Planting a Seed

So the first steps for the process in getting the vegetable program up and running was to get a head start on some of the vegetables that take a longer time to grow. Getting the seedlings germinated early means that the full length of the growing season can be utilised. Planting a seed is a very basic process and the packets of seeds come with instructions on the back. I have a small porch at the front of my house which has some nice big windows, giving enough sun light and warmth for the seeds to have a good chance of germination.If you have a greenhouse or poly tunnel, well lucky you and by all means use it!

germination is just simply the process of the seed being planted into the compost, dying and the new plant emerging. This sounds like a pretty mundane process but believe me when you see your wee seedlings pushing up through the compost, there is a great sense of achievement and an ownership to something you helped create.

Seedling Trays: So firstly we just bought some cheap trays with about 40 sections in each. These are really good because when it comes to moving them on to their final destination, you can take the block of compost out and replant it without disturbing the root system too much. Its a good idea to prepare some water the night before in a container because it takes 12 hours for our ordinary tap water to loose the chlorine. Chlorine is not very good for the new seedling as it will damage the sensitive seed.








Compost:Use a seed starter compost which really just a very fine mix with very little lumps and and other larger organic matter. You can use your own compost or manure but I found that the germination rate (number of seeds to actually produce a plant) was a lot lower. These bags of compost are a very reasonable price and because you don't need a lot of it to fill the small trays its well worth it.