Salvia Grow From Seed - A Journal (of sorts anyway)

[MasonJarBong]

Day 24 (from planting), Seedling #2 aka "Dot"
Dot is also coming along nicely. Her first true leaves are also quickly increasing in size.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 28 (from planting), Seedling #1 aka "Frank"
Nothing too dramatic here, just a progress update. First true leaves are growing quickly and second set is becoming prominent. Will likely move them both beneath T5 fixture soon but intend to do so gradually over a few days, with close monitoring.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 28 (from planting), Seedling #2 aka "Dot"
Dot is holding her own, also packing on the leaves. She's a few days behind Frank but otherwise seems just as vigorous.

 

[JustAnotherHuman]

Your little ones are doing fabulously there MJB! Well done!:thumb_up:

 

[Cognitive Heart]

I concur! Solid work with the whole seedling process.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Awww shucks (and thanks)!

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 32 (from planting), Seedling #1 aka "Frank"
Two shots of Frank to show progress. 32 days from sowing seed and 26 from sprouting. His true leaves are growing fast and his stems are slowly thickening. I could likely make quicker progress with more aggressive lighting, but I have been hesitant due to this being my first salvia grow. The seedlings appear so frail and fragile at the start that I have taken very conservative measures. In any event, I am thinking T5 fixture in another week or so.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 32 (from planting), Seedling #2 aka "Dot"
Dot is also progressing nicely and her next set of true leaves are becoming established.

 

[MasonJarBong]

For anyone watching, I am still watering using a spray bottle and primarily spraying the soil around the edges of the pot. I will occasionally spritz a little bit of water closer to the stem, but not always (don't want any rot/fungus issues esp at this sensitive stage). I monitor the soil surface for signs of drying and water once I see them. I do a somewhat more thorough drench about every 4-5 days and will usually not water them at all the following day. After that I do a lighter spritz for 1-2 days then repeat the sequence. This will obviously change as the plants pack on more leaf mass and their transpiration rate increases. Anyway, that is how I am watering for now.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 39 (from planting), Seedling #1 aka "Frank"
More progress shots today. Frank's first two sets of true leaves are growing larger while the third true set is emerging.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Meant to also attach a top-down shot of Frank within the previous post. Woops!

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 39 (from planting), Seedling #2 aka "Dot"
As you can see Dot is also doing quite well. Although slightly smaller than Frank I love the symmetry of her leaves.

 

[MasonJarBong]

And a family photo just because...

 

[Asher7]

Rock n' roll:grin: I wonder at what point their stem will take on that square shape.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Rock n' roll:grin: I wonder at what point their stem will take on that square shape.

I was wondering when the stems would thicken and square off myself. I am guessing another 2-3 weeks. Questions like this are among the reasons I am producing regular photo documentation.


Edit:
Note that the guess of 2-3 weeks for the stems to square off is just that - a complete guess.

 

[Asher7]

Hey quick question. I don't need sources or anything but did you get these seeds as a gift or friend or did you actually find someone selling viable seeds? (I don't recall seeing in the thread) It's been awhile since I paid attention as my state does not declare us citizens mature enough to grow salvia but back in the day the word was that they could only be spread through cuttings as they never threw seed and on the off chance one did, they were always dud seeds that wouldn't sprout. Is that thinking a thing of the past nowdays?

 

[MasonJarBong]

These seeds were purchased via a reputable online seller. However, the seller has since run out of stock.

 

[Asher7]

Awesome:grin: That my friend, means new genetics. And new genetics my friend, means...anything.8)

Take good care of them, the babies are our future.

 

[MasonJarBong]

Day 43 (from planting), Seedling #1 aka "Frank"
I had intended to wait a few more days before providing another update. However, I have been monitoring some paling at the tips of Frank's first true leaf set. The tips have now browned. So far the damage is very limited and I intend to monitor closely. But I felt this was of enough interest to justify an update. (Dot thus far seems unaffected and I will wait until next update to provide new pictures of her)

My research indicates the browning leaf tips could have a number of causes such as low humidity, overwatering, and overfertilization. There could be other causes as well. Since the seedlings are still in their humidity dome and humidity has averaged 75-80%, I assume low humidity is not an issue. The soil is Happy Frog and I have not yet added any nutrients, watering with distilled water only. Although Happy Frog contains some light nutrients, I doubt they are the cause of the brown leaf tips.

For now I am leaning towards this being a case of overwatering. I have been a bit paranoid about allowing my seedlings to dry out too much, given their fragile state and small size. I may have allowed this worry to push me towards watering too frequently. As an additional data point, I noticed that Frank had recently put out a new root just above the soil surface. It is my understanding that Salvia can do this in reaction to the roots not getting enough oxygen (due to overwatering).

I plan to pay close attention to the seedlings at this stage and monitor for signs of becoming thirsty before I water them further. Perhaps I should have done this all along, as I have with other types of plants. Like I said, with Salvia seedlings being so small, it is possible I employed a heavy (and wet) hand out of paranoia.

 

[○]

Day 43 (from planting), Seedling #1 aka "Frank"
I had intended to wait a few more days before providing another update. However, I have been monitoring some paling at the tips of Frank's first true leaf set. The tips have now browned. So far the damage is very limited and I intend to monitor closely. But I felt this was of enough interest to justify an update. (Dot thus far seems unaffected and I will wait until next update to provide new pictures of her)

My research indicates the browning leaf tips could have a number of causes such as low humidity, overwatering, and overfertilization. There could be other causes as well. Since the seedlings are still in their humidity dome and humidity has averaged 75-80%, I assume low humidity is not an issue. The soil is Happy Frog and I have not yet added any nutrients, watering with distilled water only. Although Happy Frog contains some light nutrients, I doubt they are the cause of the brown leaf tips.

For now I am leaning towards this being a case of overwatering. I have been a bit paranoid about allowing my seedlings to dry out too much, given their fragile state and small size. I may have allowed this worry to push me towards watering too frequently. As an additional data point, I noticed that Frank had recently put out a new root just above the soil surface. It is my understanding that Salvia can do this in reaction to the roots not getting enough oxygen (due to overwatering).

I plan to pay close attention to the seedlings at this stage and monitor for signs of becoming thirsty before I water them further. Perhaps I should have done this all along, as I have with other types of plants. Like I said, with Salvia seedlings being so small, it is possible I employed a heavy (and wet) hand out of paranoia.

Thanks for the update.

Yeah, those leaves [if i see them right] look like they're clawing/crows foot 'slightly', similar to what canna plants can do if there's nitrogen toxicity [highly unlikely here] 'or' ..as you said - too much moisture/overwatering.

edit: Also, [and you probably already know this], let the soil dry out reasonably well to see if things bounce back.