Seeds of Change

Hey friends! Since it's that time of the year again and it's on everyone's mind, let's talk gardens! I've had gardens in the past with varying degrees of success. My biggest, and most productive, garden was when we lived in TN and the farmer next door stopped by and plowed up the garden patch for me. The Mister wasn't there when it happened so I laid out the boundaries for the farmer to plow it up. Well. It turned out to be about a quarter acre! HAHA! But it was good. We planted and planted. And I had no idea what I was doing. Since that time I haven't really had the space for a garden regardless of the size. But now we do. But I want to learn all I can. And my dream has always been to start my seeds and save seeds. And have an heirloom garden. And seeing as how the current situation has us all pretty much at home for a while, now is the time to learn, learn, learn. So at the top of that list is learn more about gardening!

There have been a lot of online classes lately, mostly about gardening, poultry keeping, and other hot topics of the moment. I figure I can use the knowledge or refresh some lost skills by attending these classes. So far I've attended two on seed starting , one on composting, and one on poultry keeping. If you recall, I jumped onto my seed starting experiment a few weeks ago. I probably should have waited considering everything I've learned lately!

So for those of you who are interested, let's talk about these seed classes, what I've learned, and how I'll change up my seed starting from now on. First, I took an online class from the Cooperative Extension in Ithaca and one from my local extension in Delaware County. I also know that Fruition Seeds is offering their seed starting class online for free as well. And today I'm taking a composting class through the extension in Delaware County. All this should lead to a better garden this year. And it'll be a big one at that! I think I've totally outdone myself. We're sourcing wood and dirt for the raised beds. I'd like to get some cattle panels for trellises for the climbing plants. I just love the way that looks! I'm trying to source it all for free or low-cost, because hello budget!

Anyway, let's walk through what I've learned. First, I think it goes without saying, source your veg, seeds, and plants as locally as possible. I'll be honest, I get really confused sometimes because I want heirloom seeds, but most of those seeds are packaged in the Midwest. This year I picked one catalog to order from (Seeds Savers Exchange), but this was before I took the classes and learned of seed companies in NY State. It's better to find seeds that are packaged nearest to you because those seeds are adapted more to your growing area.

It's also important to use the proper ingredients when starting seeds. Use a seed starting mix. Or make your own (I will be doing this in the future).
• 1, 3.8 cubic foot bale of peat moss
• 4 cubic feet of commercially prepared compost
• 2 cubic feet perlite
• 2 cubic feet vermiculite
• 2 cups of dolomite lime
• 3 cups of organic slow release fertilizer

You can also use Seed Starting Mix from Fruition Seeds (I'm sure there are other brands out there as well) and mix with the peat moss, compost, and perlite. Easy peasy, huh? I'm thinking this is the way to go for next time.

Some essential tips I learned:
1. Don't start all your seeds at once. DOH! Too late! Next time, next time for sure.
2. Start seeds at the right time. Oops. See #1
3. Soil blocks are the best. Well. That also costs a lot of money (around $70)
4. Remove air gaps. Tamp dirt down gently.
5. Heat mats changes everything! See #3 (I'm lucky to be brooding chicks right now. All my seeds spent time in the bathroom with the brooder so no heating pads were necessary).
6. Light=life. Use LED grow lights. Or if you don't have them (see #3) then you need to turn your plants everyday. I would probably do that regardless of using grow lights versus natural light.
7. Healthy seedlings are short, stout, and deep green. Short and stout means there's plenty of light. Deep green means there's plenty of light and nutrients.

We also discussed 5 common mistakes and how to avoid them (guess who pretty much made all 5 mistakes?)
1. Eggs cartons are not good for starting seeds. The don't hold enough dirt and dry out very quickly. Also, the curve at the bottom can damage roots and cause dampening off. Although there is a difference of opinion on this one between both seed starting classes I took.
2. You should sow 2-3 seeds in each block or cell. Then you cut out the other smaller plants. Use scissors to cut, do not pull them apart or pinch them off.
3. Bottom watering is the way to go. Top watering can cause dampening off. But you also don't want water sitting in the bottom of the tray when you bottom water. If you do top water, don't use a large-holed waterer. I started using a plastic cup and gently pouring water into each cell/cup/planter.
4. Acclimate your seedlings to the outdoors. Start about 7 days before transplanting and for one-two hours per day. Then gradually increase their exposure to outside light and fluctuating temps. If the seedling is a cool weather crop, it doesn't take as long to harden it off.
5. Everyone will make mistakes. This goes without saying who is in this category.

Other items of interest that I learned:
1. You do not need to add more nutrients to the soil until the plant has its first true leaves. If you use fertilizer too early it can cause dampening off, fungal growth, or the plant to grow too fast. There are organic fertilizers, such as Neptune's Harvest. I've never used fertilizer before so we'll see how it goes. And I've already 'potted up' some plants without using it. Potting up just refers to moving your seedlings to the next sized pot.
2. Add water to bucket of soil before placing in trays, soil blockers, cells, planters. Ooops. Did that for the last round of seeds. Will continue to do this.
3. Simulate wind-you can do this by running your hand over the tops of the seedlings. Or place a fan on them. I chose the fan method. Once the seedlings germinated and started poking their little heads up, I placed a fan (on low) to oscillate around them.
4. It's important to know when to sow seeds outside, what needs to be started inside, when to sow outside, when to start inside, and what can be succession planted. So I came up with a nifty chart for myself. I'm still learning so I'm not sure if I have all the info correct or not.
5. Label your seeds. For me, this means using craft sticks with the name and variety of seed along with date planted. Then add transplant date. And yes, I label each and every one of those seeds! Otherwise I'll forget!
6. Since I started my beans way too early, I'll be transplanting them to the hay wagon soon. I've got some plastic that I'll use as a hoop house, let the soil warm under it for a couple of days and then transplant those suckers outside!

I will also do the square foot method and use companion planting. I'm working on my garden plan now. I'll share everything with you when it's complete. Or near completion. The seed spreadsheet template is being added to the shop (for free) and I'll add the garden plan template once I've got it near completion. You will then be able to download it and use it for your own purposes. But please remember to double check my facts, notes, planting guide. I live in Zone 5b.

And finally, I think I'm going to experiment with composting with chickens. They're primarily confined to a chicken run due to our predator situation (hello hawks) and we'll be expanding the run this year. After attending the composting workshop this morning, I'm thinking I'll try to compost in the chicken area. I think the girls will like it and it will be less work for me!

Alright. That's enough for this time. Check out the template. I'll post the garden plan soon. Let me know if you have any questions or if I've totally overlooked something or gotten something wrong. It won't be the first time. HEHE.

'til next time
-k
xoxo