Thanks for all the food for thought. A couple of the points you brought up about transitioning I had not considered before. I may have let the seedlings get elongated prior to moving them. Watering them in well maybe another issue, having lost them in the past I may have underwatered them to avoid damping off and thus didn’t get good soil contact. I’ll let you know how it turns out Thanks Eric Duma Sent from my iPhone > On Feb 15, 2022, at 8:16 PM, Gordon Hogenson via pbs <pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> wrote: > > The question is what was the actual cause of death when transitioning from > the baggie to soil. Was it really fungal disease? I never used sterilized > soil and sometimes the compost has some white mold on it, and it still > works. I use organic potting soil with added perlite and generally do not > lose seedlings of Western American species and hybrids. The losses that > occur for me during this transition occur because of several reasons. (1) > not checking the baggies and having elongated seedlings that are weakened, > (2) rough handling during transition to soil, (3) not watering thoroughly > to ensure contact between the root and the soil, (4) overheating and drying > up before the root has had a chance to firmly establish in the pot. To > prevent that last problem, I don't put the newly transplanted seedlings > directly under the heat of the fluorescent lights right away. I wait a day > before putting it under the lights. Before that, I place it in the room > somewhere near my light setup, but not directly under the light, and not in > the path of direct sunlight. Room temperatures of anywhere near 70 F / 21 C > are OK, but too warm conditions may be detrimental. > > If it is fungal disease killing these seedlings, but not harming your other > lily species and hybrids, then that is an interesting problem. I am in the > Pacific Northwest and of course, my natural environment might have a fungal > biome that is more compatible with these species. However, I would consider > the above issues first. > > Gordon > PNW near Seattle but in the foothills, zone 7-8 > Crocus and snowdrops looking good on warm winter days > >> On Tue, Feb 15, 2022 at 2:51 PM Rick Rodich via pbs < >> pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> wrote: >> >> Pasteurizing soil with steam is a good idea, because it is somewhat of a >> selective killer. In theory at least, the bad actors are killed, and many >> of the good ones are not. Rick Rodich >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> pbs mailing list >> pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net >> http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… >> Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> >> > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net>