I actually posted a similar question a few weeks ago. I started some tomato seeds on Dec 1 in them (the bigger size they have) and they're all doing well. In fact, a few are in need of transplanting because roots are starting to poke out the sides.

C...great feedback...I always try to read product reviews, and some people's complaints seem a bit strange on occasion. Just looking for alternatives here....since I am now trying the tomato seed growing thing. I have ordered cells, trays, and heat pad too.

My favorite subject! I sprout toms, sweet peppers and hots all in peat pellets. They hydrate in five minutes and you can nuke them if you worry about the dampening off fungus thingy. There is a high percentage of germination and zero damping off, but that may be linked to sprouting in the peat pellets in a heated fish tank. In that situation they're very tolerant of flood watering and you can get away with treating everything the same.

Sprouting: good; growing: limited. This year I've been watering with weak fish emulsion (puree, yum!) and the plants do well that way. They transplant without fuss into cups of potting soil (I use sandy garden dirt), and some people say you have to peel off the netting but that ain't so.

Beware of experts who badmouth the peat pellets but don't use them. However, I can see they don't fit everyone's methods.

The pic shows germination of 19 out of 22 peppers.

This is my favorite way to start seedlings as well.

Couple notes:

A. Rehydrating and Preparing the the peat pots for sowing
1. I re-hydrate the pellets with warm water and pour out any excess water after their hydration is complete.
2. After hydration I remove the bottom netting of the pellet because seedling root systems tend to get tangled in it.
3. I spread out the top netting so there's plenty of surface area to sow seeds

B. Sowing seeds and germinating
1. I sow three seeds per pot
2. I place the tray on top of an electric blanket so that the seedlings get plenty of warmth. Heat will greatly reduce the germination time.
3. I then put the whole tray under shop lights so that as soon as seedlings emerge, they are getting light so they don't get leggy
4. Shop lights are about 2" above the tray dome

Seedling Propagation
1. I leave the dome on until all seeds have sprouted
2. Once the dome is removed, pellets will begin to dry out, so make sure you keep the pellets moist by misting it at least twice a day
3. Once the seeds germinate, I no longer use the electric blanket to provide heat
4. Once seedlings get true leaves, I remove them from the peat pot. If I get multiple seedlings germinate per pot, I'll either separate the seedlings and transplant each into a small drinking cup filled with soiless meduim (I use ProMix), or pick the best seedling to the three and cut the rest down to the soil line,.

Has anyone tried peat pellets alongside a small plastic pot filled with soil-less mix?

I have tried peat pots as well as newspaper pots for my seedlings, but neither did as well for me as small plastic pots or even small yoghurt containers.

Linda

I llike the Jiffy 7 pellets when I want to quickly sow a few seeds and don't want to haul out the seed starting mix. Quick, tidy, easy, and gives me a few weeks before I need to pull out other supplies or pop them into the garden. These pellets are NOT what I think of as peat pots....I do not like the pots and only use them if they are given to me or in a garage sale box of assorted garden items. Also, some of the non-Jiffy brand pellets do not work well for me either.....yet some are okay...I don't know what makes some work and others not.

Anyway, with the pellets.....It is best to transplant before the roots come through the netting and make all the pellets into a bound together mess. If transplanted on time, the roots come through the netting okay. If you space the pellets initially so they don't touch then you may get roots that do not come through the dryer, harder, outer surface and when you transplant they may continue to be "stuck" inside the netting. So there are reasons you may want to remove the netting when transplanting....plus you will find unremoved netting later in your garden or compost or wherever the transplant ends its journey. The netting does not break down so I usually just rip it off when transplanting cause I do not like it trashing up the garden soil or compost bin. Not sure just why that bothers me so much cause there is plenty of other stuff like rocks and pits and nuts that take forever to break down and they are not an issue to me :)

When the pellets dry out it can be hard to rewet them. Best to flood the container with warm water and let the water set for an hour or so before draining off the excess. Or water before they get so dry. I think a lot of people have trouble with the pellets because they don't keep them evenly moist and then don't get them wet enough when they water. They will dry out quite quickly if you have larger plants in them.

Peat pots are another story.....I'll only give one suggestion for them since I don't think you are really asking about them. Make sure the pot is completely under the soil when you transplant into the garden or container. A few inches down is ever better if you have plants like tomatoes that can deal with the added depth. Any part of the peat exposed to the air can wick moisture away from the roots. Soil type and moisture probably affect this a lot and may be why some have better success with the pots than others.

I like the suggestion to microwave used pellets for reuse. Sometimes I'll test older seeds and end up with several empty pellets. I'll be nuking them.....when no one else is in the kitchen to get grossed out :)

The use of and problems with the peat pellets is an in-depth discussion at least 2x a year over on the Growing from Seed forum here.

The search function will pull up numerous discussions about them, some including pics of comparison studies done with them vs. other methods - small plastic containers of potting mix consistently beat them hands down - and lists of their pros and cons. There are far more complaints about them than recommendations for them. But with a bit of reading you can draw your own conclusion.

Personally you couldn't pay me to use them.

Dave

edited to add link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Past peat pellet discussions

This post was edited by digdirt on Wed, Jan 14, 15 at 18:29

Gook luck ! If if works then that is all that count. No matter what the rest of the world says.

But your success might not be JUST because of the medium used. You can kill seeds/seedlings in any medium. Few years ago I used to germinate in finely screened garden soil with some crushed dried fall leaves and it worked.
Now I am using 5-1-1. No problem. I dumped Jobes starting mix. that I had bought.

Seysonn

Well, thanks for all the great info and opinions. I am experimenting this year...isn't that part of the fun? My first year doing seeds...so I will spread myself thin with several methods. One thing I don't think I get...after germination in a peat pellet, I thought the whole pellet goes either in the ground or pot. How would you re-use the pellet?

That's right, the pellet goes into the ground or a pot. I would only reuse one if the seed(s) planted in it did not germinate after a reasonable length of time.

I agree, the experimenting is fun. But when I want to grow a lot of plants, flats with inserts and a good seed starting mix are my first choice. Of course many people here only grow a few plants of this and a few plants of that, so other containers may make more sense for them.

I reuse duds. Nuke 'em. The un-reused ones show their little beady heads a year later when it's clean up time.

I TOLD you they'd take something as dead simple and reliable as a peat pellet and make it complicated. There is NOTHING wrong with them, just mismatches with media, season, climate, and techniques. So many otherwise intelligent people who have a favorite method seems to think that anyone who doesn't do it the same way is an idiot. Go figure.

Whatever works...

There are a few ways to cross the river...some use a canoe, and some use an ocean liner. haha. thanks to all!