post it.

Nothing like digging in the gravel to plant something only to find out I just ripped out something else that had almost make it to the surface.

I'm starting some seeds in a plastic ziplock bag with a wet paper towel inside. I hope to be able to transplant them carefully and at least know that they sprouted. But I misplaced the bag around the house somewhere....

HB

I am trialing these pots they are a combination of wood fiber and coco coir the main thing is they are very porous to air and water, the roots reach the air and go dormant starting new nodes inside, they don't grow in circles and they start growing again once planted. I am testing flood and drain to see if they last long enough and then to see if transplant shock is a problem or not.

I'm confused as to why people don't simply use an ebb n' flow system with smaller 3"x3", 4"x4", 5"x5" 6"x6" square pots to start there veggies in

This way you can do perpetual plantings, cull the weak ones before they enter your system and plant in a more organized fashion.

Suppose... because if they're going into a flood and drain growbed anyway... then direct sow.. or transplant... means they're not double handled... and works just as well ...

But I do use a seperate 150mm "ebb&flow" hydro tray as a nursery tray... for some things