Last time we talked about getting our seedlings to grow into sprouts, so before we go into the next steps of growth I'll go into much more details about the seedling/sprout stage.
Seedling Tray
When you go to plant be sure to put 2-4 seeds into your 2-3" deep plant trays. These trays can be made from almost anything depending on your budget, time, and amount of effort you want to put into gardening. Even though plastic is a bit of a scourge on Earth you can still buy plastic trays just remember to use them until they break and then toss them in the recycle bin not the trash can.
Good ideas on planter tray alternatives:
Cardboard egg cartons
Milk cartons cut in half
Plastic take out containers with the lid still left on
Cardboard box cut into smaller square boxes
Plastic cups
Odds are you don't have to buy any seedling tray. You probably have enough trash or recyclables to make your own.
Once you have picked out your planter, your'll want to fill it most of the way up. Don't mix in any fertilizer or soil nutrients. Just regular potting soil or my favorite because it's usually organic or free of fertilizers from chemical companies, Mushroom compost.
*Be sure to mix up the soil good so there are no clumps.
Next, with your pointer finger push the soil in the middle down about 1/2". Be sure to check the seed packets because it is said that some plants need to be lower but honestly I have always planted them at the same heights and they have always grown for me.
Now just sprinkle in 2-4 seeds in the middle and lightly cover up. *DO NOT PAT DOWN
Be sure to plant the same kind of plant per tray or at least mark them with colored tooth picks or name tags as to know which plants are which. I would recommend planting the same type of plant because of the sprout stage which comes next needs a clear cover over the plants while they are beginning to grow. If you plant multiple different plants then they will all grown and sprout at different times making it difficult for them all to grow or sprout at the same time.
We add that many seeds because:
It increases the chance of a plant actually growing.
When plants do grow you'll pick the strongest among them and pluck the others.
Seedling Growth
The next step after planting and covering the seeds "and the most important" is wetting the soil pretty good to begin with but NOT flooding it.
Keep the tray of seedlings out of direct sunlight or they will dry out before you notice and the seeds will not grow.
Make sure the seeds do not get too cold at night.
Keep some type of clear cover on top of them if possible to trap in moisture and heat but be sure to have holes for ventilation. *Possible without but the cover will increase your chance of plants growing.
Keep the soil moist. Too much water and you'll drown the seeds, attract insects like nats, and probably grown mold. Too little water and they are trying out and dying.
Sprout Stage
Follow the rules for seedling growth above until you get to the funnest part which is the sprout stage!
The Sprout Stage is when the seeds or seedlings have actual begun to grow to the point they have started to develop leaves. At the point they will be thirsty and can suck up most of the trays water within a day or two so monitoring for water is key. You will want to keep it much more than moist now and you won't need any covering on them. They will also be allowed to be in direct sunlight. If they barely have their first two leaves then keep the sunlight exposure to an hour max. Once those first pair of leaves have grown bigger then let them set out for 2-3 hours a day and the rest with some shade.
This next part is tricky because you will have to make your own call as to when and if the sprouts are ready to be plucked or "pricked" as some call it, and then transplanted into the ground. So you'll allow your sprouts to grow until the "SECOND" pair of leaves have fully grown in. Since you may have more than one plant in each cell you will have to make the decision as to how long to wait until you start plucking. The first pair of leaves you'll see grow are called the cotyledon leaves. The second pair are the plants grown up leaves. Pick the strongest plant in each group based off of its height, width, leaf health, color, and your own intuition. The tallest plant may not be the strongest, maybe it just grew fast height wise but didn't grow out its leaves. You have to make the decision on this one.
Article #3 will have what and how to transplant the plants to the ground or flower pot.
*As usual, see any mistakes or want to pitch in, comment or write your own blog post!
Below I’m adding some pictures of the plants I have going right now. I’m in the same stage, 1 & 2!
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