Cheat the frost.Byline: The Register-Guard Starting seeds indoors to transplant to your garden later is fun and simple - remember those marigolds you grew in milk cartons in first grade? It's also a great way to scratch that gardening itch while waiting for spring to arrive and the danger of frost to pass. There are many different methods. But basically you need the right seed and potting mix and the right combination of water, heat and light - all of which may require some experimentation (which is part of the fun). Petunias, marigolds, snapdragons, spinach, lettuces, cauliflower cauliflower (kô`lĭflou'ər, käl`ĭ–), variety of cabbage, with an edible head of condensed flowers and flower stems. Broccoli is the horticultural variety (botrytis); both were cultivated in Roman times. , broccoli and cabbage are some of the most popular seeds for starting early indoors. - Stephanie Barrow, The Register-Guard 1 Check seed packages to find out which seeds can be started indoors and which are best sown sown v. A past participle of sow1. Adj. 1. sown - sprinkled with seed; "a seeded lawn" seeded planted - set in the soil for growth directly outside. To test saved seed, place seeds in a damp paper towel and put in a warm spot (on top of a water heater, for example). Keep moist. If less than half of the seeds germinate after a few days, you might want to buy fresher seed. 2 Plant seeds in a homemade mix of equal parts of sand, loam loam, soil composed of sand, silt, clay, and organic matter in evenly mixed particles of various sizes. More fertile than sandy soils, loam is not stiff and tenacious like clay soils. Its porosity allows high moisture retention and air circulation. and peat moss peat moss: see sphagnum. peat moss or sphagnum moss Any of more than 160 species of plants that make up the bryophyte genus Sphagnum, which grow in dense clumps around ponds, in swamps and bogs, on moist, acid cliffs, and on , or purchase well drained potting soil. Fill a container with lightly moistened soil mix. A 4-inch pot may be seeded with 18 to 20 seeds. Cover seeds with one-quarter inch of soil. Label the pot and place it in a plastic bag. Tie the bag so moisture does not escape. Keep it at room temperature (68 to 75 degrees). No more watering is needed until the seedlings appear. 3 When the plants emerge, remove the bag and expose them to maximum light from a bright window or grow lamp. Keep the pot at a lower temperature during the night (55 degrees) and room temperature during the day. Apply soluble plant food weekly. 4 When seedlings get their first true leaf, separate them by carefully loosening the soil around the roots with a dull knife Dull Knife (b. Wahiev, also Tamela Pashme) (?1810–?83) Northern Cheyenne war chief; born near the Rosebud River in present-day Montana. At first friendly to the whites, he turned to war following the Sand Creek (Colo.) massacre (1864). . Place each plant in a 3-inch pot or space six to eight plants in a larger container. Uniform watering, fertilizing and at least 12 hours of sunlight daily will produce a stocky stock·y adj. stock·i·er, stock·i·est 1. Solidly built; sturdy. 2. Chubby; plump. stock  i·ly adv. transplant. A grow lamp may be
needed to supplement available sunlight. About 10 days before
transplanting the seedlings outside, expose them to cooler temperatures
and slightly less water.
Source: Oregon State University Oregon State University, at Corvallis; land-grant and state supported; coeducational; chartered 1858 as Corvallis College, opened 1865. In 1868 it was designated Oregon's land-grant agricultural college and was taken over completely by the state in 1885. Extension Service |
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