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SEEDS: A Colorado calendar for growing tender
seedlings indoors
By Niki Hayden
January is the glum month of the year. The ending of the holidays coincides
with winter settling in and only gardeners appear oddly upbeat and smiling. That’s
because January is the month of garden catalogues and seed ordering. Despite a
blanket of snow on the ground or a brisk wind sweeping in, ripe tomatoes spring
from the pages—or, in these times--web sites. Gardeners are choosing seeds in
anticipation of spring.
In all cold climates, seeds for annuals are planted indoors by dating from
the last frost. For the Front Range of Colorado, May 15 signals the day. But
that’s only approximate. A sudden snowstorm that freezes seedlings on May 23
will kill tender garden plants. And while gardeners bemoan the fate of their
seedlings, they are not alone. A late frost will kill the fruits and berries
that feed wildlife in the foothills, too, destroying food that bears and birds
need to survive.
In anticipation of a sudden freeze, we spread row covers over seedlings or
other protections to ease them into a chancy spring. We harden them by placing
them outside the first of May when the temperatures rise by mid-day. We bring
them in by late afternoon. We let the wind ruffle them a bit so the stalk
thickens. By the end of May, our young plants are ready to be tucked into a
garden.
It’s an end to one stage; it's also a beginning to the next.
The Ritual of Indoor Planting
By the time tender plants are placed in garden soil, we’ve already lavished
time and attention. Tomatoes, cantaloupe, eggplant, peppers, broccoli,
cauliflower, cabbage, onions, herbs, pumpkins, celery and artichokes can be
started indoors from seed.
Yes, artichokes. "You can get a good harvest of artichokes if you start
the seeds in January," says Ken Vetting, the owner of The Rocky Mountain
Seed Co. in Denver. Vetting not only has grown artichokes, but also Belgian
endive, Pascal celery and leeks.
Since
1920, The Rocky Mountain Seed Company has inhabited the unlikely location of 15th
Street in the LoDo section of Denver. It’s a vestige from earlier days when six seed stores were
located nearby. "We’re one of the few stores of this kind left," Ken
says. Like his store, he has witnessed the decades of dwindling vegetable
farming in the metro area. Walls of tiny cabinets of highly polished wood store
packets of seeds. Rakes and hoes line up for serious viewing. Customers come in
for a few seed packets and lots of advice.
Seek his advice about a crop and he’ll ask you where you live.
"Colorado is full of small microclimates. People will try to grow tomatoes
in Evergreen. It’s just too cold. I tell them to stay with lettuce and peas.
Peas, now there’s a crop you don’t see much in the supermarkets anymore.
There’s a lot of labor in a crop of fresh peas, but to me there nothing that
tastes better than peas out of the garden."
He'll tell you to dig a trench
about four inches down on St. Patrick’s Day, the traditional day to plant
peas. As the seedlings emerge, fill in the trench just up to the leaves.
"That way, when the summer heats up, the roots won’t dry out," he
says. Well, there are tricks to every crop, but no one can change the unique
environment where he lives.
If you live along the Green River in Utah, you can grow cantaloupes and
watermelons. They require warmer nights than gardens the foothills offer. The
sugars won’t mature in the melons grown along the foothills, Ken says, although
just to the east, they often will. Melons from Rocky Ford are famous--proof that
much
of gardening in Colorado depends upon elevation.
It Begins with Seeds
But first it begins with seeds. Seeds are relatively cheap for the home
gardener, which makes them worthwhile right away. But there’s another boon as
well. Seeds provide the widest assortment of plants, both hybrid and heirloom.
And there’s often a far greater variety to choose from when it comes to seed
packets. Without seeds, you may have only a few varieties of
greenhouse-grown vegetable seedlings to choose from.
Starting from seed means you have to plan in late winter. Ken begins many of
his seeds indoors by the first of March. Artichokes in January are one
exception. He believes that home gardeners often start their seeds too early.
They end up with leggy seedlings that are unsuited for the grueling weather
conditions outside. "If they had waited a little later they would have
smaller plants to set out," he says, "the ideal time for eggplants is
the first of March. I plant peppers the 20th of March and tomatoes
the first of April."
Here’s a general guideline for planting seeds indoors:
- January 15: artichokes
- February 20: lettuce, to be set out by the first of April
- March 1: eggplant, celery, leeks, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and
many perennial flowers
- March 20: peppers
- April 1: tomatoes
- April 10: Basil and many annual flowers. Melons, pumpkins, squash (these do
not like to be handled, so many indoor seed growers simply will not transplant
them and prefer to direct seed in the garden).
To grow seeds indoors requires a few tried-and-true techniques. Use
containers that are clean. Old containers should be washed in a weak bleach
mixture and rinsed well. And begin with sterile seed-starting mix that has been
designed only for seeds. Potting soils usually are too heavy for seedlings. Fill
your containers with seed-starting mix and water thoroughly.
Once They Germinate
Suppose you have saved seeds over the years and are unsure if they will
germinate. Here is a simple test. Wet the seeds and place
them in a damp paper towel. Place the towel in a plastic bag. Each variety of
seed will germinate according to package directions, usually within seven to ten
days. Perhaps only a third of old seeds will germinate. If that’s the case,
you only need to plant those viable seedlings.
Tomatoes, parsley, coriander and fennel need darkness to germinate. Lettuce,
savory, dill and celery need light. And some seeds benefit from wetting them,
using the paper towel method before planting: sunflowers, beet, spinach, parsley, okra, New
Zealand spinach, peas.
Once planted, set the tray by a window until the green shoots begin to
emerge. Keep them misted with water from a spray bottle. Only when the shoots
emerge do they need to go under lights. Although it's possible to set seedlings
in a southeastern window, there’s rarely enough light for them to grow well.
Most gardeners set up two fluorescent lights, a cool white and warm white, set
about three inches above the plants for 14 to 16 hours a day. Long hours of
light are important, but a period of darkness is necessary, too. Most gardeners
rely on timers. Temperatures may range from 50 degrees for cool weather plants
like beets and lettuce, to 80 degrees for eggplant and melons.
Once seedlings show their true leaves, those first leaves that indicate you
have a tomato plant rather than a generic small leaf, it’s time to fertilize.
Rather than using a dose at full strength, try ¼ the dose recommended on the
package for a weak solution for each watering. Keep the soil
moist, but not soggy. Discard any water that pools into the tray.
Ken likes to place about three seeds in each tiny pot. When they begin to
grow, he’ll snip the two smaller plants with scissors. That way, the fragile
roots on the hardiest seedling are not damaged. "I let them compete for
size," he says, "let them get to be two or three inches in
height." If they are outgrowing tiny pots, transplant them to larger pots
with the greatest of care. Paper cups may be used by this time providing you’ve
jabbed holes in the bottom for drainage.
Preparing Plants for the Outdoors
A couple of weeks before you plan to set out plants, perhaps by May 1, harden them
off. Place seedlings outside beginning with just an hour or two and gradually
lengthen that time until they are out for much of the day, but brought in before
night. Make sure the seedlings don’t dry out.
Some gardeners cover their garden with black plastic to warm the soil in
preparation for May 15. Certainly row covers, a manufactured fabric stretched
over wire arches, are a common practice to shield the tiny plants from fierce
winds and sudden temperature drops.
There's also a water-filled moat that can protect tender plants, usually
tomato seedlings. Ken sits a 50-gallon water jug on the ground,
surrounds it with a Walls-o-Water, and then fills the empty pockets. These
pockets, when filled with water
may insulate the plant, and the form of the water jug will provide a sturdy
center. Then plant your seedlings. Frequently, these walls tip over, flooding and crushing
the plantlet. Ken’s technique prevents that.
Stay mindful of temperature changes the first two weeks that you’ve set
your plants out. Prepare to cover them at night with old blankets, newspapers
weighted on the edges with rocks, whatever is available if you anticipate a
freeze.
Vegetable gardening may appear daunting in our climate. Despite our travails,
Ken says small farms once thrived along the foothills, "Why, at one time we had
6,000 truck farmers from Aurora to Littleton."
Helpful websites:
www.botanicalinterests.com A
seed company in Broomfield with a wide selection for the home gardener.
www.cooksgarden.com In Vermont,
Cook's Garden carries heirloom and organic seeds. They specialize in European
salad greens.
www.johnnyseeds.com from Maine carries
a large array of seeds, many suitable for cold climates
www.shepherdseeds.com from
Connecticut carries a good selection
www.vermontbean.com excellent
selection of bean seeds, good for cold climates
www.burpee.com an old standby
www.totallytomato.com vast array
of tomatoes
www.underwoodgardens.com an
Illinois company specializing in heirlooms
www.irish-eyes.com seed potatoes from
Washington
www.fedcoseeds.com strictly organic
seeds, they don't sell seeds online but you can order a catalogue
www.rareseeds.com in Missouri,
heirlooms
www.abundantlifeseed.org,
rarities and heirlooms
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