Seed tray Help

[Chief]

Hi Everyone,  Just started today on my new lottie venture and I was wondering if anyone could advise me of the depth needed for seed trays ?.
I have saved some plastic meat trays but they are only 2 inches deep is this too shallow ?.

[Chief]

[vee]

Just looked in a gardening catalogue for you and the  depth is between
1 3/4ins and 2ins deep for the half and quarter size trays and 3ins deep for the full size trays. I hope this helps. I am saving similar trays to use as drip trays for pots and will probably use pots to germinate seeds and then prick out into cells. I think they will be ok for germinating seeds as well as long as they don't stay too long in them.

[Chief]

Hi Vee,  thanks for the advice it does help

[kenkew]

Reusing 'plastic meat tray' or the like is a great idea. Lots of things these days come in containers ideal for the garden. Not so long ago we were stuck with making our own or buying what was on offer. The 'standard' seed tray is almost always too big for the small gardener and mixing seeds in them could be a nightmare.
Smaller ones can be bought but food packaging can provide freebies, especially the ones which come with a see through plastic lid.

[sandersj89]

One small word of warning, there are some people that worry about the type of plastic gardeners use for edible crops with the risk of some chemicals being included in the crop at harvest.

Food grade plastic should not be a problem I assume.

I think it was John _Miller who commented on it in the past.

Jerry

[kenkew]

I remember that being a subject last year, Sanders, and there might possibly be something in it. But when you consider the boom in other plastic items that have taken over from wood and metal in the garden, I would have thought warnings would have been forthcoming by now had there been problems.
Cheap plastic garden products from the Far-East flood the shelves each year, ie; watering cans (which sometimes hold contents for weeks)  seed trays, plant labels and border edging etc; all come into contact with plants and/or soil, and coming from outside the EU, what sort of control is there? (Remember the baby teething rings from China which were sold openly in the UK and actually contained river water?)
Even recycled compost from the council contains masses of plastic shreds, (and God knows what else). So, until there's a serious proved reason/warning, I'm going to continue to 'make & mend' every chance I get.

[sandersj89]

Ken

I do agree with you, just flagging up a warning that has been given that some people might have a concern about.

Jerry

[bupster]

If anyone's daft enough to shop in Marks and Spencers, the trays that their burgers and large field mushrooms come in are moulded into the perfect shape to hold two pots on a windowsill :)

[kenkew]

...and rightly so on the warning Sanders. The more we know to make the better (alternate) choice.