I'm new to starting seeds indoors and have run into a bit of a problem. I set up some vegetable seed trays under grow lights and mixed in an organic fertilizer with my seed starter mix. Now my entire house smells like manure, and I'm worried I might have used too much fertilizer. Is there a way to reduce this odor without harming my seeds? I've heard that zeolite might help with manure odors, but I need some guidance on how to use it properly. Thanks for any advice!
2 Answers
It sounds like a common issue! First things first, could you let us know what type of organic fertilizer you used? That could give us a better idea of your situation. If your seed starter mix is very rich and has a lot of manure in it, that might be the source of the smell. One thing you could try is adding a thin layer of plain soil on top of your seed trays. It might help mask the odor a bit. And don't worry, the smell will fade over time! For future grows, you might want to hold off on adding fertilizer until your seedlings develop a couple of true leaves – they have everything they need from the seed itself at first. After that, you can switch to a diluted liquid fertilizer to keep things light on the nutrients (and the smell) from the get-go.
Not much you can do about the smell right now other than waiting it out. Just make sure to ventilate the area as much as possible. For the future, seeds usually don’t need any extra nutrients until they’ve developed their first couple of true leaves. So, it’s probably best to skip the fertilizer in the seed mix altogether next time. Once your seeds have grown a bit, feel free to use a very diluted liquid fertilizer – it'll help minimize that odor and still provide the nutrients they need!
Got it, thanks! This info is super useful!
Thanks for the tips! I'll definitely try the plain soil trick. Appreciate your help!