Getting Ready For The Fun

[greenthumbomaha]

Today I ventured into the basement and started to gather my supplies for next season. Its such a huge task that I tend to put it off and the area isn't as organized as it should be.

I sterilized the two dish buckets I use to mix soils/perlite/etc. Tomorrow the plant labels that got saved will get a bleach bath. I'll eventually line up a few trays to start transplants. I already pulled out the heat mats to try and wake up an amaryllis bulb that was a gift.

What are the nitty gritty chores your to do list to get ready for the seed starting season? Reading catalogs over a cup of hot cocoa assumed a given !!!

[ScottinAtlanta]

I organized my seeds by alphabetical order in a large photo book with pockets - over 200 varieties of tomatoes. Who knew? That took about 3 days.

I need to get my grow light benches set up and test the lights and the timing mechanisms. I use 4 shelves and two flourescent lights per shelf, with two tubes each, so that is 16 tubes in all.

I liked the idea that somone posted here of draping the shelves with a reflective tarp to intensify the light energy, so I will try that.

I am starting seeds for our entire gardening association, so that is another 50-60 tomato, pepper and eggplant varieties to start, with quite a bit of paperwork to track who wants what.

I have my seed starting soils and bale of Pro-mix BX ready to roll.

[NarnianGarden]

Sounds fun.

I have my list and seeds more or less ready, but still have to desifenct several acessories needed later on.. And I have to get more pots.

Still contemplating what to give to my parents and neighbors, what to keep on my own balcony...

[newatthiskat]

I have kinda gone through my seeds. Started my hottest of peppers already. None have germinated yet. Deciding where I am going to put all the extra plants I will inevitably end up with. I have pans ready to fill. I am using recycled plastic pans that I got from work.
I will put holes in bottom and cover with plastic wrap. I thought why throw all those things away? Anyway it will be an environmentally more friendly way to grow the seeds I hope. Or I could be making more work for myself who knows. Raise a toast of hot tea. Here is to next season!

[Father'sDaughter]

I do most of my prep in the week after Christmas since I have that week off. So far I've decided on and ordered seeds for all the other stuff I plan to grow, and I have a tentative tomato list. It will be finalized after I see what goodies I get in the swap. I invested in a whole bunch of small plastic pots and a few of bags of DE for seed starting last year, I have enough shop lights and shelf space, and my $20 mini greenhouse I use for hardening off is holding up quite well. I think all I will need to buy this year is potting mix for up-potting seedlings and filling grow bags, some new stakes, and probably a fresh jug of fish/seaweed emulsion. It's finally getting less expensive!

[tlintx]

Originally Posted by newatthiskat

I have kinda gone through my seeds. Started my hottest of peppers already. None have germinated yet. Deciding where I am going to put all the extra plants I will inevitably end up with. I have pans ready to fill. I am using recycled plastic pans that I got from work.

Starting already? Sounds good to me! I was just wondering this morning if I should start some peppers but I was thinking it might be a little early.

I use a lot of recycled stuff too but this year I'm strongly considering buying some 4" pots and trays and maybe switching to peat pellets instead of a soilless mix since the ingredients for the mix are hard to find in my area until mid-March, which is way too late.

I never really cleaned up after last year, since I still have a bunch of stuff growing. So most of my "prep" is going to be ruthlessly purging everything (plants, upcycled containers) that's done for or worn out or didn't work as well as expected last year, hopefully by the end of this month.

Then I need to figure out the best place for a seedling bed/cold frame, since the spot I planned for it still has peppers and greens growing it. Then I need to figure out how I'm going to refresh the soil in my raised beds. And then I need to start a bunch of perennials and peppers.

[Labradors2]

I looked online at some of the sheets of plastic pots that people here have recommended, but I'm going to stick with my home-made newspaper pots. Hubby bought a massive bag of Pro-mix with those nasty water-retention crystals, so I will have to buy something else and mix the two to use it up.

After my seedlings get too big for the newspaper pots, I will transfer them to the waxed milk and OJ cartons that we saved all summer.

The newspaper pots ought to fit into my old celery keepers and other large Tupperware containers. Next summer I will save some of those big plastic trays that come with flats of annuals.

Linda

[NarnianGarden]

Milk cartons are very handy. I am beginning to save them - and will nudge my parents to do so - it's vexing how much storage space those cartons will take!

Potting mix and other gardening stuff will appear in shops after the New Year, will have to get a couple of bags of organic soil so I'm well prepared and not panicking in the last minute Gardening supplies usually vanish very quickly and not always available if one waits until April.

[tlintx]

Lucky! Here the garden centers don't really start going until March. They're mostly geared towards landscapers, too, and since I'm the only gardener in the family it can be tough to arrange visits to the better ones.

I think I'll start a thread on upcycling over in the Workbench!

[tlintx]

Sorry, double post!

[JLJ_]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

. . . I already pulled out the heat mats to try and wake up an amaryllis bulb that was a gift . . .

Possibly you have grown many of these and have some reason that you do need to use a heat mat, but FWIW, I have quite a few amaryllis (Hippeastrum) that stay with us year after year -- with a few new ones joining them each season, and they don't normally need heat mats to get them going, just some soil not quite covering them in a pot that drains well and isn't too big for them, enough moisture to help them, but not enough to keep them wet and promote disease, and some light.

If they are really in the mood to bloom, they'll do it without any of the above -- putting up a bloom stem out of a bare bulb sitting in a dark cold box -- or even in the medium that is often packaged with them :::shudder:::

[Labradors2]

Just a comment about "organic soil". Two winters ago I tried to grow organically in pots and bought some "organic" Miracle Grow soil. It really was a massive bag which I lugged into the garage where I filled up my pots and planted them with tomatoes and Arugula. It wasn't until I turned the bag over and read on the back "not for containers!" Thinking that it might be due to odours, I wasn't too worried because my pots spend most of their time out on the deck, or brought into the garage at night. However, my plants did really badly that winter and it was very disappointing.

Now I only buy "potting mix" or "container mix".

Linda

Originally Posted by NarnianGarden

Potting mix and other gardening stuff will appear in shops after the New Year, will have to get a couple of bags of organic soil so I'm well prepared and not panicking in the last minute

[greenthumbomaha]

JLJ, this amaryllis bulb must have been in a very deep sleep. The gift kit came with the bulb preplanted above the soil line in a pot with a growing medium. I unpacked and watered it and waited about 3 weeks, nothing, well just about 1/4 inch of leaf trying to poke up.. Then I gave it a little heat for about three days. Nothing again. I remembered Carolyn wakes up her old seed with Nitrogen, so I tried that about 2 weeks ago. I now see a bud starting to emerge!

Its my first time and I have to say its quite addicting! - Lisa

[NarnianGarden]

Originally Posted by Labradors2

Just a comment about "organic soil". Two winters ago I tried to grow organically in pots and bought some "organic" Miracle Grow soil. It really was a massive bag which I lugged into the garage where I filled up my pots and planted them with tomatoes and Arugula. It wasn't until I turned the bag over and read on the back "not for containers!" Thinking that it might be due to odours, I wasn't too worried because my pots spend most of their time out on the deck, or brought into the garage at night. However, my plants did really badly that winter and it was very disappointing.

Now I only buy "potting mix" or "container mix".

Linda

Hmm, interesting. I wonder why that was so? All of my plants last summer were grown in pots, and I did not see any warnings / restrictions in any soil bags that the stuff is not good for containers.. Tomatoes, one pepper plants and herbs all grew happily. Sure, they got exra fert now and then... Will follow the same cocktails in 2014.
Springtime, come soon!

[Labradors2]

I had a difficult time figuring it out as well. It didn't make any sense! I now think that the problem was that the soil compacted too much and my plants suffered. I didn't feed them either because I didn't think it was necessary as they were growing in such an organic mix. I wasted my time growing in containers that winter and learned my lesson!

Linda

Originally Posted by NarnianGarden

Hmm, interesting. I wonder why that was so? All of my plants last summer were grown in pots, and I did not see any warnings / restrictions in any soil bags that the stuff is not good for containers.. Tomatoes, one pepper plants and herbs all grew happily. Sure, they got exra fert now and then... Will follow the same cocktails in 2014.
Springtime, come soon!