Maintaining the Seedlings in My Greenhouse
Today is the first official day of spring and here at my Bedford, New York farm, we're expecting plentiful sunshine with temperatures in the high 50s.
Inside my main greenhouse, all the seeds we started for the gardening season are growing nicely - most of them are from Johnny's Selected Seeds, a source I've used for many years. Soon, it will be time to transplant them into the outdoor vegetable and flower beds, but for now, they are being nurtured indoors where temperature, humidity and light can be properly controlled. Starting from seed is not difficult to do, but it does require careful attention and patience. And, once the seedlings start to develop, it’s important to keep up with maintenance care - thin out seedlings that are weak, prick out those that are growing too big for their seed starting trays, and transplant them into larger pots and flats.
Enjoy these photos.
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- These seedlings are in different stages of growth. They were planted from seed over the last few weeks. As they germinate and begin to mature, it’s important to check their development, so they continue to thrive.
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- Regardless of how perfect seeds may appear, germination is never guaranteed, so multiple seeds are always planted in each seed starting tray cell. This provides a better chance at least one or two in each cell will take root. When the seedlings are a couple inches tall, and have reached their “true leaf” stage, which is when each seedling has sprouted a second set of leaves, it’s time for a process called selective thinning. Selective thinning prevents overcrowding, so seedlings don’t have competition for soil nutrients or room to grow.
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- Brian prepares a series of flats with larger potting cells. The growing seedlings will be moved into these slightly larger trays.
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- These flats have individual pots which will accommodate seedlings in a different stage of growth and those that grow more quickly. Experiment with pots to see which ones work best for what plants. And, always choose containers or trays that have proper drainage holes at the bottom. Johnny’s offers a huge variety of seedling trays and containers.
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- A good quality organic mix designed for seedlings will be fast draining, and light. It will usually contain sphagnum moss and perlite or vermiculite. These mixes are formulated to encourage strong, healthy growth in new plants.
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- Working in a production line process and filling a lot of trays first is an efficient way to work – there are many seeds to transplant.
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- These tools are very useful for transplanting seedlings. A very small shovel, a large pair of tweezers and the tool on the far right is called a widger. It has a convex stainless steel blade that delicately separates the tiny plants – it’s also from Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
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- Ryan starts with some snapdragons. Using the tweezers, he starts thinning – carefully inspecting the seedlings to determine the strongest ones. Always look for fleshy leaves, upright stems, and center positioning in the space. The smaller, weaker, more spindly looking seedlings are removed, leaving only the stronger ones to mature.
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- Once selective thinning is complete, there should only be one, or two seedlings if they are very small, in each cell of the seed starting tray or container.
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- Here, he takes two strong seedlings at a time. He carefully loosens the soil around the seedling with the widger and lifts the seedling. The widger also helps to avoid damage to the plant’s leaves, or roots.
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- Then he replants them into a cell of the larger flat.
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- The stronger plants now have more room to grow before getting transplanted into larger pots or straight into the ground.
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- Next, Ryan takes care of a flat of peppers. All these seedlings look so healthy.
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- Here is one pulled out and ready to be transplanted. Its leaves are bright green and the plant has a strong stem.
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- Ryan shows two seedlings for comparison. The one on the left is strong and healthy. The one on the right is smaller with a weaker root system. The smaller specimen would likely not survive the entire growing process, so Ryan only transplants the larger of the two.
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- The purpose of transplanting is to provide enough room – overcrowding can stress the sprouts.
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- Using a finger, Ryan pokes one hole into each cell for the plant. The end of a thick marker pen can also be used.
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- He places the seedling in the hole and gently firms up the surrounding soil. Avoid handling the seedling by its tender stems, which can bruise easily.
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- These look so much better in the larger containers. Ryan also makes sure to move the markers appropriately, so the plants are always well-identified.
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- On one side is the pepper variety.
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- And on the back side, Ryan places a letter to indicate the color of the pepper – this “R” is for red pepper.
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- Soil from the old flat is placed into a trug bucket and then dumped in the compost pile.
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- Once seedlings are transferred, they’re given a good drink of water and returned to the greenhouse to continue growing. The large windows in my greenhouse help to concentrate heat and sunshine to maximize plant growth. The trays are placed on a heat mat specifically designed for seedlings. It warms the area and helps to improve root growth and increase germination rate.
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- Next, Ryan spreads a good amount of fertilizer over the plants. We use Tomato-Tone, a natural organic fertilizer that’s good for both flowers and vegetables. Tomato-Tone contains eight-percent calcium to help prevent blossom end rot and it is long lasting with slow-release feeding.
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- And then they all get another good drink. Keep all seed starting trays moist and in a warm, sunny place. I dedicate an entire table in my greenhouse for seedings – it is so nice to be able to grow vegetables and flowers during the months in preparation for spring when they are moved outdoors. Happy spring to all of you. Soon, we’ll be back in the gardens!
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