World Seed Supply's Complete Pepper Growing Guide

Peppers are one of the most rewarding plants you can have in your garden. A single plant can give you an abundance of fruits that you can enjoy for months. But maximizing your harvest and heat depends on knowing exactly what to do to give your peppers everything they need.



Before you even begin growing hot peppers, the first thing you need to do is select the type of chili pepper you want to grow. There are countless types of chili peppers, coming in all shapes and sizes and ranging from completely mild to lava-gargling, surface-of-the-sun hot. The heat of hot peppers is measured on a scale, called the Scoville Heat Scale. The way this scale works is that it measures how much a hot pepper must be diluted before the mixture is no longer spicy. Since the test is based on human involvement, it is not an exact science, and this is why there tends to be arguments over which peppers are hotter than others. But it gives a general idea of what to expect from a given variety of chili. With that said, it should be noted that the heat of a pepper relies very heavily on the growing conditions. A normally excruciating pepper can end up being nearly mild if the right conditions are not met.

For those extreme tasters, we at World Seed Supply offer some of the world’s hottest, including the Naga Jalokia, The Red Savina Habanero and the Desert Tepin. We also offer visually appealing types like the Chocolate habanero, which is anything but sweet, and classic types, like jalapeno and cayenne.

Now let’s get into the garden. The first mistake many pepper growers make is in the soil selection. In World Seed Supply’s experience, we have NOT found average potting soil or seed starting soil to be a good choice for peppers. Never use topsoil for chili peppers either. You want a soil that is well-draining and very fertile with plenty of organic matter. There seems to be debate over whether to use or avoid peat for hot peppers, so we figured we would just clarify. A little peat will not hurt your hot peppers, but you should never choose a soil in which peat is a major component. Peat is added to many soil mixtures to help with water retention and to provide a light medium that roots can easily penetrate. But it does not provide adequate nutrition and tends to dry out in strong sun, and once that happens it can be difficult to re-hydrate. But a small amount of peat (or used coffee grounds) can be useful just to increase the acidity of a mix.

Germinating your chili peppers indoors in advance and sowing directly outdoors are choices that each offer benefits and drawbacks. This is why we at World Seed Supply usually do a little of both and then choose the best plants to work with. The germination rate of pepper seeds seems to be higher when started indoors because you have more control over moisture. The advantage of pepper seed started outdoors is that it does not need to be hardened off. Hardening off is the process of adjusting a plant to the intense sunlight of the outdoors. Even though you may think your house is very bright, it rarely compares to the sun’s power outdoors. So, just like some individuals will use a few days in the tanning booth at the beginning of the summer before they can safely sit outside without burning, indoor plants will need some type of gradual exposure. At World Seed Supply, we usually begin exposure in an extremely shady spot such as under a deck or in the shade under a lawn chair. Hardening off can result in an adjustment period where growth slows down. So if you do not have a good amount of light indoors you might find that pepper seeds started outdoors will outpace seed started indoors at an earlier date. So if you have the extra seed to spare, it is a good idea to try both methods.

When germinating pepper seeds indoors, we recommend a 50/50 mix of cactus soil and perlite. Perlite is a very light, very porous type of volcanic rock that is similar to pumice. It comes in bags of tiny round particles that resemble foam balls. This 50/50 mix is actually a common mixture that works well with most plants. You should be able to get a bag of each for under $10 total. We have found that Hoffman brand or Shultz’s cactus soil seems to have a good consistency and a nice black color. An ideal Ph for hot peppers is about 5-6. The only consideration with a cactus soil base is that cacti prefer alkaline soils, so this is where you may want to lower the ph by adding in something like a small amount of peat or coffee grounds. If you have an adequate light source, you can start peppers at any time of year. Just be sure to harden them off slowly when you eventually put them outside.

We at World Seed Supply also like to grow our peppers in compost, which we order by the truckload. Just to be clear, growing hot peppers does not require two types of soil. The 50/50 mix is suitable for your entire growing project if you want to leave it in that. We just prefer compost for all growing that takes place outdoors, especially if we’re putting pepper plants in the ground. But since compost tends to carry insects, we don’t use this to start pepper seeds indoors. We do start some pepper seeds outdoors directly in compost. But seeds started indoors will be started in the mix mentioned above and transplanted to compost once they are ready to go outside. Good compost is well-draining and does not compact. Yet, it holds moisture well. Younger compost may be more beneficial for growing peppers since it tends to be more acidic. If you do your own composting, you can also increase the acidity by composting more things like fruit or pine needles. Otherwise, if you find that your compost is a little on the alkaline side, you might then go ahead and add in just a little peat or some spent coffee grounds to lower the ph.

Another traditional soil amendment for hot peppers is epsom salt (magnesium sulphate), which adds magnesium and sulphur to the soil. While most soils do not lack in these minerals, many growers use this to help the fruits set. Epsom salt is also useful in clearing out soils that have other salt buildups. These buildups tend to occur in potted plants, especially if tap water is used. Some pepper growers will mix a small amount of epsom salt in with the soil in the beginning of the season, while others use it in the water or as a foliar spray (1 Tbs per gallon). Others will scratch the granules into the surface of the soil. Epsom salt treatment will help prevent yellowing leaves that many growers see later in the season as the result of magnesium deficiency. This can have an effect on growth and flavor.

When planting, it is a good idea to sow your pepper seeds with the point facing down. The seed’s point is where the root will emerge from, so having the root positioned in advance will ensure that it drives down into the soil where it belongs. The seed should be sown at a depth just deeper than the diameter of the seed, so that the upper rim of the seed lies just below the soil line. Take measures to avoid the soil being too compact around the seed. Compact soil can actually choke seeds that would have otherwise grown. Compact soil inhibits airflow and holds the seed down. By planting loosely with the pepper seed point down and the rim at the soil line, the seed is ready to start rising out of the soil as soon as it begins to sprout.

Once the pepper seeds have been planted, keep the soil lightly and evenly moist until germination. During and before germination, bottom heat is extremely beneficial, particularly for the more exotic peppers like the naga jalokia, which come from tropical climates. For these, you want a soil temperature that is no less than 65 degrees F. For more exotic varieties, you may not see results in temperatures below 80 degrees. You may get away with cooler temperatures for other pepper seeds. But you will find that a few degrees can make a difference for these varieties. Also keep in mind that the soil temperature is not always the same as the air temperature.

Indoor seeds need only be watered by misting the soil with a spray bottle. At no point should it get wet though. Too much moisture can cause the pepper seed embryo to rot. It can also cause the stems of new chili seedlings to do the same. The soil can be allowed to dry out slightly between watering. But it is also important not to let the soil dry out completely. This may be a particularly sensitive issue if bottom heat is applied, since the heat can dry things out pretty quickly. But it is important to keep on top of this because if the soil happens to get too dry just as the embryo is waking up it could kill the seedling before you even realize anything was going on. The result is that you will unwittingly be tending dead seeds, waiting for them to pop up.

You may be accustomed to seeing pepper seedlings after two weeks or so, but be prepared to wait a month or more with some varieties, especially if temperatures are not ideal throughout. It is also common to see new sprouts weeks after others have first emerged. After the seeds have sprouted, be sure to keep the seed coats moist so that they can easily fall off. Occasionally, seed coats of pepper seeds will have trouble falling off. Keeping the seed coats moist will keep them pliable so that the plants can break free. It is usually best to allow the seed coat to fall off the pepper seedling naturally due to the risk of snapping the stem during handling. But in some cases you may have to remove the seed coat manually. A utility knife, scissors and a pair of needle nose pliers may be useful in this case to help slice the seed coat and pull it apart without causing damage to the leaves.

Your seeds can be transplanted once they’ve grown about two sets of true leaves and are about 3-4”. We at World Seed Supply do not recommend transplanting seeds from indoors to the outdoors instantaneously. Going back to the subject of hardening off, you should take your entire tray or pot of pepper seedlings and give them a week or so to get used to the sun. If you are transplanting to pots, you will want to use a pot that is at least 12” in diameter and about 12” in height for each pepper seedling. If you are planting chili seedlings in the ground, you can plant most varieties about a foot apart in rows 24 inches apart. A foot is a close spacing, but it allows the pepper plants to lean together and support each other. You may also opt to space pepper plants up to 2 feet apart if you want to maximize sun exposure on all sized. It is also recommended to plant your pepper plants along with flowers such as California poppy, Joe Pye weed or monarda citriodora (bee balm) that will attract bees and other pollinators. These companion plants and the helpers they bring are likely to increase the yields of peppers and other fruiting plants as well.

As the plants grow, you will need to fertilizer them about every four weeks. To remain organic, you can use bonemeal and seaweed fertilizer. Bonemeal is a natural source of phosphorous that is known for boosting blooms and does well for peppers too. Bonemeal is essentially crushed bone, which slowly releases nutrients into the soil as the bones are digested by microbes in the soil. Bonemeal may not work with sterile soils, since it requires microbes to activate the nutrients in the bonemeal. If using compost, this is certainly not an issue. Most cactus soils should also be fine, but you can always sprinkle a bit of ground soil at the bottom or top of your pot just to be certain. Kelp fertilizers tend to be good sources of potassium. If you’re using a chemical fertilizer, just look for something that is geared toward increasing blooms. A tomato fertilizer should also suffice. A ratio of about 5-10-10 is good. Please note that compost already has a good supply of nutrients that will be released slowly and over a long period of time. Since chemical fertilizers can be quicker acting, it is important not to overdo them. Too much nitrogen can actually kill the heat of your peppers.

Aside from fertilization, watering is an obvious part of growing peppers. Your pepper plants should be kept well-watered, especially if they are in pots. Peppers, especially many of the hottest ones, are known for growing in hot climates. But you are likely to still see them wilt on a hot summer day. You can water your plants every day or two to keep them growing nicely. This is especially important while the plant is growing in size (before fruiting) because more branches will eventually mean more peppers. However, many growers find that stressing pepper plants during fruiting will help increase the heat of the peppers. Many people wonder how to make hot peppers hotter. If you are looking for the hottest pepper possible, and especially if you’re looking to impress people, this may be a good idea. But in that case, you may want to grow a few extra pepper plants because stressing can decrease the number of fruits you will get from each plant. It is also worth noting that watering the ground without wetting the leaves has been said to have a positive effect on potency. We at world Seed Supply do not typically practice this.

Along with decreasing water, you may be able to make your hot peppers hotter by giving them more sun during fruiting. If you have your chili pepper plants in pots, you can always look for an area with more sun. But if your plants are already in the ground, you might wonder how you can possibly give them more sun. Well, you can’t give the plants more sun. But you can give the peppers more sun. Cut off any of the larger leaves that seem to be shading your peppers. This will not only reduce the amount of diverted energy, it will allow more sun to reach the peppers directly.

Harvesting is the most rewarding part of growing peppers. It is important to harvest peppers regularly to keep the plant productive. It is widely believed that peppers that are left on the plant longer will be hotter and will have a better taste. If you have ten plants or so, you may find yourself with peppers to pick everyday once they start coming. This will last until the cold weather puts a damper on your season. We at World Seed Supply usually harvest peppers once they have turned from orange to red, but before they turn a deep red. A simple snip with a pair of scissors at the tip of the pepper stem is all that is needed. If you will be drying your peppers, you can string them up with a thread ran through the stem tips. A hot sun will work well to dry peppers. But a boiler room is usually preferable because rain is not a factor, and it can be used even going into the late fall when sun strength decreases. It is important that the area used for drying be very arid. You want the peppers to dry quickly because the moist chamber of a pepper is a great place for mold to develop. Cutting the tips off peppers may help the cause, but it is not a guarantee that mold will not form. In circumstances where an ideal drying environment is not available, it may be best to cut peppers into small pieces and lay them out to dry.

ALWAYS wear gloves when handling or cutting peppers. There should be no chemicals outside the skin, so picking can be done without gloves. But pepper oil can stay on the skin for days despite showers, intense washing, rubbing alcohol or whatever other attempts you make. In fact, a hot shower will only spread the capsaicin to all your most favorite areas, and while you may have a tolerance built up in your mouth that does not always extend to other areas.

When the season is about to draw close, it is beneficial to cut the growing tips off all branches unless there is a pepper there. By cutting the tips, the plant’s energy will divert from leaf growth into maturing the existing peppers. Many people also do not realize that peppers are perennial plants and can be saved for the following season. It is important to realize that bringing plants indoors can mean bringing pests indoors. Often an infestation will not expose itself for weeks or even months. We recommend quarantining the plant from any other indoor plant during this time. If window space is limited, this can be accomplished by covering the plant with a clear plastic bag and securing the bottom with a large rubber band or something of the sort. For more information on removing pests, please refer to our article, “Treating Pests on Houseplants: A Complete Regimen.”

Though you should easily be able to keep a pepper plant alive indoors over the winter, most indoor conditions do not offer enough light for fruiting. Flowers will usually form but will fall off before maturing. This is normal and should not be cause for concern. Some varieties can actually fruit indoors as well, especially if additional light is supplied. By keeping your plant alive for another year, it gives you a great head start on the season and is a very good way to increase your pepper yield the following season. You might even expect the peppers to be a little hotter than the previous year.

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How to Make Weather-Proof Labels for Outdoor Plants

We’ve seen many instances where people have had trouble with labeling their outdoor plants. It would seem like a simple enough issue, but weather has a habit of washing away even our best efforts. And many of us have come to realize the hard way that permanent marker is only permanent indoors. Then, there are weather-proof labels you can purchase. But in today’s economy, everyone is looking to avoid buying what they don’t have to. Perhaps saving that little bit on labels will mean you can buy some extra seeds. With little to no investment, you can create weather-proof labels for your outdoor plants using our preferred method.

To start, all you will need is a written or typed label listing your plant type, a 2 x 2 polyethylene zipper baggie and some clear packing tape. If you bought your seeds from World Seed Supply, you most likely just need the seed packet and some tape. We typically ship our smaller seed counts in 2 x 2 polyethylene bags with little tags that depict the species. Larger seed counts will come in larger bags. So in this case, or if you obtained seeds elsewhere, you may need to acquire smaller bags. A considerably larger bag may work, but it may also create an environment that allows more moisture to gather inside. Moisture is the enemy. If you do not already have a tag with your seed variety, you can easily make one by writing in ink or by printing one out on the computer. Just aim to keep the print to a length that is no more than 1.5”.

At this point, you should have the three required supplies. The rest is pretty simple. Take a 3” piece of clear packing tape and place it sticky-side-up with the two shorter sides at the top and the bottom (just as you would place a sheet of looseleaf when writing). Place the label at the top edge of the tape. Average packing tape is 2”, so if you kept your print length to around 1.5”, none of it will hang off the edges. The print can be up or down. Fold the label on the tape end-over-end so that you are laminating the label with the packing tape. Keep folding until you’ve use up the whole length of tape. Now, place the laminated label inside the 2 x 2 polyethylene zipper baggie. Tape completely over the opening of the bag with the packing tape so that there is no way water could get in. You can now tape this onto your pots right under the rim where it will be most hidden from the rain. For plants already in the garden, you can tape these onto anything such as a flat rock or a piece of wood and place it in the vicinity of the plants you are trying to identify.

In our experience, these weather-proof plant labels have worked very well. They have stood the test of some pretty intense downpours. But if you still want to be on the safe side, it may be a good idea to create a map of your garden. Depending on your conditions, you can even alphabetize pots or plants. Often, effective solutions are found in simple things. Today, we hope you’ve found our simple solution useful.


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NEW WEBSITE LAUNCHED

After much work and about seven months, the new version of our site is launched! Currently, the inventory reflects, for the most part, what we had for sale when we began working on the new site. Our inventory expanded considerably since then. We will be continuously updating with new products to include what we have in our current inventory, so be sure to check back for our latest stock updates.

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How to Grow Tobacco; From Seed to Harvest

Growing tobacco from seed is easier than you might think. If you can grow tomatoes, then you should be fine with growing tobacco. After all, tobacco and tomatoes are in the same family (Solanaceae). The truth is that growing your own tobacco is cheaper, and while it is not necessarily healthier, it may in fact help you avoid a lot of artificial chemicals that you really don’t need.

The first decision you need to make is the soil type. Tobacco is notorious for requiring lots of nutrients, so a very fertile soil is absolutely essential. We have found that using pure compost for growing tobacco works very well with very minimal organic fertilization needed afterwards. In fact, if you’re going to be doing any serious amount of gardening, it might be worth starting your own compost pile or getting a truckload of compost delivered for the season. In our area, you can get anywhere from one to several yards delivered for $100-$200. You can use it to spruce up existing beds and gardens. Plus, depending on your needs, it is likely to save you over the cost of buying multiple bags of commercially made soil.

You will notice that tobacco seeds are very small. Even the largest tobacco seeds are still considerably smaller than even a poppy seed. The general rule when dealing with seeds that small is to sow them on the surface of the soil. In nature, small seed, such as tobacco seed, tends to be produced in large amounts. These thousands of small seeds tend to be scattered over the top of the soil and washed into various crevices in the soil where they can eventually take hold. Since small seeds are so easily washed away by wind or rain, we recommend using trofts to start your tobacco seeds rather than direct seeding. We have also found that aluminum roasting pans with drainage holes made in the bottoms work well for starting small seeds.

Since water is likely to carry your tobacco seeds and clump them together in areas where the water pools most easily, we’ve found that it is best to engineer this process ourselves. By using a stick or finger to make rows in the soil, you can determine where your tobacco seeds might end up if pooling occurs. Another option is to make poke marks over the entire surface of the soil so that you end up with a series of small holes. You’ll eventually be separating your tobacco seedlings anyway, but this will help a little with spacing beforehand.

It is safe to sow tobacco seeds outside once any danger of frost has passed. We like to keep our trofts in partial sun to start off. This is to ensure that the tobacco seedlings will not have a chance to dry out if we are not completely on top of our watering. Sometimes a hot spell will catch you off guard and dry out your young tobacco crop before it even gets off the ground, so by keeping the seedlings a bit shaded, it will give you more of a buffer. Seedlings in nature often tend to be shaded by larger plants anyway, so you are essentially recreating this experience. As for watering during the seedling stage, we like to keep the soil continuously moist. If there is a forecast of a strong storm, take measures to protect your tobacco seedlings from the direct force of rain so that the seeds will not be washed away. Usually putting your tofts or trays under a deck, an awning or even a lawn chair will help in such instances.

In our experiences, we have found tobacco seedlings to transplant very well. For instance, we have separated fully crowded tobacco seedlings at less than an inch in diameter (from leaf to leaf) and put them into the ground with nearly 100% success. The key is to use a fork to carefully separate roots, disturbing them as little as possible. Ideally, you should wait until plants are about 2” in diameter if you were initially able to provide that much space for them to get that big in your troft. Upon transplanting, you want to preserve as much of a rootball as there might be without taking it apart. Press a little hole in the soil about the same size as the rootball, lay it in and fill in around the edges nicely. Tobacco plants average about 2 feet in width, so a spacing of around 3 feet between plants and 5 feet between rows is the minimum you want to allow. If growing nicotiana rustica, a closer spacing may be used. The other key to successful transplanting is to provide plenty of moisture around the newly transplanted tobacco seedling. If you keep the tobacco transplants consistently well-watered, there should be no problems with them taking hold. Pay special attention to your newly transplanted tobacco until you’re sure the plants are putting on new growth.


As mentioned earlier, tobacco is known to use up a lot of nutrients. Compost is extremely nutrient-rich. But we usually will supplement the compost with a dose of bloodmeal about every two weeks. Simply scratch out the soil about an inch deep over an area several inches around the stem of the tobacco plant so that the bloodmeal will penetrate the surface of the soil. Add your bloodmeal and then smooth the soil back out so that the bloodmeal is mixed in. Be sure to remove and competing weeds as you do this.

Once tobacco starts flowering, most of the energy of the plant goes into that process. Some growers will choose to harvest their tobacco leaves before flowering begins to end up with the highest quality tobacco. But most growers choose just to top the plants. By removing the flowering tops, it will allow more energy to go back into leaf production and increase overall tobacco harvest. Once the leaf tips begin turning yellow, the plants should be harvested. Harvesting should be done in the morning after the dew has dried from the leaves.

There are numerous ways of curing tobacco, and it is a science that can be pretty involved. At the most basic level, the entire tobacco plant can be cut at the base and hung upside down to dry. Leaves can also be removed from the stalk and bundled at the stems in small bundles for drying. But beware that bundles tobacco leaves leaves tend to stick together, so leaves used for cigar wrappers should not be dried in this manner. Curing is typically done in a tobacco curing barn. But a well-ventilated, dark shed or even a garage can suffice. Air curing tends to produce tobacco that is high in nicotine but low in sugars. It is normally used for cigar and Burley tobacco. Allow 8 weeks for the tobacco to fully cure.

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How to Germinate Banisteriopsis Caapi Seeds

Banisteriopsis caapi is a perennial vine native to the Amazon rainforest known for its role in South American ayahuasca ceremonies. These spiritual ceremonies have gone on for hundreds of years in the Amazonian Basin and still exist today to some degree. Today, banisteriopsis caapi is one of the most sought after plants by collectors of entheogenic plants. Its allure is fueled not just by a fascination to grow a plant, but to cultivate a powerful symbol, to possess something that harnesses the spirit of an ancient tradition and the mysticism of the rainforest.

In the recent decade, cuttings of banisteriopsis caapi have become somewhat readily available from specialty plant vendors. They can be grown indoors or out, and the right environment can allow established caapi vines to grow a foot per week. But for many growers the real experience, the real sense of accomplishment, involves creating a plant from scratch. Germination of banisteriopsis caapi is something that should be on every serious growers to-do list, but that only a small percent get to succeed in.

The real limitation, and what many new growers are not aware of, is that banisteriopsis caapi seeds have a low germination rate, which decreases to none in just a few months. By February I would expect the caapi seeds to be non-viable. Vendors who sell seed year-round are feeding on this naivety, and so it may seem to many growers that germination of banisteriopsis caapi is difficult or that it requires some special trick. The real trick is getting fresh seed. Banisteriopsis caapi seed harvest generally occurs in October or November. It can range a bit depending on yearly climate. It is wisest to plan your growing around those months to ensure you start with good seed, and it is worth paying more money for fresh seed. Since you are growing in the fall, it is likely that you will need to use grow lights, although nothing fancy is required. We typically arrange ahead of time for our caapi seeds to be shipped as soon as they are harvested. The freshest banisteriopsis caapi seeds are still green, although brown seeds will still germinate. In fact, even green seeds will turn brown in between planting and germination.

Once you have obtained your fresh banisteriopsis seed, it is time for sowing. Prepare a well-draining soil mixture. We have had success germinating banisteriopsis caapi with several different soil compositions, but we recommend using potting soil mixed with about 25% perlite. Avoid using seed starting mixes or soils heavy in peat because you want something richer that would resemble forest soil. In forests, the rainforest especially, there is vast supply of plant material to enrich the soil. As mentioned before, it is also important to have a well-draining soil because banisteriopsis caapi seeds are somewhat prone to fungus attacks. By removing excess moisture, it reduces that risk. Fungus attacks that do occur can be treated with chamomile tea, or you may even choose to use it to water your plants initially. Chamomile has natural antifungal properties. It is a good choice because it is organic.

We like to start many of our seeds in aluminum baking trays. Banisteriopsis caapi is no different. We like aluminum trays because they allow us to plant a good amount of seeds in one container, but any pot will do. Banisteriopsis caapi seeds resemble maple tree seeds both in texture and because they have a wing. Attached to one end of the wing is the actual seed. Side-by-side, the heads of the two seed types are obviously different. Even if the wing is bent or broken, it should not affect your ability to germinate banisteriopsis caapi seeds. It is this seed end that you want to press into the soil, leaving the wing in the air. There is no need to bury the seed too deeply. Just the thickness of the seed head itself is a perfect depth.

Once we have planted all our banisteriopsis caapi seeds in that way, we usually cover our tray with clear plastic wrap. Do not keep the wrap on tightly because restricting airflow is a bad way to avoid fungus. We have had success germinating banisteriopsis caapi with or without plastic over the top, but the plastic allows for better moisture control. You want to maintain constant moisture while germinating banisteriopsis caapi seeds, but you should be ready to remove the plastic any time the soil starts to look wet. As the moisture evaporates from the soil and condenses on the plastic, it rains back down into the soil. This can cause too much moisture to gather at the surface, which you want to avoid. By removing the plastic before the water builds up, you can dry the soil out before it affects the seeds. It should be about two weeks before you see anything. Be patient, and do not give up. You may get new banisteriopsis caapi seeds germinating days or weeks after your initial sprouts. Our picture shows young banisteriopsis caapi sprouts from a November 2009 planting (with anadenanthera colubrina in the far right).






FRESH BANISTERIOPSIS CAAPI SEEDS AVAILABLE (Late Fall-Winter Months Only)

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Propagation and Cloning of Phalaris Grass

Growing phalaris grass is easy enough for any grower to do successfully. Occasionally, people will have trouble getting grass seed to germinate right away, but here are some tips for getting the most phalaris grass growing as quickly as possible.

You can grow phalaris in clumps or in patches. For clumps, you will want to choose a large, deep pot. For patches, aluminum roasting pans work well. With each pan, you will be able to start a patch of phalaris grass larger then the area of the pan by creating plugs.

Phalaris basically only needs steady moisture to get going. While phalaris seeds can be germinated outdoors, you should be able to speed things up by starting indoors. Some outdoor grows seem to be halted because moisture control is tougher to accomplish. Diligent watering is required, which can be offset by strong sun or wind. Wind also has a tendency to blow your seeds away.

Start out by moistening all of your soil. Then press it flat without any significant compacting. Sow your phalaris seeds on the surface of the soil and press them into the moist soil so they can soak in the moisture more easily. You may cover your seeds with a thin dusting of soil, although we typically do not. We do recommend covering your soil with clear plastic wrap because it allows for better moisture control, which, as mentioned before, is the key to the quickest germination. In a side by side, comparison with phalaris brachystachys seeds, we found that a pot that we covered with clear plastic germinated 1-2 days more rapidly with a higher percentage than seeds in the pot that was not covered.

Once your phalaris seedlings begin growing, you should then sprinkle some loose soil in between each blade to provide support. You no longer need the plastic cover once you are sure most of your phalaris seeds have germinated. Allow your phalaris clumps or pans of seedlings to fill in thoroughly under artificial lights. You may also keep them outdoors in a shady area, but you must take care not to let the soil dry out. You will also have to worry about other seeds getting into the soil. In some cases, a screen may be helpful to keep them out. When growing phalaris grass, it is important to develop a good root system before any transplanting into the ground. While they are indoors your phalaris seedlings do not have to worry about competitors, and it is a good idea to give them a good foothold before introducing them to an environment where invaders exist.

When you are sure that your root system is well-developed, it is time to start your phalaris patch. If you only want clumps, your job is pretty much done by putting them in the ground. For patches, it is best to till the soil to loosen it and remove any competing weeds. Then, go ahead and divide up your tray in to a number of smaller clumps. A 4”x 4” clump should be suitable. Now, plant your phalaris plugs in your prepared area using a spacing approximately half the thickness of the clump. So, a four inch clump will be given two inches of space. Keep the area well-watered, being sure to remove any weeds or other grass species. The spaces in between your phalaris plugs will eventually fill in as the roots spread out, and you will have a large phalaris grass patch. You may then go on to separate clumps out from the patch and plant them in a similar manner to expedite the expansion of your patch even further.

This process is possible because phalaris grass rhizomes spread and send up new blades. Each phalaris seed has its own genetics, but every blade sent up from the root system of the same seed is part of the same phalaris plant. In a batch of phalaris grown from seed, you will have several different sets of genes mixed in from each of the different seeds. Now, let’s say you have a blade that grows especially fast or has unique coloration. If you isolate an individual blade, it will multiply so that every blade has the same code. You may then proceed to clone this grass by making plugs from the patch that develops using the method described above. The resulting patch will have phalaris grass blades that all have the same characteristics. The seeds of these blades may have similar genes, just like a parent has similar genes to his or her child, but they will still have some variation. Phalaris “Big Medicine” and “Yugo Red” are examples of reed canary grass specimens that have been reproduced by cloning. To have true specimens of these varieties, you must have gotten them as clones.

Nobody would say phalaris is hard to grow in the first place. But now you should be equipped to maximize your potential and create a patch that will be exactly as you want it to be, whether in terms of size shape or genetics.

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Poor Man's Spore Syringe Tek: Making Syringes Without a Glovebox

Materials:

Clean Spore Print
91% Isopropyl Alcohol
Paper Towels
New Zipper lock Bag (Quart sized or larger)
Sterilized Syringe(s)
Shot Glass or alcohol lamp
Match or lighter
Water

The following procedure is an inexpensive method for making clean spore syringes without the use of a glove box. We used this technique for shiitake, but it can be applied to other mushrooms as well. Here is an overview of the process: You will be sterilizing water in a syringe, getting your print inside a clean bag, then injecting the sterile water from the syringe right into the bag and sucking it back out with the spores.

You will need an empty sterilized syringe to start off with. Fill your empty syringe with water and pressure cook it at 15 psi for 20 minutes. This will ensure that the water in the syringe is sterile. Water may be replaced with your choice of liquid growing medium if you would like the spores to germinate right in the syringe. You should be extra certain of the sterility of your print if this is the case. When sterilizing your syringes in the pressure cooker, make sure to keep them with the tip facing up or you will lose all of your liquid during the process. The caps should be placed loosely on top of the needle points so that you do not poke yourself when trying to grab them. You can use a quart size Chinese soup container to hold your syringes because it can withstand the temperature. Be sure to allow your syringe to cool fully before use.

Now that your syringe water is at a safe temperature for your spores, go ahead and soak your paper towel with rubbing alcohol. If you cannot find 91%, 70% will work. But try to use the highest possible concentration. Use the alcohol to sterilize the outside of your spore print. Keep it in between the folded halves of your alcohol-soaked paper towel. Then go on to sterilize the opening of the zipper lock bag. Most bags will do, but you want to try to get one that is not too thick, and you will see why later.

Once the outside of the bag is sterilized, you have to get your print inside without letting any air in. This involves closing all the doors and windows in your house and reducing body movement. You may want to spray the air with air sanitizer if you have it. The key is to only open up one side of the bag enough to get the print in. Before acting, prepare the print in the paper towel so that it will face the entrance of the bag properly and be able to drop right in. You want to be able to just open up the two halves of the paper towel and let it drop in. Once the print is in, close the bag up quickly and just give another quick wipe along the entrance with your paper towel.

Now is the part where a thinner bag with help you. You have to unfold the print while it is inside the bag. The ease of this part of the process will depend on your personal skill and how the print was prepared. Eventually, you will become good at it. The key is to be gentle and not use your fingernails too roughly so that they penetrate the bag. You will want the print situated at the bottom corner of the bag when it is finally opened.

Now that the print is open, you will need to sterilize your needle. Fill up your alcohol lamp or shot glass with isopropyl alcohol and light the top so you have a flame. If using a shot glass, you will have a better flame if it is filled to the very top. The flame will also give you some idea of how still the air is in your room. (You can utilize this earlier in the process when you are inserting your print into the bag as a gauge of your air movement.)

Next, you want to sterilize the tip of the needle so that the entire thing burns red hot. If you get one area to turn red, come back to it every second or two while you’re working on another area of the needle so that it stays hot. Don’t go too close to the plastic either, or it will melt. You may hear popping if there is any water inside the tip. When your whole needle is sterilized, cool it down by folding it in an alcohol soaked paper towel.

Hold your sterilized syringe in the towel and bring it to the ziplock bag. While it is safe inside the alcohol-soaked paper towel, use another part of the alcohol-soaked towel to wipe the part of the bag where you will be inserting your needle. (By the way, you may need to add alcohol to the paper towel as needed during the process).

From this point on, you want to act very slow and think out each movement before you act. Stick your entire needle into the bag through the spot you just sterilized with the alcohol-soaked paper towel. Do not worry about the direction the needle is facing. Instead, be sure that it does not go through the bag at any other point or it will let in unwanted air. If this happens, you may still succeed, but it is undesirable. You want the entire needle in the bag so that none of it is left in the open air to pick up contaminates. Once the needle is in, be sure to keep your alcohol-soaked paper towel over the entry hole so that no new air can get in. At this point you want to squirt out the contents of the syringe into the bag. You may squirt right on the spore print to remove the spores more easily, but that is not needed. The beauty of this technique is that you can rub the spores off with your finger right from the outside of the bag. Once the water is saturated with spores, slowly adjust your needle point to face the corner of the bag. Allow the water to collect in the corner and draw the water back into the syringe.

With this technique, you can usually get all of your spores into a single syringe. If you would like to do additional syringes on the same print, just be sure to keep the hole covered with your alcohol-soaked paper towel while you sterilize the next syringe.
That’s all there is to it…

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