Starting my 2021 Seeds
Happiest of springs to you, dear reader! I apologize for my lack of dialogue on here lately. I’ve, quite obviously, been living through the fog of having a newborn, late winter, and dreaming up the projects I’d like to work on this year. While I do not think I am out of the fog quite yet, I am feeling more back to normal since giving birth and ready to begin a new season of life in the garden. Spring seems to always lead to growth for myself, my family, and our business. It is a chance to wipe the slate clean and begin again, with better intentions and new ideas.
This March, I am starting seeds for the smallest garden I have ever had. Since we have moved into town, we have less space to grow, which I am actually quite excited for. I tend to always over-plant and create a space that is too large to handle; not meaning that the garden itself is not manageable but the amount of food that comes out of it is too much for us to store freshly during the peak of the season. I am also looking forward to another new addition… raised beds! I’ve only gardened with raised beds once before for a single season, back when I knew nothing. I know so much more now. Honestly, it’s so exciting because it will mean virtually no weeds for me. It’s going to be a bit more costly upfront, but it will be worth it.
This year, I decided to take a more gentle and natural approach to seed starting. I bought some new clay pots and pre-made paper pots. I also found a wonderful paper pot maker online, which you can learn how to use in my post here. Because I did not need as much space for planting, my need for lots and lots of plant starts went down. For instance, in an entire 4ft x 8ft garden bed, I would only be able to fit 8 tomato plants. I am also trying to be more realistic with myself and remembering that I always tend to purchase plant starts from the greenhouse whether I have my own or not. Having a little of both is alright with me.
As of right now, my garden plans are merely crude drawings. I do not have official measurements or anything concrete to share. In reality, I am having trouble even deciding where to put my garden. I have a few spots that may work, but they don’t meet the full criteria. Each spot is missing some key garden characteristics, but I think I’ll be able to make something work.
The other decision that I made was to only purchase seeds of things that I was missing or needed more stock of. I have plenty of leftover tomato and pepper seeds, among others, from last year that I could use for the garden this year. While I love the excitement of purchasing new seeds each spring, I knew that the shortage of seeds would most likely be just as strong as it was last year due to the pandemic, and I also wanted to experiment and see if I could grow these old seeds just as well as new ones.
Here is a list of what I will be starting indoors this year from my seed box:
Olympus Bell Peppers
Gourmet Bell Peppers
El Jefe Hot Peppers (jalapenos)
Red Ember Hot Peppers (cayennes)
Carmen Sweet Peppers
Lunchbox Sweet Pepper Mix
Genovese Basil
Lucky Tiger Tomatoes
Striped German Tomatoes (my favorite heirloom for sandwiches!)
Blush Artisan Tomatoes
Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomatoes
Supersweet 100 Cherry Tomatoes
New Girl Tomatoes
Pink Berkley Tie Dye Tomatoes
Chef’s Choice Orange Tomatoes
Galahad Tomatoes
Amish Paste Tomatoes
Song Cauliflower
Amazing White Cauliflower
Veronica Cauliflower
Rubicon Chinese Cabbage
Flash Collards
Black Magic Kale (tuscano)
Red Fire Mini Broccoli
Imperial Broccoli
Belstar Broccoli (my favorite)
Bright Lights Swiss Chard
Monte Carlo Romaine Lettuce
Auvona Romaine Lettuce
Thurinus Romaine Lettuce
Nadia Eggplant
Nubia Eggplant
While that list is obviously very long, I will only be starting a few of each variety. In the past couple of years, I have direct seeded all of my brassicas, and I will most likely plant a few starts first and then plant a succession of directly sown seeds as well. It’s always trial and error in the garden. I think I will be most fascinated to see how well my set of starts does as I am planting only a few of 1-3 year-old seeds! I may not get much of anything, and that is okay. I have a fallback plan. Do you? What have you started for your garden, or what are you hoping to start indoors this year?
xoxo Kayla
