Park's Original Bio Dome Seed-Starting System
Park's Original Bio Dome Seed-Starting System
Grow bigger and better-rooted seedlings faster
Shipping details
Ships in 1-2 business days
$39.95
Description / Park's Original Bio Dome Seed-Starting System
If you're new to using the Bio Dome, let us sing the praises of this, our most POPULAR PRODUCT OF ALL TIME. Customers love it, and even experienced seed starters like us, who have been dropping marigold seeds into the soil since pre-school, have come to make the Bio Dome the ONLY SEED STARTING SYSTEM WE NEED. Here's why:
Climate Control: you can remove the clear vent as the plants grow, but at first, especially if you're starting seeds in late winter, it's a real boost of warmth and humidity. And the two adjustable vents at the top make sure that your plants get good air circulation at all times.
Incredible Rooting Medium: in each hole of the polystyrene planting tray is what we call a "bio sponge," a pre-formed plug of sterile medium with a hole already drilled in the top. The bio sponge is simply the best way we've ever found to reliably germinate and grow on seeds. We plant 1—ONLY ONE—seed in each bio sponge, even for difficult-to-germ varieties, and they nearly always sprout. (The only seeds you don't want to grow in the Bio Dome are those of root vegetables like carrots, beets, and radishes—they need more space to grow their tuber than the bio sponge allows.) In all our years, we've just never had results like this from any other seed-starting medium, and we've tried them all twice. The bio sponge offers the perfect blend of aeration and moisture to help seeds of all kinds grow and cuttings to root.
Bottom Watering: you water the base of this tray, NOT the bio sponges themselves. Put enough lukewarm water into the base so that the polystyrene tray floats. The bio sponges will wick up just the water they need. And as your plants grow, their roots will go down and out, instead of spiraling or fanning out near the surface as you often see with top-watered seedlings. It's impossible to over-water the Bio Dome.
Root Strength: These seedlings form LOTS of roots and grow them straight down and out, so that when it comes time to transplant the seedling, you can see roots sticking out all over the sides and bottom of the bio sponge.
Ease of Transplant: none of this business of transplanting the plug into a pot and then transplanting the plant out of the pot and into the soil. When you start your seeds in the Bio Dome, they can be transplanted straight into their final home. The bio sponge holds together, but the roots fan out easily beyond the sponge and into the garden or container soil.
Refills of the bio sponges and the polystyrene block are available so you can use your Bio Dome for years to come. Starting the Bio Dome is mess-free, easy, and so economical. Whether you want to start your entire garden indoors at winter's end or you just have to root your favorite geranium at season's end, rely on the Bio Dome. You'll be glad you did—we stake our good name on it.
Green base measures: 14 7/8'' long x 9 1/2'' wide x 2 1/4'' high
Clear top measures: 14 7/8'' long x 9 1/2'' wide x 4 1/2'' high
Product Details
| SKU | v1802 |
|---|---|
| Product Classification | Collections |
| Characteristics | Container, Easy Assembly, Indoor Growing, Seed Starting, Seedling Protection |
Customer Reviews
Top customer reviews
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BioDome 24 people found this helpfulI purchased this BioDome several weeks ago when it was on a special. I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for it. I have had a terrible experience. It took forever for the seeds to germinate and they are still tiny. I contacted Park Deed to see if I could return the item and was told they don’t accept returns if the item has been used. I’m not sure how you’re supposed to know if an item works u til you use it. I will be reconsidering any future purchases from Park Seed. I have bought so many seeds over the past few years…but I’m very disappointed in their customer policies.
Response from store
Thank you for sharing your feedback and bringing this to our attention. We’re truly sorry to hear about your disappointing experience with the Bio Dome and our return policy. We understand how frustrating it can be when a product doesn’t meet expectations.
While our current policy doesn’t allow for returns on used items, we recognize that evaluating a product often requires trying it first. Your feedback is incredibly important to us and helps us improve both our products and policies.
We will be reaching out to you via email to address your concerns directly. Your satisfaction is very important to us, and we hope to have the opportunity to restore your trust in Park Seed.
Thank you again for your review! -
Plugs Bad Idea 19 people found this helpfulGood first, I like the dome, I'm using it for other starter plants but without the plugs. The bad, the plugs, as others have mentioned, will not breakdown. The roots of seedlings have difficulty forming which harms the young plant and results in stunted growth or death of the plant. The plugs are kept damp to help the rooting process, however the plant roots barely push through the (foam/rubber??) plugs. I do not recommend the plugs, however the dome and dome tray, yes.
Response from store
Thank you for sharing your experience with the Park Bio Dome and sponges. We’re glad to hear you’ve found the dome and tray useful for starting plants, even without the plugs.
We’re sorry to hear the plugs didn’t work out for you and appreciate your feedback. We’ll be passing your comments along to our product team for review.
Your input means a lot to us, and we’re always looking for ways to make our products better. Thanks again for letting us know how we can improve! -
Bio-dome 40 14 people found this helpfulJust day 5 after I started 15 pepper plants and 10 have germinated. Also planted 10 Lemon cucumbers, they've all germinated well. Planted another 10 Jalapeno and 10 Sweet Peppers two days ago, this my first bio-dome system works very well. It's on my workbench in shop under 4' LED, on a 12 hour timer. I put a 14" x 18" Pet Warmer pad underneath, which I believe is helping. I highly recommend these bio-dome systems to anyone looking to start there seeds early.
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Plants in Stasis 13 people found this helpfulI've used the Bio Dome system for 3 years, and up until this year I'd have recommended it to anyone. This year, I can't recommend it. I grow tomatoes for a nonprofit organization's plant sale, which is their major fund-raiser, so it's important that the plants look really good by the time of the sale. In 2020 and 2021, the tomatoes looked great right from the start. This year, the tomatoes germinated beautifully, then went into stasis, not even developing true leaf primordia for nearly 3 weeks. Once they started growing, they did fine, but losing those 3 weeks means they won't reach the size they should by the sale. This happened with 2 varieties of tomatoes (which I'd previously successfully grown in Bio Domes) and 2 sowing dates, so it was repeated. I also started both varieties both times in peat pellets -- plus an additional time to make up for the "hibernating" plants -- and they developed completely normally, so there was nothing wrong with the seed or my growing conditions. All seeds were grown under controlled conditions of light and temperature. There's something in the sponges this year that causes the seedlings to stall out. While this might not be a problem for someone growing plants for themselves, it's definitely something I can't risk in the future. This year's sponges also were not of the quality of past years. They were flimsy, squashed so the holes weren't obvious -- and soaking didn't help that -- tore easily, and some were in pieces in the package. I loved the system before -- I definitely don't love it now.
Response from store
Thank you for sharing your feedback about your experience with the Bio Dome system. We’re truly sorry to hear about the difficulties you had with the sponges and the growth of your seedlings. We understand how frustrating this must have been, especially with your plants supporting such an important nonprofit fundraiser.
Your feedback is incredibly valuable to us, and we’ve shared your concerns with our product team. Honest input like yours helps us make meaningful improvements to ensure our products meet the high standards our customers deserve.
We’re so grateful you took the time to share your experience with us. Your insights help us learn and grow, and we truly hope to have the opportunity to earn back your trust in the future. -
Two Weeks In 10 people found this helpfulThis is perfect for people just starting out working from seeds, or people who want to cut out some of the work. I spent maybe an hour soaking the plugs and dropping the seeds into the holes. In just days I got my first sprouts and so far, they all look happy. I don't mind having to transfer them into a bigger cups to later sow into the ground. I use a grow light with 5:1 red and blue light. Soon I'll be able to put them into direct sunlight!
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Not a magic bullet 4 people found this helpfulEasy to plant and grow seedlings, however, the plugs themselves never break down. In addition, my plastic dome chipped when I set it down on my deck. I found that to be disappointing.
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Biodome 5 people found this helpfulI am very pleased with the price, ease of use, and how it is working so far. My seedlings are working almost 100% compared to last year this is a much better return on my investment. Seeds are expensive but this system has so far worked great. Very happy with the results.
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The real deal 6 people found this helpfulI bought the 18 cell biodome in my first effort to grow my garden from seed. In prior years I had bought my plants from one of the big box stores. I started my pepper plants and all 18 cells had at least one pepper germinated within 7 days. At the nearly 3 week mark all the plants look very healthy and I’m a little disappointed to have to thin the sponges that have multiple peppers growing. My tomatoes germinated in 4 days, much to my surprise. I would highly recommend the biodome to anyone looking to start seeds.
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Nice Unit 3 people found this helpfulI've just planted my first seeds in the Bio Dome. it seems well made and appears durable enough to go for many years. I'll know more in a few months but am happy as of now.
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Great product but... 12 people found this helpfulI love the product and it is easy to start the seeds, which germinate very well in the bio domes. I have both the single 60 cell and the double 120 cell domes. If a preference were to be had, I'd only use the singles. The doubles seem to not germinate as well and as plants grow, they get too crowded, fighting for light even though I have the lights close to them as they grow. I'm trying the 40 cells in those this year and 18 cell for my tomatoes as the tomatoes grow much too quickly for the 60 cells. I have had issues with white mildew that grows on the sponges which not even increasing air circulation with fans seems to help stop it. Ended up using a copper fungicide regularly when it happens to keep it under control last year. Lastly, the sponges are a fantastic idea but they do not disintegrate in the garden even after the plant has produced and died. I find myself digging them out and burning them when re-mulching the garden in the following spring. If I had a wish, I would wish the sponges were biodegradable.... wondering if anyone else has a better solution to the sponges as this was quite the investment. I'd like to find a less expensive and biodegradable solution to fill the holes in the future.
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SUPER 0 people found this helpfulReceived fast and timely manner. Good pod size, should get a good root system. Thanks
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not what I hoped 5 people found this helpfulPackaged nicely, and I was very excited at the propects of strong early seedlings. I did get just that, but I used a heat mat and LED light too so I'm sure that helped immensely. My disappointment is the sponges don't break down as expected after planting out and I still find them in beds. Won't use them again. Instead I used the dome part to raise Monarch butterflies. I'll use Jiffy Peat pellets in their little greenhouse on my mat and under the light for future seed starting.
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Mixed review 5 people found this helpfulAlthough I’m continuing to use the the greenhouse setup, I’ve discontinued using the starter plugs. They end up getting pulled out of the ground by critters easily when I transfer them to the garden. The plugs don’t seem to be breaking down. A year later they’re still sitting on top of my soil where they were pulled out.
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Well built 1 people found this helpfulSeems to be quiet functional, waiting on seeds
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Great Product 3 people found this helpfulI've been using this product for several years with very good results. There is no mess, and my seeds germinate quickly than with other systems I've tried. I wish the sponges were biodegradable. I hope this can be altered in the future because that is important to me, and it's why I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. The cost of the sponges isn't an issue for me because I would spend that much on seed starting mix, but that is messier.
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I love these 2 people found this helpfulI'm a bit confused on the sun yellowing comment. I've had my original 60 ct for at least a decade. I have purchased more over the years and have had my "new" ones since 2016 or so. I don't use them for zucchini, cuc, corn or other easy to start stuff. I look for new varieties of tomato etc this years "Trust" is $5 for 5 seeds... I have a heat mat and fluorescent lights great germination. Plants grow stout and strong. I have used my clear covers over tomatoes in the garden for unexpected frosts. I have floated one with lettuce etc in my aquarium for a mini aquaponic set up. I can fill the reservoirs and be gone a week or more without my babies dying. I have put my tomatoes in the top of the aquarium, when I didn't get them planted out (where I have a drip system on a timer, serious garden addict here) before leaving on a trip for 3 weeks... Everything made it!
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WOW!!!! I'm impressed!!! 3 people found this helpfulI bought my 40-cell biodome because of the height of the top, but feeling a little skeptical about the build-up of it. After all, it was just a place to start my seeds, right? Well, when I received my new biodome two days ago, was I ever surprised and impressed!!! The packaging was fantastic and my biodome arrived in perfect condition, as did the seeds I'd ordered along with it. I planted cosmos and poppies, thinking that I wouldn't see any sprouts for at least a week. Well, not even 48 hours after planting my seeds in my new biodome, I've got flowers sprouting in my kitchen! And, here in Northern Michigan just days before Christmas, that's saying something!!!!! I'm getting a grow lamp this week so I can grow my flowers indoors, and when other people are thinking about planting their seeds to set outdoors, I'll be enjoying blooming cosmos and poppies in my den, all thanks to this wonderful biodome! I just wish it came large enough to attach to my house so I could have a full-sized greenhouse!
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Too much hype. 8 people found this helpfulDo the seed grow? Yes. But after years using the large cells, I kept finding that unless you break them apart (and risk damaging the roots) the large sponges will stay intact on the ground for years, long after the plants are compost. I have tried them with all kinds of vegetable from artichokes to zucchini and it's always the same. Why did I use them for years? The domes are a large investments (mostly because of the price of the sponges). Now, I roll some pieces of paper towel or newspaper, insert them in the holes and fill them with soil. The smaller sizes some times will break apart, but being that I'm into organics finding sponges intact makes me question exactly what they are made off.
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So easy. 1 people found this helpfulThis thing is working like a charm. So confident and easy. Will be ordering more sponges. Maybe another dome as well.
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18 cell bio dome 2 people found this helpfulBought three total so I could grow my own transplants and was very excited with my success. Grew tomatoes, chard, lettuce, onions(60 cell dome), and an assortment of herbs. My germination rate was unreal! Very easy to grow and very easy to transplant-strong and vigorous plants. Follow the directions and enjoy.
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So easy - so neat and so clean! 3 people found this helpfulLast night I planted seeds in my new bio dome seed starters! I just loved how easy and neat it was! No mess to clean up. Cut my work and prep time to a third! Very excited to order the planting medium to start seeds for fall crops since this is reusable!
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