DIY building a seed starter

[littleT]

I raise parrots so my question is this----if I take a 3 gallon plastic container and blacken sides ,with a auto heater for brooding parrots installed in top <adjustible temperature. >it also shows humidity .at what temp would I set this to germinate expensive seed.my germ rate is far below average---I usually plant 4 times the number I want and usually get less.10 dollar seed are like gold these days so I am trying another <better>way to get them going ------will start seed directly in cubes of rocwool--with a drop of superthrive in water to wet cubes-----thanks for help and commets

 

[littleT]

this is it so far----gonna paint outside of box black

got to clean before I set it up-----will this work?

 

[Dr Fluff]

No need to blacken the sides your cubes will keep light off the root and as soon as they germinate they will want to reach for the light.

A lack of light will produce tall spindly seedling which will need support.

Cool white/daylight cfl's and LED's are ideal to keep the stretch to a minimum (I never have a problem with tall lanky seedlings) just make sure the light is not too bright for them or too warm that they shrivel up.

Keep the temp in the 23C-26C range, I find that 24C is ideal ( I currently use a thermostatic switch which has a heat sensing probe which I insert into my germination medium to keep the temp of my heated propagator in the ideal temp range).

Once the root pops out the bottom of your rockwool cubes it is time to pot up.

Keep the temp right and don't let them dry out or get water logged & you should be good to go.

By keeping the temp stable, I get excellent germination and very rarely lose a seed, so no money lost.

Good luck and happy growing

Arty