Seed Starting as MOTHER's Gardeners Do It

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The seed is awakened in the darkness of the Earth, The leaves are quickened in the power of the Air, And all fruit is ripened in the might of the Sun. So awakens the Soul in the shrine of the Heart. So quickens the Spirit in the Light of the World. So ripens man's power in the glory of God.

Rudolf Steiner, Verses and Meditations

Between the gleaming fantasies in seed catalogs and the mishmashed cornucopia that is a full-blown summer garden stand the tiny kernels known as seeds. Seed starting is the first-and therefore most important-task of the gardener's year. Unless you go to the expense of buying all your garden plants (which will severely restrict your varietal choices) or simply wait for the weather to warm up enough to sow everything directly in the ground (which will severely curtail the length of your growing season), you'll want to start many of your future foods and flowers indoors . . . in containers . . . under close personal supervision.

The little home births you'll be attending demand a lot of knowledgeable care. To help you in this seminal adventure, we'll share here the way that Walker and Olivia Abel, MOTHER's Eco-Village gardeners, tend their own spring starts. Every year, the couple successfully raises approximately 50 flats-with up to 200 seeds per tray—of plants from seed. In other words, they know what they're doing. So, while there are plenty of other good seed-starting systems (you may have another approach that works fine for you), we think you'll find the following account of the Abels' techniques helpful . . . and potentially quite money-saving, too.

MATERIALS

Walker and Olivia are both biodynamic/French intensive gardeners: They trained in the Santa Cruz garden program begun by BFI's founder, Alan Chadwick. [EDITOR'S NOTE: For more on BFI, see "MOTHER's Minigardens Experiment" on page 56.] While they've adapted "the method" to suit their own needs and experiences, they still rely heavily on this sensitive, natural system of gardening. And one highly worthwhile part of that heritage is making their own planting materials.

So if you're going to follow in the Abels' seed-starting steps, the first thing you'll need to do is to make wooden seed trays. Sturdy and inexpensive, the Abels' boxes are made from cedar or redwood (both species resist rotting and are less likely than other woods to harbor diseases).

All you have to do is nail together sides of 3"-wide wood and then nail on some bottom slats, leaving 1/8" gaps between the lower boards so excess water can drain out. Our growers generally construct their flats to measure 12" X 24". Don't make yours much bigger-a tray full of plants and wet soil can get pretty heavy!

Next, you can make your own soil mix to go in the flats. Not only will this save you money, but it will also let you provide the optimum living soil for your plants.

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