If you're in zone 5, this post relates to you!
It's officially Spring, and if you have a green thumb, like myself, you're absolutely itching to start priming and preparing your garden for the Summer season to come, and even if you aren't, and this is your first year at giving a garden a go, then this information should be really helpful!
Here is a list of the things you should start working on within the next few weeks!
1) Start your crops that love the warmth, such as: tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers, inside in seed starting cups. You can use egg cartons, store-bought biodegradable seed pots, or styrofoam cups. Use a light and nutrient rich soil for your seed starter containers. Some put grow lights on seedling starts, I never have and they've always been just fine! But you bet when the sun peaks it's head from the clouds, I put my seed starts outside for a bit.
Note: Make sure you keep your seed starts fairly moist. They need the moisture to properly germinate.
Thus far I've started: all types of beans, peas, tomatoes, strawberries, cabbage, kohlrabi, eggplant, peppers, broccoli, all herbs, and corn. As some of these are cold weather crops, they love the spring water and cooler temperatures, so they can be prematurely started.
2) You can start annual flowers such as marigolds and zinnias, inside if you'd rather start them by seed and save a lot, rather than buy a pack that's already been started for you, at almost triple the price. Trust me, it's totally worth growing your veggies and flowers from seed! It's the best waking up to new sprouts or extended heights of your itty bitty plants!
3) Tie up any ornamental grasses and cut them with a sharp knife, a ways back, this stimulates growth!
4) After you've worked your soil, start planting the following, straight into your garden: potatoes, radishes, carrots, lettuce, and peas.
Note: Make sure you've planned out your garden before you randomly plant these first vegetables. The placement of plants are very important to the well being of your garden. For example, dill should never be placed next to corn or tomatoes, actually most vegetable plants because they attract predator wasps and several crawlers that will destroy and infect your garden. Another example, a great way to save room in your vege garden is to plant a row of corn and in between each plant, plant squash which will take up the floor space, and then beans which will crawl up trellis's which should be placed behind corn. This fits 3 veggies into 1 row(known as the Three Sisters Garden, a technique used by the Native Americans).
5) Towards the end of the month, you can usually start transplanting big enough seeds starts of squash beans and tomatoes, out into your garden. Make sure you put covers over them at night, in case the temperature drops. Also, make sure to fill the hole with warm water before you transfer your plant from the seed start pot, to the ground.
Well, that's about it! Feel free to message me or comment with more questions!
Happy gardening, friends!
You mentioned starting seeds in an egg carton. I have done this before and it works well. I did it again this year but then I realized that the paper in the egg cartons wicks water away from the soil, making it so you have to water your plants more frequently because they do not retain much moisture. I switched to using discarded cups, such as yogurt cups, etc. and put a plastic lid-like cover over the top. I have had basil starts for a few weeks now and have only had to water them twice because the plastic and the lid (which I poke holes in) creates the perfect greenhouse-like microenvironment for the seedlings. Try it out!
ReplyDeleteI will mostly certainly do that! Thus far I've used the egg cartons and store bought seed starting cups that you can plant into the ground, and I'd have to say the cups are my favorite of the two! But your idea is great for reusing and reducing waste!
ReplyDeleteThis is Jordin from Java by the way. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, hey Jordin! Thanks for the advice!
ReplyDelete