Germination of Seeds Planted on Porch 11-6-04

This page was last updated 11-27-04.

Germinated 11-9-04:
Lettuces: 'Quensland', 'Simpson Elite', 'Cimmaron', 'Olga', 'Redina', 'Freckles'	Arugula
Radicchio 'Rossa di Chioggia'	Radish 'Rattail'
Chard 'Bright Lights'	Kale 'Red Russian'
Broccoli di Rapa 'Novantina'	Collard 'Top Bunch'
Kohlrabi 'Kolibri'	Mustard Greens 'Red Giant'
Roselle	Cosmos 'Sensation Mix'
Zinnia 'Giant Dahlia Blue Point Mix'	Zinnia 'California Giant Pink
Germinated 11-10-04:
Kale ‘Nero di Toscana’	False Roselle / Cranberry Hibiscus
Marigold ‘Lemon Star’	Sunflower ‘Apricot Twist’
Cucumber ‘Diva’	Cucumber Cornichon ‘Cool Breeze’
Arugula R. selvatica
Germinated 11-11-04:
Beets ‘Action’	Tomato ‘Striped German’
Tomato ‘Tropic’	Tomato ‘Sausage’
Tomato ‘Sungold’	Lettuce ‘Nevada Greenleaf’
Lettuce ‘Summer Mix’	Turnip ‘Red Milan’
Sunflower ‘Vanilla Ice’	Chard ‘Rhubarb’
Carrot ‘Uberlandia’	Tomatillo Purple (2)
Germinated 11-12-04:
Tomato ‘Sweet Chelsea’ (both 1999 & 2003 seed)	Tomato ‘Kewalo’
Tomato ‘Yellow Pear’ (1999 seed)	Tomato ‘Opalka’
Tomato ‘Italian Gold’	Tomato ‘Equinox’
Tomatillo 2” Yellow	Calabaza ‘La Primera’
Potato ‘Zolushka’	Peppergrass
Germinated 11-13-04:
Watermelon ‘Black Tail Mountain’	Watermelon ‘New Orchid’
Italian Edible Gourd Cucuzzi	Onion Bunching ‘Crimson Forest’
Onion Bulbing ‘Super Star’	Lettuce ‘Slo-Bolt’
Germinated 11-14-04:
Watermelon 'Mini Jubilee'	Eggplant 'Bride'
Tomato 'Black Prince'	Tomato 'Homestead'
Germinated 11-15-04:
Pepper Small Hot Perennial	Moringa 'PKM-1'
Germinated 11-16-04:
Pepper Sweet ''Carolina Wonder
Germinated 11-18-04:
Pepper Sweet 'Feherozon'	Papaya 'Sunrise Solo'
Germinated 11-22-04:
Pepper Sweet 'Chocolate'
Germinated 11-24-04:
Pepper 'Pasillo Bajio'	Pepper 'Mulato Islena'

On 11-13-04, several of the larger seedlings were thinned and transplanted to 5" pots or larger-celled flats and placed outside in the sun so they would not get leggy, as they do on the screened porch.  The Cucumbers will stay inside their entire lives, climbing nylon trellis under the screen, but everything else should eventually go outside.  Also, the remaining seedlings were thinned to one per cell or pot, except the Squashes, which will spread out when transplanted into the ground.

On 11-27-04, the transplanted seedlings were moved again - a couple of Rattail Radishes, most Zinnias, and some Sunflowers to the Tropical Vegetable Area, most Sunflowers and all Moringas and Watermelons to the Melon Patch, and the Cosmos, Kohlrabi, three red Mustards, and a few Zinnias to empty spots in the Potager.   Three Rattail Radishes went into the Herb Circle.  All the Tomatoes - fourteen of them - were transplanted up to their first real leaves into 1-gallon pots, the Chards and Kales and a couple of Broccolis went into long planters, and into 10-gallon pots went four Broccolis (2 to a pot), and three red Mustards in another.  Also, two Coconuts from a friend went into 10-gallon pots.  The peppers were transplanted into 5" pots, along with the False Roselle, Eggplant, yellow and purple Tomatillos, and Collards.  The small, sweet Tomatillos were still very tiny and not all were up yet, so they stayed in the flat, as did the Onions, Cleome, and Marigolds.  Many of these last flowers have not germinated yet, and the others are very small.  I've pretty much given up on the remaining pepper seeds, but will still leave them in their flat, just in case.

The pre-sprouted seeds rotted, as they were neglected in top of the refrigerator because I was not well.  The Bulbing Fennel is the thing I was most interested in, so will probably just plant them in empty spaces in a flat and see how they do, as they do not have to be pre-sprouted to germinate.

As for the direct-seeded plants in the Potager, there were some gaps where things either didn't germinate or were eaten by something, but mostly there are too many plants.  The greens and beans have tried to take over, shading out some of the other plants.  But the squashes have gotten large in their own right anyway, and we have been harvesting beautiful radishes for about a week now.  Gaps have been filled, as noted above.  It all looks a bit wild, but should be productive.  Some thinning will have to be done to allow more delicate things space to grow without competition.  It might actually be better to plant a bed like this with nearly all transplants, spacing plants properly from the start, but this would not give the quick coverage which has kept weeds down so well.  On the other hand, it is difficult to know just what each thing is when it germinates if everything is all mixed together.  I should have sown less thickly, but it should be alright with some judicious thinning.

The entire garden, front and back, was fertilized on 11-27-04 with a mixture of Alaska fish emulsion and Maxicrop dried seaweed.  This should have been done earlier, but in any case, all the plants will appreciate it.  

Tasks Still to Be Done:  There remain only setting up support systems for the climbing and sprawling plants.  Nylon trellis needs to be hung for the Cucumbers, and soil and teepees installed in large pots outside for the tomatoes.  Peppers may need short stakes, which can be placed when they are transplanted to their final containers.

I bought most of my herbs for the season from Jane's Herbs & Things, but whatever was unavailable there can be started anytime now from seed in the Speedling trays (things like Sweet Marjoram, Borage, Summer Savory, and Winter Savory).  To get pots for transplanting into, and a little color into the Herb Circle, I bought two trays of tall Snapdragons in white, pink, and purple and scattered them in the herb beds.

I now have seeds of 'Imperial Star' Artichoke and 'Reugen' Alpine Strawberry, which will be pre-chilled along with any Celery seed I have left. I hope to do this between 11-28 and 12-01. This process is the same as pre-sprouting above, except that the bagged seeds in their paper towels will be put in the freezer.  This should last at least two weeks for the Artichoke seeds, and about two months for Strawberry and Celery.  After that, the tiny Strawberry and Celery seeds will go on top of the refrigerator to pre-sprout, but this is unnecessary for the large Artichoke seeds, which can be planted in pots directly after their stint in the freezer.  This pre-chilling process causes the seeds to believe they have gone through a winter, and the dampness and subsequent warmth will wake them up, resulting in good germination and more flowers and fruit.  Alpine Strawberries are perennials and will live a few years for you if you place them in partial shade when the weather begins to heat up, then deep shade for the hottest part of the summer.  Bring them back into partial shade or even full sun once the weather breaks in fall (usually mid-October here).  Artichokes should be given a 4' space in the ground and won't last more than a season.  Celery is an annual vegetable that grows well here in the cool season if it gets a regular, plentiful supply of water.

If I had any Tulip bulbs, this would be the time to place them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for a couple of months.  The plastic bag keeps the ethylene gas from any fruit in the refrigerator during that time from killing them.  If you have a second refrigerator, you can get fancy, potting up the bulbs in soil, watering it, and setting the whole shebang in it.  You can even chill things like Asparagus crowns and Peony crowns this way.  Doing this will get you one blooming only from the Tulips, after which you can eat the bulbs or throw them away.  The Peony should bloom, but would have to be returned to the refrigerator for another chilling the next year, and you might have trouble keeping it alive until then in our heat.  Same with the Asparagus.  You can decide if these measures are worth the effort to you.  The bulbs and plants should be timed to come out if the refrigerator at the coolest part of the year - say December.  This will give you the most life and production from these plants.

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