More Seeds.

Yesterday I started a 6-pack of Coleus, and one of Creeping Thyme.  I now have 6 6-packs, and really under the 2 bulb light, I have room for 4.  The Coleus and the Thyme aren't going to germinate that quickly, I think.  The Coleus says 12-21 days, and the Thyme says 14-21 days.  I've found that I get germination faster than the packet says.  The Kale and Radicchio showed in like, 3 days.  So maybe I'm wrong, maybe these next things will be up in a week.

Right now, my light situation is kind of stupid.  I cannot find the goddamn hooks I used last year.  I know they're in the house somewhere.  Most likely I put them in some little drawer or little box and thought, "I'll put these here, so that I will have them when I start seeds in the Spring."  (Haha, it's January, that doesn't come close to counting as "Spring."  More like, "I'll start seeds in the first quarter.")  I think I need to buy new hooks, which is maddening, because I know I'll find these old hooks shortly after I do that.

I ordered a 4 bulb, 2 foot grow light, and supposedly I'll get it delivered middle of this week.  That way I can get everything set up before I go away the following week.  I'll put the 6 trays under the big light.

The 2 bulb light I might just put back on the curtain rod in the living room, where it will keep the Hibiscus and Jalapeno from getting too light-deprived.  I don't know if it's a bad idea to give them pretty poor light for a few weeks, and then turn on a grow light on them for a week.  The Hibiscus hasn't really stopped growing; it's grown another 6 inches with at least 10 new leaves and looks like it's putting out a few more soon.  The Jalapeno hasn't looked happy for a long time, so I don't think more light could possibly hurt.

Anyway.  The Kale seedlings are already showing a few "true leaves."  It's a really obvious distinction, as the seed leaves are these soft, smooth, round things and the Kale leaves are pointy and textured.  The books and stuff say to transplant seedlings once they have two sets of true leaves.  I think I'd rather let them grow in these containers until they're actually pretty big.  I found last year that I could easily pull out the clump of dirt, check the root situation, and put it back in if I wanted.  I think it will be about a month before I really need to do that.

The other thing I need to think about is plant height.  The Kale will get to be, like, 4 inches tall.  The Coleus and the Creeping Thyme will probably still just be a few tiny leaves.  So I should be able to use one light for the just-starting plants, and keep it close to the surface, and the other light I can put a little higher.

I have way more seeds that I should.  For one thing, I bought seeds I didn't need to buy, because I had them from last year and they obviously are fine, I think I got like, 80% germination.  I'm packing the unopened new ones in a plastic bag so they'll stay good for another year.

So what's next to start?  I'm strongly considering growing Snapdragons this year.  They're an annual that will bloom really well in the spring, when I don't have a lot else going on.  I think that's the next thing to start, probably not for another 2 weeks or so.  (So, like, January 31st.)  And, I guess if everything works out, I can transplant them April 1st or so.  I got some red-yellow-pinky mix, I'm hoping it will look nice with the Tulips...

First Seeds of 2015

I already put in an order on Burpee for some seeds.  I'm starting to worry that I'll spend hours planning what to get, and then when I finally go to order, they'll be out of what I want, or I'll have a trip come up and I won't get them started soon enough.

I got:

• Lacinato Kale
• Bright Lights Swiss Chard
• Radicchio, Red Verona (the round kind, not Trevisio)
• Sugar Snap Peas
• Toy Choi
• Joy Choi
• Radishes, Cherry Bell
• Creeping Thyme
• Coleus, Wizard Mix (big leaf)
• and "Burpee Booster," which was recommended for peas and beans

They obviously aren't here yet, but I got all psyched up for it.  I got a bag of seed starting mix- it's Jiffy brand, 60% peat moss and coir, vermiculite, and a little lyme.  I think last year I mostly used the Miracle Grow brand, which of course has a little fertilizer.  I'm able to reuse the trays I got from last year; they're pretty sturdy.  I started 2 trays each of my old Lacinato Kale and Red Verona Radicchio. I've stored the Radicchio seeds in a pill container, and the Kale just in the packet, all of the seeds in a wooden box with lots of those silica packets.  If these germinate, that will be great.  I'm sure it was too warm and too humid for ideal seed storage, but we'll see what happens.

If they do work, I will feel kind of dumb for buying the same thing again.  The Radicchio is 90 days to maturity, and the Kale is 60, so I'm hoping getting a really good head start will mean I can actually grow some and get them finished before summer starts.

I'm going to buy another grow light.  This time, I'm going for the 2 foot 4 tube one.  I think I can use that on 6 trays at a time, and use my current 2 tube light on 4 trays at a time.  And, I only have 10 trays, so, that should be enough.

When this seed order gets here, I'll start some coleus, as many trays as I can.  It needs to be started 8 weeks early, and probably can't go outside until May, since it's tropical.  I realize that I would be starting it a month early, but I can transplant them to bigger containers inside and grow them that way until it gets warm enough.  Since they're shade tolerant, they should be fine as house plants.  Last year I wanted to get a ton of coleus, since it's the easiest thing to grow, it looks amazing, it gets big and full, it's just a great bedding plant all around.  But for some reason, I couldn't really find any, or enough that looked good.  The landscaping people at work must have bought all the coleus in the area, because every bed was crammed with it.  And they never took care of it or pinched it back, so it was all tall and started to flower... I would much rather have it stay low and full.

I'll also get some Creeping Thyme started.  I've pretty much given up on growing Thyme to cook with, but this will work as a ground cover and should have some nice smell and maybe some flowers.  And it's perennial to Zone 5, so it should last for a while.