Really good seedlings are an important part of an abundant garden. If your seedlings are strong and healthy, the grown ups will be too. It takes a bit of dedication to pull off, but its so wonderful to watch seeds curl up out of the soil and to grow into robust little guys. You wont mind the chore of it, one little bit. Infact, prepare to fall in love. It all begins with a good set up.
A good setup
Seed raising needs a toasty, sunny spot that’s secure from birds, rats, mice, slugs, dogs, cats and curious children (in other words in heaven 🙂 ). Seed propagators, like the one in the photo above, tick all these boxes, plus they’re easily mobile in the event you need to drive them over to your besties place when you go away. Or just take them with you – seeds and seedlings are babies, right, they need daily, attention.
Prep your seed trays: fill with mix + water
Fill your tray with seed mix, pat it down firmly, then water until its barely moist. I like to bottom water. Sit the tray/ pots, in enough water so it comes about a third of the way up the tray/ pots. As soon as the water darkens the soil on top, whip them out. You want it damp, not saturated. Sit them on the bench to drain.
Next is perhaps one of the most important steps – be sure the seed raising mix has reached the ideal temperature for the seed you are sowing. Warm/ hot season crops will need somewhere in the range of 15°C – 25°C soil in order to sprout. Here’s a useful guide.
To reach these temps you need to sit your trays/ pots overnight on a heat pad or somewhere toasty. Once the perfect temperature is reached, you are ready set to sow.
Seed sowing
- Seeds that do better direct sown carrots, parsnip, rocket, coriander.
- Seeds that can be either direct or tray sown beetroot, peas, beans, corn, zucchini
- Seeds that germinate faster with an over night soak pre sowing beetroot, chard, silverbeet, spinach.
- Everythings else is best tray sown
As a good general rule, sow seed to a depth of twice its width.
- For fine seed (eg lettuce) sprinkle it on top of the firmed down seed mix, and lightly sprinkle seed mix on top. Lettuce and celery need a bit of light to germinate so cover sparsely, then lightly pat the top down.
- Do the same for middle sized seed (eg cabbage) only spread a little more seed mix on top. Firm down.
- For bigger seeds like pumpkin, beans or corn – use plug trays or toliet paper rolls. Make a hole twice as deep as the seed, with the end of your upside down teaspoon, pop the seed in, cover it and firm down.
If you use small trays and sow thickly you’ll make your seed raising mix go a lot further Home gardens thrive on little and often sowing – small, shallow containers fit the bill. It doesn’t matter that the seeds come up like a thicket as long as you quickly prick them into another tray before they get lanky.
Pricking on
When your seedling babies have grown 2-4 leaves they need to be pricked on to new accommodation. Please don’t loose interest at this part, this is the best bit, the bit that makes for fast growing, strong seedlings. Do this in the cool of the evening.
Prick seedlings in trays, into plug trays.
Prick seedlings in plug trays, into 10cm pots.
Lightly water the tray of seedlings before you prick them on. Prepare the new tray or plug tray by filling it with seed raising mix and watering it. Check that the soil is at the right temperature for the crop you are pricking on. If not, sit the prep’d trays on the heatpad overnight.
Choose the biggest, straightest, best-est seedlings to prick on, compost the weak, weedy ones as you go.
Individual seedlings: Push a teaspoon underneath to scoop up the root while holding the seedling by the leaf. Pop it into its new container so the leaves are almost level with the top. Still holding the leaf, use the spoon to scoop the seed mix around it. Gently firm it in with your fingers.
Seedlings in a thicket: lever a clump of seedlings out with your teaspoon. choose a strong seedling and hold it by the leaf (not the stem – you’ll wreck the plumbing), and gently tease it out. Push an upside down teaspoon into the new tray/ pot, making a hole – at the same time drop the root of the seedling into the hole. Seat it in so that the leaves are sitting just above the soil. Still holding the leaf, sweep the disturbed soil around the seedling, lightly firming it as you go.
Watering
The perfect moisture level for seeds and seedlings (plants in general) is barely wet – err on the side of dry. The best way to achieve this is with bottom watering. It ensures the tray is moist right to the bottom encouraging the roots to stretch out, prevents fungus and mold because the foliage stays dry, and it saves time – trays retain moisture for a few days. Great to do if you go away for the weekend and can bear to be parted.
I leave an old sink, in the greenhouse with water in it. This keeps the water ambient. You want the water to come about a third of the way up the seedtray. The soil will wick the moisture the rest of the way, up to the top, thereby not disturbing your seeds. As soon as the top darkens with moisture, lift the tray out. It’s time to water again when the top has completely dried out (it’ll still be moist underneath). About 4 days for me in cool spring.
Once your seedlings are pricked on and growing well, switch to light overhead watering. In an ideal world the rose on your watering can or the attachment on your hose end, would be facing upward so the water makes like an arc. Create this as best you can – sweeping back and forth a few times like a passing drizzle, not a downpour.
Transplanting
