Dixie Cups or Biodegradable Seed Starter Cups

Sparky1980 · Jan 17, 2023

Hello Everyone,

Does anyone have any insight on whether using dixie cups vs. the peat pellets/little brown biodegradable seed starting pots? I'm thinking this year to use the little brown biodegradable pots for my seedlings and placing them directly into the final fabric pot once they're at a few nodes of growth. Growing outdoors, Super Skunk and GDP. Lemme know if you have suggestions. Thanks, guys!

Anthem · Jan 17, 2023

Sparky1980 said:
Hello Everyone,

Does anyone have any insight on whether using dixie cups vs. the peat pellets/little brown biodegradable seed starting pots? I'm thinking this year to use the little brown biodegradable pots for my seedlings and placing them directly into the final fabric pot once they're at a few nodes of growth. Growing outdoors, Super Skunk and GDP. Lemme know if you have suggestions. Thanks, guys!

We see people using the biodegradable pots coming on here often with plant issues. I suspect the problem is 2 fold but would need to confirm with testing.
#1. The pot itself is not conducive to growing small plants because of the water retention of the pot itself.
#2. This is the one I am really questioning. I had to rip down wafer board to fur out a wall. About 30 strips, the place I ripped down the wafer board is void of life 16 months later because of the glue in the plywood. I did a second test in another area the same thing happened. I suspect the plant pots use the same ingredients in the glue.
Just use the red 1 pint cups and cut holes in the bottom!

Sparky1980 · Jan 18, 2023

Anthem said:
We see people using the biodegradable pots coming on here often with plant issues. I suspect the problem is 2 fold but would need to confirm with testing.
#1. The pot itself is not conducive to growing small plants because of the water retention of the pot itself.
#2. This is the one I am really questioning. I had to rip down wafer board to fur out a wall. About 30 strips, the place I ripped down the wafer board is void of life 16 months later because of the glue in the plywood. I did a second test in another area the same thing happened. I suspect the plant pots use the same ingredients in the glue.
Just use the red 1 pint cups and cut holes in the bottom!

You are the man, thanks Anthem! I was debating dixie cups vs. biodegradable seed starting pots. I see the dixie cups used in about 90% of the grow logs on this great Farmer forum. But I do, also, see the biodegradable pots used from time to time. I will use the dixie cups. Thanks, again!

GNick55 · Jan 18, 2023

Sparky1980 said:
Hello Everyone,

Does anyone have any insight on whether using dixie cups vs. the peat pellets/little brown biodegradable seed starting pots? I'm thinking this year to use the little brown biodegradable pots for my seedlings and placing them directly into the final fabric pot once they're at a few nodes of growth. Growing outdoors, Super Skunk and GDP. Lemme know if you have suggestions. Thanks, guys!

Madbud · Jan 18, 2023

Clear cup inside a colored cup so you can watch the root and water distribution
Less than full in case you need more soil for a stretchy seedling.

ezenzyme · Jan 19, 2023

I like to go 1 gal 5 gal final 600 gal for my outdoors. For me i like the seedlings to hit rapid growth before i up pot and seems that 1 gal does the first month till rapid growth with ease.

Blastfact · Jan 19, 2023

Back in the day when I could by local made peat pots from local nursery's back when America was great that's all I used was real peat pots. Be it indoor or outdoor grows. Indoor grows all got started from seed in 1 quart peat pots. Outdoor grows got started from seed in 1/2 gal peat pots for indicas and 1 gal peat pots for sativas. Problem with modern mass produced peat pots is you haven't a clue where there made or who made them and with what. Now days I use clear solo cups made up and buried in there permanent grow pots. Only transplant once at two weeks old, no more than 3 weeks old and move on. If there not ready at 3 weeks there runts, get culled out and start over or have less plants in that cycle. No senseless repeated up potting. No outdoor grows anymore, retired outdoor farming unless it's container veggies. Which I do the same way from seed.

Two week old plants from helmet heads on transplant day. Right one is a runt and ended up getting culled out.

TSD · Jan 19, 2023

ezenzyme said:
I like to go 1 gal 5 gal final 600 gal for my outdoors. For me i like the seedlings to hit rapid growth before i up pot and seems that 1 gal does the first month till rapid growth with ease.

That's what I do now too, mostly to avoid one transplant. The peat pots don't dry out properly, the can contain and slow the roots once you bury them whole, and taking the plants out is just as bad because the roots get stuck to them or in them trying to break through. Solo cups are good for folks that don't mind a transplant early on or don't have the self control to not water for like a week with a baby in a bigger pot lol.

onTheGreenMountain · Jan 19, 2023

I'd go dixie cups over the bios.. you can reuse the dixie cups. You have to constantly rebuy the bios..

For seedlings, I usually use small planter cups.
IDK about this exact brand but this is the same size, shape, color as mine. Been using them for seedlings for canna and my veg garden for years. They are same size as a solo cup but are made with holes and raised bottoms so they can drain or be in a tray w/ water. I have stacks of these and the small seed trays I've gotten from greenhouses over the years.

Amazon.com

GNick55 · Jan 19, 2023

i like using the small shot glass size cups or nursery pots, usually 2 inches by 2 inches, made by teku..
you’ll get a quicker wet/dry cycle that way, and a small root ball will form..
the smaller a plant is than more care is needed in preventing issues.. a lot easier with a smaller cup..

Kraken.headz · Jan 19, 2023

I love the jiffy biodegradable pots for seed starting. The secret is this... You have to soak the pot before filling it with substrate. Also make sure the drainage hole has been fully punched out.

GNick55 · Jan 19, 2023

my opinion which i know doesn’t mean much hahaha but again
those biodegradable things need to go away and be forgotten about..

Oldchucky · Jan 19, 2023

As long as there is an unreasonable fear of transplanting, they won’t go away.

TSD · Jan 19, 2023

Oldchucky said:
As long as there is an unreasonable fear of transplanting, they won’t go away.

I have no fear of transplanting, they usually don't skip a beat if you're gentle... I'm just lazy and don't like extra messes lol.

BigBlonde · Jan 19, 2023

I don't like the biodegradable cups for anything.

I am currently using 4-inch nursery cups because I have a dozen or more of them. We wash them after use and save them to use again.

I would be just as happy with Dixie cups, though. I like the idea of a clear cup inside an opaque cup, but haven't tried it yet.

In addition to things already mentioned, I like a pot that makes it easy to slide the plant out for transplanting or checking root growth. Plastic containers with a conical shape are perfect for that purpose.

Sparky1980 · Jan 19, 2023

Madbud said:
Clear cup inside a colored cup so you can watch the root and water distributionView attachment 1321310
Less than full in case you need more soil for a stretchy seedling.

Oh, dude that's GREAT! I'm not sure why I didn't think about a clear plastic cup! Cuz I was wondering how long I should leave it in the dixie cup before it has extensive enough roots to easily slide out of the cup in one piece instead of falling apart. Thank you!

Sparky1980 · Jan 19, 2023

GNick55 said:
my opinion which i know doesn’t mean much hahaha but again
those biodegradable things need to go away and be forgotten about..

Thanks man, lol! This is all great feedback. Much appreciated!

Sparky1980 · Jan 19, 2023

Kraken.headz said:
I love the jiffy biodegradable pots for seed starting. The secret is this... You have to soak the pot before filling it with substrate. Also make sure the drainage hole has been fully punched out.

Interesting. Thanks for the feedback, Kraken! So, you've had success with the bios as long as they're soaked in water before filling with substrate? Is it just the Jiffy ones you like? How long do you soak them? Thanks!

Sparky1980 · Jan 19, 2023

Sparky1980 said:
Interesting. Thanks for the feedback, Kraken! So, you've had success with the bios as long as they're soaked in water before filling with substrate? Is it just the Jiffy ones you like? How long do you soak them? Thanks!

And after punching out the drainage hole completely, do you then put the whole thing into the final pot?

BigBlonde · Jan 19, 2023

Sparky1980 said:
I'm not sure why I didn't think about a clear plastic cup!

Keep in mind that another cup is needed to block out light to the roots. They need darkness. So you need two. A clear one on the inside and an opaque one on the outside.

I think one of the problems with biodegradable cups is that they can take a long time to degrade. Wetting them might help. I bought a plum tree that was in a biodegradable pot and the instructions that came with it said to punch holes around the bottom so the roots would have a way to get out of the pot.

Dixie Cups or Biodegradable Seed Starter Cups

Dixie Cups or Biodegradable Seed Starter Cups

Sparky1980

Anthem

Sparky1980

GNick55

Madbud

ezenzyme

Blastfact

TSD

onTheGreenMountain

GNick55

Kraken.headz

GNick55

Oldchucky

TSD

BigBlonde

Sparky1980

Sparky1980

Sparky1980

Sparky1980

BigBlonde

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