As the days are slowly but surely getting longer, they are also getting busier here at HA. I seem to be smack dab in the middle of full-blown seed starting mode! I’ve got one 200-cell plug flat full of seedlings that I started last week (lettuce, kohlrabi, arugula, chard, beet greens), and I started another one yesterday with cabbage, broccoli, radicchio and Asian greens.
plug flat with seedlings
I’ve got one flat of scallion seedlings started back on New Years Day, and some more onion seedlings that are ready to be transplanted. And I have 3 flats of salad greens that I am planting as needed to replace the greens as they are harvested in the greenhouse. I like to think of those seedlings as Junior Salads!
Deep Purple and White Spear scallion seedlings
I’ve plugged in the heating mat and using it to give some bottom heat for petunia seeds. In a few weeks the mat will be used for the tomato, eggplant and pepper seedlings. I’ll be starting those seeds beginning the first week of March. After that it will be time to start herbs, and flowers.
salad seedlings ready to plant
And I’m also in full-blown planning mode here as well. Today my wife and I have a meeting with the Warrick County Master Gardeners at a large local church. The church and the MG’s are planning a food pantry garden, much like we did with our church garden last year, and they wanted us to share our experiences and give them some tips. I also need to do some planning for our own church garden. And we need to schedule a meeting with the folks for the new Impact Garden project. I think our own garden is pretty well planned, though I need to update my plot charts.
In my spare time, I’m taking a Purdue class on organic vegetable growing, part of my continuing eduction as a Master Gardener. It’s a good thing I like gardening, because it sounds to me like 2011 is already shaping up to be another busy year!
Your seedlings all look very happy! In your ‘spare time’ you’re taking a class? I’m honestly surprised you have any spare time! 😀 Next time, I’m starting my scallions in trays. I tried direct sowing them this year, and although they germinated, and were growing great…something came along and ate them when they were about 2 inches tall.
The seedlings look so nice. And your lettuce is huge already. I hope it is planting season for you soon.
Seed starting is such an exciting time of year. Your seedlings look quite healthy (and delicious already!)
Your seedlings are looking very nice, it’s time for me to start thinging about getting a few going myself. It sounds like you are going to have a very busy year, but how nice to be busy with such worthy things that you also enjoy participating in.:)
Where will you be transplanting your lettuce? We still have 3 feet of snow on the ground and our hoop house buried!
Thomas, lately we’ve been harvesting most our lettuce from inside the greenhouse. I’m waiting for the lettuce in the cold frames to get a bit bigger before we harvest any more from there. The plants are looking good though. I need to do an update on them soon. The lettuce seedlings have been inside under the grow light, except for a few days when temps got up and they went out in the greenhouse.
We have missed the big snows here, and our snow cover is gone. It’s supposed to get up in the 50s next week, and I am hoping to plant some scallions and lettuce outside.
Also, is the lettuce below from inside your green house or from your fabric row covered cold frames?
I think next year, I’ll try lights. We live in California, but I have a hard time putting things directly into the ground, as we have some mighty fierce rabbits. They’d kick Bug’s butt. Everything gets leveled until it gets to about a foot tall, then they seem to leave it alone. Needless to say, seedlings never make it. I’m just starting my first seed tray with some perrenials. Any advice?
Get a trap for the rabbits! I relocate ours to a retirement village far, far away from our place.