And so it begins...
I started some seeds 8 days and as you can see from the above photo they've all sprouted (no duds, so I'll have some to give away). Right now there are only pepper and eggplant seeds in the tray. In about a week I'll start the tomato seeds and a few weeks after that I'll start the cucumber and cantaloupe seeds.
I'll be planting about the same amount of plants I did in 2009, but given what I've chosen to grow I'll probably surpass last year's harvest of 57 lbs.
This year I'm starting fresh with all new seeds from Johnny's Selected Seeds, a company based in Maine, so I'm certain anything available on their site will do fine in my area.
Orange Blossom Tomato: 2 plants
Gold Nugget Cherry Tomato: 1 plant
Gretel Eggplant: 2 plants (or maybe just 1)
Lipstick Pepper (red sweet bell pepper): 2 plants
Gourmet Pepper (orange sweet bell pepper): 2 plants
Islander Pepper (lavender sweet bell pepper): 2 plants
Padron Pepper: 1 plant
H-19 Little Leaf Cucumber: 2 plants
Halona Cantaloupe: 2 plants
No peas this year, I've decided I don't like them enough to actually grow them. They're being replaced with cantaloupe. Melons are new territory for me so I'll be watching them closely for the entire growing season.
This will be my 3rd attempt at growing cucumbers. Last year's seed never sprouted, the year before that they died from powdery mildew, so I really really hope this year's attempt works out.
I haven't decided if want to track the market value of what I grow this year, but I'll continue to keep track of my expenses.
Seeds: $35.50
Seedling Heat Mat: $27.96
Seed Starting Plugs: $6.52
Total: $69.98 Read more...
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