For those of you in colder zones like mine, you’ve probably just recently planted your seeds. I just planted my first couple flats a few weekends ago, and I want to give a few tips on how to make your seed starting successful. First of all, I just want to tell you that I’m not one of those people who create their own specialized soil mixtures. I don’t have that much time or experience- yet. These tips are fast and easy to follow.

The Mixture:

You don’t want to use heavy soil to start seeds in. The tiny roots won’t be able to grow very well, if they’re trying to fight their way through really dense soil. I purchased a bag of organic potting soil, and a bag of perlite. I mixed it about half and half. The soil should crumble easily in your hands, not stick together.

The Temperature:

I always read the seed packets before planting, but I’ve found that the majority of seeds I’ve sown have preferred warm temperatures, usually between 65-75 degrees. If you keep your house much cooler than this, you may want to consider a heating mat to put your flats on. Otherwise, a bright window may do the trick.

The Lighting:

Again, checking the seed packets is important for this. I’ve actually had some seeds that need darkness to germinate, so remember to check out the light preferences. Otherwise, most seedlings prefer bright light. If you’re in an area where you get little bright light, grow lights are definitely a good choice! I haven’t had a space to use grow lights yet, but I may try using one later on this spring.

The Water:

I usually dampen the peat pots with a spray bottle of water before I fill them with dirt. This just prevents them from soaking up all the moisture from the dirt. Once I’ve planted all of the seeds, I give all of them a good misting with the spray bottle again.

Transplanting:

This part can be kind of tricky. Once your little seedlings become established, you need to get them ready for moving outside. It’s important to harden off your seedlings before leaving them out for good. Start bringing them outside when the weather is fairly mild for an hour or so per day. Over the course of about two weeks, gradually increase the amount of time they spend outside, including breezy or rainy days.

The day you actually transplant your seedlings outside should be slightly overcast, or lightly rainy. This will help ease the shock for your little plant.

Remember:

While these tips make seed starting sound so easy, I know sometimes there are seedlings that don’t seem to grow like they should. I’ve killed about the same amount of seedlings as I’ve been successful with. So don’t get discouraged if some of your seedlings die; it’s part of the learning experience!

I want to hear from you!

So, I want to hear from you. What is your seedling story? What seeds are you starting this year? I’d love to hear more about what everyone is doing this spring!

April showers bring May flowers!

Photo credit: sa_ku_ra

Veggies

• Sweet Orange Peppers *
• Green Peppers *
• Early Girl Hybrid Tomatoes *

Herbs

• Lavender
• Basil
• Lemon Balm *

Annuals

• Impatiens
• Violas
• Snapdragons
• Pansies
• Cleome *
• Marigolds

These seeds are taking up 2 large flats that I’ve left with my parents. They get a lot more sunlight at their house, and that way I can pick them up once I’ve moved into my new place. All of the ones with a * indicate new seeds that I’ve never grown before.

Also, I’m on the list for a 20×20 foot plot at one of the Community Garden sites this summer! I’m going to be planting lettuce, onions, green and yellow beans, along with the seeds I’ve already started. I’m totally pumped for this.

My perennial plan for the new yard is on hold for now, as I really don’t know what kind of light the house gets. I will probably start working on that shortly after moving in.

I’m very excited because we’ve signed a lease to rent a big house starting on June 1^st, and the landlord is going to let me do all the gardening I want! He also said he will pay for any perennials or supplies that I want to buy. I’m going to be drawing up a garden plan within the next few months. I’m going to keep it simple since I’m sure he doesn’t want to be spending hundreds of dollars on my springtime projects.

As for right now, I’m trying not to get too ahead of myself. I’ve made a list of plants, including fruits and veggies that I want to grow, along with different color combinations to try out. I’m still planning on doing a few containers of annuals, and I’m also thinking of renting a plot at the community garden for my fruits and veggies.

I checked out the Minnesota Gardener’s Guide: Revised Edition book from the library to help me with my plan. Once I’ve gone through the book, I will have a better idea of what I’m going to do. I’ll keep everyone posted about my ideas!

Thanks, and happy gardening!

It looks a little rough right now because I just repotted it, but it should perk up pretty soon. This tropical plant is a fairly popular houseplant, as it can tolerate neglect pretty well (not to say that you should neglect your plants, but you get the point). Anyways, they prefer bright light, but will adapt well enough to other light levels. One important thing to keep in mind with tropicals like this is that they like moisture!

Moisture is my biggest issue with keeping my houseplants looking nice through the winter. It’s important to give them the humid conditions they need, without harming them. The fastest, and easiest way to give them some moisture is to mist them once a day or so.

But when it’s the dead of winter and my apartment is really dry, that just won’t cut it. In order to give the plant adequate moisture, you need to get a wide but shallow container and put rocks and water in it. This way you can set the plant on the rocks, but keep it from sitting in the water so it won’t harm the root system! I may end up doing this during the winter, and I think it’s a great idea because you can easily incorporate it into your household decorations. Just spend 99 cents for a bag of those nice looking rocks; and your plants will be growing in style!

Right now Stoneyfield Farms yogurt is offering a free, year long subscription to Organic Gardening magazine if you send in 4 of their specially marked foil lids by January 31, 2008.

I love this yogurt; I buy it all the time. This is a great deal if you already get this yogurt; but even if you don’t, I’d recommend getting some! The yogurt is amazing, and you’ll get a free year’s worth of organic gardening advice! Can’t get much better than that, if you ask me.

In order to complete the offer, you have to buy 4 of the big 32 oz. tubs of yogurt- I don’t think the offer is available with their small cups. Once you’ve saved (and washed, of course) 4 of the foil lids, simply include your name and address on a 3×5 card, and mail them to:

Stonyfield Farm Organic Gardening Magazine Offer
P.O. Box 4840
Manchester, NH 03108-4840

There you have it, folks. Eat some great yogurt, and get some great reading materials while you’re at it! Enjoy!

Blog Action Day is finally here folks, and I’d like to take this opportunity to give you all some great advice on making your gardens a little bit greener. Here is a list of all participating blogs, if you’d like to browse through other environmentally friendly posts.

8 Great Ways to Make Your Garden Eco-Friendly

1. Use native plants! These plants already have an excellent natural defense against pests and harsh weather in your area. eNature has a great search tool for finding plants native to your area. For those of you up here in Minnesota, a few nice native plants are Purple Coneflowers and Black Eyed Susans. Native plants are great because they are much lower maintenance, and you don’t have to use a ton of water or fertilizer to keep them looking great.

2. Stop using pesticides and fertilizers. This one is obvious. 99% of insects in your garden are beneficial, but trying to kill that small 1% of harmful bugs can do a lot of damage to the good creatures as well (including birds, butterflies, fish, even your family!) If you must rid your garden of certain pests, try using a natural pesticide. Have aphids? Get some ladybugs. Ladybugs can eat up to 5,000 aphids in one lifetime. Or, look around for some organic pesticides; there are a lot of them on the market.

3. Feed your plants, the natural way. Composting is the BEST way to go when trying to give your plants an extra boost. There are quite a few different composting bins out there, all in different sizes. Composting is not only beneficial to your plants, but it’s also saving you a lot of work in the long run. On average, every American throws away 1,200 lbs. of organic materials that could instead be composted!

4. Reduce! The amount of watering, that is. This can be done by using drip lines, or a layer of mulch. Drip lines use much less water than a sprinkler, while mulch will hold moisture in the soil for longer and thus require less frequent watering.

5. Reuse! I’m talking about your pots! I know that it doesn’t seem too appealing, but if you’re growing a lot of small plants or herbs, then used yogurt containers will work perfectly! And if you really don’t like how they look, you can always have some craft time and decorate them a bit.

6. Recycle! Or buy recycled, that is. If you’re getting new pots, or even lawn furniture- consider buying recycled materials.

7. Use Great Design. Create a cool Rain Garden by planting your garden low in your yard, so that it will collect more water when it rains! This will almost eliminate the need for watering, and will also help prevent runoff pollution!

8. Use rainwater. Use a rain barrel to collect rainwater. Make sure to keep a screen over the top of it!

This picture doesn’t do this tree justice; it is a huge, gorgeous maple inside of a small, square courtyard at my old college. I looks amazing right now, and I wanted to get more pictures of it, but a big thunderstorm chased me back inside.

There are only a few new blooms on the hydrangea bushes; this one looks like it’s almost ready!

And some happy pink daisies!

Visit As the Garden Grows for more information about Green Thumb Sunday.

Vinca

Here’s a picture of the Vincas I was talking about in my previous post. Like I said, they were by far the most hardy plant I had all summer. They are still in their containers right now blooming away, even after being scorched in a hot car, and frozen outside in the Minnesota cold.

Alyssum

Oh, Alyssum. How do I love thee? These tiny little flowers never fail to give me a great showing every summer. I started them from seed, and although they looked very fragile they toughened up a lot once they were put outside. I must say, I was really impressed with myself as they were one of the few seedlings that I didn’t kill.

Visit As the Garden Grows for more information about Green Thumb Sunday.

In May, I posted when I got a lot of my plants; all of them made it through the entire summer. After 3 months with these plants, here is what I’ve found:

Most Impressive Plants

• Vincas are very hardy, and mine withstood a lot of abuse. During my move, they got left in my car for an entire 90 degree day- and they were fine. This summer was my first time growing them, and I was very pleased with the continuous blooming of their simple flowers.
• Super Elfin Impatiens are gorgeous; mine really filled out, bloomed profusely, and were always a treat to look at. I will definitely be using these every summer! I was not a fan of Impatiens at the start of the summer, but my opinion of them has since completely turned around!
• Alyssum is an awesome filler plant! Most of the Alyssum I had this summer was what I started from seed (it was one of the few seed started plants of mine that actually survived). I never pinched them back when they were growing; they got quite large and looked fantastic!

Most Disappointing Plants

• Wax Begonias are a shade annual, but mine never filled out or looked very healthy. They kept flowering through the summer, but the leaves frequently turned brown. I was so excited for these plants, and they never did very well.
• Ageratums are supposed to be low maintenance annuals, but only half of mine survived the summer. I really have no idea what happened to them, but some of them were continuously turning brown and crispy. It may have been an issue with the soil mixture having too much manure in that specific container.

Tips I’ve Learned Over the Summer

• Do your homework before investing in a new plant. It sucks if you buy a great new plant, and proceed to kill it within 2 weeks.
• Pay attention to the weather reports. This is especially important in cold climate areas like Minnesota. Springtime freezes are very spotty, and even when you think it has warmed up, there is no guarantee.
  
• Be patient. Give your plants time and good care, and you will be rewarded!
• Don’t be afraid to admit defeat! Learn to know when you need help. I use the UBC Botanical Garden Forum or the GardenWeb Forums when I have questions. These are large online communities, and you will get a fast response!

Let Me Know!

This is a short summary of my Minnesota summer gardening experience, and I will be posting pictures of my annuals sometime next week. I’d love to hear any comments or questions from all of you!

How did your annuals perform this summer? Let me know what worked (or didn’t) for you!

Until next time, Happy Gardening!

The bees have been out and about lately. This little guy was very nice about having his picture taken.

I also found this grasshopper chilling out on this nice rose.

I absolutely love these roses, they are gorgeous.

And some lovely white roses.

This bee was very busy. I chased him around for a few minutes before I got a decent shot of him.

All of these roses were huge! I tried to get a good shot next to my hand to show you; this is the best one I could get with my 50mm lens.

Visit As the Garden Grows for more information about Green Thumb Sunday.