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Starting seeds indoors and a square ft garden question
I'm new to gardening and have no clue what I'm doing. We plan to do a square foot garden with four 4x4 containers. I'm starting off with broccoli raab, eggplant, sugar snap peas, beets, kohlrabi, turnip, collard greens, spinach, corn, and some herbs. Later I'll plant squash, watermelon, and strawberries.
Since we haven't even built our garden beds yet, I plan to start the seeds indoors (and I've read that this is needed for a few of the plants we are growing).
I purchased these lights:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006856EQ/ref=ox_ya_os_product
And this grow kit:
http://www.burpee.com/seed-starting/burpee-ultimate-growing-system-prod001254.html?catId=2211&trail=
And now I have a dumb question. In reading instructions for each seed, I understand the direct sow instructions where once the plants have sprouted you are to thin them out so they have a specific amount of spacing. However, if I am starting the seeds indoors, how many seeds do I put in each cell of the tray? Do I put a few seeds and then thin to just one plant in each cell if more than one seed sprouts? Or do I put a single seed in each cell?
ETA:
Also, can all seeds be started indoors, or is it important to direct sow the ones that indicate "direct sow" on the seed packet?
Also, one more dumb question. If I direct sow in a square foot garden, do I plant a lot of seeds and then thin once they sprout to the recommended number of plants per square foot?
For example, if the directions say to sow in rows 12" apart, such as beets, and then thin to 3" apart once they sprout to one inch, how do I grow these in a square foot garden?
Re: Starting seeds indoors and a square ft garden question
I'm not much of an indoor seed starter, but if it were me, here's how I'd answer your questions:
I would put more than one seed in each cell
I'm more of a direct sow person anyway, so I'd follow the direct sow instructions for thsoe plants. And Id thin once they sprout to the recommended # of plants. I'd sow, say, 8-10 seeds (some may not germinate) and thin to 4 at the appropriate time.
HTH
Our little Irish rose came to us on March 5, 2010
Don't drink the water.
Disclaimer: I am not an MD. Please don't PM me with pregnancy-related questions. Ask your doctor.
I'm new to gardening and have no clue what I'm doing. We plan to do a square foot garden with four 4x4 containers. I'm starting off with broccoli raab, eggplant, sugar snap peas, beets, kohlrabi, turnip, collard greens, spinach, corn, and some herbs. Later I'll plant squash, watermelon, and strawberries.
Since we haven't even built our garden beds yet, I plan to start the seeds indoors (and I've read that this is needed for a few of the plants we are growing).
I purchased these lights:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006856EQ/ref=ox_ya_os_product
And this grow kit:
http://www.burpee.com/seed-starting/burpee-ultimate-growing-system-prod001254.html?catId=2211&trail=
And now I have a dumb question. In reading instructions for each seed, I understand the direct sow instructions where once the plants have sprouted you are to thin them out so they have a specific amount of spacing. However, if I am starting the seeds indoors, how many seeds do I put in each cell of the tray? Do I put a few seeds and then thin to just one plant in each cell if more than one seed sprouts? Or do I put a single seed in each cell?
You'll want to put 2-3 seeds in each cell. In some, you'll have 3 come up, in others, none. Don't transplant, don't pull up the extras. Take a pair of kitchen shears and cut the extras. I really, really recommend the book Square Foot GArdening (the newest version - I bought last year). We have made a 4 4x4 garden with a 3x3 box for my stepdaughter, and we LOVE it. It's amazing. I'm on modified bedrest, and just cleared, refreshed, and replanted a box with relative ease. Most seeds that say direct sow come up fairly quickly, and don't do well with transplanting. The book describes more. Lettuce, spinach, greends, things like this don't transplant well. One good way to tell is what is for sale at the store in pots. These things all do well.
Another good note - I made the mistake of buying a lot of plants/seeds online, and some of the "heirloom" plants are not disease resistant. They may be neat/fancy - but they won't hold up! You are best buying things in your local garden store, or even walmart or lowes will work. They carry live plants meant for your area. You can PM me if you have anymore questions! Or - for quicker reply, email me a uvanurse09 at yahoo dot com. Good luck!
ETA:
Also, can all seeds be started indoors, or is it important to direct sow the ones that indicate "direct sow" on the seed packet?
I answered this one above - just 2 or 3 per cell, otherwise you plant one, it doesn't grow, and you are behind the time it takes another seed to germinate. Seeds are cheap, it's okay!
Also, one more dumb question. If I direct sow in a square foot garden, do I plant a lot of seeds and then thin once they sprout to the recommended number of plants per square foot?
Sort of - the square foot gardening book tells you how many you can plant. Instead of making a row and putting 1,000 tiny carrot seeds in, you plant 2-3 seeds in x number of holes (1, 4, 8, 9, 12, 16) depending on plant size.
For example, if the directions say to sow in rows 12" apart, such as beets, and then thin to 3" apart once they sprout to one inch, how do I grow these in a square foot garden?
Again, read the book! Those are guidelines, not actual plant sizes, experimenting is half the fun!!
Also, it may be too late for some of the things you've listed to start from seed *now.* I just put my kohlrabi seedlings out & I imagine that Atlanta is probably in a warmer zone than DC (where i am). In addition to kohlrabi, I'm not sure about the turnips and you probably need to start the peas, collards & spinach ASAP b/c they will start to decline fast as soon as heat hits.
And, I disagree with PP about heirlooms having no disease resistance. If you pick an heirloom that was developed in your area, it's usually got great resistance for your local conditions. I mean, for generations the biggest/best/most vigorous plants were selected to save seed. This produces a plant well suited to local conditions. I'm not saying hybrids are terrible & to only plant heirlooms, but I did want to clear that piece of information up. Seed Savers Exchange often has information on where the seeds came from if you're interested in finding heirlooms for your region.
Ditto the bolded portion. I live in Memphis, so I'm in a very similar climate to ATL. I currently have spinach growing in my garden now, and it is growing rapidly. By early May, your spinach will bolt. I'm also harvesting turnip greens this week before they bolt. The current weather (mid 60s during the day) has been very favorable for leafy green veggies.
Honestly, I'd probably wait until the fall to direct sow the other spring crops you've mentioned. It's Mid-March, and the last frost date is early April. At that point, you can safely plant tomatoes, peppers, and beans. It gets hot in the south quickly, and if your beds are constructed yet, it's really not worth the hassle IMHO to try and do spring crops right now.
Check with your Georgia Ag Extension for information on veggie plantings to see when they recommend planting certain times of the year. Here's a link that should be helpful.