more seedlings
Cabbage, radicchio and broccoli seedling have popped up. No sign of eggplant or celeriac sprouts.
a whole bunch of little onion seedlings
I’ve got the seed tray on the kitchen windowsill above the sink so I can watch them grow, just for a day or two. Seems like pretty good germination, except for the shallots and the White Wing. They must be old seed. I’ll have to throw those packets out. (I’ll get them under lights soon, as the sun isn’t very strong here yet.)
my first seedling!!!
It’s a little onion sprout. Variety: Red Wing. Actually there are two of them. I feel like a new parent.
sowing
Tonight I planted broccoli, cabbage, eggplant and radicchio. Varieties are here. I’m experimenting with different seed cell sizes. I put the eggplants in larger cells (I sowed 2 seeds per cell and will thin to 1 per cell) as they need to grow ’til the soil warms and will be pretty large before planting out. The cabbage goes out sooner (the middle of April, but only if I can get at the garden through the snow!), so I put them in smaller cells. In the past, I’ve planted 4 or…
winter sowing
I collected eight plastic bottle at our Town recycling center. I cut them open then added potting soil and planted flower seeds. After taping the bottles, I dug out a spot for them in a south facing area of my yard and then buried the bottles. This method is good for all sorts of cold hardy seeds, especially flower seeds that often need a chilling period. The bottle makes a nice little greenhouse and the hole at the top is perfect for letting in just the right amount of moisture.…
first seed sowing of 2015
It’s my day of planting seeds!! I’m a few days late from my schedule – the winter seems like it might never end, so that’s probably OK. I planted celeriac, onions, shallots and leeks. Varieties are listed here: 2015 planting list. I also set up eight bottles of flower seeds using the winter planting method. I’ll post photos and details tomorrow.
2015 planting list
This is a mostly filled in list. But in mid-summer, I forgot to write down a lot of seeds that I direct sowed in the garden. Things like the lettuce, bean and carrot succession planting dates. It gets so busy then… Winter sowing Feb 21 – in plastic milk bottles outside in the snow Save the Bees Mix, Botanical Interests Bring Home the Butterflies Mix, Botanical Interests Spring planting Feb 21 – Indoors under lights Celeriac, Brilliant Onion, Pontiac Onion, Ailsa Craig Onion, White Wing Onion, Red Wing Shallot, Prisma…
new seed trays to try out
Here are the new seed cells I’m going to try this year. I’m still deciding what to plant in which. ‘Til now, I’ve only used the bottom right trays, which have 48 cells per 10-20 tray. The new trays I’ll try have 24, 128 and 200 cells per 10-20 tray. I got my seedlings shelves out and stacked the trays on them. They’re ready and waiting. I’ll look for some soil mix. I think I have some out in the shed leftover from last year. I’m working on setting up…
little winter rye sprouts
I planted my winter rye seed really late (Nov 10) so I’m really happy to see it sprout.
fall seedlings
Weather permitting, these little seedlings will all grow to full size and before cold weather and low light prevents their growth. I’m hoping to also have extra to cover and harvest during the winter. The seedlings include all sorts of varieties of: lettuce, arugula, escarole, broccoli, bok choi, mustards, and Asian greens.
This is a journal of my vegetable gardens. Skippy thinks the garden is his, even though I do all the work. We're located near Boston, in USDA zone 6. I have bees, chickens, fruit trees and berry bushes, too. I use all sustainable organic methods and strive to grow all of my family's vegetables myself. -Kathy
weeks and counting until my last spring frost
My garden this week
Skippy’s vegetable of the month – Egyptian walking onions!
