Baby Toms Up!

Those who know me well, know that one of 

my ultimate gardening pleasures is seeing seeds germinate.

 

I never get tired of seeing the tiny threads of green raise their heads from the soil in search of light.  And it's so amazing to me to know that these tiny tomato babies will be standing as tall as myself in a few months, bearing fresh, juicy gems from my summer garden!

 

I've cut waaaayyyy back on the number of varieties I'm starting indoors this year.  I've got too many other irons in the fire to take care of more than I really need.  So my tomatoes this year, will of course be, my favorites: Green Zebra, Kellogg's Breakfast, and a cherry tomato I purchased at a plant sale - saved seed because we love this but don't have a clue what variety it is.  Oh, and one newbie - German Red Strawberry, from seed my sister saved and shared.

 

I hope to sow a few sweet peppers this week and that's it for my indoor seed starting this year.  Just can't give it up completely though - seeing these babies pop out of the soil is just too good a reminder of all the miracles that take place

around us every single day.

Happy gardening!

Sometimes it's just fate

Yes, sometimes fate is the only explanation. Why else would it be that I found the most wonderful of all yard sale finds this very weekend? A self-contained seed-starting setup complete with room on each of the 3 shelves for 2 seed trays, plus it has 2 fluorescent lights above each shelf. This thing is made of sturdy fiberglass, has rollers on the bottom making it easy to move around, and has just one electric cord connected to 3 switches that operate the lights. The purchase included 4 black plastic seed flats, the clear plastic covers for those plus 3-4 more, 2 sturdy metal doo-hickeys with holes to set flower pots in, and maybe best of all, 4 sturdy wooden trays that were handmade to put the plastic flats in so they were well supported when moving them around. And all for only $20....life is good! Some might argue that this bit of good luck was a little late since I've done nearly all my seed-starting already this year, but considering the challenges I was facing, I'm inclined to think it was perfect timing. The bigger tomatoes have outgrown the setup I had, so I was trying to figure out how to deal with them for the next 3-4 weeks, until I can get them transplanted into the outdoor garden. I was on my way to buy 1 or 2 more fluorescent lights at Wally world so I could create a new space of some sort (I didn't have any solid ideas on that part yet) for the taller plants. I spent all afternoon moving seedlings, taking down the old setup, and getting the new setup in place and loaded with the seedlings. Then I sat down to try to look up these plant carts on ebay and elsewhere. The only things I found that seem comparable cost over $300....and don't look to be as sturdy....wow!

Pepper seeds are in the dirt

Finally – Pepper seed planting time! I have been looking forward to this day since New Year’s, planning it for the last month, and preparing for it all week.

I tried homemade newspaper pots last year, but wasn't too thrilled with them. So this year I found some vintage cups to plant in – mostly old wax coated paper cups, with holes punched in the bottom and sides for drainage and air flow. I filled them with pre-dampened Miracle-Gro potting soil, then placed them in water-tight flats. I plan to water by pouring into the flats, so it soaks up into the cups from the bottom. Until the seeds germinate I've got them covered in plastic wrap. Then as they germinate I'll move the cups to other flats with overhead lighting.

For markers I cut off several of the plastic blades from a broken vinyl mini-blind and trimmed them into 3-5 inch lengths with a pointed end to slide into the potting mix. I marked the variety and date planted on them with a black felt tip pen.

To prepare the pepper seeds, I made up some of Jerry Baker’s seed starting tonic (weak tea, Epsom salts and baby shampoo). I used little plastic bottles from baby fruit juices that my daughter saved for me – cleaned thoroughly, poured in a couple tablespoons of the tonic, added the seeds and marked the bottle with a sticky note to identify the variety. These soaked overnight outdoors since the temps were between 35-50, but could be put in fridge for up to 24 hours.

To give the pepper seeds the warmth needed to germinate, I put one flat on an old waterbed heating pad that has a thermostat controller. The other flat sits one shelf above a food dehydrator I put on the bottom shelf to provide some heat. All of this is located on a free-standing wooden shelving unit I bought for $5 at a yard sale last summer. I placed it in front of a west-facing window, and placed heavy-duty foil on the shelves to help reflect light - all in preparation for when the new seedlings will need lots of light. I will also attach fluorescent under-cabinet style lights to the bottom-sides of the wooden shelves with chains so they can be lowered/raised to the correct distance from the baby plants. I have a timer, so I'll use that too for turning on and off the lights instead of relying on my memory!

While the blustery winds blew and drizzling rain spat, I stayed dry, warm and ever-so happy, planting and dreaming of sunny garden days ahead. :)