After nearly 2 weeks away from home I was really thrilled to see that some tomato seeds that I had planted some time ago had finally germinated.
There were 3 different methods that I tried and amazingly they all have started to germinate at the same time.
 |
| Mini Greenhouse, Plastic Cover Removed |
One group were started in small pots with seed-raising mix, started in mid-July and placed in my small greenhouse with the hope that enough warmth would be provided to get them started. After several weeks of no action they were moved into the shed near a north-facing window that has several hours of sunshine (when the sun is shining, of course) each day. Still no action, despite making sure that the pots did not dry out. I was about to give up on these so I set up another couple of trials.
Another group were sown in a small wicking bed, and a transparent plastic meat tray placed over top to act like a mini greenhouse. These were sown in mid-August, and nothing appeared to be happening by late September, when I was away from home for about 2 weeks.
The other group were sown like the first group, in small pots and kept in the small greenhouse. They were also sown in mid-August. They also had not germinated by late September.
The results:
 |
| Wicking Bed Seedlings Small, but germinated at last! |
What next:
The seedlings that have already started will be nurtured so that they can be planted out when the weather warms up a little, and after the last frost.
I will keep some of the plants in the wicking bed, because I want to check how they go in there, and also because it can be moved around the yard into the best position to help with growth.
I have been surprised how much the simple act of growing a few vegetables has excited me, and that is the perhaps the prospect of having fresh and nutritious food to eat when they mature.
Progress reports should follow in the next few months. I might even have some extra tomatoes to share.
 |
| Small Tomato Seedling |
No comments:
Post a Comment