Starting vegetable Sprouts from Seed

Starting vegetable Sprouts from Seed

Tom Ingram: Ask a Master Gardener

Sunday, March 29, 2020

Q: Now that I have more time on my hands at home, my kids and I were thinking of starting a vegetable garden. How should I get started? AJ

A: The situation we collectively find our community in is a bit scary, but what better way to social distance ourselves than working out in the garden? And it’s a great way to supplement our food, as well as a fun activity for your kids. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

First, you’ll need to decide what you want to grow. Good vegetables for first-time gardeners are tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and bush beans. Potatoes are also a good choice. You can supplement these with some herbs, such as basil and oregano.

Seeds for these are available online if you don’t want to get out, or you could visit one of our local garden centers to pick up what you need. I am guessing that some of our local vendors would be more than willing to bring your order out to your car for you.

Of the crops we mentioned, it’s best to start your seeds for tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and the herbs indoors, so you are going to need some type of container to plant your seeds. These can be as simple as used yogurt or butter containers or something more elaborate like the peat pot starters you can get at the store. Whatever you decide to use, it would be good to get some seed-starting soil. Seed-starting soil is much less course and is a great medium for starting new plants.

Next, fill your containers with the seed-starting mix, moisten it, and place a seed in each one. Move your newly planted seeds to a sunny, warm location, and wait. Germination times vary, but with any luck, you should see your plants start to emerge in a few days. Seed germination heating mats can speed up the process, but that may be something you what to think about for this fall or next year.

Be sure to keep your seeds well-watered without drowning them. In these small containers, it is easy to overwater, especially if you are using a container without drainage in the bottom.

The typical day we say you can plant your seedlings outside is April 15. This is historically after the last threat of frost has passed, but in Oklahoma, all options are on the table.

Seed potatoes can be planted now, and bush bean seeds should go in the ground after April 15.

Most gardeners started their seeds a few weeks ago, but better late to the party than never showing up. We have an entire page on our website about growing vegetables with resources that you should find helpful. Just go to tulsamastergardeners.org and click on the button marked Vegetable Garden Help.

Good luck and happy gardening!

Garden tips

·        All cool-season vegetables, strawberries, asparagus and other small fruit may be planted this month.

·        Established broadleaf weeds can easily be controlled in lawns at this time with post-emergent broadleaf herbicides. These herbicides are most effective in spring and fall when weeds are growing.

·        Cut down dead pine trees as soon as possible. Most of these trees died of pine wilt disease due to a nematode infection. The infection is spread by the pine sawyer beetle, and dead pines are a source of infection carried by these beetles.