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Posted: Feb/10/2009 1:53 PM PST
Hi, my name is Kat and I am new both to this site and to gardening. The past few years I have expressed interest to my family of wanting to grow a vegetable garden in our yard, and this year we have decided to do it. I have three children, two are 'older' (6 and 9) who are excited to learn how to garden as well. I started off by buying some mini greenhouse containers to germinate the vegetables I want to grow. Some of the veggies and fruits we hope to grow are Asparagus,Strawberries, potatoes, white onion, Romaine, chives, basil, tomatoes, carrots, snap peas, beans, broccoli, cucumber, and zucchini. I did buy some watermelon and sweet corn, but those won't be planted near the rest. The Asparagus, potatoes, onions and strawberries I bought as 2yr old plants, so I recognize those should be planted in larger containers until as soon as it gets warmer. My question is how long can I keep the remaining veggies (Romaine, basil, chives, tomatoes, carrots, snap peas, beans, broccoli, cucumber and zucchini) in the miniature green house pods until I have to transport them to the garden? I don't think we will start having consistently warm nights of over 40 until Mid March, and I know not all of those should be planted this season. Most the plants say that they will germinate 10-20 days after planted. Is it a must for me to transplant them into the garden as soon as they germinate? Can I keep them in the greenhouses for 4 weeks? 8 weeks? 2? I can't seem to find the answer to this online. I appreciate any advise and/or input. |
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Posted: Feb/10/2009 3:37 PM PST
I keep mine in th pods until Planting time, usually Memorial Day weekend here. Except for the cole crops of course. I have lots of seeds starting now, and will move them out to the cold frames starting end of March,all through April. |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 7:32 AM PST
Quote: Originally posted by katskradle22 Is it a must for me to transplant them into the garden as soon as they germinate? Can I keep them in the greenhouses for 4 weeks? 8 weeks? 2? I can't seem to find the answer to this online.well my knowledge is tomatoes peppers an herbs mostly herbs in containers so you have a heads up nowthen i have like 7 pepper plants plus afew outher things i started in a mug that was filled with seed starting stuffs with like 2inches left on top caue i was gonna putt plastic wrap on it an leave it light from a window they germanited awesomely so well i had ta take the plastic wrap off they have been in that same mug but sitting getting light from the aerogarden for atleast a month now an i KNOW its like past transplant time i am eighter gonna do individual pots like what id buy them in or a bigger pot so somethin ta think of i have the plasticwrap in the mug i can see some roots but not as many as when there was mint in there onto youre remaining plants that youre gonna start the ones i know about LOL the chives i dont think theres anything specal carewise containers+zone5 left outside=0 survival but they like most pouthers need water basil well if you want it to keep fer leaves nip any flowerheads when you start to see outherwise all energy goes to seeds after like 2/3rds of the season let iot flower then harvest the seeds then youll have some for next year too tomatoes most if you bury just a little deeper they say you get a more lush plant you get more fruits an tomatoes LOVE when while youre watering if you get there leaves wet too infact i suggest everytime you ater hit there leaves too carrots start the seeds outside outherwise theyll be wierd --we did carrots years ago i dont remember too much was when i was really young before i started containers peas an beans were years ago too at my uncles in a raised bed dont know if theres much i can really say there cukes an zyucinni there kinda like tomatoes in watering likes aka water well an youll see happy plants --note my uncle has a garden every year too i help him with it but in the end its his garden tho sometimes it seems i care for it more then him |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 8:06 AM PST
Thank you for your information. I am wondering if I should raise some of these in containers, and others in the ground. I would like to do tomatoes in containers, but I am confused because from what I've read, the tomato roots go 18-24 inches into the ground, but most people talk about planting them in a 5 gal bucket or equivalent. Do they not *have* to have that space? The kids are excited We are going to start planting some of the seeds in the pods tonight. Do I not need to put a full spectrum light on it until they germinate, or will it need the light from the moment it's planted? Thank you for everyones help! |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 10:00 AM PST
Because of the root system, you would need a 5 gal. container for tomatoes and peppers. Some things do well in smaller containers, herbs, strawberries etc. Some seeds do need light to germinate, others not until they germinate. I play it save and put things under the lights right away. I do have grow stands, put replaced the flourescent bulbs over my kithcen counter and turn that into a seed station every spring. |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 2:43 PM PST
That is a great idea! I went out today and got plant florescent bulbs to put into my kitchen fixtures and turned my side counter into my seed station. I like it because it's right there by the sink and right in my kitchen, so I'll be very aware of my little seedlings. Thanks! Kat |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 2:48 PM PST
On the pod houses, should I keep the plastic top on it, or leave it off? Will the plastic lid filter out the beneficial light? Thanks! |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 3:08 PM PST
keep the lid on until they sprout then remove it. If you get a condesation build up take the lid off for a hour or two. Just be aware of cold air (open windows or exhaust fans. Seedlings like to be warm (room temp). Spray your seedlings with a light mist from a spray bottle, keep them moist, not wet. You also want to keep them 1 to 2 inches below the light, or they will get leggy stretching to it. I use Milk crates turn on their sides, the open portion holds what would normally be on the counter, so I don't lose any valuable space. |
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Posted: Feb/11/2009 3:28 PM PST
i dont know gallon size but i know the brandywine in way too small a pot last year failed awfully i didnt even get seeds from it!! outherwise i sa add 2x sizeish to whatever looks ok --i thought that pot would be fine an i was wrong-- you can put multiple in the sanme pot it works okish my mom has lightweight pots 3 total every year we put 3 tomatoes in 1 an 3 peppers in each of the outher 2 it generally works really well tho they need alot of water an abit of general care |
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Posted: Feb/25/2009 5:20 PM PST
Hi, as a rule of thumb I always put (1) tomato or (1) pepper in 3 or 5 gal pots in a mixture of equal parts of miracle grow potting soil, compost and cow or horse manure, I put saucers under the pots to catch the water so there is no waste and mulch on top to keep soil moist and give them a weekly dose of water soluble fertilizer or compost tea and they do great. floridagirl |
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