Post date: Oct 24, 2019 6:30:59 PM
1. The only thing that matters for planting seeds is timing. Seeds have soil temperature, air temperature, and light requirements to germinate. Sow to the season. Don’t miss the date.
2. Seeds can be sown directly in the soil, or in seedlings trays. Transplanting creates shock and some seedlings won’t take it. Directly sown seeds can be eaten away by critters. You make your choice about where and how you will protect them for the first 6 weeks. For most plants, provided you transplant skillfully, it won’t matter.
3. Seeds germinate quickly in summer. 3-4 days. Keep them in a place where they get adequate light all through the day. They will get leggy without sun.
4. Seedlings have to be kept moist. Not wet. Allowing seeds or seedlings to dry out will pretty much kill them. Too much water will lead to fungal attacks on the roots.
5. Seedlings have to be thinned out to one per cell. I posted a video in pricking. You can also clip off weaker plants and keep one per cell. Or you can put them into a bigger pot.
6. Add some nourishing liquid like fish emulsion, Compost tea or LAB when true leave appear. Wait for 3-4 leaves and a thicker main stem. Then you can transplant them. Typically takes 6-8 weeks.
7. Count back from your first frost date. You need the transplants in the ground at least month before that. And transplants will take 6-8 weeks to be ready. Assuming Nov 15 is the first frost, the cut off for sowing seeds for this season is sep 15.