The Wonder of Growing Food From Seeds
Growing food from seeds is one of the wonders of gardening and often taken for granted, but it is definitely one of the most exciting and even addictive activities. Browsing seed catalogues early in the year answers the following all important question once and for all: “Is it worth all the trouble of raising your own plants, rather than buying them ready for planting out?“ Yes, yes, yes because you are spoilt for choice.
The Organic Gardening catalogue for example lists nearly 59 varieties of tomatoes, the Irish Seed Savers offer close to 30 varieties, all produced in Co. Clare, The Organic Centre’s seed catalogue offers more than 50 varieties of lettuce from Butterhead to Cos Lettuce and Loose Leaf Type to Oriental Greens. Thompson and Morgan and Mr. Middleton have 20 different carrot seeds in their programme from Autumn King and Early Nantes to “Healthy Coloured Carrots”, specially selected for their health benefits when eaten raw, rich in antioxidants, beta carotene and Vitamin A.
We all know that the fresher the vegetables we eat, the better it is for us and our families. And the freshest vegetables we can get are from our garden. Home grown vegetables are proven to give us more vitamins, minerals and nutrients than shop bought alternatives – and they have so much more flavor too!
You might also want to grow unusual vegetables that are expensive to buy or hard to get, Kohlrabi, your seeds for your champion pumpkin, your yellow courgettes and purple beans.
Another important reason to grow from seed is to avoid the risk of introducing soil-borne diseases into your garden such as club root and eelworm. It also is more economical to grow from seed than to buy expensive transplants. Last not least it is fun and satisfying too!
For good germination there are four basic requirements:
Viable Seed.
Seeds must be of good quality and not too old. On average most seeds store for 2-4 years in a cool, dry place. Check the germination information on the package. Seeds should never be left in a hot or damp polytunnel as they will deteriorate quickly.
Correct Temperature for Germination
Each crop has a minimum, optimum and maximum temperature for germination. An average temperature for most seeds is between 16 - 20°C. Tomato seeds for example like it warm, around 20°C. On the other hand, too high a temperature can be detrimental to certain crops, i.e. lettuce does not germinate well above 24° C. There are different types of heated propagation units available with heating pads or mats with thermostat or soil warming cables.
Moisture and Air
Seeds need moisture and air to germinate. The higher the required temperature, the higher is the water uptake, but beware of overwatering the seeds as it encourages fungal diseases.
Light
Once germination has occurred, all plants require light, ideally from above. Germination on window sills works only to a degree and plants often become leggy. Note: A few vegetable seeds require light to germinate, e.g. lettuce, celery, they need to be sown shallow.
Direct sowing or sowing in trays?
At The Organic Centre we are often asked is it better to sow direct into the soil or in pots and trays. It depends on the crop is the answer. Most root crops such as carrots, beetroot, parsnips, swedes and radish are better sown directly, because they don’t transplant well. Also vegetables with large seeds such as peas and beans are generally sown direct.
Most other seeds are sown in modular or cell trays. The seedlings can then be transplanted into the prepared bed or potted on into bigger pots for another 2-4 weeks. This has the added advantage that those well established small plants are more resistant to slug attacks.
You can buy different types of plastic or polystyrene trays or you can recycle yoghurt pots and cut milk cartoons or use home made seed pouches from newspapers.
To produce quality transplants requires some skills and experience. Learn more at our course: Growing in Polytunnels with a special practical session on propagating from seed.