I read about, and then tried the garlic cure. worked well. Great. I just mashed up a few cloves. Poured boiling water over them. Let it cool. Poured the garlic water where the damp-off was. It was gone in hours! Then watered less, gave the seedlings more air.

I make a cup of Chamomile tea, let it cool, then pour about 1/4 cup into a large spray bottle(about 28oz)with an adjustable nozzle, fill with water and use this to water my seedlings to the point of moist, not wet. I have to water often, but I'd rather do that than over water. I haven't had damping off problems for a few years now doing this. If you do over water, you can place a small fan to blow(gently)on your seedlings to help dry things up a bit. In fact, just the fan can help prevent damping off and will strengthen stems.HTH

If you really want to save those seedlings, as you say, I wouldn't rely on chamomile tea or cinnamon or garlic.

Gulp, I'd use a benomyl drench ASAP. Your choice.

And next year only good artificial mix for seed starting. (smile). There are three different fungi that can cause damping off, so you can have pre-emergent damping off where the seeds are destroyed before they can even germinate, and post -emergent damping off.

And while the most common expression of post-emergent is with newly germinated seedlings with a brown constricted area at the mix line , seedlings up to 4-6 inches can also be affected after being initially infected at a much younger age, and then those make it just so far, and then RIP.

Carolyn

Thank you Carolyn for the good info but I don't use chems. I know Benomyl is pretty safe as far as other chems are concerned but I must be true to my organic oath and it is a systemic. I'm stubborn that way...:)

My seedlings were 2 to 4 inches tall when struck down and it's claerly damp off. Also, germination wasn't that great. I blame it on the 1.5 year old Pro Mix BX I store in the garage. I filled all my containers with it and then I added an inch or two of Seed Starting mix, which I store dry, on top. (Hoffman's) I noticed the Pro Mix was a little damp when I got it out of the garage. Never should have used it to seed start but I always use a fan, thin seedlings and always water from the bottom. Damp off hasn't been a big issue for me until this year. So I'm blaming the dampish Pro Mix. So what I did this morning is sprinkled some ground cinnamon onto the top of each container and I'm hoping for the best. I also started more seeds (Only in the seed starter Hoffman's this time) but I'm out of NAR, Mountain Glory and Chapman so they three will skip this year's summer party. I hope they are the ONLY ones!

Thank you noinwi and anewgarden for your replies as well...

So far, reliance on chamomile tea and a soft fan has worked out for meÂthe fan does more than the tea, that's my guess. I do have a (hidden) stache of Captan, should it come to that. Let us know how you proceed and what the results are. Good luck. GaryStPaul

Is Jerry Baker doing a PBS pledge drive this weekend?

Not only do I water seedlings with chamomile tea as noinwi does (and I continue to bottom water with it until the second set of true leaves, or longer), I use it to moisten the seed starting mix when I plant as a preemptive measure.

I haven't lost a single seedling to damp off in years. Now the cat on the other hand.....

Bets

Thanx Gary and Bets. Here's another head scratcher. In my damping off research I'll read at one site that a factor can be planting your seeds too shallow. At another, the "expert" there will say a common cause is planting your seed too deeply. I wish these experts would make up their minds...:)

bigdaddyj

Another way to not get damping off seems to be WinterSowing. I am trying it for the first time this year. I put 1/3 of my tomato seeds outside in plastic containers. They sprout later and stay small, but then catch up and are said to be very strong. Now is a good time to start in our zone. From what I understand, if they sprout and a frost comes, they should be taken inside until it passes. If it works it will save me lots of room.

anewgarden, yes I WS'd last year for the first time but my seedlings fried at the worst time because we had a family emergency and I neglected them a couple days. I wish I had planted them in the garden the day before I had to leave. I have a pot of KBX seeds outside this winter too and I'm anxious to give WSing a second chance...:)

Fried?Wow! Sorry! What a drag! Hope it works for us both this year.
I think I am having a seedling exchange in May with other New Yorkers and Long Islanders. Is your zone 7 anywhere near my zone 7?
And may I ask what are KBX?
Audrey

Audrey, I'm in Delaware. I'm 3 hours from the city. As for LI, I detest the Belt Parkway! LOL

KBX is a PL version of the most excellent Kellogg's Breakfast tomato variety. I saved a bunch of seed from KBX last year so I thought I'd use them as WS candidates and I also have two KBX indoor plants that are still growing. Since I posted the other day, I haven't lost any more seedlings to Damp Off. Maybe the cinnamon is working...:)

Too bad you are so far away!I think I will have many more seedlings than my small city garden can hold. I have over 200 containers, so far. I'll look up that KBX after work. What is PL? I don't know much,do I?
Glad to hear the cinnamon is working

Audrey, PL is short for potato leaf. Some tomato varieties have potato leaves and others tomato leaves. Regular Kellogg's Breakfast has tomato type leaves. KBX has potato type leafs.

And BTW, still no more Damp Off problems on my remaing seedlings...:)