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Starting seeds indoors

The main benefit for starting seeds indoors is that in cooler climates it will extend the growing season. Some plants for example tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant require a longer growing season.
Small flower seeds also germinate and grow better if started indoors in perfect growing conditions rather than the hostile outdoor environment.
Generally, seeds should be started 6-8 weeks prior to planting. There are, of course, exceptions to the rule.

Here’s how to get started
-Start with fresh seeds to get the best germination rate.
-Containers: pots, clean plastic food containers with drainage holes, recyclable newspaper pots or egg cartons. If you are re-using an old container clean it with a 10% bleach solution to kill any microbes.
-Use sterile soil mix - pre-moisten the soil and place in container. Plant the seeds according to package directions.
-After planting, water in seeds just enough to keep them moist and cover the top with plastic to provide humidity until germination takes place.

Some seeds germinate best with bottom heat. Warm weather crops such as peppers and eggplant need 78-80 degrees for good germination which should take about 3 weeks. Germination time varies for different seeds. Set your container on top of a refrigerator, radiator or a heating pad. If using a heating pad, make sure you control the temperature so as not to “cook"your seeds.

Once the first leaves (cotyledons) appear, remove the plastic and move the container to a sunny window. If you cannot provide enough light add a grow light or fluorescent shop fixture for additional light (16-18 hrs a day). Not enough light can result in leggy and spindly plants.

-Transplant seedlings from a community flat to individual pots when they are about 2 inches tall . Bury them down to the first set of true leaves for stockier plants. Provide even moisture; (do not over water or let plants sit in water) and fertilize lightly with a seed starter or fish emulsion.

-Before you set your plants in the garden, they need to “harden off". When temperature reaches 60 degrees, start bringing your seedling outdoors for a few hours each day gradually increasing the time with each subsequent day. This will toughen up your plants and make planting into the garden an easier transition.

Garden tip: If you would like to sterilize your own potting soil mix, place soil in an oven proof container and cover with aluminum foil bake @180 degrees for 35-45 minutes. Be sure to open the windows as this will have a disagreeable odor.

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In growing a garden year after year, I find that I have accumulated many packages of Garden seeds. Going through the inventory, I realized that some seeds go back as far as 1996. Knowing that seeds don’t last forever, (well at least most seeds) I decided to check out the viability age for some garden seeds. If they’re too old the percentage of germination will be much lower, a waste of time and should be discarded. The chart below gives us the average viability age of seeds stored under “proper conditions” which means that seeds should be kept in a cool, dry, dark place with even temperature. You can store seeds in a small mason jar or air tight plastic bagswith a silica gel packet and seal. If you don’t have silica gel you can use dry powdered milk wrapped in a coffee filter. For long term storage seeds can also be stored in the refrigerator or freezer.

Bean: 3-4 years Beet: 6 Broccoli: up to 5
Cabbage: 4 Carrot: 3 Cauliflower: 4-5
Celery: 50% up to 8 Corn: 2-3 Popcorn: 50% up to 5-10
Cucumber: 5 Eggplant: 4 Gourds: 5
Lettuce: 6 Melons: 5 Onion: 1 Pea: 3 Pepper: 2 Pumpkin 6 Radish: 5 Spinach 3 Squash 6
Tomatoes 3-10 depending on variety Watermelon 6

If you are saving your own seeds, be sure your seeds are totally dry before storing and label each packet with a name, date and any other comment for next year. If you store seeds from F1 hybrids, unlike open pollinated seeds, they will not be true to the original plant .

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Deadheading your flowers

What is deadheading? Deadheading is removing dead or spent flowers off your plants. This keeps your flowerbed fresh looking and well manicured throughout the season. It is important to deadhead for several reasons. Not only does it improve the looks of your flowers bed, for one it prolongs blooming time and may even give you a second blooming. By pinching or cutting spent flowers, the plants redirects its energy back to more flower production instead of seed production. The more you discourage seed production the harder the plant will try produce flowers. Deadheading also keeps unwanted perennials from spreading all over your flower bed.

When you deadhead, it stimulates new growth and plants will be stronger, bushier and healthier. For best results cut plants back after they have bloomed for 6 weeks which by this time tend to get leggy with less flowers.

Depending on the type of plants, the general guidelines to deadheading (which may vary with some plants) is accomplished the following ways.

Single individual flowers such as bee balm, delphinium, cosmos, phlox, zinnias, Shasta daisies, salvia can be cut back to the strong side buds where they will make new flowers.

With tall individual flowers such as hollyhocks, foxglove, balloon flowers, gladiolus, faded florets should be pinched off along the stem. This will promote larger flowers as the new buds open. Once all the flowers are finished blooming cut the stem to the ground. Some may re-bloom later with smaller flowers.

For small bushy plants that produce lots of blooms such as alyssum, lobelia, dianthus, and thread leaf coreopsis, it is best to snip the drying/faded heads with scissors or shears when the blooming season is half over. This is much faster than trying the tedious task of clipping each flower. The plant may look a little scrawny but will recover in time for fall bloom.

As you admire your colorful flowerbed outside, don’t hesitate to pick a bouquet to bring inside to enjoy. It’s good for the plant and good for the soul.

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Weeding the garden

In maintaining a garden, everyone knows that the real work is weeding. Why is it that “weeds” seem to grow faster, proliferate easier and not require any fertilizer or additional pampering as opposed to the plants that we are trying to grow? It’s obvious that the vigorous intruder is content in its environment.

Weeds by definition are just misplaced and misunderstood; after all, “one man’s weed is another man’s wildflower” Nevertheless, it seems that as soon as we clear the noxious visitor and new crop comes to life almost overnight. I find certain weeds multiply faster than they dry.

As the season progresses, it is difficult to stay motivated when the ground gets hard and crusty and the relentless mosquitoes attack in swarms. When August roles around, I tend to loose interest in weeding and slowly surrender my garden to Mother Nature.

With age and an aching back creeping up on me, I try to find easier ways to weed. Although, I try not to use chemicals, I have tried a pre-emergent herbicide that is incorporated into the soil as this will thwart seed germination and contribute a little fertilizer to existing plants. For garden use you must follow manufacturer’s label instruction as to its application on listed plants and crops. It seems to help cut down on weed germination in the asparagus and flower beds but after all is said and done, the best way to control weeds is as Santa says “HO,HO, HO". Make sure your hoe is sharp and clean of caked up dirt. It will be more effective than a dull tool.

“May all your weeds be wildflowers”. –Unknown

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I have found that spraying my flower bed with deer repellant product will help protect the non-resistant plants. Some work better than others. The important thing to remember is to spray early in the season before the deer get a taste of their favorite food-otherwise they will return even with the spray on the plant. Continue to spray throughout the growing season timing the sprays as the label recommends.

Following are deer proof perennials-these are not their favorite but they will eat them if desperate.
Ajuga
Allium
Angelica (Angelica Archangelica)
Artemesia
Asclepias
Astillbe
Baby’s Breath(Gypsophyla)
Bellflower (Campanula)
Bergenia
Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)
Black cohosh, Black snakeroot
Bleeding Heart (Dicentra)
Boltonia (Boltonia asteroides)
Bugbane (Cimicifuga racemosa)
Bugleweed (Ajuga)
Buttercup (Ranunculus sp)
Candytuft (Iberis)
Catmint (Nepeta cataria)
Chrysanthemum(Dendranthema)
Columbine (Aquilegia Canadensis)
Coneflower (Echinacea)
Coreopsis
Daffodil (Narcissus)
Dead nettle (Lamium)
False indigo (Baptisia)
Fleece flower (Polygonum)
Foxglove (Digitalis)
Gay feather (Liatris)
Gloriosa daisy (Rudbeckia hirta)
Goatsbeard (Aruncus)
Heather (Calluna sp.)
Iris
Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)
Jacob’s ladder (Polemonium)
Knapweed Centurea sp.)
Lady’s mantle (Alchemilla)
Lamb’s ears (Stachys byzantina)
Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis)
L iliy of the valley (Convallaria)
Little bluestem(Schizachyrium)
Lungwort (Pulmonaria)
Maiden grass (Miscanthus
Oriental poppy (Papaver orientale)
Pachysandra
Peony (Paeonia)
Prickly pear (Opuntia)
Primrose (Primula)
Rhubarb (Rheum)
Russian sage (Perovskia)
Shasta Daisy (Chrysanthemum x superbum)
Soap weed (Yucca elata)
Stone crop (Sedum acre)
Turtlehead
Wild bergamot, bee balm (Monarda)
Yarrow (Achillea)
Yellow archangel (Lamiastrum)
Yucca
Veronica
Vinca

Buy Deer-Offr Concentrate

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One of the nemeses of a gardener is the unwanted visits of deer in your yard. They feed voraciously in the spring and one visit can devastate a lot of loving care and not to mention turn your flower bed into an expensive deer smorgasborg. I could hardly wait for my lilies to bloom and when blooming time arived so did my elusive friends. Bit by bit, they plucked off the long awaited flower buds and left me with the unrequited joy that I would never see any color in my flower beds. I maintain a love-hate relationship with these long legged creatures, I love to observe them and realize they also need to eat. I am willing to sacrifice other specimens in the yeard for their well-being but not my flowers!!!!

Suprisingly, there are a number of plants that do not appeal to deer (although when hungry the will eat almost anything). The following are not on their favorite plant menu.
Annuals
Ageratum
Begonia (Wax) not always
Blanket flower (Gailardia pulchella)
Borage (Borago)
Cleome (Cleome Hassierana)
Cosmos
Dahlia
Dianthus
Dusty Miller (Senecia Cineraria)
Foreget-Me-Not (Myosotis sylvatic)
Four-O’Clock (Mirabalis Jalapa)
Geranium (Pelargonium)
Heliotrope (Heliotropium)
Lobelia
Marigold (Tagetes)
Morning Glory (Ipomoea)
Nasturtium (Tropaeolum)
Pansy (Viola)
Petunia
Polka-Dot Plant (Hypoestes)
Salvia (Salvia farinacea)
Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus)
Sunflower (Helianthus)
Sweet alysum (Lobularia maritime)
Verbena (verbena X hybrida
Herbs Thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley, basil

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Each year I grow my own seedlings for my garden. I patiently wait for the time to arrive and promise myself that this year I will not plant as many varieties, just the right amount I need. Less plants less work. I cut down from nine varieties of tomatoes to six. I thought this should curtail the unwanted surplus this year. You know the surplus plants you grew that you just didn’t have the heart to throw out. The extra ones that make you shake your head and wonder ““did I plant all of these?"” After all, this miracle of life that comes about from one little seed that you put in the ground, would be sacrilegious to just dump into the compost pile. You casually start to ask your family, friends, acquaintances and co-workers, if they would like to grow some tomatoes this year and once you’ve asked every Tom, Dick and Harry, you begin to beg. PLEASE !!!! In the end, you still have one plant left. It looks perky and healthy and ready to go. In a desperate attempt, you squeeze it into an awkward spot in your flower bed and it produces twice as much fruit as the one in the garden. Your reward for a kind gesture.

Here is another scenario - the one where you aren’t quite sure whether all the seeds will germinate because the packet says 2001. So you plant all the seeds to make sure you get at least 50% germination. As it turns out, all the seeds were viable and instead of 25 plants you now have 50. Here we go again.

On the bright side; it’s great to start your own seedlings.

1. It gives you a large selection of different varieties that you may not find in garden centers.
2. There is a kind of satisfaction of growing something from seed to fruit/flower. They are gifts of the earth for man to enjoy.
3. There is also the undying appreciation from friends, family etc. who look forward to your free plants.

Hey, it’s the least you can do to promote gardening.

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Did you know that there are a number of flowers that you can eat?
Edible blossoms have been enjoyed as a culinary delight throughout history. They were used to enhance the flavor and texture of foods when spices were not readily available or too expensive to use. Today, there is a resurgence in the use of edible petals. A new trend in nouvelle cuisine includes them in teas, salads, entrees and desserts.

Here are some edible flowers that you can try: nasturtiums, roses, marigolds, viola, pansies, apple blossoms, calendulas, carnations, honeysuckle, tulip petals, tuberous begonia, lilacs, dianthus, hibiscus, violets, daylily, primrose, petunia including flowers of herbal plants such as rosemary, borage, basil, lavender and chives. Many are common flowers that you can grow in your garden. Each having a distinctive flavor and texture.

Before using any blossoms, there are some important factors to consider. Make sure that they have been organically grown or are pesticide-free. Do not eat the flowers you buy from the florist, garden center or supermarket, they may have chemicals on them. Specially labeled edible flowers are sold in the produce section at the grocery store. The alternative is to grow your own. For the best flavor, pick the flowers in the cool of the morning just when they are beginning to open. Remove the pistils and stamens, wash and dry on paper towel. Eat only the petals. Most important, know what you are eating. Not all flowers are edible - some are poisonous (azalea and oleander) and can make you sick. If in doubt - leave it out!

Chopped, wrapped, stuffed or tossed, flowers can add limitless creativity and interesting new flavors to your kitchen. Try them and see how incredible they really are!

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