That's a line I've always wanted to use; Mike Rowe pulls it off so well. Of course, he IS Mike Rowe :)
We're almost mid-way through winter here and it's time to start getting dirty. Time to plant seeds! Over the past few years, I've learned a few good lessons and tricks in regards to seed starting.
First, I've learned that a great place to germinate seeds is on top of the ductwork in the basement. The trunklines coming off the furnace give off enough heat to warm the soil and the seeds germinate very quickly. Once the seeds germinate, I take them down off the trunklines and put them under grow lights.
Second, I've learned that those nifty little homemade newspaper starter cups aren't what they're cracked up to be. They tend to draw all the moisture out of the soil drying out the seedlings and can turn to mush after a few good waterings.
Third, you have to be very, very careful if you decide to fertilize your seedlings. It's extremely easy to over-feed them, even with a lovely organic, all-natural fertilizer.
Fourth, when it's time to harden off your seedlings, if you have more than a tray or two, put them in a wagon or cart to wheel them in and out of the sun. Makes things so much easier.
All those tricks and lessons aside, I'm extremely excited to start planting! I have a couple new varieties of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants that look delicious as well as the old tried and true varieties.
Do you have any tricks/lessons to share?
4 comments:
I am SOOOO ready to get dirty, and I love Mike Rowe. My DD watches him non stop.
Tricks - I dont listen to what the seed package says, when to start, how long they take to reach maturety. Some times it takes longer sometimes less time.
I also talk to my little plants they seem to enjoy hearing about the weather.. LOL
Did you get any snow from this last storm that hit in KY? We got about 4 inches.
We got some snow/ice last Thursday/Friday, and a little freezing drizzle this morning, but it's been clear otherwise. They said we may have a little snow later this week....
We had some seeds started last spring that we put on a wide windowsill in the house to grow. We took a cardboard box, cut out the one side, covered the entire inside of it with tinfoil so that the light from the sun would reflect evenly over the plants. They seemed to grow straighter instead of leaning towards the light. You can also just turn them around once a day. But I guess if you have grow lights, you wouldn't need to do any of that!
I love that idea, Joe, but we don't have any South facing windows thus the grow lights :) I do something similar in the basement with foil to keep the light rays where I want them.
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