getting started 09

So we've already learned a few lessons with our garden ambitions this year. Some of them I knew in theory, but a few were learned through default:

1. Start tomatoes, herbs, and melons (in peat pellets or similar) in March. We're lucky to have a sunroom (non-insulated, though) that heats up quite a bit on sunny days, and it's been great for our seedlings. Still though, I wish I would've started the tomatoes under a lamp in March. As it is we have very healthy, hardy seedlings that have their first four leaves (we started them late-April), but it would've been nicer to have decent-sized little plants by now. Same with the herbs, especially since they grow alright indoors (or in the sunroom) and can be grown well in containers.

2. Plants like squash, zucchini, pumpkin, corn, sunflowers, peas and beans could've definitely waited until early May for peat pellet starting. They're so big now and we can't plant them for another week at least. Also they aren't quite tough enough to stay in the non-insulated sunroom over night (peas likely could except that we've planted them with beans), so we've been hauling them in and out for weeks. Hopefully at the very least we'll be happy to have bigger plants earlier, but in retrospect I would've just started them later.

3. Peat pellets are better off with the lid slightly popped from the get-go. We followed the initial watering instructions, but ended up having to do serious battle with mold. Happily, with lots of airing out and chamomile tea treatments we saved all but one or two of the plants.

4. Babying plants makes for babyish plants. I was very protective of our seedling as they were coming up, trying not to disturb or shock them in any way. On the first few really warm sunny days, I was anxious about leaving them out all on their lonesomes to "harden off", but they've become so much healthier because of it. Our sunflowers were leggy and weak until we put them outside, now they've perked back up and have stronger stems.

5. A bit of cold actually does some plants really good. Obviously not tomatoes or melons, but I'm finding that, with most of our plants, if we water with warm water, give them plenty of sun, and then let them sit out as the day gets colder, they become stronger and healthier. I know that this is essentially "hardening off", but I always thought that cold was bad for them.

6. Veggie plants need LOTS of light to be happy. Especially tomatoes and squash. If we didn't have a sunroom, we would've definitely had to get a lamp. 8 hours of good light seems essential, and indoor windows just don't seem to provide enough light.

7. Thinning out is essential! I find pinching off the weaker plants very sad, but watching the bigger ones thrive afterwards makes a clear case for thinning. Still, I sooo wish that every little seedling could have a chance! Poor li'l guys...

So those are my little lessons thus far. Again, we're pretty limited this year since we're still renting and can't dig up the yard much (I've dug a couple patches along sunny edges anyway, the grass was thin and the patches are hardly noticeable. In the fall I'll just pull the ground plants and put down grass seed. It will actually improve the yard quite a bit). We'll be planting our tomatoes, herbs, squash, pumpkin, strawberries, peas and beans in containers this year, with corn, sunflowers, cucumbers, zucchini, lettuce and radishes in the small plots.