Cultiv8

Why Cultiv8

This is straightforward, affordable climate hardware. Nothing here is clever — it is the gear you buy because a propagation tray is sitting at 14°C in July and germination has stalled.

Bottom heat that actually helps

Most seeds and cuttings root faster with the medium a few degrees above ambient air. The flexible heat mats come in three sizes — 388x282mm, 550x280mm and 644x350mm — to sit under standard propagation trays.

Thermostatic control matters

An unregulated heat mat has one setting: on. Paired with the mat thermostat it holds a set temperature instead of slowly cooking the root zone on a warm afternoon.

Tube heaters for the room, not the tray

Tube heaters in 60W, 80W, 180W and 240W lift the ambient temperature of a small space — a shed, a garage corner, a greenhouse — without the fire risk or fan noise of a fan heater.

Our Cultiv8 range

Propagation heating: flexible heat mats in small 388x282mm, medium 550x280mm and large 644x350mm, plus the heat mat thermostat.

Room heating: tube heaters in 60W, 80W, 180W and 240W.

Ventilation: inline vent fans in 100mm for intake, 150mm rated at 330m³/h, and 200mm for intake or exhaust.

Monitoring and accessories: thermometer-hygrometer with clock for indoor and outdoor use, and the Solar Sun LED stands including a 45-degree version.

How to use bottom heat properly

1. Aim for the medium, not the air. The target is root-zone temperature. Air temperature in the propagator will sit above it under a dome, which is fine.
2. Always run a thermostat. An unregulated mat on a warm day will push the medium well past useful and dry the tray out from below.
3. Put something between mat and tray. A capillary mat or a thin sheet spreads the heat and stops hot spots directly over the heating element.
4. Watch moisture. Bottom heat drives evaporation. Trays on a mat dry faster than trays beside them, and a dried-out plug kills a cutting quicker than cold ever will.
5. Turn it off after rooting. Once roots are established the mat has done its job. Leaving it on encourages soft, stretched growth.

For the wider selection see Propagation Heat Mats and Propagation Kits.