Journal May 7, 2018 - Phalaenopsis seed starting dry vs. green pod

The first Phalaenopsis seeds started were from a pod that had split.  When the pod has split the seeds are referred to as dry.  As the seeds must be sterilized there is more chance of damage, or contamination, when germinating dry seeds.  The above photo shows the progress to date of the dry pod seeds that were started on April 17, 2018.

On the following day, the remaining pod was removed from the plant and sterilized with the seeds intact.  The premise is that the seeds are sterile as long as the pod is intact, so there is less chance of contamination or damaging the seeds by having to sterilize them.  

The difference in the two methods is amazing, considering that the dry seeds were started one day before the green pod seeds.  I have no idea of why there is such a huge difference in germination.

 As always this time of year the greenhouse is overcrowded with plants, as it is too soon to plant the garden.  Dealing with the garden plants in the small containers is a major pain but I will have to deal with it for at least ten more days.

The tomato plants are starting to flower so today I installed the cords to support them during the growing season.

For the peppers, I elected to use small baskets rather than bamboo canes.