Living in Michigan keeps us forever guessing, and the scene above is how our deck looked when we woke up Monday morning…in the middle of April. But spring really is here because it’s seed planting time! As a matter of fact, we should’ve had these going a couple weeks ago.
We have a new Real Food Media sponsor!
So this is the perfect time to tell you about our new sponsor: Seeds of Change. They recently gave away 100 million organic seeds as part of their “Sowing Millions” Project, and yes, you read that number right! The picture on the left shows some of the seeds they sent me. 
All summer RFM bloggers will be writing about our own gardens (and I’m also going to tell you about the new community garden here in town because Bob & Sonia bought a plot there!) and we’re hoping you’ll join us by sharing how your gardening is going, too.
Ask questions during the Earth Day Tweet Chat!
You can ask Seeds of Change and other RFM bloggers all your gardening questions (or share your own expertise!) tomorrow during a Tweet chat, here are the details:
Date: Tomorrow, 4/22/11
Time: 2:00 pm-3:00 pm Eastern
Place: http://tweetchat.com/room/sowingmillions
You can also win prizes for participating, so check out Ann Marie’s post on this for more information on the five gift baskets they’re giving away!
(Note: I’m not going to be in on this chat since it’s Good Friday, but I look forward to joining in next month!)
Here we go!
This week we are getting our seeds planted using this tray I found at the store:
Except I’m throwing away those little dried dirt pellets and using our own because it’s not organic soil. That little bit may not matter much, but it’s what my organic Seeds of Change seeds will be starting in, so I want to keep it all organic.
Our friend, Brother Andy, suggested one of those trays with a cover since we haven’t had good luck growing seeds in the past, and he says this cover provides a moisture-rich terrarium type of environment that seeds do well in. I’ll keep it by our slider so it’s warm, and move it to the deck on sunny days as spring progresses. (I’m curious, do any of you use one of those for starting seeds??)
Our herbs need to get outside!
I especially can’t wait to get my herbs back outside. Last year they did pretty well inside all winter, but this year the parsley and oregano are getting straggly and seem to really be yearning for the sun and the outdoors. Aren’t we all?! They’re dropping a lot more dried leaves than last year, too. The thyme and rosemary are hanging in there pretty well, they must not be as fussy. I also am excited to plant more basil (we didn’t get that one inside in time last year before the frost, as you can see in the first picture above!), because I want some Caprese salad! I absolutely LOVE having herbs in the house over the winter (even though I’m sick of vacuuming up the mess), because they smell so fresh and add such flavor and depth to my cooking that otherwise seems so blah in those long cold months.
More about how to join in on the fun!
- Find Seeds of Change on Facebook or Twitter where you can post your own gardening tips, updates and pictures! (More likely I’ll be sharing my own struggles there and begging for your help, because I’m no expert, that’s for sure.)
- When you’re Tweeting, use this special hash tag, #sowingmillions, so it’s easier to follow the conversations.Your turn!So jump in down in the comments or at the above links to let us know where you’re at with your 2011 gardening. Have you started yet? Are you in a climate where you’re actually eating some of your fresh produce yet?
$40 worth of Safe Sexy Stainless Steel!
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Harversting lots of greens (lettuce, spinach, arugula, tatsoi, and other mustards). Just transplanted 60 tomato plants today, and planted squash, cukes and beans earlier in the week.
…Tim
Youza, how big is your garden? (Ours is still small-ish.)
We are growing on 1/2 acre of cultivated land this year, but I am selling quite a bit – Just got my first restaurant customer and they are ordering LOTS of greens.
Alaska is looking greener than your deck, for now! Oh course it will probably snow again. We concentrate on cool season plants. Carrots grow especially sweet here!
I recommend a gardening book called “Teaming With Microbes”. It is really about the soil food web. The book talks about how chemical fertilizers and pesticides kill the natural balance in the soil, preventing the plants from taking up nutrients and defending themselves against disease. It also teaches a few simple things that can replace that balance. Honestly, it was like the authors were talking about what chemicals and preservatives do to our body (especially to our gut).
Isn’t that SO interesting, the similarities between soil health and gut health?!
I am in Virginia. I started some seed last month in a tray like you have. I had saved some tomato and pepper seeds from last year and got some of them to germinate. So we’ll see how they do. I started some beet seeds inside because our garden wasn’t ready yet, but I transplanted them today. They seem so fragile I hope they make it. I’ve started parsley and morjoram. They are coming along. I have loads of herb seeds to plant. I just don’t know where to put them all!
My husband and I recently moved to South Korea (for his job). One of the saddest things about moving (besides leaving friends and family, of course!) was not having a YARD for a garden (almost everyone lives in high rise apartments here and there is very little space, let alone grass or earth to plant in). For my birthday, my husband cleared out one of our porches in our apartment, put in some shelving and set up a little area for an indoor “garden” of sorts. I”m so excited!! It faces the sun and gets plenty of good lighting. Now, to decide what to plant…..Next week we’re going shopping for containers, seeds, dirt and plants!
Sarah, did you see this post that Jenny just did about which foods grow best in containers?
http://nourishedkitchen.com/cold-weather-container-crops/
I’ll bet if you did some googling you’d find more good-for-container veggies. What a sweet gift from your hubs.
I am SO excited about my garden this year! First, I bought all of my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. They have the most amazing selection of Heirloom seeds (nothing Hybrid!), and provide a ton of great info on planting, and saving seeds.
I have 8 types of tomatoes, 6 types of peppers, green beans, yellow beans, and purple beans, beets, carrots, yellow squash, buttercup squash, pie pumpkins, lemon cukes, 2 types of basil, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, oregano, chives, and parsley. (I have a brand spankin’ new dehydrator, and I can’t wait to dry my own herbs!!!) Oh, and I also have blueberry bushes planted last year (HA! I convinced hubby to pull our decorative shrubbery and replace it with blueberries!) and raspberry bushes, and rhubarb that is in it’s 3rd year, so looking forward to lots of that this year!
But the best part of all is that after lots of research, and then confirming that our soil is not that great for gardening…this year, we are in the midst of building square foot raised garden beds. I’ll be able to best utilize the limited sunny space I have, and come up with the very best organic soil mix for my plants.
Every year I am more passionate about my garden, and this year I am so giddy I can hardly wait to plant! Tomatoes and Peppers are all started on our 4 season sun porch…I love watching everything pop up!
Hi Kelly and everyone! I am growing herbs and tomatoes this year, and helping my friend JoAnna with her garden. JoAnna showed me how to start seeds, and my basil seeds have little tails! After Easter I am going to plant them in a little seed container like yours (also with my own organic dirt). JoAnna is starting the tomato seeds (that is a little much for me). Almost all seeds are heirloom organic by a local seed producer here a little north of Grand Rapids, Michigan, called Annie’s Heirloom Seeds. Her web site is at http://www.anniesheirloomseeds.com and she is alo on Facebook. I also have containers of herbs around the house and (heated) garage that I am going to bring outside. I am looking for a good way to preserve tomatoes, since I am trying to do it without a pressure cooker. Any ideas?
Christina – tomatoes are easy to can. Because of their high acid content, they don’t need a pressure canner. A water bath canner is all you need for canning any kind of tomato product. The Ball Blue Book is the best canning resource!
And Wow! Thank you Christina for that link! I love that there is an Heirloom Seed Co, here local in West. MI! How exciting!
I just picked up my 40 plum tomato plants today from a local farmer! We always grow at least 40 every year plus beans, peppers, cukes, zukes, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, potatoes, and snap peas. I haven’t grown plants from seeds indoors for the past few years because of always having a toddler around.
This year, I am experimenting with growing potatoes in tubs to save space. I’m also hoping for a higher yield than I’ve gotten with my raised beds. I share the progress on my garden every Tuesday if anyone else wants to join in.
About canning tomatoes – I would check with your local extension office. I don’t think water bath canning is recommended anymore for tomatoes because the acidic content has been reduced. However, that might not be the case with heirloom tomatoes. I always do mine in a pressure canner which is really easy and takes less time than a water bath.
I started onion, broccoli & cauliflower seeds in that tray this year. They grew so tall and at times have wilted over and become entangled with one another. I don’t know if they’ll even turn out, some got bent/broken as I tried to gently separate them. I think I’ll just do them in plastic cups next year to keep them from getting tangled.
I was wondering how that’s going to go as things grow taller, now I know what to expect soon, maybe I can direct them away from each other somehow…
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