A Plant’s Life: From Seed to Seed Producer
the seed within. Whatever shape the
begin feeding the seedlings small
seed happens to be, its purpose is the
amount of ‘grow’ nutrients.
same—to sow life.
Clones are exact genetic replicas of
Seeds germinate at different rates.
the mother plants they were taken
Some are quick while others are
from. They should be taken using a
slow. There are some tricks you can
sterile cutting tool, after which the
use to ensure that your seeds have
cut end should be dipped in rootthe best chance for success,
ing hormone and then placed
though—most fruit, vegetable,
into the growing medium to
herb, salad green and other
root. After this step you can
"Seedlings require a photoperiod
seeds that might be grown infollow the same protocol you
of 18 hours of light followed by six
doors will sprout fastest under
used for seedlings to ensure
hours of darkness."
certain specific conditions. For
the best rooting success rate.
instance, seeds will germinate
Once seedlings or clones
and sprout most successfully
have established roots they
when the air temperature is
can then be transplanted into
between 70 and 85°F. The root zone
not yet have an elaborate root structure
larger containers to begin their next
temperature should also be kept five
so they can easily dry out, but a humidstage of growth.
degrees warmer than the air temperaity dome can help keep in the essential
Vegetative Growth
ture, which can be accomplished with
moisture. Fluorescent light bulbs are
The next phase of plant development is
a heating mat placed beneath the tray
ideal for seedlings, which do not need a
the vegetative growth phase, where plants
containing your seedlings. Seedlings also
lot of light to thrive. Seedlings require
are more mature and generally require
do best when their environment is kept
a photoperiod of 18 hours of light folmore intense levels of light. Switching
at a humidity level of around 90 to 95
lowed by six hours of darkness. Once
to a 6,500 Kelvin HID bulb should do
per cent. Seedlings are delicate and do
there are some visible roots you can
the trick, as it will tend to promote leafy
growth while encouraging the plant
to stay squat and bushy. Plants grown
indoors will need a photoperiod of 18
hours of light followed by six hours of
darkness during their vegetative growth
phase, which will keep them from flowering prematurely.
During the vegetative stage plants also
require larger amounts of nutrients to
thrive. Using a high quality
‘grow’ nutrient is the best
way to ensure a healthy
plant with vigorous leafy
growth.
This stage of plant
development is also
a good opportunity
to transplant your
plant into a final, larger
container. Root space is one of
the factors that determines the amount
of fruit that a plant can produce and
since transplanting can be very stressful
for plants it should be done no later than
a couple of weeks before the flowering
stage begins.
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Maximum Yield USA | March 2012