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Aww Debbi, I've been in that place with hatches too...and it is no fun at all
I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you
...with all they have been through, it may take them a few more days to get going... this might be weird, but I do this all the time with hatches...do you have a small radio you could play softly next to the incubator? I've noticed when I use one it helps the first ones to pip...I don't know if the singing simulates other chicks pipping or what, but my hatches are accelerated drastically using one. Hmm...I've never had a problem with root rot in seedlings. Do you start them in the ground or in trays under lights? Do you use the seed starting soil mix? Basically what do you do? I might be able to offer some suggestions....I can try anyways, I have a pretty particular method of starting I use that has worked really well for me. If you lived closer to me I'd say I'd start seeds for you since I've got about 30 tomatoes to choose from and about 10 kinds of peppers including cayenne. I've got two other people's gardens I'm growing for and always have room for more
I might whine about the seed starting, but it really is pretty satisfying to see all the hard work pay off.
The incubator is right next to the living room, with a TV and conversation going all the time. Hmm, maybe the eggs are sick and tired of hearing about Charlie Sheen??
I have plans to move the whole hatching operation out to my shop room this spring, once I get it cleaned out some. That's where the brooders are, so the hatch/brooder room will be handy for sure. There is a radio playing out there 24/7, and it's right off of my kitchen so I can talk and crow to them all the time. Hmm, maybe that's why I have 7 week old crowers??
At least all of them crow the way I teach them, except for my avatar, Clyde. He has a crow with the decibals of a 747, and sounds like he's going to crow out a lung! Gosh he's loud!! All of my roos do the birthday song type crow, but Clyde's sounds like he's doing it backwards? A dyslexic crower??
I can't remember the last time I started my own seeds; probably at least 15 years ago? Used the heat tapes/cables, seed starting soil with vermiculite mixed in. Set in front of natural daylight window on the south side, with added grow light for a few hours after the sun passed the window area. Misted with water as needed, once a week with Miracle Grow diluted in the mist water. May have to try again as I want some of the heirloom type tomatoes that you can't get around here as started plants.
Hahhaa...sick of charlie sheen...aaaahhh hahahhaha
one of my coworkers told me out of nowhere the other day, "you know what's wrong with Charlie Sheen?" I said, "No, what's wrong with him?" She replied, "Charlie Sheen."
Sounds like you have the amibient noise for the babes all taken care of...which is good. I had an episode with my incubator last fall where the fan went out the the day before they were going to hatch. A ball bearing in the fan went out and stopped the motor. But, by some miracle, I still had some hatch. I was in tears...but the little buggers proved to be stronger than I gave them credit for. I will hope it is the same with yours!
haha a dyslexic crower! That's fantastic! I have a light sussex 'teenager' that's still getting the hang of crowing and when he gets to going he sounds like the same noise a car makes when its flooded...then all of a sudden out of nowhere he'll roar out a crow that's somewhere along the lines of a sound a lion would make if he were imitating a chicken. It scares the crap out me everytime he does it when I'm in the pen with him. He always manages to wait til I have my back turned and belts it out. Cheeky little devil he is!
It sounds like what you are doing with the seeds is great. I got my best advice for seed starting from a little booklet Storey Publishing puts out on seed starting. I got it at a book sale for 10 cents. For the soil, they recommend mixing a cup and a half of water for every 4 cups of the seed start soil. They also recommend using the clear plastic domes over the seed starting tray and running the lights on them 24 hours a day til you see the first sign of seeds coming up. I have seeds sometimes come up in about 2 to 3 days. After they get out a bit above the soil, I'll remove the domes and then only use the lights during the day. I kind of wonder if maybe the reason the seedlings in the past haven't worked is if they needed a bit more concentrated light for the first little bit til they could get the stems nice and strong. I've never really had much luck with my started seeds getting enough light from a window. They always get that dampening off in the stem. Kinda wonder if maybe that's the same reason you get the root rot? hmm...perhaps, perhaps.
Oh...and if you were thinking of starting seeds like onions or leeks or the like...plant them like regular seedlings, then cover them with a thin layer of newspaper, put under the lights 24 hours and then check every couple of days for the seedlings. Once you see them coming in steady, then remove the newspaper, but I keep the lid on for a few more days, then remove them once they are coming in nice and sturdy.
Aww Debbi, I've been in that place with hatches too...and it is no fun at all
The incubator is right next to the living room, with a TV and conversation going all the time. Hmm, maybe the eggs are sick and tired of hearing about Charlie Sheen??
I can't remember the last time I started my own seeds; probably at least 15 years ago? Used the heat tapes/cables, seed starting soil with vermiculite mixed in. Set in front of natural daylight window on the south side, with added grow light for a few hours after the sun passed the window area. Misted with water as needed, once a week with Miracle Grow diluted in the mist water. May have to try again as I want some of the heirloom type tomatoes that you can't get around here as started plants.
Hahhaa...sick of charlie sheen...aaaahhh hahahhaha
Sounds like you have the amibient noise for the babes all taken care of...which is good. I had an episode with my incubator last fall where the fan went out the the day before they were going to hatch. A ball bearing in the fan went out and stopped the motor. But, by some miracle, I still had some hatch. I was in tears...but the little buggers proved to be stronger than I gave them credit for. I will hope it is the same with yours!
haha a dyslexic crower! That's fantastic! I have a light sussex 'teenager' that's still getting the hang of crowing and when he gets to going he sounds like the same noise a car makes when its flooded...then all of a sudden out of nowhere he'll roar out a crow that's somewhere along the lines of a sound a lion would make if he were imitating a chicken. It scares the crap out me everytime he does it when I'm in the pen with him. He always manages to wait til I have my back turned and belts it out. Cheeky little devil he is!
It sounds like what you are doing with the seeds is great. I got my best advice for seed starting from a little booklet Storey Publishing puts out on seed starting. I got it at a book sale for 10 cents. For the soil, they recommend mixing a cup and a half of water for every 4 cups of the seed start soil. They also recommend using the clear plastic domes over the seed starting tray and running the lights on them 24 hours a day til you see the first sign of seeds coming up. I have seeds sometimes come up in about 2 to 3 days. After they get out a bit above the soil, I'll remove the domes and then only use the lights during the day. I kind of wonder if maybe the reason the seedlings in the past haven't worked is if they needed a bit more concentrated light for the first little bit til they could get the stems nice and strong. I've never really had much luck with my started seeds getting enough light from a window. They always get that dampening off in the stem. Kinda wonder if maybe that's the same reason you get the root rot? hmm...perhaps, perhaps.
Oh...and if you were thinking of starting seeds like onions or leeks or the like...plant them like regular seedlings, then cover them with a thin layer of newspaper, put under the lights 24 hours and then check every couple of days for the seedlings. Once you see them coming in steady, then remove the newspaper, but I keep the lid on for a few more days, then remove them once they are coming in nice and sturdy.
