How to Disinfect Seed Starting Equipment (and Why You Should)
Starting garden plants from seed is fun and economical. Don't cut corners, however, when reusing your seed starting equipment. Take some time now to disinfect your pots, trays and tools to prevent damping off and other diseases spread by poor sanitation.
If you're using seed starting trays from year to year, make sure you put them away clean. Shake off the loose soil, and rinse them with a garden hose. Disinfect them the following winter prior to using them again.
To disinfect seed trays, use a solution of one part bleach to ten parts of cool, clear water. Rinse your trays or shake any excess soil free, then immerse plastic trays in the water and bleach solution. Leave them for 10 minutes. Rinse clean, air dry, and use.
Garden shears and pruners should also be disinfected after use to prevent the spread of diseases between plants. Rubbing alcohol wiped across the surfaces of the pruning blades disinfects them and can reduce or prevent the transmission of many bacterial diseases between trees, shrubs and other plants. You should disinfect pruning blades after using them on a plant, and before trimming a second plant; if a tree or shrub already has a disease, such as fire blight, disinfect them between each cut to prevent spreading the blight further. (Photo by Cohdra, Morguefile.com license).
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Good advice. Thanks.
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When this happened to me, someone said the area I was growing them in was too cold...might be an issue with temperature. Hard to say, but usually if it's microbes on the pots or in the soil, the seedlings die. Good luck this year!
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