I received the following e-mail from Burpee Seeds http://www.burpee.com/

Get Ready to Start Your Indoor Seeds

Starting your own seeds is a great way to try out new and unusual varieties, as well as grow quantities of your old favorites. Vegetables, herbs, annual flowers -- even perennial flowers -- can be easily grown from seed. The new Burpee catalog has lots of varieties to tempt you, so begin to fantasize about this years garden. Here are some tips to help you get ready for seed-starting:

1. As a starting point, consult your gardening journal from last year (or your memory) about which varieties you especially liked (and those you didnt) and make notes about what youd like to grow. Dont forget some flowers that are easily dried for indoor decoration during the bleakest winter. Some of the best types to grow from seed are love-lies-bleeding, which features long, red chenille-like blooms; ornamental hot peppers, which product orange or red fruits; globe amaranth, which has clover-like flowers; and statice, which retains its blue, white, or pink color well after drying.

2. If youve saved seed from last year, its a good idea to do a germination test to ensure the seed will grow. Wrap up a few seeds of one variety in a moist paper towel and enclose the towel in a plastic bag. Label the bag if youll be testing more than one variety. Place the bag in a warm location and check the seeds after a week. If no seeds have germinated, check again after another week. By that time, some of the seeds should have begun to grow, and if not, its time to order new seeds. If only 1 or 2 of the seeds have germinated, either order more or sow them thickly to make sure youll have enough seedlings.

3. Now is a good time to take inventory of your gardening supplies for this spring. Check quantities of potting soil, and supplies of plant labels and fertilizers. Take inventory of your pots, trays, and other seed-starting equipment, discarding any broken or cracked pots. Disinfect pots and trays by washing them in a 10-percent bleach solution.

4. If you use fluorescent lights to grow your transplants, check your bulbs to make sure they are in good condition. Any bulbs that are older than 3 years should be replaced because the light intensity decreases over time and can result in leggy seedlings.

If you are growing seedlings for only 4 weeks indoors, regular cool white fluorescent tubes are fine. For plants grown longer than this, use full-spectrum grow lights for best results.In the next newsletter, well talk about making a seed-starting schedule to guide you in sowing and transplanting.

Question of the Week ================ Q. Whats the best kind of soil to use for starting seeds?

A. Sterile soil-less potting soil provides the best balance of air and moisture for seedlings and reduces the chances of disease killing your seedlings. Garden soil can contain pathogens that might not show up right away. Losing an entire flat to a disease can be quite disheartening.

-- Bill P (porterwn@one.net), January 11, 2000

Answers

After a run of beginniner's luck, I had a couple disasterous seasons with seedlings dying off. I believe the main reason was that I was using seed starting soil I had held over from a previous year or two. For those first critical weeks, make sure everything is fresh!

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), January 11, 2000.

Burpee and others sell nonhybrid seeds. these are the seeds that can be saved year after year. Hybrid seeds don't work, they must be repurchased every year. Saving seeds is an art. Seed to Seed by Ashworth is the authority.

-- John (littmannj@aol.com), January 11, 2000.

Why not just buy your veggies at Whole Earth or Wild Oats?

-- (reap@yuppie.sower), January 11, 2000.

already started mine...last saturday...lettuce and cucumbers have already poked up... can't wait

-- growing my own (farmer@thecity.com), January 11, 2000.

A little misting with Miracid solution can help prevent damping off of the seedlings. I have also heard of a weak vinegar solution helping as well.

I have my first flat on top of the fridge right now. Lettuce, tomatoes, parsley, and an assortment of perennials. Will turn the veggie bed again tomorrow, after covering it with blood meal and sulfur to help acidify our very limey soil. I turned it last week with compost. The idea being to let it all sit and meld together, sort of like a nice soil stew.

This is also a good time to find those old windows and make yourself some cold frames.

-- mommacarestx (nospam@thanks.net), January 11, 2000.

I am growing outside. My cauliflower grreens are quite big, but where are the cauliflower? Does anyone understand this? I have some summer squash leaves that are getting nice.

-- Mara (MaraWayne@aol.com), January 12, 2000.

mara.....

are you sure your cauliflower is getting enough moisture?

they should be watered every nite that it doesn't rain....and mulched around the base to keep moisture in

lack of moisture (and/or too much heat or cold) can keep them from forming the edible part

don't know if you know this.......but about a week before you harvest, if you'll bring several of the leaves up around the head and secure with a rubber band to cover them, they will "blanch" ie not get yellowed in color

hope this helps : )

-- mebs (andrea@mebs.lurking), January 12, 2000.

You folk are disgusting!! There is NO WAY I get ANYTHING into the ground for another 4 months!! RATZ!!!!

Guess it's just because I live on the North Coast.

Chuck who, on past form owns both a green and a brown thumb

-- Chuck, a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), January 12, 2000.

Most of those folks, Chuck, must live in CA, the South, or have greenhouses. Around here in PA, I can forget planting til mid March for anything. Don't feel bad.

If I get around to building a cold frame, I might get stuff like peas in earlier than mid March.

As for the fellow who asks why we just don't BUY the food, it's very satisfying to produce your own food. You may not always be able to zip on down to the mega grocery store to buy your food.

Besides, it's just a small but important step in my gradual independence from the State and their controls.

-- Bill (billclo@msgbox.com), January 12, 2000.

Chuck,
Dallas is forecast to hit 81 today, looks like zone 10 is marching North about 300 miles this year. The fruit trees are budding on my farm in central Texas, if winter ever comes we will get some serious dieback.

-- Possible Impact (posim@hotmail.com), January 12, 2000.

mebs, Thanks. I water, I water...

-- Mara (MaraWayne@aol.com), January 13, 2000.