Wheat Grass Mold

[puddle_drinker]

How do you apply the borax?

JT

For killing mold on grain I'd probably soak the grain in a 25% borax, 75% water mix, for about 15-20 minutes mixing the solution from time to time. Then drain and let it dry out a bit. I would expect the borax to soak into the grain hull and impede the growth of the mold until the seed gets a chance to sprout.

 

[jthornton]

I did find a spray bottle of Fungicide 3, I sprayed the seeds and let them sit for a bit then added my soak water. It doesn't affect the germination and sprouting so far so that's good. After 48 hours I have nice root growth and shoots starting to grow in both the control tray and the tray I sprayed with Fungicide 3. So at least it does not kill the seeds lol.

JT

 

[jthornton]

For killing mold on grain I'd probably soak the grain in a 25% borax, 75% water mix, for about 15-20 minutes mixing the solution from time to time. Then drain and let it dry out a bit. I would expect the borax to soak into the grain hull and impede the growth of the mold until the seed gets a chance to sprout.

I did try a 25% borax, 75% water mixture but it was a super saturated solution and the borax would not dissolve. I also tried a ~10% borax solution and it's right on the edge of being super saturated but after a while the borax finally dissolved into the solution. So I'm going to soak the seeds for 15 minutes then let them dry and the next day to my initial soak in water for 4-6 hours.

JT

 

[jthornton]

The ~10% borax treated seeds did sprout but the growth is a bit behind the control tray that is not treated with anything... time will tell.

JT

 

[jthornton]

This is the mold.


Day 1 you can see the borax has slowed growth by 50% or more.


Day 2 root growth is about 75% and sprout growth is 25% of the control tray on the left.

JT

 

[jthornton]

Today's update for Day 3... growing slower than the control tray on the left, no mold so far in either tray.


After this test is done if no mold I'll try a lower ratio of borax to see if growth can be improved while nuking the mold.

JT

 

[jthornton]

Well I found one seed with mold so borax does not stop mold 100% but it does slow down the growth by at least 50%.

So I officially give up trying to sprout wheat grass beyond the first sprout stage.

JT

 

[puddle_drinker]

Well I found one seed with mold so borax does not stop mold 100% but it does slow down the growth by at least 50%.

So I officially give up trying to sprout wheat grass beyond the first sprout stage.

JT

Thanks for sharing the pics! From the pictures it appears to me that the mold is attacking the seed just after sprouting starts? If that is the case it could be that any fungicide on the outside shell of the grain may not be able to prevent the mold from attacking the inner grain.

Maybe you need a controlled environment like a grow tent. I'm not sure of the volume of sprouts but grow tents come in various sizes. With a grow tent and a HEPA filter air supply, and periodic sanitizing of the tent walls you can keep the fungus spores away from the sprouts.

 

[glib]

I had my share of mold problems. In my case I think it was reuse of the same facilities, so my method may not work for others. But I found that rotating salt water, H2O2 solution, and bleach solution was effective against all types of infections. I do not sprout now, but I have always wondered how much salt barley can tolerate and still sprout. It surely tolerates some.

 

[jthornton]

I had my share of mold problems. In my case I think it was reuse of the same facilities, so my method may not work for others. But I found that rotating salt water, H2O2 solution, and bleach solution was effective against all types of infections. I do not sprout now, but I have always wondered how much salt barley can tolerate and still sprout. It surely tolerates some.

Can you elaborate a bit on what you did with the solutions and what ratio you used?

JT