Matt Mattus's Blog - Posts Tagged "sowing-seed"
Winter Gardening
Yes, it's snowing outside here in central Massachusetts but in the greenhouse - it's perfectly warm (if one could call 60 degree's warm!). This weekend marks the official seed starting season here - which for me is mostly flowers right now (perennials, alpines, and rock garden plants, and some long-season cool-growing annuals). Most of the veggies I've learned to hold back on sowing, with each year as I learn. In late January, I am only starting the longest-season crops like artichokes, cardoons, celery, and parsley - all sown in plugs or flats in the greenhouse. These are slow-growers or need vernalization (like the artichokes) to make them think that they have experienced a mini-winter. It's the only way we in the north can raise artichokes.
With celery and parsley, it's a completely different thing as these biennial members of the plant family Apiaceae (carrot family) dislike exposure to cold temps when set out into the garden and risk going to seed too early if I set them out when temps are still below 50 deg.
You can read more about this in my book Mastering the Art of Vegetable Gardening, but these tips are always being tested- even by experienced gardeners. - as it was just 2 years ago when I finally questioned it seemed that parsley plants that I bought in spring at the nursery always seemed to go to seed by mid-summer - that never really happened to me when I grew them at home, and the truth is, this is a rather new problem as big box stores compete with each other to get young plants out into the hands of consumers faster and faster each year to be competitive.
Sure, parsley can handle the cold but the real risk is that larger parsley plants which might seem like sense to buy in a quart container - are more susceptible to false vernalization if one is buying them alongside the pansies.
My tip here is - buy parsley seedlings only when the petunias are being sold outdoors, and never earlier - and look for the smallest ones as root disturbance may stunt them (same goes for celery - young seedlings can transplant well - but once they get their third set of leaves, try not to disturb the root ball, and set plants out after all frost).
If you are curious about fennel - it's a similar problem, but worse - I would advise to never buy fennel in a pot, bronze ornamental or edible, but to sow it directly as one would sow carrots, and carefully thin. The difference between carrots and fennel too is to be sure to sow fennel later, after frost, as young plants too will be vernalized by cold nights. The finest fennel bulbs come from seed sown in late June.
With celery and parsley, it's a completely different thing as these biennial members of the plant family Apiaceae (carrot family) dislike exposure to cold temps when set out into the garden and risk going to seed too early if I set them out when temps are still below 50 deg.
You can read more about this in my book Mastering the Art of Vegetable Gardening, but these tips are always being tested- even by experienced gardeners. - as it was just 2 years ago when I finally questioned it seemed that parsley plants that I bought in spring at the nursery always seemed to go to seed by mid-summer - that never really happened to me when I grew them at home, and the truth is, this is a rather new problem as big box stores compete with each other to get young plants out into the hands of consumers faster and faster each year to be competitive.
Sure, parsley can handle the cold but the real risk is that larger parsley plants which might seem like sense to buy in a quart container - are more susceptible to false vernalization if one is buying them alongside the pansies.
My tip here is - buy parsley seedlings only when the petunias are being sold outdoors, and never earlier - and look for the smallest ones as root disturbance may stunt them (same goes for celery - young seedlings can transplant well - but once they get their third set of leaves, try not to disturb the root ball, and set plants out after all frost).
If you are curious about fennel - it's a similar problem, but worse - I would advise to never buy fennel in a pot, bronze ornamental or edible, but to sow it directly as one would sow carrots, and carefully thin. The difference between carrots and fennel too is to be sure to sow fennel later, after frost, as young plants too will be vernalized by cold nights. The finest fennel bulbs come from seed sown in late June.
