I know I've gone to the garden centers, bought about $75.00 worth of plants, thinking I did good, only to find I had more garden than I thought, some plants didn't look as nice as I thought, and some I would have liked to have had more of (especially after something ate them). Also, every year my kids brought beans home from school projects and immediately wanted to plant them so they could eat the fresh vegetables later. So we've been growing our own plants from seeds for several years now and look forward to each new season.
Here are a few pointers before starting:
Know what you want before going to the seed racks. If you're not sure, read books and magazines and use a plant finder to get ideas and information on themes & color schemes, planting combinations, shade or sun lovers, soil requirements, and other factors to determine the look you want to create. Some seeds are hard to find so have a couple of substitutes just in case.
- Try to determine how many plants you will need to fill your various planting beds & containers. The quantity of seeds in seed packets vary.
- Location, location, location...where are you going to put the seeds in your home to grow. Availability of space in your home may have some influence on how many you can have vs. how many you'd like to have. The best spot has bright, indirect light where the temperature remains fairly constant between 16 and 20 degrees C. If crowding a shelf full of seed trays in front of every window for the next couple of months is not exactly complimentary to your decor or easy to manuever around, then perhaps an investment in some grow lights would be more appropriate.
- Read the seed packet instructions carefully for planting methods and dates. Some plants will not transplant well and should be sown directly into the garden as instructed on it's packet.
Materials:
- Seeds (of course).
- Seed containers:
- seed flats with or without inserts of plastic or peat pots containing soiless potting mix. Do not use garden soil as it may be too heavy and contain harmful fungus or bacteria.
- or peat pellets.
- misting type water bottle
- tags and marker pen.
Let's Begin:
Select an area where you can make a bit of a mess.
- If you are using a starter mix, moisten it with warm water and work it in with your fingers so there are no dry clods. Fill containers with moistened mix to about 1/4" down from top of container. Tap down to release air bubbles.
- If you are using peat pellets, simply place them on a tray of warm water about 1/4" deep which they will absorb and expand.
Again read the seed packets for instructions for planting each type of seed. A rule of thumb is that a seed needs to be planted about 2.5 times it's width. A sunflower is about 1 cm, so it would need covered 2.5 cm deep. For very fine seeds, mix with a little sand and sprinkle into container. Some seeds may need to be soaked first to soften the outer layer. Some seeds do not need to be covered at all.
Label your tags and insert into containers when & where you plant each seed type...sure you may remember now, but not so easily later. Mist the surface of the flats, and put a little water in the bottom of the trays where it is slowly absorbed without soaking the soil. From this point on, it is of the utmost importance not to let the soil dry out, or get overwatered. Overwatering, and overcrowding too, will cause what is called "dampening off" which is when the sprouted seedlings will suddenly fall over from rotting at the soil level. To keep the top soil from drying out too quickly, which can seem to happen overnight, a clear cover or lid which allows air circulation at the sides, will help.
TransplantingSeedlings first develop 2 seed leaves. Then the next 2 are called their true leaves. At this stage it's time to space them out by transplanting. Use a pointed tool in one hand, such as a crochet hook, to gently dig out the seedling and at the same time pull on the true leaves with the other hand. Lower the roots into a premade hole in another container at the same depth it was before and gently firm the soil around the stem. These seedlings should now be fertalized with a 20-20-20 water soluable
fertalizer at the appropriate strength as recommended on the fertalizer label.
Just before planting permanently outdoors, the plantlings need to be "hardened off". This is the process of introducing the plantlings to outdoor weather gradually for about 2 weeks by placing them outside during the day and bringing them in at night. Keep them out of direct sunlight or they will develop brown burn marks. Review the seed packets for dates on when to plant out.
Remove plants from plastic inserts or trays by tipping the plant almost upside down and supporting the stem between your fingers close to your palm, and with the other hand, gently squeezing the container to loosen the soil. The plant should slip out easily and placed into a premade hole, again at the same depth, and again firm the soil around the stem. Soon, with continuing watering, fertalizing and care, you should be rewarded with a bounty of lush greenery and color.
| 
