Vegetable Gardening, Part 3: Planting Tips
You’ve done all the planning and prepping (read Part 1 here), your garden beds are ready (read Part 2 here), and now you’re ready to start planting! Here are a few planting tips I’ve learned along the way.
1. Seed soaking: Whether starting seeds indoors or planting directly into the garden, I often soak larger seeds in a small dish of filtered water for 4-8 hours before planting. I’ve grown sprouts and microgreens for several years and I’ve always soaked the seeds to help them germinate faster for a head start.
2. Saliva: This may sound a little weird (that’s how I roll) but I’ve intuitively done this for years. After soaking the seeds I give them a rinse then hold the seeds in my mouth for about 5-10 minutes while I’m preparing the soil they’ll be planted in. I’ve since read that some indigenous cultures and “old school” gardeners have traditionally done this. The reason? Plants and seeds have an intelligence and energy, as does everything in the universe. The seeds “read” your energy and respond to it. Some say it reads your DNA and produces the perfect nutritional balance for your needs. I’m not sure there’s science to back that up, but I do understand the science of energy and I completely believe that they grow to be plants that are energetically customized to support your needs. I think of it as a kind of energetic bonding process. Energy also works on intention, so I have a friendly conversation with them, thanking them ahead of time for the nutritious bounty they provide for our health.
3. Starting seeds indoors:
· Soil: Good soil is foundational for healthy plants. I buy a good organic potting soil specific for container plants since it’s usually somewhat light and fine with good drainage, yet retains the right amount of moisture, and has a balance of nutrients for their short stay in their temporary home.
· Containers: Because I grow a large garden and start a lot of seeds, it’s much more economical and practical for me to skip the expensive seed starter trays and repurpose and reuse what I have. It saves money and minimizes waste, and I’m all about that. I like to start tiny seeds, such as herbs, brassicas (cabbage family) and leafy greens in the compostable cardboard egg cartons (not the Styrofoam or plastic ones).
I plant larger seeds in 3-4 inch pots. I save all my “disposable” plastic pots I buy plant starts in and reuse, cleaning them well in between uses to minimize potential plant diseases. You can also create a mini greenhouse by saving the plastic tubs that salad greens come in. Poke drain holes in the bottom before filling with soil. Keep the lid on loosely to retain heat and moisture only until the seeds sprout. Try and keep seeds spaced enough apart that you can easily separate them to plant without disturbing the roots too much.
· Method: Fill each pot or container with soil and water to thoroughly moisten. For tiny seeds, put 2-3 seeds in each pot or compartment (if using an egg carton) and cover with a thin layer of fine soil. Once the sprouts are up, thin to one in each compartment. When the seedlings are about an inch tall I transplant them into 3-4 inch pots. The egg carton will be soggy and easy to tear out the sections. Since it will decompose you don’t have to peel it off which prevents disturbing the delicate roots.
Larger seeds, like squash, pumpkins and beans, need more room to grow so I use about a 4 inch pot. They also like to be planted a little deeper, about a half inch. The seed packets usually have planting instructions.
· Environment: Keep them in a warm, sunny, protected location. Water with a fine mist or spray bottle, careful not to wash away tiny seeds. Keep them evenly moist without drying out too much between watering, but don’t over-water or allow them to sit in a tray of water. Good drainage, air circulation and plenty of warmth and sunlight is important, otherwise a fungal infection, called damping off, can develop and kill the seedlings. If the seedlings get “leggy” (tall and spindly), they’re probably not getting enough sunlight and you may need to supplement with a grow light.
4. Sowing seeds outdoors: With the size of my garden it’s not practical to start all my seeds indoors, nor is it necessary. Root veggies, leafy greens, peas, corn and beans are easy to grow from seed directly in the garden. I usually plant squash, pumpkins and cucumbers this way as well. Some plants, such as radishes and spinach are ready to harvest in only a few weeks. I usually replant after the first harvest for a second crop.
Have your garden bed prepared with good soil before planting. I sprinkle very small seeds on the surface of the soil then lightly cover with fine topsoil, and gently pat or firm so they won’t blow or wash away. Larger seeds can be poked into the soil about half an inch and firmed in.
5. Planting onions: There are a few options out there. You can plant from seed but with our shorter growing season here in Spokane they may not get very big. I like to plant onion “sets,” which are small dry onions about the size of a garlic clove, purchased from the seed store. Poke into the soil with the root end down and the tip just sticking up out of the soil. Water well and they’ll start sprouting green tops. I plant them in 6-12 inch wide rows, 3-4 inches apart to make efficient use of space (I plant most of my root crops in swaths like this). We use lots of onions and store them through the winter so I literally plant hundreds; white, yellow and red. We also love Walla Walla sweets. Those sets aren’t dried but fresh with green tops.
Onions don’t like to be planted too deep. If mulching, make sure you can still see a good portion of bulb tops above ground or they’ll get smothered and rot.
I do plant green onions from seed. Since they don’t make a large bulb and you’re using mostly the tops, they’re ready to harvest much earlier. Or better yet, I save the root end of green onions and plant about a half inch deep so mostly just the roots are under the soil. If the roots have been cut short, you can put them in a shallow dish of water for a few days. This method gives you green onions ready to harvest much faster than growing from seed. When harvesting, just cut them at the level of the soil, leaving the roots in the ground and they grow back! There’s a fresh supply of green onions all summer long and well into fall. I let them winter over and often have some ready to use in the spring.
Onion sets are easier to plant than seeds or delicate seedlings and have time to develop big bulbs. I plant root crops and leafy greens in a 6 to 12 inch swath to maximize garden space. Onions don’t like to be planted too deep. I lightly mulch them without covering too much of the bulb tops.
6. Hardening Off: Plants started indoors get used to their cozy, consistently warm environment. If they get moved too quickly to a new environment with much cooler nighttime temps or hot daytime sun, they’ll go into shock. Allow seedlings to acclimate a few days before transplanting outdoors. Set them outside in a protected area for a few hours, gradually increasing the time and temperature range they’re exposed to; a little more sun, a little cooler temps heading toward evening. Eventually you can leave them out overnight a day or two before transplanting once past the danger of frost. Ideally, choose a mild, moderately warm day, slightly overcast to move them to their permanent home in the garden. It’s normal for new transplants to look a little droopy for a day or so as it adjusts to its new home.
7. Transplanting: I dig a hole a little bigger than I need, add a scoop of finished, well-aged compost and mix into the soil before planting, then water well. Some plants like to be planted deep; tomatoes especially do. I pinch off all the leaves coming off the main stem of the tomato plant except the top 3 or 4, leaving about 5-6 inches of bare stem with the foliage on top (depending on the size of your plant). Dig a hole deep enough that the soil level is above where you took off the last leaf. All the places where there used to be a leaf will sprout roots under the soil giving it lots of roots. When I was starting out years ago it broke my heart to take a nice good sized tomato plant, strip off half its leaves and bury it so that it looked half its original size, but they grow quickly and will be happier for it.
Brandywine is one of my favorite heirloom variety of tomatoes. I pinch off all the bottom leaves from the main stem, leaving just 3 or 4 on top and plant it deep so that just the top leaves are sticking out of the ground.
8. Water: Seeds and transplants need consistent moisture to germinate and get established without getting too soggy or washing away the seeds. Hot summer temps require more water; mulching requires much less. Dig down a couple inches to determine soil moisture. The best time to water is morning. Soil temperatures need to be warm for plants to grow. Watering cools soil temps and it’s already coolest in the morning with time for the sun to warm it during the day. It’s also less efficient to water during the heat of the day which results in greater water evaporation.
9. Fertilizing: I rarely buy commercial fertilizer and I don’t use chemicals or anything that’s not organic. We try to be self-sustaining as possible, and it saves a lot of money. I compost food and yard scraps (there’s a right way to compost), and shred all plant material back into the garden in the fall. We’ve also hauled in loads of well-aged manure in the past but I feel it’s important to have a “clean” source.
I also grow a lot of comfrey. As an herbalist, comfrey is an incredibly useful herb with medicinal qualities that I use to make salves and poultices. It is a cell proliferator, meaning it speeds the healing, growth and reproduction of cells. It is just as valuable in the garden. I add layers of comfrey in my compost heap to speed decomposition and add nutrients, and use its leaves directly in the garden with the mulch. Another way to use it is “comfrey tea” to water the garden. It’s like an all-natural Miracle Grow. I get tomato plants that produce like crazy and are 6-8 feet tall, and sunflowers 12-15 feet tall!
Comfrey is one of my greatest allies in the garden and as an herbalist and the bees love her as much as I do!
10. Good vibes: I’ve honestly had more pests and problems during times that I’m stressed and unhappy, and great success with healthy plants and prolific yields when I’m feeling good, spiritually connected and grounded. Plants are very susceptible to energy and respond to your moods, good or bad. I talk to my plants, and I get still and “listen” to what they’re telling me; I ask them what they need. I go out to see them every day and love to watch them grow. I have an intimate connection with them. I tell them I love them and thank them for the joy and nourishment they provide. It truly makes a difference!
11. Take notes: Keep a notebook or garden journal and jot down what you do that works well (so you can duplicate it), what didn’t work, and observations you have. It’s also a good place to track feelings, intuitive hits and what you’ve learned by tuning in to nature and the plants.
*For more information on energy, read my post here about Reiki. Are you familiar with Dr. Masaru Emoto’s work and his book The Hidden Messages in Water? Here’s a short video of one of many of his experiments.
