March 16, 2017

seed viability

I’ve been looking through my seed viability records. I’ve only kept records 2 years and we’re not very far into this year yet, but this is what I have for how long my seeds last. Arugula 5+ years (3 years) Beets 3-4 years (4 years) Cabbage 6 years (4 years) Endive 3-4 years (5 years) Leeks 3+ years (1 year)Onions 2 years (1 year) I put the viability that High Mowing Seeds gets in (). I guess my numbers are pretty similar. They keep their seed under…

March 6, 2017

testing old seed

I like to use old seed as long as I can. My last two plantings, I’ve seeded single pots of my old seed to see if it’s still viable. I’m labeling and keeping track of it. I have Seed from 2009 to 2017. The 2009 seed is 8 years old! No doubt dead. I think this will give me a sense over time of how long I am able to save different types of seed. It’s also a plain old test of the old seed. If it doesn’t germinate, I…

February 15, 2017

how do you store your seeds?

How do you store your vegetable seeds packets? The leftover seeds from one garden year that you want to use in future gardens. Or if you don’t save any, why not? I’ve been keeping mine in a big plastic box at room temperature, 65-70F (18-21C), and as dry as I can by adding silica gel packets and keeping the top on. After some reading, I see that the optimum humidity for most vegetable seeds is 20-25%. For legumes it’s 44-50%. For temperature, a 10-degree reduction can double the life of…

February 13, 2017

organizing seed packets

I’m so excited – all the seeds I ordered this year have arrived! Yeah! Almost as fun as planting them is putting them away in my seed organizer. To store my seeds, I have a plastic box with a lid that holds standard-sized, heavy, 1-inch expanding envelopes. I have 20 of these envelopes. Each I’ve labelled with a type of vegetable. I have Bush Beans, Pole Beans, Roots (carrots, beets, etc), Flowers, Tomatoes, etc. Each seed packet goes into the appropriate folder. I love the way this set-up works.…

May 15, 2016

sprouted potatoes

After 3 weeks of sprouting on my window sill, this is how my potatoes look. No, I did not sit and watch them the whole time. 😉 Tomorrow, I have two potato planting events scheduled. I’ll help the kids at the Wheelock School in Medfield MA plant their potatoes and then I’ll go to my community garden plot and plant my own potatoes. It’s potato planting time!!

April 14, 2016

seed potatoes arrived today

My seed potatoes from Moose tubers arrived today. My plan: let them sprout a couple weeks, while I amend their beds, then plant them. I have the tubers on my kitchen windowsill so I can watch them sprouting. To amend the beds, I want to add a good 2 inches of compost and dig it in. No scimping this year! I want my spuds in happy soil.

April 7, 2016

asparagus ordered

I finally remembered to order my asparagus crowns. 25 Jersey Supreme from Johnny’s. They’ll be delivered April 25. I’m planting a new bed in my backyard garden.

March 9, 2016

our seed swap was wonderful!

We had a really nice crowd of gardeners that came to our Seed Swap last Sunday. I loved the event. Thanks to everyone who came by. We had lots of seed changing hands. And everyone had fun. Victoria put together a super seed planting demo. I couldn’t even get a photo of it with the people always crowded around her table. Thanks Victoria, and everyone else. I think this will be a fun event to expand on and do annually. I’ll book mark here Mr Brown Thumb’s very helpful article…

March 5, 2016

seed swap tomorrow

Remember to come by our Seed Swap tomorrow at the Belmont MA Library, Assembly Room, if you’re in the area. It’s 3:00 to 4:30 pm, sponsored by our community garden, the Belmont Victory Gardens. We hope to have a lot of seeds to share and gardeners to meet. We have a seed planting demo and some planting info. Open to everyone. Bring fresh seeds to share if you can.

February 8, 2016

seed swap announcement

Seed Swap Hosted by the Belmont Victory Gardens At the Town of Belmont MA Public Library on Sunday, March 6, 2016, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM Get ready for spring planting! Seed swap is open to all gardeners – whether you are a member of a community garden, grow vegetables or flowers in your yard, or would like to try sowing seeds for the first time. Bring fresh vegetable or flower seeds to share and go home with new varieties to try. Heirlooms are great but purchased hybrid seeds are…

weeks and counting until my last spring frost