[monkeynic]

I have all my seedlings in unheated propagators in an unheated plastic greenhouse, they were planted 2 weeks ago but still seeing no signs of life from any of the seeds. Should i worry or is this ok?

[MacFistycuffs]

What seeds have you started?

[monkeynic]

cabbage, cauliflower, sprouts, tomatoes, peppers, courgettes, 2 types of carrots, red and white onions, leeks and parsnips.

[MacFistycuffs]

Here's a link showing the optimum soil temperatures for seed germination.
http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1061/ANR-1061.pdf

It still a bit too cold outside for most of those seeds to germinate. I would recommend bringing them inside until they germinate and then putting them back out into your greenhouse once they have.

[monkeynic]

Thanks for that, I'll bring them in for a while.

[madmaggie]

I also have an unheated greenhouse. I bought an electric propogator a few years back, and find the germination rate really improved when using it. When I transfer the seedlings to a seed tray at the pricking out stage, I cover the tray with those transparent plastic tray covers. Also I find filling the seed trays and pots with compost and leaving them in the propogator a couple of days before sowing helps. Likewise when transferring the seedlings, I fill up the trays, cover them and leave them to warm up, rather than use the compost straight from the bag. Seiveing the compost helps with finer seeds. Hope all this helps, I've learned the hard way.

[monkeynic]

I've brought them in and all have germinated now apart from courgettes. They all seem to be doing well. even planted sprouts and cabbages into pots ready for putting out when it gets a bit warmer. When do you recommend i do that? They are still quite spindly at the moment.

[madmaggie]

It is best to harden off plants grown inside before planting out so they will not too much of a shock or a set-back when planted outside. At the moment I am bringing out lettuce plants in pots during the day, and putting them back in the greenhouse at night, as the nights are so frosty. When I do plant them out in a raised bed they will be under a cloche, which I put there about 2 weeks ago to warm up the soil. I have found with cabbage plants they can get quite spindly if growing conditions are too warm.

[MargeSimpson]

I was doing a search today for info on plastic greenhouses and it seems that quite a few of us have them.

I was wonder what people use them for? I've noticed that on warm days they get quite hot and the soil temp definitely goes up. A lot of condensation builds up on the plastic too.

At the moment all my annuals which I grew from seed in propagators are being kept in there day and night. If I thought there was any chance of low/freezing temps at night then the plants get moved into the shed.

Even though the plastic goes right to the ground when zipped, do you think that they are suitable protection against frost?

I don't think they are suitable for tomatoes, cucumber, etc at this time of year. Though I am open to correction.

[Maeve Drogheda]

I used to have a green plastic green house and when it got too hot or if hot weather was forcast, I used to leave the front flap open for the day and the plastic did not sweat as much. I had a lot of success with tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce and I did not move them in to a shed for protection the plastic greenhouse was perfectly fine.

I also found that the plants grew very well in the greenhouse and due to the heat and damp they did not need as much watering. I had particular successes with propagating seeds in these conditions. I only got rid of it because a gale force wind blew it into next doors garden. And the frame rusted away.

This week there is frost forcast for Wednesday night, so it may be a good idea to protect everything that is planted out that you may feel are a bit delicate.