Re: [tomato] Red plastic mulch
John and Jan Taylor (Tomato@GlobalGarden.com)
Mon, 22 Feb 1999 11:43:31 -0600
Hi,
This discussion about red (and silver) plastic mulch is interesting!
My comments about using red cups this year are only my observation...not a
comparison. Of course there very well could have been some
variations/differences that allowed the heirlooms in red cups to sprout and
grow quicker than the hybrids planted in the seedling packs...I am not a pro by
any means....!! Just an observation of mine (and quite a curious one...) ..
I do plan (as one mentioned) to do a 'heads up' experiment, using a few hybrids
and a few heirloom seeds planted on the same day....in the same types of
containers, using both the packs and the red cups.....
As far as what I am using....it is the plain store bought red plastic
cups...red only on the outside (white inside). They sit 9 in a row, 3 rows next
to my crate of those packs, under an identical 'grow light' source. Oddly
enough, the 'packs' are closer to the kitchen window than the cups, but only by
inches....
(I buy the cups in quanity...we have our kids and their friends pile into the
house every afternoon and weekends...the dishwasher was doing overtime. The use
of the cups was a mere convenience....)
I am interested in learning more about Chucks use of newspaper as mulch and
just how you keep it from blowing away...do you put some dirt on top?
The red mulch is interesting....but when trying to keep cost down, the
newspaper may be a cost effective alternative..
Keep up the good discussions...!
Jan Taylor
San Antonio, Texas
Edmund C. Flynn wrote:
> John and Jan Taylor wrote:
>
> > Oddly enough, this year I have started a variety of tomatoes in red
> > plastic cups
>
> I'm curious about the cups .... are they red through and through or just on
> the outside?
> Is this a special gardening item or just a regular store bought item. What
> height are they?
>
> I'm intrigued and will try anything (almost) once.
>
> Ed Flynn MD zone 6-7