Hi'iaka's Healing Herb Garden

Easy Guide to Seed Starting Success

It's that time of year again when a gardener's thoughts turn to bountiful summer harvests of beautiful flowers, herbs and delicious fruits and vegetables. Putting seeds into soil in the spring feels almost like a religion to me... what power I feel when I participate in this life-creating exercise!

Many people I've talked to admit to being afraid of failure when it comes to starting seeds from scratch. Perhaps they have had unsuccessful experiences in the past or simply don't know where to begin. But it's easy if you have a little information to guide you on your growing journey. This month I'll give a quick and easy primer on how to start seeds, in the hope that perhaps you will decide to embark on this exciting adventure.

Grow Heirloom Varieties

I wrote about heirloom plants last month, but for now, an heirloom is simply an "old fashioned" variety of a plant that has not been hybridized or "engineered." You won't have much success in finding heirloom starter plants at your garden center because most people want familiar varieties and that's what the companies who provide plants to retail nurseries concentrate their efforts on -- they are the proven money makers. So if you're interested in trying some wonderfully tasty or beautiful old-fashioned varieties, you'll need to start them yourself from seed. If you become a gardening Sherlock Holmes, you'll find heirloom seeds sold by Seeds of Change and other companies. Check www.seedsofchange.com. Maybe you'll discover a delicious purple tomato that does well in your microclimate!

Seed Starting Recipe

Even though our weather makes it possible to start seeds year-round, I have found that spring is a good time to start many of them. Most seed packets include instructions for starting the seed inside, but here are some general rules, hints and tips.

You'll need these items to begin:

* Seeds (obviously)

* Potting mix, which can be purchased or a blend you mix yourself with peat moss, compost, vermiculite, black cinder, and so on. The Hi`iaka's Garden recipe for potting mix is:

Mix in a wheelbarrow:

1/2 of a large bag of purchased potting mix
7 quarts of peat moss (a 4-cup measuring cup equals 1 quart)
3.5 gallons of black cinder (use a 1-gallon black plastic nursery pot)
4 quarts of Vermiculite or Perlite (helps to retain water)

Toss your mix and store the extra in a closed garbage can. We use this mix for starting seeds and for all of our potted plants -- it makes about six flats and seven-gallon pots. It's not rocket science! If you don't have one of the ingredients, chances are your seeds will start just fine without it.

* Flats or large, shallow pots. The black plastic flats available at garden stores work best. Make sure your pot has a drainage hole.

* Trowel or shovel and gloves, if you want them.

Quick and Easy Seed Planting Steps

NOTE: Because of the humidity in Hawai`i, many kinds of seeds go "pau" fairly quickly. I always try to use seeds very soon after I buy them and also use an entire seed packet whenever I start any seeds. If all of them do well, you'll have plenty for yourself and lots of extras to give to friends and relatives as nice little gifts from Mother Earth. And if worst comes to worst and you simply can't find homes for all of your keikis, use them to nourish your other plants as mulch or in your compost pile.

1. Fill your flats or pots with potting mix. Make sure that you give the seeds plenty of room: for example, if a seed packet has 300 seeds in it, use an entire flat. Some packets have very few seeds in them: in this case, use a nursery pot (I prefer the 1/2 gallon size for many seeds because it gives plenty of root space and uses less potting soil than a gallon pot). After you fill your flat or pot with potting mix to about 1 inch of the top, pat it down to compress it a bit. Then give it a shower.

2. How deep do you plant seeds? In general, the bigger the seeds the deeper you need to plant them. For example, green bean seeds are large and need to be planted at least 1/2 inch deep, while carrot seeds are tiny and should be planted with just a scattering of potting mix over them.

3. For larger seeds, poke holes of the correct depth into your potting mix. Then drop one seed into each hole. Cover with soil, gently pat the soil with your palm, and water it again. Place the flat or pot in a protected place where it will get plenty of sun. I prefer to put my seed starting pots on a table so any ground-crawling critters like snails and slugs are less likely to find my succulent salad to feast upon.

4. For smaller seeds, scatter the seeds on top of the soil in your flat or pot. Then sprinkle a little potting mix over the entire surface. Pat it gently and give it a shower. Place the flat or pot in a protected place where it will get plenty of sun.

NOTE: Some seed directions might suggest that you cover your finished pot or flat with clear plastic to keep the seeds moist and warm. However, I have found that this can cause new sprouts to burn, shrivel and die. For the most part, it's a little too warm here to make covering your seeds with plastic necessary. Just be sure to water them frequently, especially if they're small seeds, because the surface layer of soil can dry out quickly.

When your keikis are about 4 inches tall, you can transplant them to larger pots or put them directly into your garden, which you have prepared with lots of good compost and other natural ingredients. Keep them well watered and protect them from critters until they're bigger.