sun1shine1's Blog

After finally settling on a plot size, determining what to actually plant in it, how to edge and fill the plot, and clearing off ALL of the sod, I proudly planted my first seeds the other day for a fall crop. I checked on them the next morning and offered them a little drink - their peat pellets having grown a lighter brown in the July heat of south Louisiana. I was practically tasting the corn, peas, and lettuce. This morning, however, death and destruction were on my mind. Every single peat pellet had been hollowed out during the night with some of the ghastly evidence of seed destruction still lying close to the scene of the crime. I had never lost an entire set of seeded peat pellets in such a short period of time. Yeah sure some would dry out, others wouldn't have anything sprout, and others would mold, but of the 72 peat pellets (that I had seeded based on a table I made in Word), I don't think I have a single one left.

How best to restart at this point? Should I try sowing directly in the ground? Being that I don't know exactly what ate my seeds, I may just be laying out the buffet. On the other hand, I don't know that I'll be able to find anymore peat pellets at the local stores. I've been brainstorming about makeshift miniature greenhouses. I'm thinking about getting (begging for) some of the clear plastic bakery containers. I'm currently thinking that 3-4 of those could cover some little peat pellets at least long enough for some seeds to sprout. I'll need to sleep on this...