I haven’t planted my seeds indoors for a few years, but I think I will do a small amount this year. I thought I would share a couple things from past years experience. One is the caution not to plant too early. You gather together all your seed starting supplies, you are driven by visions of all those wonderful little plants that will save you money, be rarefied varieties, and provide a plethora of your favorites. But hold on. If you plant too early ( check the germination times, etc) you will have leggy plants that aren’t the thrifty vigorous seedlings you imagined.
Another tip is to remember to harden off those lovely little plants carefully. It just takes a little patience to give them a taste of the great outdoors in increasing increments over a couple weeks or so. They need to get used to real sunshine, winds, and the more demanding nature of …Nature. Or you will wind up with bleached or desiccated little remains of your dreams and hard work of nurturing them along. My first efforts taught me this. I had the most beautiful little crop of basil. Lush, green. You know how Basil looks! Then…. one brief day in the outdoors for too long and it was curtains on the final act of my hoped-for display of culinary theatricals.
An early end of their star career in my garden of the time.
So about February I will round up my old seed starting supplies… my lights, and plant stand, my trays and plastic flats. I will go to WalMart or some such place and buy the special soil. By that time I will have decided which plants are worth my work. I would like to try some special tomato plants maybe, and blue flax, because I don’t have any left and I would like lots and lots of it, although you can directly sow that one. See, I don’t know …although herbs would be worth the while. Marjoram was one I started in the past, and I love it. I used to make dried wreaths of just marjoram for the kitchen. That sounds like something to do once more this year.
To seeds! To life! May we succeed in all we sow, may we sow with wisdom.
