Hydroponic basil starting to sprout, crickets may have eaten most

The basil that I propagated in starter cubes last week has begun to sprout. There are only about a dozen sprouts, but I had planted more than 200. I suspect that crickets have eaten the rest. I will reseed the cubes on Saturday.

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Greenhouse seeds started

148 tomato seeds, started 1/5/2024. Seeds maintained at 80° F. 35 ground cherry seeds and 10 pepino seeds started 1/5/24, maintained at the same temperature. 56 pepper seeds started 1/6/24, maintained at 84° F. Notes: cutting back on tomato production, experimenting with novel crops. This is the latest that I've ever started the greenhouse tomatoes.

Microgreens sprouted, steamed

My six trial microgreens trays have now sprouted. I have left the clear tops in place for two days in a row now that they're in the greenhouse, and this has been a mistake. Temps inside the trays rise high enough to steam the greens. So far, they have all survived. I will need to leave the tops off a little from the trays so that heat does not build up in them. I hope that their flavor has not been altered by the excessive heat, as heat makes greens taste bitter.

Temps plunge

Colder winter weather has moved in after a weekend in the 60s and 70s. The high today was 28 degrees, and the lows are in the mid 20s. The greenhouse ran out of propane last night, and the temperature inside was about 54 when I discovered the heater was out at 3:34 A.M. Even with the Mr. Heater Big Buddy propane heater on its high setting, the temperature inside only reaches 60 when it's 28 outside. At night, the heater keeps the greenhouse in the 50s. A tray for sprouting peppers is near the heater so that it can stay in the 70s to aid germination. The rest of the plants and germinated seed should fare well in the 50s. Elsewhere, rain barrels have frozen over, and icey precipitation has accumulated on the ground.

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