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[email protected]

On which day do most folks begin counting in their log?

Date of file & soak? (I use this date as a "zero")
Date of radicle emergence? (My idea of day "one")
Actual date cot's emerge? (could also be day "one")
Or the date the plants go into the patch?

I'm trying to keep my log a little more consistent this year. I know, it seems trivial but....

Steve

5/18/2004 6:56:20 AM

Utah

I use the Soak date as day zero.

5/18/2004 9:28:52 AM

Nova Scotia

i soak over night then when i put the seed in the soil i count that as day zero. but i beleive most count soaking as day zero

5/18/2004 9:59:29 AM

Wichita, KS

file and soak, day one.

5/18/2004 12:51:13 PM

ipswich, ma usa

When a baby is born into this world we don't say it's nine months old. We start the clock ticking at time of birth. So I would say birth and "Day 1" should be the day the seed shows a root for the first time. A wet seed does not mean a "born" seed, just wet.

John (5150)

5/18/2004 1:48:31 PM

Edmonton, Canada

I agree!

5/18/2004 1:58:37 PM

Hilpoltstein, Bavaria, Germany

Day 1 for me is when the cots are completely above the soil surface.

Otherwise I think there would be too much confusion as some people start the seeds directly in the patch, others plant directly in the pots, others soak before potting and some people even germinate their seeds in towels and pot them when they have germinated.

5/18/2004 2:28:31 PM

Wichita, KS

When my wife told me she was pregnant we figured out the conception date and started counting weeks. We nurtured the child in the womb, read him books (the entire Chronicles of Narnia), and played jazz regularly. Mom ate teh best foods and exercised regularly. We did this becuase there was a birth to expect, and we counted the days. Had teh child miscarried, we would have been crushed.

Its that way with me for seeds too. When I have filed and soaked, I expect something to grow. If it doesn't, I mourn the loss of a potentially fantastic plant. Speaking of which, I may be about to "miscarry" my VWO 675 Hester*!

In the end it doesn't matter. I just like to start anticipating greatness at the earliest possible point. :-)

5/18/2004 3:26:31 PM

I file in the evening and soak overnight. The next morning when they go in the dirt starts Day 1.
For pumpkins, the date of pollination is Day 0.

5/18/2004 3:42:06 PM

ipswich, ma usa

So are we all 9 months older than we think we are?

John (5150)

5/18/2004 3:47:09 PM

Indiana

I cant remember my own birthday, let alone the day I start my pumpkins....good thing I write that down somewhere

Tom

5/18/2004 3:59:54 PM

Utah

if one is keeping a log of a pumpkin plants life events or milestones as Steve asks in his original post... then, to me, it would make sense to start your log when you start your seeds. If certain seeds germinated more quickly or more slowly then wouldn't that be note worthy? If one wanted they could start again after cots have emergered or, or again, when it is transplanted to the patch, but why? One already has easy to pin down date. To add another one or two would just create confusion, as it has already done somewhat.

All this human comparision is kind of interesting and some what anologous. And it was brought up by Steve by his reference to 'birthday'. But not valid in my humble opinion. The big difference with human is that until birth the baby is part of and dependant on its mother.

so, John, I think, yes technically we as living organisims, are all roughly 9 months older than we 'think'... but conceptions days are hard to pin down. While birthdays are very easy to pin down, are a significant milestone, and of greater significance to us as mamals, than is the emergance of cot leaves of a seed, or transplantation to plant.

just my $0.03 worth...
can you tell it's a slow day at work for me? :)
gordon

5/18/2004 4:47:34 PM

Wichita, KS

...yes John, we are all 9 months older than we think...
;-D (lol)

5/18/2004 5:40:04 PM

C N Y

i feel that the first sign of soil disturbance is the start of the clock ticking on my seedlings.
so, if i come home from work and there's evidence of
the seed-starting mix cracking due to the seed coming to life, well, there it is! or even if the seed leaves are sticking up through the mix, unfurled, same thing.
on that same day.
so yeah, just like the baby being born, that's when it all really starts for me----everything before that is merely preparation for that magic moment. 'pal2

5/18/2004 6:46:28 PM

[email protected]

Well that got more attention than I expected. LOL

It's a good thing no one metioned Roe v Wade. (shiver)

I suppose I'll keep the dates as I have them. There are 2 day "zero's" for one plant & 3 day zeros for the other. Only because they took different amounts of time to pop their radicles.

How would I know this if I grew the same way as last year in sterile starting mix? I wouldn't. This year I started in a baggie. So the plants are all 3 or 4 days older *to me*.

Likewise the were all 3-5 days old before I ever saw green. But they were alive none the less.

As Gordon noted, this is what I was after. Daily entries in Excel. All are dated. But many early days are still "zero days". Now every progressive day since radicle emergence has a number. I might just get bored with the daily log at some point & skip periods of entries. But when resumed, the days of age will still be accurate. I guess.

5/18/2004 9:00:10 PM

White Plains, NY

From the time I add moisture I start counting. How else would I know the time period of germination for various seeds.

5/18/2004 9:16:49 PM

Appalachian Mtns.

Day 1 is the day after germination, for me anyway....

5/18/2004 9:27:30 PM

Colorado Hail, CO. Elev. 5,900 FT

Are you asking about seeds or clones?
LMAO

5/18/2004 11:23:40 PM

Rexburg, Idaho

Too many different days to keep track of. Plant nine seeds and they break ground on nine different days. Too complicated. I count the day I file and soak as the beginning. Doesn't make sense to use the day root first shows- what if I direct seeded or put them into a pot without waiting for the root.

5/19/2004 6:32:38 AM

ipswich, ma usa

Then you would not ever really know when day one was. :)

John (5150)

5/19/2004 9:21:36 AM

Kenyon, Mn.

Myself I start at the time they break soil,All these thoughts are excellent ones, I guess my reasoning is; If your infant Child(PERISH THE THOUGHT) was to die the day it was born, then the age is one day, and if they are developing(radical)and expected to break soil(as happened with one seed)the seed never broke soil...Still Born! Guess the "human" references here are more appreciated when You get to my age and aren't going to have any Kids anymore,cept the best kind, grand kids, you can send them home to Mom

5/19/2004 10:11:22 AM