Testing for Germination

Don’t neglect testing saved seeds for germination percentage. Some seeds can be saved for five years if stored correctly. Plus you do get a lot of seeds in a cabbage seed packet. It would be a shame to discard these seeds if they are still usable. It would also be a waste of time to plant these seeds and discover that they will not germinate. Testing for germination before hand could keep you on your gardening schedule and closer to budget. Naturally, poor germination means that you’ll need to purchase fresh seeds. If you are going to order your seeds from a seed catalog before the “early bird special” deadline, January might be a good time for the germination test. Definitely test the seeds to be planted indoors or in the hot bed that will later be transplanted (tomatoes, cole crops, peppers, etc.) in time for their calculated seeding date.
For the germination test, usually ten seeds are used. The germination percentage is figured by multiplying the number of seeds that sprouted by ten. I will use the seeds if the germination rate is 80% or better for seeds started in the hot bed. Small seeds like lettuce and carrots, which I’ll probably plant too close anyway, 50% is the cutoff. All others it’s 70%.
I use two methods to test for germination. The quick and easy way is to moisten a paper towel and count out the ten seeds while the towel is spread on the counter top. I can get about three different types of seeds on each towel. I then fold the towel over the seeds a couple of times. I them mark the seeds by writing the names on a dry paper towel and folding it over the damp towel so the name is over the correct group of seeds. These towels are then carefully placed in a bread bag, squeezed to remove some air and then tied on the open end. I check them in two weeks to assess the progress. If germination is good I do my calculations. If germination is poor I reseal the bag and check them again the next week. I feel that three weeks is sufficient time for this test.
The second and most interesting method is to plant the seeds in potting soil and watch the progress. I often use the “cup sized” peat pots.
I use five seeds in each and multiply by 20 to get my percentages. These should be kept fairly moist but no soaked and not real close to a heat source. Labels can be placed under each pot. A variation of this method is even more exciting. Try using flower boxes with potting soil. I like planting fast germinating seeds (beans) next to slower germinating seeds (carrots) just for fun. I’m usually able to get ten seeds per area here. If I get the lettuce or carrot seeds over planted (due to the small seeds), I just observe how thickly they sprouted as my guide. I use those little plastic markers to label each group of seeds. These can be observed often without disrupting progress. Again, three weeks is the limit.

utilizing garden space

Don’t select crops that take up a lot of room for little yield (melons), grow tall and shade out other plants (corn) or take all growing season to reach maturity (winter squash). A worse scenario would be a combination of the above (pumpkins). The average home gardener wants to utilize space and growing time to best advantage. Most of us plant a garden to have out favorite vegetables readily available and fresh. You might say, “Some crops just have to be planted at home.”
Most crops have their advantages and disadvantages. Having the prize pumpkin at the local fair may mean sacrificing space for more bountiful crops, depending on your garden size. Most home gardeners want to make optimum use of their garden space. One way of doing this is by secession planting, i.e., planting a second crop where an earlier crop has matured, been harvested and is no longer productive. Some crops, such as lettuce, spinach and peas should be planted in very early spring (mid-march) and are done producing when there is still up to three months left in the growing season. These crops can be followed by crops that mature within that time or ones that are able to stand light frosts at the end of the season. For example, you can plant bush beans right after your frost-free date for a crop in two months. A second crop of fresh beans is always welcome. Lettuce, however, can be planted as early as six weeks before beans. They then usually begin to bolt while the first planting of beans is still in blossom. The lettuce row can be dug under and a row of beans planted for a steady supply.
Succession planting takes planning and some understanding of individual crop needs. Heavy feeding crops (large leaf or heavy producing plants) are usually followed by light feeding plants (root crops and/or small leaf plants). Also, heavy feeders usually follow light feeder. Seed catalogs (good reference tools) usually provide information on days to maturity. Side dressings of compost or manure tea help provide the nourishment used by the initial crop.
Some crops are in the garden all or most of the season but do not take up a lot of space. Peppers need only about 10 inches between them and the rows on each side. They do start producing a little late but production continues until frost or piccalilli time. Tomatoes produce long vines, but the good news is that they be staked or caged to give them vertical growth and thus take up less space. Naturally, perennials need to be in an “out of the way” place. Herbs make good container plants. Like all container plants, they need watered often.
Planning for succession planting is a good wintertime project. Right after the seed catalogs arrive is a good planning time. If you are like us, you like to eat what is in season and fresh. Having a variety of in season crops provides more and healthier choices. Don’t forget to use the cold frame to get crops started earlier and kept going later.

Permanent Crops

There are certain crops that need to have their roots remain where they were planted. These remain in the same spot for several years. Therefore, they should be planted where they will not be disturbed. An edge of the garden is usually preferred. This is especially true if your garden is fenced in, which is advisable. Most permanent crops grow too tall to plant toward the center of the garden. We’ll talk about the growing characteristics of four popular permanent crops. Hopefully, this will help determine the best location for your particular situation. We will discuss planting requirements later.

My favorite is asparagus. Asparagus is usually started by planting roots in fairly deep trenches. That is a clue that you don’t want to plant it every year. Another factor is that asparagus doesn’t produce the first season and not a full crop even during the second season. The good news is that from the third season on, you’ll have good eating for several years. Asparagus needs the summer to grow its stalks to nourish itself for the next spring harvest. These stalks grow four to five or more feet tall and thus shade any crops that are on the north or west of them. It’s probably not the crop to plant in center row of the garden.

Horseradish is my second favorite permanent crop. It is planted using the top inch of a root along with part of the stalk and leaves. Horseradish is best given a full season to mature. It too will last several years if cared for properly. Horseradish leaves can grow to over knee high. It can shade lower growing crops planted in the rows north or west of it. Horseradish will spread to unwanted areas if disturbed by tilling. The root parts form new plants and since they grow deep into the soil, they are hard to get rid of. Also, horseradish roots should only be harvested in months that contain an R. This means that at the height of the gardening season horseradish is refueling itself for September through April. You have to work around it all summer.

I like strawberries but not enough to plant them. I graduated from three universities but the birds and other varmints outsmart me every time I try my luck at strawberries. Strawberries are started from plants. They also don’t produce a full crop the first season. Gardeners usually pick off the blossoms the first season to allow the plant to strengthen itself to produce fruit and send out “runners” the following seasons. The runners are the plants that are used for future plantings. Expect a crop the second season and several seasons to come, if you can out fox the enemies. Strawberry plants are low growing so they probably won’t pose a shad problem for other crops. They might work out well away from the edge of the garden.

Rhubarb is another permanent crop that produces high and large leaves that will crowd out others crops. Rhubarb is a rather rapid growing plant, so it might shade other crops before they get a chance for a good growth start. It too is a crop that is planted as a root. Rhubarb, if well nourished, can last for several years. It’s another crop that is best planted on the garden’s edge. Eat the stalks but not the leaves. The leaves will give you a belly ache.

Freezing

Think of Thanksgiving dinner with all the vegetables being from your own garden. Some fresh (parsley, chives, Brussels sprouts and carrots), some from the cool spot in the basement (cabbage, onions and celery), some canned (salsa, bread and butter pickles, green beans) and others frozen (corn, snap peas and summer squash made to taste like apple sauce). Leftover turkey sandwiches taste even better with homemade horseradish, pickled peppers and/or dill pickles. This is a reality for many home gardeners. Maybe not all this the first year, but it is certainly attainable.
Houses used to have “root cellars.” These were little rooms in the basement built to keep the house heat out but not cold enough to freeze. These were used to store vegetables whole for a few weeks. Crops like cabbage, carrots, Brussels sprouts, celery, potatoes and peppers were picked right before the first frost. Some are stored as they are on a shelf, some tied and hung and others require some sort of container. Garlic and onions can be hung where it is room temperature. It is not unusual for these crops to keep until Thanksgiving in most areas of the country.
Most of our Thanksgiving guests look forward to our homegrown corn – yellow or white – your choice. We like our corn frozen rather than canned. It requires less work than canning! We also have the advantage of a large freezer. The freezer is the big expense for this method of preserving. It’s well worth it if you can make good use of it. A freezer is also good for storing meat, fruit and leftovers.

Here are a few things to consider when planning to freeze your surplus crops:
1. Harvest to freezer in three hours or less. Vegetables loose nutrients and flavor rather quickly after being picked. Have everything ready before hand. Gardening takes some planning. It’s part of the challenge. Make room in the freezer. Have freezing supplies on the table. Lineup a helper or two. Get the water on for blanching.
2. Almost all vegetables need blanched before freezing. Blanching is a quick boiling of the vegetable to be frozen. There is also a steam blanching procedure. Most of us use the boiling water method. The hot water (or steam) is required to greatly reduce the enzymes that cause loss of nutrients, color and flavor. Here is how it is done. Get a half filled pan of water boiling. Add vegetables until they are covered with water. When the water begins to boil again, dump the container into a colander in the sink or laundry tub. Quickly plunge the vegetables into a container of iced water. Hurry and get the original pot ready if necessary. Stir them around so they all cool. Pour again into the colander. Now you are ready to pack into containers.
3. There are a limited number of freezer coverings. These include freezer paper, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, vacuum-sealed laminated bags, zip lock freezer bags, plastic containers and even glass jars. Check your canning/freezing book for advantages and disadvantages of each. We use freezer bags for freezing our surplus produce, containers for leftovers and none of the others for long-term storage.

Examples:
Freezing corn isn’t a bad chore. We pick enough corn for about 25 quart bags. Experience helps here. While I’m “shucking” it, my helper (wife) is getting the water boiling. We put in about a dozen ears at a time. Meanwhile the iced water is getting ready in a big canner. We remove the corn after it boils about five minutes. We take them out an ear at a time to keep the hot water for the next batch. I cut off the kernels and my wife fills the bags. She leaves a little room for the expansion of moisture. We also freeze several ears for a treat at the Memorial Day cook out. We spread out the filled bags in the freezer until they are frozen solid. Then we arrange then in some semblance of order.
With sauerkraut, we just clean up the top mess and place the good stuff in a colander to rinse off some of the salt required for processing, i.e., fermenting. We then pack the bags from the colander place in the freezer. We do not blanch sauerkraut. It works for us.

As stated above, gardening takes planning. Winter is a good time to plan your work. The growing seasons are when you work your plan.

Do Plant By The Moon

No, I don’t mean that you have to work into the night to have a successful garden. I should have said, “Plant by the phases/cycles of the Moon”. Planting by Moon phases has been an established practice for hundreds of years. Chances are there is something to it. I really don’t know the science behind “Moon planting,” but I can tell you the theory.
There are vegetables that produce crops (the edible portion) above ground. These include anything you harvest without digging – tomatoes, peppers, okra, beans, etc. The theory is that these crops should be planted during the light (waxing) of the Moon, that is from the day that the Moon turns new until it becomes full. Flowers planted from seeds fall into this category. A good way to remember this theory is to think, “the vegetables that receive light should be planted by the light of the Moon (new to full).”
The vegetables that are produced under ground and therefore do not receive sunlight on their surface should be planted during the dark of the Moon, that is, right after the full Moon until the day before the new Moon. This is also called the waning Moon. Flowers planted as bulbs fall into this planting cycle. Remember, it’s dark underground and these crops should be planted during the dark of the Moon (full to new).
You’ll need to consult your calendar to determine the Moon favorable phases. You’ll notice that you have about a two-week window with which to work during each phase or cycle. Watch weather reports to determine the most ideal planting conditions for your window of opportunity. You don’t want to plant if the conditions are poor (cold temperatures, wet soil or a prediction of a late frost). An Old Farmer’s Almanac may even provide the ideal planting days for each garden crop.
I mark these ideal planting times on my planner, but if the conditions are right, I plant. I make an effort to plant by the Moon, but go with gut feeling most of the time. I’m just throwing this out as an established practice. I think that it is such an established tradition that I use it if I feel that it is feasible to fall within the two-week window. Get an opinion from the “old folks” who have been successful gardeners.
As a side note, some old timers say that there is even an ideal Moon phase to set fence posts. Consider carefully what some say about crazy activities and more babies being conceived during the full Moon phase. I’d say by the time the Moon is visible, it is time to relax for the night. A little at a time gets the job done!

catalogs as reference material

Do use your seed catalogs as reference material. A lot of necessary information can be found in a seed/plant catalog. For one thing, they supply color pictures of fruit and vegetables they offer. They provide data on days to maturity, approximate number of seed per packet or plants per offer and some requirements for best yields, such as if some sort of support is required as with some peas, tomatoes and cucumbers. The length of row that can be planted from each packet is also provided. They usually tell which varieties are resistant to certain plant diseases and which do well in cooler weather and which require warm temperatures. They tell if the seeds are treated and for what.
Important information is provided for specific crops. For example there is a code given to indicate the sweetness level of sweet corn. They indicate if tomatoes are determinate (ripening only over a short time, i.e., 3-5 weeks) or indeterminate (ripening all season). Catalogs give the approximate size of each tomato or ear of corn, as well as what to expect from other crops. A lot of them suggest which preserving method is best suited for that particular vegetable.
All this information is meant to sell you the variety that best suits your needs. It is also good for planning. You’ll know which crops mature and complete their growing cycle in time to plant a second crop in time for a harvest. Knowing which crops won’t do well in mid-summer can save time and seeds, not to mention the frustration. It is important to know which are the low growing plants and keep them on the southern side of the higher crops. Once you have made your crop selection, you can record this information on your garden planner while the catalog is still open. With all this information, perhaps they should start charging for seed catalogs!

Composting

Do plan to make compost for your new or existing garden. Composting is the single best thing you can do for your garden soil. It provides enrichment and also gives the soil that desired loamy texture. Completed compost is a complex garden ingredient. However, it is not complicated to make. All it takes is a little time and a few inexpensive or free ingredients. Free materials such as grass clippings and/or leaves and a few shovelfuls of your garden soil are layered with manure and ground limestone and allowed the ferment until the time to be applied to the garden, usually with the spring tilling. Compost can be made in a bin or on an open pile. The bin is neater but requires the expense of lumber or fence to form a cube like structure. The pile is made in the open by stacking the layers in a dome shaped structure. Both work well. The bin is the usual choice of the gardener with a small plot.

Besides the lumber for the bin, the limestone and manure should be your only expense. Some farmers a happy to give away manure if you are willing to haul it. It is also sold in bags at garden supply stores. About four 50 pound bags should be enough for one bin or pile. Three 30 pound bags of ground limestone should do the trick.

A four foot cube makes a nice size. Begin the pile with a six foot diameter and work up to about four feet. Start the bottom layer with a rough material such as corn stalks or straw. The next layer are about one foot each. The thickest part of each layer is the carbon material, leaves, grass clippings, etc. Follow this with a layer of manure (one bag or equal) then a half bag of lime and a few shovelfuls of garden soil. Continue this procedure until you run out of material or room in the bin. Sprinkle each layer with a watering can of water as you go. Now let nature do its work.

If you don’t have the time or space to make your own compost a great source in the Pittsburgh area is AgRecycle.