Notes From The Potting Shed #4

So we missed the Notes post completely last week as I had an out of area Dr's appointment (that much closer to a new hip, you all). Nothing superbly exciting happened gardening wise as we were super busy, so that helps.

Sobey's has the nicest parrot tulips in for Easter!

The weather has been bonkers. We went from +19°C in our backyard to -5°C and snow. It snowed and was cold for a couple of weeks, then we had a day of melt and back to snow again. I am okay-ish with the snow... don't get me wrong, it is not because I like it, hah, but it will give us a bit more moisture. Hoping that this all turns to rain next week though. But, enough of that... on to other things.

Hubby pruned our apple tree and tomorrow we will go over to my brother's farm and see what his trees need. They have not ever been pruned, except by the deer.

The potting shed is almost ready for her big reveal! Oh, she really is pretty, you guys! Cannot wait to invite people in for workshops or gatherings. Will be hosting 'Tea In The Garden' this summer, a drop in meet and chat with anyone who wants to get together to talk about gardens, or anything else, plus have a poke about the gardens.

I just have to get into potting shed to paint/stain the workshop tables, and the new potting tables. I accidentally ordered two! Was that a happy accident or a big boo-boo? This is the one I ordered. I quite like the galvanised top, will be easier to keep clean than wood, plus it adds an extra element. I also like the little hooks on the side for hanging small tools, or whatnots from. We decided not to put the middle shelf on the 2nd table so that I can put my soil bin under there. If you are quite tall, this table is not for you, but otherwise I would say that it is a decent potting table for the money.

Dwarf indoor tomatoes.

I have transplanted my dwarf indoor tomatoes into these great pots! Aren't they pretty? I can see using these pots for indoor plants, saving them for next winter's indoor tomatoes... all sorts of things. They are very nice and come with saucers. That matters, you guys! According to Rob Smith (you may have watched him on the allotment challenge a few years ago on BBC) the dwarfs need about 2 litres of soil to thrive (2 litres is 7 cups of soil). I'd say mine are just a wee bit shy of that, we'll see how they fare.

I put the Bush Beefsteak into a bigger pot, into this lovely clay pot from Ikea. The Ikea clay pots are the bomb! This one was $9.99 with saucer included, and I picked up a couple that were a wee bit smaller, too, for herbs... or something.

Oh, and here is an important thing if you are a displaced BC-ite starting seeds here on the prairies.... you cannot just go to the grocery store and grab a bag of potting soil and manure! Or go to Buckerfields for your dog food and grab a few bags at the same time. This came as a huge shock to me! Why aren't there any bags or bales inside the shops? They are still frozen out in the yard!

We need potting soil, manure, compost, worm castings... stuff! We need it in March, not May, lol. So... this fall, you all, stock up on everything you think you might possibly need for spring in the fall!

My potting up happens on the floor in the storage room at the moment!

I like to transplant my seedlings and plant up my baskets with my 'secret' soil recipe (5 parts potting soil to 2 or 3 parts manure or compost) to give them nutrients as they grow, till they can get in the garden, or hang the baskets outside. I was unable to find any manure, compost, worm castings, nothing like that in my small town, but luckily I still had a bit of the Acti-Sol compressed hen pellets (chicken manure in pellet form) so was able to mix that in with my potting soil instead. I went with 6 parts potting soil to less than 1 part of the pellets as they are compressed and condensed manure.

These dwarf indoor tomatoes are doing super well since they were transplanted, 3 of them are already flowering! They are in a kitchen nook that faces east but gets light from the south, as well, till I can get them out to a south facing window in the new Potting Shed.

My seedlings.

On the potting table...

The celery, peppers, eggplants all look phenomenal. The celery will stay in 6 packs till they go into the garden but I'll soon pot these peppers and eggplants up into 4" square pots. They will stay in those until they are planted outside around May long weekend (weather dependent, of course).

I have pinched back 3 of the peppers to see what I think. I have been growing peppers from seed for many years, but as most every single pepper grower that I follow never pinches them back, I have not ever done so either. You all know me and trials though, you never know until you try it yourself. So, I pinched back a few to see if there is any difference in my harvest.

My regular tomato seedlings (for the yard) have made true leaves, will be ready to transplant next week.

The Snapdragons mostly all made it! They are the tiny things hiding in the top left corner of the tray in the picture above. I dropped the tray as I was putting it on the heat mat so had to toss the soil back into the tray and hope for the best. Phew!

Last year's onions on planting day.

The onion seedlings just got their 3rd haircut and are sizing up nicely. Each time you trim them back, they put more energy into growing bigger.

Some folks worry if their onion seedlings are still kind of skinny when they plant them out, but not to worry! I have never ever had pencil thick onions to plant out unless I bought them from the wholesaler (the Walla Walla I sold at the greenhouse). My own are always smaller but always turn out fantastic.

Curing the Yellow of Parma onions so that they keep well in storage.

Here is what those tiny seedlings turned into! They grew fantastically and are still doing well in storage at the end of March. Oh, keep in mind that not all onions are good keepers. Sweet ones like Walla Walla and Vidalia will not store for long so grow those for eating first and the keepers for winter storage.

Lettuce and peas can be sown as soon as you can work in the soil.

What to Sow & Plant Now

This is the week to start all kinds of brassicas and other cool weather crops. You can start them indoors if you prefer but you all know how much I hate pre-starting so I will be direct sowing as much as I can just as soon as the snow melts. Will direct sow peas, lettuce, spinach, mustard greens. You absolutely can direct sow things like broccoli, cauliflower, all these things but I will be starting them in 6 packs and growing them inside the mini greenhouse that is inside of the unheated greenhouse. They like the cold weather and don't mind the snow.

It is also time to start anything else that says start 6 to 8 weeks before last frost. Things like marigolds, calendula, many of the companion flowers.

For my lovely island and west coast garden readers, here is a what to do in April post from the ngp days.

A couple of notes about growing your own seedlings...

First, I see folks on the gardening pages being told that they have to have lights to start stuff indoors.

This is not true. You absolutely do not need lights or bottom heat if you do not want them, or the expense. If you have a nice, bright, cool window, ideally south facing, you can grow anything you want. I personally love the heating mats as they make everything germinate faster but they are not necessary either. The key thing to remember if you do not have a heated greenhouse, lights, etc.. is to not start things too early so that they do not get too stretched out or unhappy. For those of you who love your lights and stands, that is wonderful, too!

Second... you do not have to start anything from seeds if you do not want to!

Your measure as a gardener does not come from what you start from seeds! You can buy the starts from the nursery, plant them up, and you are still 100% as much a gardener as someone who starts from seed. There are two main reasons that folks like to start from seed...

One - more varieties to choose from. Maybe they want just heirlooms, or storage onions, or a pink calendula rather than the traditional yellow or orange. Something out of the norm.

Two - they are antsy for spring, this gives them something to look forward to, to do until they can get out into the garden. They enjoy doing it.

If you are busy with life, do not want to spend the money on the soil, pots, labels, fertilisers, or maybe just cannot be bothered with the fussing... You pick up what you need from the nursery and plant it up when the weather is fine. I'll see you at the nursery, haha!

You all know how much I dislike to prestart things, hahaha. I direct sow as much as I possibly can, and I buy some things from starts. The only plants I like to prestart are the items that are different from the norm. I want what I want. I like heirloom tomatoes and a variety of eggplants, both are hard to find so I grow my own. I am also nuts about tomatoes, so there is that. I start my own peppers as I want quite a few of them for pickling and making salsa, it is cheaper to start my own. If I only wanted one or two plants, I would spend the $5 on a plant rather than a package of seeds.

I am not a big fan of yellow so I grow my own calendula, nasturtiums, tagetes type marigolds. I like to trial new things that you cannot get from the nursery, too. However, I have zero problem picking up a 6 pack of brussels, a flat of Red Disco marigolds, and flowers galore at the nursery. Being at the greenhouse makes my heart happy.

This Week's Q&A

Question - Peppers are all germinated and look good. They're about 3" away from the grow light bit some look a bit on the leggy side. Don't have the second set of leaves yet but I'm wondering how to "thicken" up the stems. Fan? How long, how often? Thoughts , please!

Tanja - Yes, a fan will definitely help. Making sure that they stay on the cool side will help a lot, too. You don't want room temperature around the clock or you will get lanky plants. Bright light but cooler temps will help keep them stocky. The fan blowing on them will help make them sturdier, too, plus will help keep the soil on the dryer side. Peppers prefer to only be watered when the surface is dry, approximately once a week.

Rose Bon Bon Cosmos

Don't forget to enter for the free giveaway. Open till Tuesday, April 2nd at midnight.

Best of Luck ~ Tanja!