Beyond Seed Starting-Seed Timing.

Linna ‘The Locavore’ Ferguson www.foodscaper.com

vafoodscaper@gmail.comTwitter: @123FoodGarden

What kind of garden personality are you?

Like comedy, vegetable gardening is all about timing….

Why start indoors?

1. Gain 4-6 weeks

2. Get new varieties

3. Cheaper

http://urbangardensolutions.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/starting-vegetable-seeds-indoors/

Disclaimer: Timing is not an exact science

Decision 1: What to grow.

“Just because you can grow it doesn’t mean you should!”

http://www.pachd.com/free-images/food-images/radish-01.jpg

Decision 2: Start indoors or direct seed

http://cf.ltkcdn.net/garden/images/std/132114-425x282-seedplanting.jpg

Plants or Transplants- ChartTable from: Dick Raymond’s Gardening Year

Decision 3: Plan http://bioarray.us/Skippy%27s%20planting%20calendar.html

Use the information at your fingertips

www.seedsofchange.com

Dates of Note

• Two months prior to Frost Free Date You can start planting

• In NOVA: St Patrick's Day- Plant Peas

• In NOVA: St. Patrick’s Day- Start some other early spring goodies: carrots, spinach, beets, and some lettuces

• Mother's Day: This is a key date for our area - basically, the last day of frost has occurred and it's time to move our peppers and tomatoes and heat loving plants into our garden. Sow your Cilantro, parsley now!

• July 4th- Plant potatoes and squash (avoid the bugs!)

How many can relate? Another variable in the topic of timing!

http://greensideupveg.blogspot.com/2010/10/spinach-feta-puff-triangles-little-bit.html

Understanding the role of Plant Clocks

http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-content/uploads/soilclock1.jpg

Long Day Plants

Examples include: : (not comprehensive)

Artichoke BeetCarrot ChervilChickpea CilantroDill TurnipFennel LentilLettuce Mustard GreensNapa Cabbage PeaRadish Spinach

Long-day plants flower and bear fruit during the months wherein the nights are short and the days are long.

Short Day Plants (i.e. long night)

Examples include: (not comprehensive)

Purslane CowpeaCucumber * OkraSoybean Pigeon PeaSweet potato Black CurrantWinged Bean Lamb’s QuarterBlack eye peas Common Bean *Hops Lima BeanSunflower Yardlong Bean

* Some cultivars

Short-day plants flower and bear fruit during the months where the nights are long and the days are short.

Day Neutral Plants

Examples include: (not comprehensive)

Apple Brussels SproutsCabbage CantaloupeCauliflower CornKale KohlrabiParsnip PeachPear RhubarbStrawberry TatsoiTomato Wine Grape

Day-neutral plants flower and bear fruit all year round.

What this ‘P’ word means to us home gardeners…..

Avoid the summer solstice entirely for fast maturing long day crops like turnips,

radishes, beets, and mustards.

Plant them midsummer as fall crops.

So now you

have them

growing… now

WHAT?!!

http://tinyfarmblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/win07_lettuce_seedlings.jpg

Indicators that you can plant cool crops outside

Cool weather veggies (spring and fall)Carrots Collard GreensOnions (spring only) ArugulaLeeks Shallots (fall planting only)Peas TurnipsSpinach CauliflowerBroccoli RadishChard KaleBok Choy Mustard GreensCilantro ParsleyGarlic (in fall only) Potatoes (spring planting only)

Veggies you can plant PRIOR to last frost & in fall

Warm weather veggies Tomatoes CucumbersEggplant PeppersSquash BasilBeans (Pole & Bush) WatermelonCantaloupe Sweet PotatoesCorn Summer SquashZucchini Pumpkin

Veggies you can plant after threat of frost is passed

Be a plant gambler?!

So now you

have them

growing… the

HOW

One of the most important steps- Hardening off.

Hardening off process …

1.Set plants outside in full or partial sun for 2-3 hours the first day, then bring in.

2.Next day, put them out 3-4 hours, then set in shade for a few hours.

3.After 3-4 days of gradual increasing exposure to sun, leave them out all day long.

4.After 2 weeks, ok to leave them outside all night (if it doesn’t freeze!

The art of ‘transplanting’ – Rules of Thumb

http://www.vasadp.org/blenheim-farm-0409/

The art of ‘transplanting’ – No Shock Technique

http://www.organicgardeninfo.com/images/transplanting.jpg

Just a cool picture!

http://www.vasadp.org/blenheim-farm-0409/

Preparing for the unknown weather…. Or gambling

From the experts• Sow 2 weeks before the

recommendations on the seed packet,

• Patiently wait until the seedlings have 2 sets of true leaves (not cotyledons), before transplanting. I get stronger plants, and way fewer fatalities.

• All my seeds are started on heat mats set at 75 – 80 degrees, speeding up germination, then moved to the sunny side of the greenhouse.

• Oh, I also cover all seeds with sand (play sand is great), and put a low blowing fan above the flats to increase air circulation. This eliminates damping off.

From the experts- Susan Planck• Never allow seedlings to be stretching for light.

Snap peas can take the cold. So can spinach and garlic.

• We cover all plantings, all season of squash and cukes with row cover, removing row cover for good, only when plants begin to blossom.

• We cover all planting of lettuce all season, removing to pick and then recovering.

• We cover the first planting of tomatoes until plants need stringing.

• We cover eggplant until end of June , uncovering from time to time to pickoff potato beetles.

• We uncover all covered crops weekly to use our food grade foliar water based fertilizer.

• I also used a biodynamic calendar during the last ten years or so for seeding dates. I would use the schedule I sent you, and pick the fruit, root, flower or leaf day closest to the date I wanted.

This is who I am, this is what I do.