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04-08-2011, 12:25 PM

#30

Flying_V_Goddess

Super Member

Join Date: Mar 2007

Location: Wisconsin

Posts: 1,703

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jshep

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flying_V_Goddess

I love to garden! Last year I started my own plants, but kind of went over board (had something like 30 tomato plants for example) and then I got my job on overnights so I couldn't tend my garden during the day. Hopefully this year will work out better. I haven't started as many plants.

And I'm also making my own seed tape. I used to think seed tape was stupid until I planted a 15' row of perfectly spaced carrots and radishes. Not only did it take two hours to do it was cold and it started to rain halfway through...and I was determined to get them planted so I
stayed out there freezing until I was finished. Takes me about the same time to mark and glue seeds to a long strip of newspaper, but at least that time isn't going to be spent out in the cold or being wet.

Boy next year I've got to start my own seed. I made the mistake this year by buying all plants. Cost a small fortune plus the added costs of having someone break it up for me, then having to buy new soaking hoses. But, I'm learning. I just hope after being out this much expense, the garden does well.

Well, if you're not planting a full garden then I think buying plants is the way to go. But if you have a decent sized garden, want to try different plant varieties, or don't want to wait on the garden centers then I think see starting is the way to go.

If you do seed start next year I suggest water your seedlings with chamomile tea. I tried seed starting before my gardening job in '09 and they kept dying as soon as they woul sprout...later figured out during my summer job they were getting infected with a fungus called "damping off". Once seedlings get it they are doomed. When I started seed starting last year I read somewhere chamomile tea is a mild fungcide so I used it on my plants. I think it worked because the seeds that did sprout didn't die. This year I got a cheap 12 cup coffee pot and that's made it a lot easier to make tea (I do one tea bag per pot). So the tea helps in addition to good air circulation, watering from the bottom, and using sterile starting mix.

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