Whoa. What happened here? (pics)

[Batboy]

Seed. Soaked in distilled water for 48 hours, it sank but never cracked. Planted directly into wet organic soil - LC mix 2 [promix, EWC, perlite, lime]. Cups are covered with plastic wrap with holes, top of the soil directly under CFL is about 82 degrees, cold room (65 degrees), low humdity (25%). There has been some fungus gnat activity, but not a swarm or infestation.

72 hours later I wanted to sneak a peak to see if there was a sign of life. WELL. . . there is a sign of life, but not what I was looking for.

Thoughts? I'm guessing that this is mold. Is this a sign of bad soil, conditions, seeds, luck?

 

[Batboy]

Advice...pitch that seed and pop one that will actually be viable. Thems the breaks.

I completely agree. I'm just wondering if anyone wants to hypothesize as to the cause. I'd hate to keep this up and lose good seeds to bad soil/conditions/etc.

 

[EvilTwin]

Hi Batboy,
Mold spores are everywhere and so whenever conditions arise that favor their growth...they will grow.

Forget about the saran wrap over the cup. Better yet, read a couple of good tutorials on seed germination and follow one of them.
ET

 

[growcodile]

are you sure distilled water is good for seed germination? with tap water (EC 0,6) i have 95+% results .. i just let the seeds sink (about 12-16 hours max) and plant em into rockwool

 

[EvilTwin]

are you sure distilled water is good for seed germination? with tap water (EC 0,6) i have 95+% results .. i just let the seeds sink (about 12-16 hours max) and plant em into rockwool

I don't really feel it makes that much difference. I use tap because it's got a little chlorine in it which could theoretically minimize such events.

But I'd bet money it was the plastic wrap on top that kept everything too wet.
ET

 

[Batboy]

I don't really feel it makes that much difference. I use tap because it's got a little chlorine in it which could theoretically minimize such events.

But I'd bet money it was the plastic wrap on top that kept everything too wet.
ET

My tap has chlorine as well as chloramine, so I try to stay away from it altogether.

RH is 25% so I need the plastic wrap to maintain a nice moist soil for germination. Never had a problem before. I'm thinking that it's a fluke or the soil.

 

[lost in a sea]

i use the most sphagnum dominant light fluffy soil mix for my babies, its usually more sterile than straight up soil..

but fungal problems usually come when the seeds are in too damp a climate.....

i always leave them under a cover, or propagator lid for the first two days and then no lid for the third so they get to dry up a bit, which gives them a spurt....then lid back on till they pop the shell of their cot's..

spraying something like piranha by advanced nutrients on your seeds or soil mix wipes out fungal spores and fruiting bodies, it has saved alot of my seedlings...and they seem to love it as well....