Damp Off

[McClements, Jim]

AEG'rs

I know that many of you are sick of hearing from me about turface. I have
gradually found that there are some things that I don't like about it, but it
is at its most successful in growing just germinated (in towels) or
ungerminated Arisaema seeds.

I plant the seeds in pure turface, in pots standing in water, so that the
seeds are constantly wet from below. Most of this is done indoors under
lights in a poorly ventilated basement with no air circulation, and I have
never seen a seedling damp off.

The seedlings stay in this environment for the entire first growth period,
sometimes 6 months or so, and then the "tuberettes" are easily harvested from
the turface for refrigeration. Small ones can be found by pouring a bit of
water into the pot contents (removed from the pot!), where the turface sinks
and the tubers float to the top.

The only caveat is to remove the tubers as soon as they go dormant, or some
may rot.

Jim McClements