Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Update and Plot Sprouts

On Sunday of this last weekend, I planted some seeds indoors to start our plot.
I used a seed tray and mini-greenhouse that my friend/neighbor, Sean Hennessey, gave me.
I put the seed tray on top of the refrigerator, in an attempt to keep the soil warm enough for germination.

Well, before I even had the chance to post the fact that I planted the seeds, I got some new sprouts!!!  It seems like all of the cold-weather sprouts are popping up.  
So far, we have kale, spinach, and brussel sprouts, sprouting!!!



Here is the seed tray, as I prepared it on Sunday.  I used a combination of the Jiffy seedling soil and the  original starting mix that we bought.  I am a little worried, because when we watered the seeded soil, the soil was churned up quite a bit.

The seedling tray also came with a cover, to preserve heat and moisture.  Sean was also nice enough to provide us with a  tray for our soil seedling tray.


Two brussel sprout, sprouts!!!!!

SPINACH!


Most exciting of all, we finally have pepper sprouts; although we only have two,.

UPDATE!  UPDATE!  UPDATE!

Our tomato plants continue to grow.  I think I will put these into our garden plot as soon as it stops frosting.



Our repotted basil and tomato plants seem to be doing well.  However, I am concerned that some of the stems of our baby plants are too long. 



Our cucumbers are doing great!  The soil in this pot still drains too quickly.











2 comments:

  1. Since you are begging for comments, I will try to give you a few relating to my experiences. I'm definitely not an expert, but I have learned a lot from trial and error. Mostly error. :)
    Regarding the baby sprout stems being too long--I HATE it when that happens! It freaks me out. One thing you may want to do is thin the sprouts a bit less until they are a little sturdier. If they dry out AT ALL, they will die really easily. And I always break the stems while watering. I always thin them a bit so they aren't right next to each other but I don't thin them all the way until they are bigger. You don't really need to. And then you don't feel as bad if one dies....
    I'm not sure what you're watering with, but make sure you get a watering can with a REALLY big head that just gives the seedlings a very gentle watering. This will also help when you are trying to germinate seeds so the sprouting mix doesn't get so churned up.
    Also, you probably know this already, but be SUPER careful about the moisture levels of the seeds while you are trying to germinate them until they get sturdier. If seeds start to germinate and dry out, they won't continue growing. They need to be kept evenly moist all the time.
    Yay for plants.

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    Replies
    1. Yes! Excellent!
      I like the idea of waiting to thin out the seedlings.
      Right now, my watering device is a beverage pitcher, so I think I am going to move up to an actual waterer.
      Thank you, Angelie, for the good advice.

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