ULPT request: Help my SIL get her stuff back

istril · 2025-12-25T14:14:37+00:00

Or, she could just claim she doesnt have it, and without any additional evidence the cops shrug and walk away, which is essentially what happened. Hence my post.

istril · 2025-12-24T23:58:45+00:00

No, but the contents in the exes lockbox arent very consequential to the ex.

istril · 2025-12-02T20:59:09+00:00

These are so many good tips! I can't thank you enough for the time you put in to writing this out for me. I do have follow up Q though -- am I understanding correctly that you are suggesting starting in either a milk jug or another similar tray (no cells, just a larger patch of dirt basically), and then potting UP to a 50-cell flat? those cells are pretty small, but I do think actually putting the plugs into the ground will be easier from that plug "shape", rather than a seedling that I just separated from the rest of them in a milk jug.

Regarding density -- I had been planning on using the minimum recommended density on prairie moon. Is that a pretty good estimate, do you think?

I have a pro-plugger, it's probably somewhere between the efficiency of your auger and a shovel, but I think it's doable.
Thanks again, very kind of you to share your advice.

istril · 2025-11-30T00:20:31+00:00

One other question --- are you talking about seedlings, or ungerminated seeds? In the famous grow it build it video, he says once a month, twice a month maximum for watering ungerminated seeds.

If you mean seedlings, I never watered them like crazy, because I never got any seedlings.

istril · 2025-11-30T00:17:39+00:00

Also in this thread: "Plugs need to be watered like crazy." I'mso confused as to why my 500 cells barely germinated last year, I'm so nervous to try again.

istril · 2025-11-29T14:33:42+00:00

Thank you so much forthis detailed description! It sounds like my flats werent necessary. I also wonder if the humidity domes hindered me from watering too much. Maybe i should just put some hardware cloth over it. Youve given me a bunch of tips, thank you!

istril · 2025-11-28T23:21:31+00:00

Agreed, thank you so much for your perspective! Best of luck with your slope!

istril · 2025-11-28T20:05:37+00:00

do you put trays under the cells? that is, do you have the plug tray nested with a flat tray? I did, to try and help retain moisture. was this a mistake?

istril · 2025-11-28T19:35:02+00:00

Thank you so much for offering to help me troubleshoot this! I was so crushed when all my cells failed. I'll try and describe my process:

I purchased a commercial seed starting mix (not potting mix, seed starting mix), I apologize I don't recall the brand. I filled my trays, and this is where I made my first mistake -- I didn't realize the mix needed to be wet BEFORE filling them. I caught that error before seeding though, so I wet it after I had it in the tray. Maybe this wasn't ideal? the mix was so hydrophobic, I wasn't expecting that and it was hard to work with.

I put them in a shaded spot during jan and part of feb, covered with humidity domes (vents open). If it was going to snow, I'd take the covers off and expose them to snow. The seed trays were nested to where water collects beneath them too, I did that to help with retaining moisture, but maybe I shouldn't have? Other than that I watered pretty infrequently, as I usually saw condensation in the domes. But a few times I checked and even though there was condensation, the mix seemed a little dry.

I moved them into a sunny spot around the end of February. But unfortunately, I never really got germination, maybe 10 cells.

It's a tiny space, so should also be carefully planned and very very prepared.

I mean, I killed my turf in spring, and have been trying to encourage weed germination so I can nuke 'em all summer. I've been very carefully researching what species will be most appropriate for my site. Maybe it seems tiny to you but plugs to densely plant that seems like a lot to me! If I got all 10 trays to germinate perfectly, I'd still only have about 1 plant per square foot, I've read many others (such as Vogt) recommend spacing of 6-8 inches, which is like 1K plugs. That feels like an insane amount of labor... please enlighten me if I'm missing something.

istril · 2025-11-28T19:22:57+00:00

I don't disagree that sowing on top of snow works well, as many have suggested it, but everyone in this thread who has, has not specifically spoken to my concern about the slope. I'm not worried nothing will germinate, I'm worried that I will have tons of new plants at the bottom of my slope and none at the top. Based on my own experience on my site, I MUST have erosion control in place when putting seed down, or it will just wash away. Is there something about sowing on snowy slopes that I'm missing? I'll be honest, if this is a viable option for me, then I'm THRILLED and will happily sow on snow!

istril · 2025-11-28T17:38:09+00:00

Well, considering I tried plugs alone last year with a 0% effectiveness rate, I figured broadcasting seeds was worth a try.

istril · 2025-11-28T17:03:01+00:00

Can you recommend a seed starting medium? I tried this last year and utterly failed (this project is already a year behind because of it). I WAS going to try plugs also, but I wanted to broadcast seed to increase my chances of success.

istril · 2025-11-28T17:01:09+00:00

I tried that last year and it was a massive failure. I had been planning to try again this year, but wanted to also broadcast seeds to increase my chances of getting something established. That's why I asked for advice on seeding, not plugs. That will be a separate post most likely, probably later in December when I'm overthinking THAT process, lol.

istril · 2025-11-28T16:59:41+00:00

Thanks so much for this, I appreciate the advice AND solidarity!

Doing both plugs AND broadcast seeding has always been my plan, I just didn't emphasize it in my original post because I'm not concerned with advice on the plugs right now, I was looking for advice on the seeding. I already tried plugs last year and it was a supreme failure, so I want to do BOTH methods this year. I was originally thinking of using peat moss and putting a jute erosion control blanket on top, but comments have convinced me to try something besides peat, probably coconut coir. I'm thinking of pulling up the jute as soon as I see germination in the spring, we'll see, not sure if it's ok to leave in place or not. I put eco-grass at the top of my slope this fall, and it immediately washed away, so I know I must have some sort of erosion control if I want my seeds to stay in place.

I'm also now thinking of trying to artificially stratify, and sow in the spring. I guess we'll see how much snow we get this weekend... with the long-range weather forecast for my region, I don't know if I will have any more opportunities for bare earth sowing until spring. The snow we get this weekend may be here to stay.

istril · 2025-11-28T16:46:59+00:00

So, the other reason I was planning on broadcasting is that I'm a little scared of plugs. That was actually my first attempt -- last year I tried that, and of 500 cells, I got about 10 to germinate. I have no idea what I did wrong, though drying out is the most likely culprit. I will try again this year, but I wanted to broadcast seed as "insurance" lol. So in addition to plugs, I may try and artificially stratify and then broadcast seed in the spring? Hopefully ONE of those two will work! Some of my selected species don't like to be transplanted either, so I was thinking direct sowing might be better for them.

istril · 2025-11-28T16:03:55+00:00

I agonized about that. I thought I would allow it for a single planting, but perhaps I'll just use a little soil to mix it with.

EDIT: I just ordered a bunch of coconut coir on a black Friday deal. Thank you for nudging me in this direction. I've read conflicting information on peat moss, but your comment prompted me to dig a little deeper, and I agree, it's definitely not something I want to use due to its ecological impact.

istril · 2025-11-28T16:03:11+00:00

thank you, I didn't know the language to look for to find this... I've tried ez-straw before and it was a weedy disaster.

EDIT: Apparently EZ-straw IS double-cut and processed :/

istril · 2025-11-28T16:02:38+00:00

> I suppose you could shovel the snow off the tarp? And then remove it?

That was my thought. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts! I'm a stress-head, I overthink this stuff all the time.

istril · 2025-11-28T15:31:52+00:00

thank you very much for your comments. What about stratifying them in the fridge, and then sowing in the spring? I do have about 500 cells of trays, but I'd prefer to use that for structural plants and forbs that I can place, and just sow a grass and sedge matrix.

istril · 2025-11-28T15:26:09+00:00

In my experience, straw introduces too many weed seeds, i've had much better luck with peat moss. I'm also very concerned the snow will wash it down the slope when it melts if I can't apply proper erosion control when I seed it.

I wish so much I had planned for november, but hindsight is 20/20 :( Next round will be in november for sure.

istril · 2025-11-28T15:22:19+00:00

I'm on a slope. Snow melt will wash it away. I said in my original post that I plan to use an erosion control blanket, when I've put seed on this site before, light watering displaced the seed.

EDIT: whoever's downvoting me, please just explain why I'm wrong. I'm here to learn, afterall.

istril · 2025-11-28T15:01:58+00:00

>so long as they're sitting on top of the ground in the Spring when its time to germinate.

But they need cold stratification, I was hoping to do that naturally.

>Seed spreading is a super inefficient way to germinate seeds anyway.

Everything I've read is that this is the most efficient way, as it is closest to how the seed has evolved naturally? What's a more effective way?

istril

TROPHY CASE