How to Successfully Sow Seeds Outdoors

When you plant your garden, the most cost effective way to grow it is to plant seeds instead of buying every single plant start. This is especially true when going things like onions, carrots and lettuces. They only produce one plant from the seed, so each carrot seed produces one carrot. So if you by an onion already started, the cost might end up being more than buying a bag of carrots from the store! Starting your own seeds is also easy. It might take a few tries to get it to work for you, but I'm sure if you  make sure you are giving the plant what it needs, it will grow for you.

1. First step is to make sure the soil where you are planting has lots of great organic matter added to it, and is nice and loose. This is particularly true for carrots and other root plants. They cannot grow downward in very compacted soil.


2. Soak the seeds for a little while. This could be 30 min to an hour. Just put the seeds in a little bowl and pour in some water. This gets the seeds activated. Its like pushing a start button. Tells them, " There is water, you can start growing!"  A seed needs first- water, then sunlight and soil.


3. Plant the seeds in the garden, making sure to follow the right depth for the seed. Some very small seeds need only a skiff of soil to cover them. The smaller the seed, the less soil they need, the larger seeds like peas and beans, need more soil to cover them up.


4. Keep them moist. They do not need to be soaking wet all the time, but do not let the soil dry out too much as this will draw the moisture stored inside the seed out and kill the seed. But the seed will also not grow if it is too wet. The seed and plant roots in general need access to some air in the soil. So being too wet, makes it hard to get that air. This is why looser soil grows better plants- they have more oxygen and room for the roots to push through the soil.


5. Label the plants. There is nothing worse than forgetting to label your plants and have a totally different plant grow in a spot you thought you had planted something. This especially helps if you have different varieties for the same plant, such as a few different kinds of onions or tomatoes.

Growing your garden from seed can be very rewarding and cost effective.  After you are done planting, if you have seeds left, you can save those for next year. Simply put them in a bottle with a lid, and place in the back of a refrigerator. Keeping them sealed in a jar helps them keep the moisture they do have inside the seeds, and the refrigerator also helps them to stay cool and last longer. After you master starting your garden by seed, the next step would be learning how to harvest your own seeds and thus never having to even buy seeds!

Happy Gardening!

Transplanting

So, you started your seeds inside in your light garden this year, or you bought the best plants you could find at the nursery, and want to transplant them out into the garden. For much of the US it might be a little bit early to do that yet, but it is good to prepare for it so that you can transplant those tender seedlings successfully.
Seedlings are usually started in a potting soil mix and should have been keept watered and growing quickly during the short weeks or months as they are grown in optimal conditions. So how do you take that seedling from that optimal condition into a windy, dry to wet then dry, hot and sunny or even cold place where the soil is maybe a little rocky, sandy or otherwise imperfect? Luckily most seedlings are a little bit forgiving, but you do want to take care and give them a good chance for survival. One thing I do when they are still inside, as I water them each day, I gently brush my hand over the top of them gently bending them over a bit. This will simulate  being blown by the wind a bit, and the plant will respond by strengthening its stem. Keep them growing quickly  by fertilizing every few weeks or so until ready for transplant. Then when it gets near the time, take them outside for a few hours the first day to get them ready for the hot sun, then a few more the next day. Do that for several days, making sure not to leave them out overnight, or let them dry out. They dry much more quickly in the sun and wind. Then when the time comes that you are ready to transplant, dig a hole, if it is loose soil, you can dig just enough for the plant, if it is not, loosen it up so that the roots can grow out a bit. I dig a small hole slightly deeper and off to the side of the plant and drop in a handful of fertilizer. This can be organic or not, whichever you choose. Then when the roots get a little more established, and reach the fertilizer, it will give them a much needed boost. But fertilizing too early right after transplanting can cause them to have even more shock. Then the first few nights if they are coldish, it would be good to cover them with a hot cap, row cover or wall of water for a while until they get more established.
One tip about tomatoes, pull of the bottom 2 leaves and plant it up to the bottom of the lowest leaves. The whole stem area that is planted below the soil will actually sprout roots and make it have an extra strong root system to support a nice healthy plant.

Also beware that squash family plants have very tender roots and do not like to be transplanted. So when transplanting be very careful not to disturb the roots.
Water the plants in right after planting, and keep an eye on them, watering when needed. Add mulch to cold loving plants right away to keep the soil temperature warm, and heat loving plants, don't add the mulch until the soil warms up a little bit more.
Remember, keep them growing fast for a good harvest.
Happy Gardening!

How to Care for Seedlings

How you care for your seedlings can mean the future for your garden. So what do you do when they pop through the soil and show their faces? The key is to keep them growing and growing fast.
The first obstacle is to maintain a steady moisture for your seedlings. Letting the tender roots dry out can stunt their growth and even kill them. Just beware to not to drown them. The roots also need oxygen and if the roots sit in water it is hard for them to breathe. So to check the soil, stick your finger down in the soil just below the surface, and if it is still moist, then wait to water, if not, water it.
Watering from the bottom is a great way to encourage root growth. Pull out a few of the plants and add the water then replace the plants. The soil will pull up the water as it needs it. Watering this way will also help to stop the top of the soil from growing mold.
A few weeks after the seeds come through the soil, you should fertilize them with a watered down even fertilizer. Choose organic if you plan on growing fully organic vegetables. Fertilize every few weeks until it is time to plant outdoors to keep them growing quickly.
Lastly, you should transplant them into a bigger pot when the roots fill up their pot, but don't start wrapping around the out side. If they start to do that, their growth might be set back permanently. So transplant as soon as they need, it.
Move the lights up often, and keep them about 2 inches above the plants so that they get enough lights.
One last thing that might help is to gently stroke the plants daily to help them develop strength and keep transplant shock at bay.

Here is a picture of our tomatoes growing this year. Happy Gardening!

How to grow your own vegetables from seed

It is very rewarding and fun to plant your own vegetables from seed. Here are  8 easy steps to follow to be successful at growing your own vegetables from seed.

1.       First is to get some potting soil, choose organic if you plan on growing fully organic vegetables. I pour a good amount into a mop bucket and wet it down with water. You want it wet enough that when you grab a handful it sticks together, but not dripping. Mix well with the water. This step is especially important if the potting soil you buy is dry. It will have a hard time absorbing the moisture if you skip this step.

2.       Next fill the containers you plan on using for the seeds. It is good to start out with fairly small containers so that the moisture will reach the seeds easily, but for large seeds like for squash you can start out with a larger container. Also choose containers that drain water out of the bottom so that the seedlings do not drown if watered too much. As the seedling grows, you can transplant them to lager containers. Press down the soil into the container so that there are no air pockets making sure not to pack the potting soil in too tightly as the seedling needs oxygen.

3.       Then I take an old pencil or pen and make a couple of holes to drop in the seeds then gently cover with soil. Watch the seed packets to see how deep the seeds need to be, but at least twice the length of the seed is usually the general rule for seeds.

4.       Place the containers in a tray, and place a plastic cover over the top. This is only used until the seeds germinate. It raises the temperature of the soil and helps it to retain the moisture for the seeds.  

5.       Be sure to water them before you put them in the light garden. Then place them under lights in a light garden with the lights just above the plastic.

6.       Keep the lights on for 16 hours a day. We use a timer so that we do not have to keep track turning on and off the lights for the light garden.

7.       Keep them moist, but do not over water as this will cause the seedling to rot. Stick your finger in the soil and if it is moist, it is fine, if it is not then water from the bottom to stimulate root growth and keep from allowing mold to grow on the surface of the soil.

8.       As soon as the seedlings pop up, take off the plastic cover and keep a close eye on them, raising the lights to 2 inches above the seedlings all the time. Transplant into bigger pots when the soil starts to dry out every day.

Check out our website for more information and to order seeds and supplies.

Happy Gardening!

Why Grow From Seed?

What are the benefits of growing your own vegetables from seed verses buying them as a transplant? There are many reasons, but here are a few to help you decide.
Is one of the reasons that you are growing your garden to save money? Then think about how much a packet of seeds cost and how much a transplant costs. It usually is about the same but with a seed packet you will get many plants, and only one from a transplant.
Another reason might be that you want to grow your plant fully organic, and when you grow a plant you have no control over the nutritional input in the plant when you purchase the plant already grown.
There are many fun varieties of vegetables including some heirloom vegetables that you can harvest your own seeds from. You can have some fun variety if you purchase seeds that you wont be able to find at a nursery.

There are some vegetables that are so easy to grow from seed that it is a waste of money to get them as transplants. Also corn, sunflowers, lettuce, radishes, carrots and other root veggies, grow from seed sown directly in the garden much better than growing them from transplants.
Growing a garden is an amazing experience, just add the satisfaction of growing from seed, it makes it even a better experience that you will only know by growing for yourself.
True that growing from seed will have a small learning curve, but if you do your homework, after a few years you will be a pro.
Happy Gardening!