Trials & Testing:

Starting Our Seedling Project with Cotton Ball Medium

Before diving into our latest project update, we encourage you to read the previous FIFE In Action post to fully appreciate the evolution of our methods.

For the start of this initiative to provide free plants, we have chosen to begin our seedlings using a cotton ball medium, organized in groupings of six. This approach has been refined over the years, beginning with various methods such as traditional soil, coco coir starter plugs, and other alternatives. However, after much experimentation, we found that for hydroponic growing, the most cost-effective and efficient starting option is small cotton balls.

The use of cotton balls is particularly advantageous because they excel at wicking up water and nutrient solutions. Our process begins with a small amount of water mixed with hydrogen peroxide, and we encourage you to explore this link to understand the reasons behind this choice. We prepare starter trays by placing the cotton balls in them, followed by wetting the cotton with the solution before placing a couple of seeds on each ball. These trays sit in a weak nutrient solution, which is continually wicked up by the cotton, keeping the seeds moist and promoting healthy germination.

One of the benefits of this method is that different types of seeds tend to germinate at different rates, but generally, we observe germination within five days for all the plant varieties we are growing.

The images provided were taken on April 6, 2024, capturing the early stages of growth for all plants, which were planted simultaneously in our solution trays, each holding sections of six cotton balls.

As the plants continue to grow, we will share more updates in the "As We Grow" section of our group. Future posts will include information about different plant types, such as hot peppers and various wild edible plants we plan to offer, as well as insights into why we have chosen specific plants for this project.

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