Starting Seeds Can Be Tough
Starting Seeds Can Be Tough, even for an experienced gardener.
One of the things I love about Houston is the ability to grow food all year long. We have a Four-Season Kitchen Garden. It’s amazing!
If you aren’t sure what our four seasons are, you can download this cheat sheet to get started.
After over a decade of struggling myself and now helping hundreds of beginner gardeners, here are the two most common problems I see when it comes to seed starting.
#1 You are buying seeds for the wrong growing season
If it were up to me, the giant wall of seeds would not be alphabetized. Instead, I would group the seed packets based on Warm, Hot, and Cool season crops. We don’t have a cold season to think about.
I’m also guilty of being mesmerized by all the beautiful seed packets and buying based on the picture, not the seeds’ growing needs. Lettuce and Okra aren’t planted at the same time. Lettuce is a cool-season crop, and Okra is a hot-season crop.
#2 You are not watering your seeds enough
Your seeds might begin the germination process, but then the top half inch of soil drys out in the hot afternoon sun. Once your seed has dried out after the germination process has begun, it can not be brought back to life. It’s void.
New seeds need to be watered several times a day until they reach a height of 1-2”. The root will be as long or longer at this point and can reach cooler and moist soil that is two inches deep in your raised garden bed. Your drip irrigation will never keep the top half-inch of soil moist. It isn’t designed for seed starting. This is where a watering can is needed, or a hose with the shower or mist nozzle.
Because I easily forget to water my new seeds several times a day, I’ve come up with shortcuts that work for me.
Shortcut #1 I soak all bean seeds for at least 4 hours, 8hours is better.
This will help them sprout faster and reduce the days I have to consistently remember to hand-water. If the timing doesn’t work to plant immediately after soaking, I will drain the water and cover with a damp paper towel to give myself a few more hours.
Shortcut #2 Start seeds inside a sandwich bag
This method works amazingly for cucumbers and squash. Place seeds in a folded damp paper towel. Then stick it in a labeled sandwich bag. After two to three days, your seeds should have a tap root coming out and can be planted outside. This is great for kids, and you saved yourself two to three days of watering and babysitting those seeds when the soil dries out so fast.
When first trying this methods, I recommend starting with just a couple of seeds and see what you think. If you like the shortcuts, it is easy to start another round.
