Yes, thats right got my new heat mat , checked it out and it works and It seems now my other mat is also working. After all the fuss I raised, I almost feel guilty,,,,not. Now I have two for the price of one. In about another week it will be seed time for me.

Ive been over on the hummer cam the last couple of hrs tonight [18th] and after only two weeks the mom no longer nests at night, evidently the babies are not needing her at night plus the temps must not be that bad at night. Things I wouldnt know otherwise.

Steve

Martinsville, In

Heat zone 6

Sunset zone 35

No one else responded to this post so thought I would update it. In useing my replacement heat mat it seems to put out more warmth than my first one ever did, so maybe thats why I wasnt impressed with it , it just didnt get warm enough to help. But I am very happy with the new one.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

I donīt know what a heat mat is. Whatīs it for?

Peter
They are used for propagating seeds especially those that need bottom heat to germinate. Sort of like having a heating pad or a hot water bottle to keep the seeds warm and toasty.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

The main culprit that caused me to try a heat mat in the first place were the black and blue seeds. I just could not get those to germinate indoors, but I did have luck with them wintersowed outside. The heat mat should also help the other seeds to come along quicker. This mat did not cost anything as the hydro-farm replaced the faulty mat.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Steve,

Bottom heat works wonders. I started some Stan's Dreamsicle seeds (that were generously given to me by Susan on this forum) on Sunday (Mar 1st) on a heating pad (low setting, with layered towel on top of the pad), and they were UP on March 5th.

I started the same thing with soaked Robert Kemp canna seeds last night. I expect they'll be up quickly, too.

I have 12 heating pads in my house for baby birds, they really come in handy for starting seeds before the babies come in! They do double-duty .

Connie



Connie & Wilton Sale
218 Scarlett Drive
Chesapeake, VA 23322
757-482-4796
State and Federal Permits
WildLife Response, Inc.
NWRA, IWRC
Hummingbirds and Small Passerines
humnchirp@verizon.net
http://www.wildliferesponse.org/

Thanks Connie--- Actually this is the first year Ive had one that worked I started mine on March 4 so I will see when they come up.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Salvia coccineas are the fastest to germinate for me. Coral nymph was up in 4-5 days (no bottom heat) Forest Fire was 5 days. Coral nymph is always my heaviest germinator also.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

Penny-- You are certainly right about coccinia coming up in 4 or 5 days without heat, same here. I actually started mine with heat late night 10 or 11 on the 4th so it hasnt been a full 3days yet and lady in red is already up. Nothing else is up , but I expect a lot happening in the next 24-48 hrs. The true test for me is if and when the b & B seeds sprout.

God bless coccinea, it makes us all look like champions.

I have been trying to find some Christmas tube lights in the Clearance areas of stores but everyone appears to have sold out or put them away & the home improvement centers haven't had their "by the inch" one's on sale yet. Glad to see you now have 2, Steve. My OT has been cut for months now so I will rig up something before I by a heat mat. I did have those "Jiffy kits" with the light bulb that sits underneath the flat. It did work better than no heat. Dad's been in & out of hospital & nursing home rehabbing so not much time to do anything. No seeds started. Haven't cut back my tropicals & don't even have my supplemental lighting up yet that I bought 3 months ago. They are all bending towards my SW window. Will get to that tomorrow & take several cuttings. I'm using hummer talk to try & spur Dad on to get better & get out so he doesn't miss their arrival.

Joni
Elwood, IL
Zone 5

Well, my Robert Kemp canna seeds germinated in 4 days (started 3/5/09) and are now already over 2 inches tall on heat. 9 out of the 10 seeds planted came up. SWEET!

Connie

Connie & Wilton Sale
218 Scarlett Drive
Chesapeake, VA 23322
757-482-4796
State and Federal Permits
WildLife Response, Inc.
NWRA, IWRC
Hummingbirds and Small Passerines
humnchirp@verizon.net
http://www.wildliferesponse.org/

Someone on here showed a comparison from last year, one tray sowed with bottom heat and one without and there was a major difference in the lushness of the plants useing bottom heat. Cant remember who it was.

Also someone put a post up about Park Seed shorting them and I couldnt recall that post , but I had already ordered from them and recieved those today and ckd just to be sure and I recieved what I ordered in quantity of seed. cuphea matchmaker and sal. blue angel.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Yes, heat does help. The last batch of David Verity rooted in 6 days.

I showed these picture last year to show the difference between with and without heat for Black and Blue Salvia cuttings:





Carol WNY
Amherst, NY
Zone 5

Thanks Carol for reposting those photos, just couldnt remember who it was.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Carol,

Thanks for the comparison photo! Viva la difference!

Connie

Connie & Wilton Sale
218 Scarlett Drive
Chesapeake, VA 23322
757-482-4796
State and Federal Permits
WildLife Response, Inc.
NWRA, IWRC
Hummingbirds and Small Passerines
humnchirp@verizon.net
http://www.wildliferesponse.org/

Carol--- thanx again and it goes back to the old saying , " a picture is worth a thousand words" and how true that is.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

The Blue Ensign in a black nursery pot on the porch has hardly sprouted - too cold out there. The pot is also too low to pick up the direct sun slanting through the window. Time for it to go out in the sun on warm days where the pot can heat up. Otherwise there will be no April cuttings to root.

Ward -- I still have hopes that my blue ensign will survive the winter here even thou its not likely . I was looking at my plants earlier today and not much looking up , time will tell.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Under the bottom heat Im afraid my lady in red are about ready to bust out of the covered tray, going nuts, but Im afraid I have a good bit of seed in same tray that is not viable. Just started a second tray a couple of days ago as I had some seeds come late. Time will tell.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35