Seed Starting as MOTHER's Gardeners Do It

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Next, fill the tray with your sowing mix, dropping a corner of the flat from a short height once or twice to help the mixture settle and fill the box evenly. Run a board that's wider than the tray along the top of the soil to level and smooth it. And then tamp the mix some with a smaller board to pack it a bit.

Done? Then get your seed packet, hold it over the tray (so if you spill any precious plant starters, they'll land in your soil), and tear open-but wait! Did you make labels? Always label each flat (or flat section) before you sow. Use a Popsicle stick, or something similar, on which you've written the name of the plant-including the variety-the date sown, and your source . . . all in indelible ink. Fail to do this step beforehand, and you'll pay in confusion later.

Now you can sow your seeds. You may just want to sprinkle them from the packet, dribble them off the edge of your hand, or run them through your thumb and forefinger. However you work, be sure you distribute the seeds evenly-Walker and Olivia often start at the corners and edges to make sure they don't miss those hard-to-get spaces before they sow in the middle of the tray. And don't be afraid to plant more seeds than you think you'll need ... you can always thin the weakest seedlings later.

Then lightly sift some additional soil mix over the flat to a depth of three to five times the smallest diameter of the seeds (use a kitchen sieve or the like and stir the mix as you sift, or mostly sand will fall out). Don't overdo it. Go light, rather than heavy, on this topping for now.

How close should you set your seeds? That depends on whether you plan to transplant the young seedlings to another flat for a time before you set them out in the garden. MOM's growers favor this two-step plant starting approach because it allows them to start their seeds densely. Seeds seem to germinate and grow better in clusters that form little microclimates than when spaced farther apart. It also gives the Abels an opportunity to provide the soil nutrition that's most appropriate for each stage of growth . . . and to start more seeds (so they can cull the least healthy ones while transplanting). Repeated transplanting is even said to stimulate root growth in much the same way that pruning does!

If you're going to "prick out" (as it's called) your starts to a second flat, broadcast your seeds about one-half inch apart. If, however, you intend to keep your seedlings in the same tray until set-out time, try to sow the kernels about one to two inches apart.

Oftentimes, you'll have room to plant more than one type of seed in a single flat. When that happens, lay a stick border or two on top to divide the tray surface into sections, cover areas with cardboard (or whatever) when they're not being sown, to prevent misplaced seeding . . . and make sure you label each section! The best "flatmates" are plants that have pretty much the same germination and growth rates. Then you can transplant the whole trayful at once and cause less root disturbance.

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