Sowing seeds

Sowing Seeds

If you want to grow crops successfully, then you need to sow your seeds correctly. In this lesson, I'll show you how to sow several different crops and explain how to give them the best start in life.

Seeds are incredible things. Inside each seed, whether big or small, is all the genetic information that it needs to grow. The gardener's role is to provide each seed with the right conditions for it to grow and thrive - namely a growing medium such as seed compost and water.

Seed Sowing in a Modular Tray

To begin, fill your seed tray with peat-free seed compost. Seed compost has a fine texture so that even the smallest of seeds will be able to break through the surface of the soil and germinate.

Fill your seed modules to the very top and then gently firm the compost into each module so that the compost is steady when your seed does germinate.

Sowing Beetroot Seeds

Beetroot seeds are compound seeds, which means there are a few seeds within each individual seed that you will find in your packet.

I am going to sow a few of these seeds per module, which is what is known as multi-sowing. This is because certain crops grow well in a cluster together.

Some varieties to try include:

• Beetroot 'Bolivar'
• Beetroot 'Cylindra'

Sowing Lettuce Seeds

In comparison, lettuce seeds are much smaller and they can be very hard to separate out individually.

Usually, I would only sow lettuce individually, as they can be quite hard to separate once they have germinated.

On this occasion though I am going to sow two lettuce seeds per module as these are older seeds so their germination rate might not be as good.

Unlike beetroot, lettuces are single seeds, so they will only produce one plant per seed. If both seeds germinate I will attempt to separate them or I will remove the weaker plant and let the stronger one continue to grow on its own.

Some varieties to try include:

• Lettuce 'Oak Leaf Till'
• Lettuce 'Butterhead Suzan'

The First Golden Rule of Seed Sowing

The main rule that you should always follow when sowing seeds is that you want your seed to be double the depth of their size.

This means that tiny seeds like lettuce remain very close to the surface, while bigger seeds like bean seeds need to be buried much further down.

If you were to sow a lettuce seed deeper into the soil the chances are that it will use up all the energy it contains before it manages to get to the surface of the soil and therefore the plant will die.

With smaller seeds, leave them on the surface of the compost in the seed module and then cover them up with a sprinkling of extra compost and then firm them in so that there is good contact between the compost and the seed.

This will help the seed to extract water from the compost when it is watered and therefore aid germination.

Don't Forget to Label Your Seed Trays

The second golden rule of seed sowing is to label your seed trays. This is especially important if you are growing several different plants in one tray. While you may think that you have a good memory, if you're sowing multiple seeds at once you're very likely to forget what went where, so labelling is crucial.

What you should write on your seed label:

• The name of the plant eg: 'tomato'
• The plant variety e.g: 'Gardener's Delight'
• The date that you sowed the seeds

Sowing Kohlrabi Seeds

Kohlrabi are a great crop to grow in your veg patch because they are rarely available in supermarkets. A member of the brassica family, they often have beautiful, sculptural leaves which are edible as well.

Kohlrabi seeds are quite small, though a little bigger than lettuce seeds, and I am going to multi-sow these too to ensure germination. If both of the seeds germinate I will then split them up or extract the weaker seedling and let the other one grow on.

Some varieties to try include:

• Kohlrabi 'Azure star'
• Kohlrabi 'Blue Delikatess'

Sowing Parsley Seeds

Parsley is a great all-rounder and it overwinters well, making it a great kitchen staple.

Parsley seeds do well when sown in a group, so I will even sow up to 10 parsley seeds per module.

Where do I Get My Seeds?

I purchase my seeds from organic seed suppliers and small seed companies. This is because I grow organically here and I also want to support companies that are preserving heirloom varieties.

Heirloom varieties are great for vegetable growers, because if you are going to grow your own food, then it is more exciting to grow varieties that you can't get hold of in the supermarket.

Seed companies I buy from include:

• Tamar Organics
• Real Seeds
• Vital Seeds
• Seed Co-Operative

How to Store Your Seeds

It's important to store your seeds in a cool, dry place. These conditions are the opposite of the ones required for germination and will help to protect your seed viability.

Seed viability refers to how long a seed is capable of germinating. When kept in the right conditions, seeds will stay viable for longer. Different seeds have different viability lengths, but if you have a packet of particularly old seeds, it is still worth giving them a go as seeds often last well beyond the sell-by date.

Spring Onion Seeds

Spring onions are a great crop to successional sow. Generally, once I have a crop of spring onions that are ready to go into the ground then I will sow another batch to ensure a continuous harvest.

Spring onion seeds also work well as multi-sowers, so I usually sow around 6 - 8 seeds per module.

Some varieties to try include:

• Salad Onion 'White Lisbon'
• Salad Onion 'Ishikura'

What to do with Your Germinated Seedlings

I'm lucky enough to have a greenhouse here in East Sussex, but you certainly don't need one to grow vegetable crops successfully. A kitchen table, or windowsill inside your home will work just as well for germinating seedlings.

The key thing to remember though, is that once your seedlings have germinated they will need as much sunlight as possible to grow into healthy and strong plants.

If you are growing your seedlings on a sunny windowsill, it's important to rotate your tray regularly so that your seedlings don't start stretching towards the sunlight and get leggy and weak.

If you have access to outdoor space that is free from pets or wildlife that may disturb them, then you could also put your seedlings outside during the daytime and then bring them in at night to protect them from colder weather.

Sowing Cucurbits in Pots

Cucurbits are what I would call a 'warm weather' crop because they will not survive a frost and they need some warmth to germinate.

I am sowing:

• Squash
• Courgettes
• Cucumbers

I won't be using modules to sow these seeds as they are much bigger and they grow very quickly, so it is easier to give them a bigger growing space from the very beginning.

How to Sow Your Cucurbit Seeds

1. Fill your plant pots with seed compost to the top.
2. Gently firm down your compost, but don't compress it.
3. I'm going to sow two seeds per pot as they are older seeds and then either separate once they have grown or remove the weaker plant.
4. Create an indentation with your finger and sow at double the depth of the seed size.
5. Sow the seeds on their side so that water doesn't sit on top of the seed and cause it to rot.
6. Label your pots so you remember what they are.
7. Put your pots into a propagator if you have one, or germinate them in a warm room in your home.

Sowing Warm Weather Crops Early in the Year

Warm-weather crops such as cucumbers, squashes, tomatoes and aubergines need the full length of the spring and summer to grow before they can produce harvestable fruits.

As such, we need to sow them quite early in the year, but as they are warm-weather crops they need warmth to germinate. If you are sowing your tomatoes early in the year, even an outdoor greenhouse may not be warm enough for them to germinate so they will need help, either from a propagator, which will provide a consistent temperature, or by growing them in a warm spot in your home.

The other thing to consider when growing warm-weather crops in the early months of the year is that light levels in the UK at this time are very low, so your seedlings may also need a grow light to help them grow once they have germinated.

Tomato seedlings can tend to get quite leggy, with or without the grow light, but what I have discovered is that if I turn the propagator off once the seedlings have germinated and emerged above the soil, then they are less likely to become leggy and weak.

How to Sow Your Peas and Beans

I sow my pea and bean seeds into recycled toilet roll tubes. This is because peas and beans develop a large and deep root system when they germinate so small modules do not provide them with adequate space to grow.

How to Sow Your Pea and Bean Seeds

1. Fill your toilet roll tubes with seed compost to the top and then firm in.
2. Poke a hole into your soil and sow your bean or pea seeds at double their depth.
3. Sow the beans pointing downwards with the eye of the bean to the side.
4. Firm down the soil so that the seed and the compost have good contact.
5. Make sure not to compact it too much though, as your soil may become waterlogged.

What is Damping Off?

Damping off is a fungal infection that can affect young seedlings in damp conditions. This fungal infection will cause your seedlings to rot and die. It usually happens when your seed compost has become too waterlogged as a result of either becoming too compact or being overwatered.

The Best Way to Water Your Seedlings

The more you learn about gardening, the more you will realise that every gardener has their own unique way of doing things. While some gardeners like to soak their seed trays before sowing seeds, I prefer to sow my seeds into dry modules and then water them from above with a small watering can with a fine rose attachment.

The fine rose creates a gentle shower of water, much like a fine drizzle of rain on a wet day. This ensures that your seeds won't get washed away or displaced when you water them.

Once your seedlings have germinated it can be a good idea to water your seedlings from below so that you can encourage the roots to grow towards the water and become stronger in the process.