Starting your own plants to get a head start

As summer approaches and winter ends, many of us are thinking about getting our hands in the dirt and planting some flowers or vegetables or such. You can virtually plant seeds in some type of medium, and, with a little water, they will grow. If the new plant gets enough sunshine, it will thrive. But there are some helps to get you from seed to planting your new plants.

The first thing you will have to decide is what you want to grow in your garden. This can be things like tomatoes or peppers or eggplant or marigolds or even rhubarb. Once you have the seeds, you will need some type of starting medium on which you will plant your seeds.

Some use plain old dirt. You can purchase a seed- starting medium from all the big chain stores or garden centers. Some use potting soil. I believe the smaller the seed the finer the starting medium needs to be. For seeds like kohlrabi or cherry tomatoes I use starting medium. For things like tomatoes or peppers, I mix one part starting medium to two or three parts potting soil. This seems to work really well for me.

You can use almost any container to plant your seeds in. I have seem people use egg cartons or paper cups or even milk cartons. I like to use 1020 plastic trays, which are about 10x20 inches. Then I buy plastic inserts, which will have from 18 individual cells on up to some with 72 cells. I use the bigger cell inserts for things like zucchini or cucumbers, while I use the smaller cells for tomatoes or dill or romaine lettuce. For peppers I use a 4-cell insert. I order most of mine from Greenhouse Megastore. You can purchase them locally as well.

Tomatoes are a little different. I initially plant all my tomatoes in 72-cell inserts. Once your tomato has come up and forms three or four leaves, I transplant all my tomatoes into larger cell flats. I either use a 1020 flat filled with an 18-cell tray, or I transplant my tomatoes in 3-inch individual pots. Once you have transplanted the little tomatoes, water them using 8-56-9 fertilizer in water.

Once you have your container filled with starting soil, and you have placed your seeds on the soil, I like to spray the seed with just plain water. (No fertilizer.)

After I've sprayed the seeds with water, I cover them with starting soil. You want to water the starting soil until it's damp but not water logged. You can get the soil too wet. Now you will need to cover your container with some type of clear dome or cover to raise the humidity where your seeds are planted. I buy clear covers that fit the 1020 trays.

Once your seeds come up, you will need to get them in direct sunlight or under lights. I use four-foot double florescent light fixtures. I have the light bulbs within an inch of the little plants. As the plants grow I raise the bulbs, keeping them about an inch above the little plants. If the plants don't get enough light they will form spindly stems or will be "leggy." It is best to use new light bulbs every year.

Once the plant comes up, I then begin watering them using a fertilizer in my watering can. I use an 8-56-9 fertilizer. You can use this clear up until you have planted your plants in the garden. When you plant your new little plants in the garden, water them in with this 8-56-9 fertilizer mix. I'd only water them a couple times with this high middle -number fertilizer. From then on, go with a balanced fertilizer like 12-12-12 or even something like Miracle Grow.

One main key is knowing when to start your seeds. I started some of my tomatoes the middle of January to get them ready to plant the middle to end of March. I find that I can keep them under enough lights to keep them from getting leggy. I figure 9 weeks from planting the tomato seed until it's ready to plant in the garden. If you start your seed this weekend you will have six weeks until the middle of May, which is a good time to transplant tomatoes.

Cucumbers take two to three weeks from starting the seed until it needs to be planted. Zucchini is about the same at three weeks to a month. Peppers take longer. They take nine or 10 weeks. Eggplant take nine weeks or so. I wouldn't even try planting onion seed. It takes forever. Buy sets or onion plants.

I hope this will help you as you start your own plants. If you have questions send me an email.

Until next time.