Greenhouse Seedlings

It’s a question of economics and selection. You can start your own seeds indoors and get more plants in more varieties for less money. It’s extra work and they need to be cared for. Or you can pay for the convenience of seedlings. For those things with growing seasons that allow you to grow from seed in May you’ll harvest much later in the season than if you started the seeds early.

I usually mix it up. I start some things myself starting in Feb. and then buy seedlings to fill in the blanks. I also plant seeds after the last frost…or earlier for peas and the like. That gives me the longest possible time of harvest. I’ve started to harvest as early as late May and as late as Dec.

-- Bob, Carver MA USA, Zone 6b, Annual Rainfall 48" http://capecodbaychallenge.org

I’ve yet to get my seedlings to be much of anything..
I have a shelf unit that is covered in a plastic cover… I set it near my patio door to give it the best light.

the seeds sprout wonderfully (except my onions last year which did nothing … along with my carrots that did nothing after I put the seeds in the garden.. hmph)...

and then…...... they just sit there, never getting much bigger than their first smiling faces.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

This time of year (especially around solstice!), it’s all about dormancy for the plants. We’re trying an experiment this winter, which is to grow regular ol’ thyme in a small pot on the dining room table. We’ve got a big south-facing bay window there, and lots of good strong daylight, but the poor thyme is still sorry looking. It can barely stand up, and is pale and hardly even has a scent. My wife refuses to cook with it…says it’s not worthy of our kitchen. LOL…

It’s the reduction of the energy of the sunlight/daylight that translates to a weak plant. If’n ya want good strong plants, you’ll need to supplement with some grow lights that have good blue spectrum for solid vegetative growth.

I’ve started some items from seed toward the end of winter, but mostly because I’m so antsy to get my hands dirty after a long winter! Debbie, those seeds of yours get a decent start and then peter out because the initial energy for germination and primary leaf production is largely contained within the seed itself. It’s after that first push that the plant needs to kick in the photosynthesis in order to get real growth to start.

-- Living on the square...Metro Detroit

yah… I figured that… maybe this year I’ll invest in a grow lamp… maybe

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

You can totally get one on the cheap…but make sure to get the fluorescent fixtures. Incandescent are a waste of money, IMO. A small 18” fixture with a couple tubes shouldn’t be more than 20-30 bux.

-- Living on the square...Metro Detroit

will look into it.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

My grandparents have started tons from seeds. but they have a large cold frame and a greenhouse window. Until I get places to start I’m either starting seeds a bit late (End of May) or going with Seedlings – which is still cheaper than buying all my tomatoes at the supermarket. (cat’s foiled my attempt at garlic one year, but I managed to start more basil than I knew what to do with once)

Try this one Deb… by a bunch of scallions, trim off the bottom inch or so of the white part, and plant em leaving the cut a bit above ground level – they’ll regrow all summer, just cut off what you need. I wonder if that would work with leeks too?

-- southern NH. - smack dab in the middle of 5a and 5b - with lots of shade and full sun, in all the wrong places.

I’ve never planted leeks… hmmmm

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

of course in zone 4 we start everything either inside, or in the greenhouse as soon as we need.
Many things the long time minnesotians tell Us: (we’ve been here 12 years)
That won’t grow here!!
But they do, and do so very nicely..My wife like to grow cotton!
as far as leeks go, we raised a nice crop last year, they were started indoors along with the onions
we start everything from seed being heirloom gardeners, although in this day and age many heirloom plant varieties are popping up at local greenhouses.

we will be experimenting this feb.-march though with CFL lighting, along with the flourescents…then it all gets taken to the greenhouse to get it’s self ready for the garden.

-- Old Pharmer Phils Country Living Phorum - http://pharmerphil.proboards37.com

of course in zone 4 we start everything either inside, or in the greenhouse as soon as we need.
Many things the long time minnesotians tell Us: (we’ve been here 12 years)
That won’t grow here!!
But they do, and do so very nicely..My wife like to grow cotton!
as far as leeks go, we raised a nice crop last year, they were started indoors along with the onions
we start everything from seed being heirloom gardeners, although in this day and age many heirloom plant varieties are popping up at local greenhouses.

we will be experimenting this feb.-march though with CFL lighting, along with the flourescents…then it all gets taken to the greenhouse to get it’s self ready for the garden.
Old Pharmer Phil's Country Liviing Phorum

-- Old Pharmer Phils Country Living Phorum - http://pharmerphil.proboards37.com

OOPS, doubled….someone fix this for me please…obviously a victim of insufficient Caffiene

-- Old Pharmer Phils Country Living Phorum - http://pharmerphil.proboards37.com

All this talk of vegetable gardening has really peaked my interest. My husband and I tried to plant a vegetable garden one year (when we were very young and newly married) and it turned into more of a weed patch. We truly had no idea what we were doing back then. After that I never tried it again … but now that I am older and have more patience for such things; and definitely after reading all this wonderful advice, I really would like to try veggie gardening again.

Soooooo, what would you suggest that would be easy to plant for a novice vegetable gardener with VERY limited space?? Could I plant vegetables in large planters … maybe I could talk my LJ husband into building me a few long/narrow “troughs” to plant in for our back patio. Guidance is VERY WELCOME here!!! :-)

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b

little space: I saw in the Mother Earth magazine (decades ago) that potatoes can be planted in old tires.. you just keep stacking the tires and adding more dirt and more potatoes.

Cotton!!!??? Really?
I’ve never tried leeks before.

and what is “heirloom” ?

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Heirloom vegetables are seed with lineage dating back a minimum of 50 years.
Of course there is disagreement on this terminology, and it is not the same as open pollinated.
some of the varieties we raise, sell and give out have lineage well over 125 years old.
Yes, My wife raised cotton two years in a row, here in zone 4

-- Old Pharmer Phils Country Living Phorum - http://pharmerphil.proboards37.com

sorry, missed this post:
“Soooooo, what would you suggest that would be easy to plant for a novice vegetable gardener with VERY limited space?? Could I plant vegetables in large planters … maybe I could talk my LJ husband into building me a few long/narrow “troughs” to plant in for our back patio. Guidance is VERY WELCOME here!!! :-)”
A very rewading garden can be grown in a small space, melons, peas, beans, cucumbers, all can go vertical, the shade from these will support a cooler enviroment for mid season lettuce and other cool weather crops.
What space do you have available..
Oh, and Our belief is…
You can mow it, or till it…which would you prefer, vegetables or a lawn! LOL
You won’t see many entries made with a focus on design from us, we go for Maxiimum Food Production

-- Old Pharmer Phils Country Living Phorum - http://pharmerphil.proboards37.com

mow it or eat it—my goal is to have no grass in my backyard…. or maybe just a 2 foot square patch by my chair so I can put my bare feet in it ha.

Heirloom..ah, so not genetically altered. priceless.
And what did your wife do with the cotton when she picked it?

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

GrandmaT – seeds of change offers up some seed collections – Not sure if the specific type of carrot, tomatoe, etc they suggest are the easiest of their variety, or just offering up that Cukes, carrots, zukes, etc… are what they deem “easy to grow” ... they also have an edible container gardening pack, in addition to many others.

http://www.seedsofchange.com/garden_center/browse_category.asp?category_id=107

I know I’ve linked to this site a lot. I have no affiliations with it, I just like their organic-ness. (and their pasta Sauce is probably the best I’ve tasted) Unless I find local organic purveyors, they will be supplying my garden this year.

-- southern NH. - smack dab in the middle of 5a and 5b - with lots of shade and full sun, in all the wrong places.

Thanks Pharmerphil and Scott!!! ... I got pretty excited about planning for a veggie garden!! Although hubby reminded me that as much as I love my flowers, maintaining my front flower bed (since my accident) takes most of my strength these days. So after some discussion we are opting for him to build me a 15 ft. long x 2 ft. wide planter box that will be placed on our back patio. A raised bed of sorts ... very excited about the prospect of that. Got some research to do; starting at “Seeds of Change”. Soooooo, wish me luck. I cannot wait to start!!! :-)

P.S. Russel and I got a good laugh out of “mow it or till it”!!!!!

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b

Just read “Square Foot Gardening” ... sounds very similar to what we want to do; although as I said above on a much smaller scale. Lots of good info. Man, I love this site!!!

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b

15×2 sounds like a respectable start. my first garden (of my own) was 4×8 – loosely square foot in theory, but not practice… the 4’ was a little to wide to reach the middle without stepping on something. grew some zukes, no cukes, tons of tiny carrots, and I forget what else. Oh, I also put tomatoes in 1/2 whiskey barrels, those did just fine. (plenty for one tomato eater in the house).

I’d love to garden the whole yard, but that’s a tad ambitious for me (unless I can set it and forget it!)... Oh, not to mow!... but alas, my little one needs lots of room to run and play, for now at least… a couple fruit trees here, a few more beds there… i can slowly take over the yard, and maybe no one will notice ;)

-- southern NH. - smack dab in the middle of 5a and 5b - with lots of shade and full sun, in all the wrong places.

no one will notice.. I’m sure of it!! :)

I’ve always wanted to put my vegetables into my flowerbeds, ex: using strawberries as the border. Double duty; less veggie garden space needed.
And pots on the deck … it’s an idea but I’d never make it work. I’d forget to water them

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

might be worth my looking into timers, soaker hoses,... teaching my little one (and my wife) what is a weed and (more importabntly) what we are intending to keep.

-- southern NH. - smack dab in the middle of 5a and 5b - with lots of shade and full sun, in all the wrong places.

good idea.
Definitely want to bring your family into it and make it a family affair. Lots of fun watching a flower grow from seedling or a veggie plant develop and then eat it.
Great skills for your daughter: delayed gratification.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Happy New Year to One and All!!

Getting our little ones involved in gardening is a joy! I agree!!

Our grandchildren, from our oldest son, would make a bee line out to the tomato plants I planted last summer. Had to check if there were any RED ones that they could pick. Our granddaughter forgot (or chose to ignored – hee) that we only pick the red ones; so she came inside with a WHOLE basket of green tomatoes. Darn near picked every tomato off the vines that day!! So now, we have a routine … go and get the “tomato basket”; remember to pick “RED”, then slowly check every inch of those vines … and of course, eating of the prizes was duly encouraged.

(Tomato plants was as brave as I have gotten with veggies … and they pretty well.)

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b

I just invested in growlights and a shelving unit, to start my seeds in the basement early, and then move them outside

Here is what I purchased

[IMG]http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3321.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3322.jpg[/IMG]

Setup

[IMG]http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3325.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3326.jpg[/IMG]

You can see the sunshine flourescent I purchased ( 4 ft ). Basically am just going to be starting seeds and giving plants a boost

-- Hooked on Gardening.....Ontario zone 5b

that looks like serious business.

I went to Rona on the weekend to buy a grow light.. they don’t carry them any more?? bizarre.
Found a light at the new Lowes store in the area.. I just bought one..

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Which Lowes was that? I got my stuff from my local Lowes that opened a few weeks ago. They opened 3 stores that day: Hamilton, Brampton and Brantford.

Like I said, am new to all this, and I hope I get it to work.

-- Hooked on Gardening.....Ontario zone 5b

If you missed the links, here they are

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3321.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3322.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3323.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3325.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/ikennedy/IMG_3326.jpg

-- Hooked on Gardening.....Ontario zone 5b

the new Lowes in Brantford.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Just to let you know you can get all kinds of grow lights like reg bulbs or tubes at Home Hardware And Home Building Centers and if they don’t have them they can get them in less them a week, they are cheep two I paid less then $5

-- Leamington Ontario Canada Zone 7a

Would seem to me that it would work … I mean isn’t it like a large planter? I’ll be very curious to see how this “little experiment” of yours goes. What are you thinking of planting in the “ice chest”?

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b

I’m curious too…

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

The ones that are called “grow lights”,the ones that boast that they provide the same light as the sun are not nessessary.All you need is one warm and one cool flourescent tube,in each fixture.When I first started using lights I got fished into those “grow lights” too,until someone told me to not waste my money.The plain flourescents work every bit as well, and they are about$1.49 each.

-- Southwestern Ontario Canada Zone5b

I usually just put the seeds outside as early as I can. Growing inside (even with grow lights) has not worked for me. tried it a few times,
But we were just talking about building cold frames for early planting.
Any suggestions??

-- Eklectic, Follow my Bliss, South East Ontario 5a

I made a very cheap grow stand…I will post when I assemble it again for starting seed. I purchases a canning rack at CT for about $20 it has 6 adjustable shelves. I bought 5 flourescent lite fixtures with tubes included for about $3 each…velcroed them to the underside of each shelf and I can adjust the heights as the plants grow. The total unit cost $35 and stands about 5’ tall and can do ten 72 plug trays.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

Xploreorganics
Fourescent light fixtures for $3.oo? How big are these I have got the 4 foot fixtures for $15.oo but never cheaper.How long are yours,and where would you find them so reasonable?

-- Southwestern Ontario Canada Zone5b

hmm I keep swaying from “wait til spring” and “get an early start”.
I think I might start just a few seeds indoors and hope that I get an early crop and then the rest of the seeds directly in the garden.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Thy are about 2’ long…Lemme find the link…

Light fixture

Looks like they are gone up but last year they were regular 7.99 on sale for 60% off or something…check back as they do go on sale often.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

Instead of using an ice chest, you can use an aquarium.
Put soil in it, part way up.
you can use toilet paper/paper towel rolls to separate the kinds of seeds you are growing.
The rolls also act as wicks for the water.
Plant your seeds inside the rolls, and use whatever you like to label them. You can use parts of old blinds that you write the name of seeds, or buy plant markers.
Put the canopy on the aquarium, and turn on the light.
Works awesome!!

-- Lori, Tilbury,ON

What a GREAT idea … !!!!

-- "A perfect garden is just a garden to be in-perfection. Mornings to work on it and evenings to pause and look at it." Southeast Michigan, Zone 5a/5b