How To Plant Your Garden Seeds
Posted on Jun 05, 2009 under Best Seeds | 10 Comments
Almost any plant that produces seeds can be grown from seed, even though the requirements for some of them, a few of them, are extraordinary. Germination time of two years is required for certain tree seeds; long cold spells necessary for a dormancy that has to precede germination for some seeds can cause failure if omitted. A few seeds, such as maple seeds for instance, must never be allowed to get dry or they won’t be viable; and a few must have light to germinate. In general, however, good soil, enough warmth, some moisture, and a careful patting of the soil around the seeds will mean that they will come up and start new plants for you. As soon as they are up, they have to be protected from the fungus disease, “damping off,” especially if grown indoors or in a greenhouse. And though it is moisture which causes this fungus to thrive, plus lack of air circulation, the young plant must never be allowed to dry out.
There is an interdependence of closely placed young plants, perhaps through a sharing of water and perhaps through mutual benefits from root exudates, so avoid isolating them. Nevertheless they must not be crowded for long. If the soil is very loose and partially dry, it is possible to pull up the weaker plants in a row or in a flat or peat pot. But the best advice is not to do it. It is better to take a small pair of sharp scissors and snip off the weak and crowding plant at soil level. The remaining little plants will stay strong and grow stronger, especially if they continue their interdependence.
Most seed packets tell you what distances you should thin your plants. At first the distance always seems too great. When faced with two or three-inch plants, it seems almost wasteful to thin them to eight inches apart. But do what the packet says. They will need that space when they mature; and the resources of soil nutrients available to the young plants in an uncrowded space mean that they will grow all that much better.
Indoor Seed Planting
There are two absolute necessities for growing good little plants indoors to set out in your garden later – or perhaps route through a cold frame first and then set our in the garden. The first is to get good seeds from a good reliable seedsman (or use the very best of your own home-grown seeds). The second is to have a set-up which will provide the right warmth, moisture, air and light for little plants.
Most of the seeds you will grow for garden flowers or other ornamentals will be more or less fresh seeds, but the point is for them to be viable, or capable of germinating. Some you gather yourself you can keep for several years. The seeds of asters will keep a year or up to 13 years, depending on the variety. Bee balm seeds will remain viable for four to seven years; nasturtiums for five to eight years. If you save the seeds of azaleas, birches, deutzia, hydrangeas, mock orange, potentillas and rhododendrons, for example, you do not need to put them through a cold period, but other plants do need a cold dormancy: maple seeds should get three months of cold, either outdoors or in the refrigerator; barberry seeds need two or three months, bittersweet seeds need three months, as do flowering dogwood, ash, beech, sweetgum, tupelo and most of the members of the Prunas group, including cherries. Pine seeds need two months; spruce one to three months and apples one to three months as well.
Dave Truman
http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/how-to-plant-your-garden-seeds-98028.html
June 5th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
How far apart do you plant seeds in your garden?
This question is for a fourth grade science fair project. We are trying to determine the effect of overcrowding on radish seeds and we were curious to find out what real garderners do in their own gradens to prevent this problem. We aprreciate everyone who responds. Thank you!!!
June 5th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Raddishes? I'm nmot so sure. But I'd say about 3-6 inches apart, mostly cause this is fourth grade. If it was in a real garden, I'd say 5-8 inches.
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
It depends on the plant. Minimum plant spacing will be on the seed packet. Plants compete for space and nutrients. Overcrowding will produce smaller plants. In the case of radishes, this will mean smaller radishes at harvest. People often overcrowd plants when planting in small areas such as containers. The tradeoff is smaller plants -which can actually be beneficial in container gardening where space is at a premium.
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:49 pm
Follow the direction on the back of the package that is what most home gardners do. Overcrowding will cause poor growth in the fruit or vegetable.
Good Luck with your project!
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self/ home gardner
June 5th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
I don't plant the seeds a specific distance apart. I plant them randomly, crowded or not. When the seedlings appear I thin them to the proper distance.The second answer is GREAT for development.
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:53 pm
Fertilization can compensate for a certain amount of overcrowding.
Soil density can also impact the matured veggies. Be sure that the soil contains a good amount of organic materials and provide drainage to insure that there is no standing water beyond a few minutes of watering.
Radishes grow best when you start them from seeds you sow directly in the soil. The seed package will give you the ideal spacing, normally from 1 to 3 inches, depending on the variety but, don't be concerned with spacing at this stage. You should over sow with seeds. It will also tell you how deep to cover the seeds with soil.
To help the soil retain moisture you may want to add water-holding polymer crystals to the soil before planting. The polymers absorb moisture and release it as the soil dries; they do not water log the soil. Over watering is certain failure. The polymers will provide a safe buffer. Add a time-release fertilizer to the soil before planting, which will feed plants throughout the growing season.
When most of the seeds have sprouted, you will need to thin to the suggested spacing. Select the smaller plants that are crowded and snip them off at ground level. Do not pull them up! This will disturb the surrounding soil. To make this process simpler for the children, you could add some food coloring to a milk/flour mixture and place a drop on the soil next to the plants you will be keeping and cut away the remainder.
You will want to grow them in a sunny location and provide a friendly method of pest controls.
If you have further questions at any point in this project, I have emails enabled on my profile. Please, do not hesitate to contact me. I will expedite as much information as you need to make this a positive as well as valuable learning tool for your class. I am happy to know that there are teachers out there that are willing to go beyond their own experience to insure proper techniques for modern gardening.
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
Make shallow furrows in the soil about 1/2 inch deep and a few inches apart using a stick or the handle of a rake or hoe. Then empty some seeds from the packet into the palm of your hand and closing the palm gently, turn your hand over and let the seeds fall out slowly using your thumb and forefinger to direct them into the furrow. This is a little quicker than picking up each seed and dropping it in one @ a time. Never put all the seeds in your hand in cause of accidents or mistakes. With great big seeds like peas,beans and corn, its easier to place them on the soil first to space them then, poke them into soil filling in the holes as you go along. I hope this was helpful to you.
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How To Plant A Garden
June 5th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Water them first. Lay black plastic on the ground. Make holes where you want to plant every radish stem in the ground. Pour water in the hole. Carefully remove the whole thing from the container. To separate them, gently work them apart. This is very messy work! Lay the individual stems in the hole. I would put four together in each hole. Keep holes about a foot apart. Gently fill in the hole with fresh loose gardening soil. Be sure to save the packet. The info on back tells you when the plants are supposed to sprout, when they will be ready for harvest, how to know when they are ripe, care tips, uses, etc.
I planted a variety of seeds and kept the packages in an old scrapbook. Then I logged the 'due dates' on a calendar. It's fun to watch for the changes that take place.
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
Once your garden is ready for planting, scatter the seeds on top of the dirt. Pat the seeds with your hand to get the seeds in touch with the dirt. Slightly cover the dirt and once the seeds germinate you will see that there are many seeds to close together. Pick the tops so that you have at least two inches between the next radish plant.
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June 5th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
its really not about how far apart in a row you plant. It is however about how far apart your rows are.so the plants can take in sunlight
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