A special recipe

My friend Donald has been running errands for me, to Agway and the Long Island Cauliflower Association, among other places, searching for the ingredients that I need to make a special seed starting mix. Friends at a CSA in Amagansett, Long Island gave me the recipe nine years ago and I've been making batches of it ever since.

Special Recipe for seed starting mix

15 gallons Compost

12 gallons Peat Moss

6 gallons Perlite

6 gallons Vermiculite

3 Cups Azomite (may substitute Planters II)

3 Cups Bloodmeal

3 Cups Bonemeal

3 Cups Rock Phosphate

3 Cups Greensand

2 Cups Lime

Why do I go to the trouble of searching for these sometimes hard to find ingredients such as rock phosphate, perlite, and azomite? Let me explain...
Seeds are perfect little self contained packages that don't really need anything but heat and moisture to germinate. It is possible to germinate seeds on a wet paper towel placed on a windowsill. However, without added nutrients, the seeds will not grow past the cotyledon stage. Their nutrients are quickly depleted and the seedlings begin searching for more. The same is true when starting seeds in a sterile, soiless mix. The seeds lose their vigor, wither and die before the grower has a chance to transfer the plants to a better environment.

I like to start my seeds early and grow them to a nice healthy size before I transplant them outside. So I use the special mix that is loaded with enough nutrients to keep the seedlings strong until it is time to transplant them outside.

So, what's in the mix?

Compost is the end product of decomposed organic matter which provides a humus-like soil full of nutrients. Compost provides the base of the soil mix. Peat moss, commonly sold as a soil amendment is added because of its ability to absorb and retain water. Perlite is an amorphous volcanic glass, typically formed by the hydration of obsidian. It makes the compost more open to air and makes the soil lighter, while still having good water retention properties. Vermiculite is formed by the hydration of certain basaltic minerals and is used as a soil conditioner. These first four ingredients give the soil mix a light, airy texture and an ability to retain water. Azomite is the name of a special rock found in Utah. It has 67 major and trace elements and ground to a dust, these minerals are small enough to pass through the cell walls of plants. Blood Meal is the dried powdered blood from slaughtered cattle which is used as a source of nitrogen. Nitrogen helps the seedlings to stay green. Bone Meal is made from ground animal bones and is used as a natural source of calcium and phosphorous. Bone meal stimulates root and flower production and also helps to reduce transplant shock. Like Bone Meal, Rock Phosphate is also a good source of phosphorous and calcium. It is derived from deposits of apatite rocks formed millions of years ago by fossils of shells. Greensand, is a naturally occuring iron- potassium silicate which has the consistency of sand and is able to absorb moisture. It contains potassium, iron, magnesium, calcium , and phosphorous plus as many as 30 other trace minerals. Lime raises the PH and reduces the acidity of the soil mix which is important in making sure that all the above ingredients are made available to the plants. If the soil's PH is off, the plants are not able to absorb the nutrients, no matter how many are added to the soil mix.

There are a lot of different seed starting mixes out there on the market, some better than others, but this particular recipe has worked well for me and that is why I will continue to use it.

Still winter

I wanted to take a picture of my garden yesterday, to let you see that more than half of it was under water. It was getting late so I decided to wait until morning and this is what I saw when I looked out the window- more snow! I am trying to ignore it and focus instead on sunnier days and warmer temperatures. To that end, I visited my friend Dan, who graciously offered to give me his 10 x 10 plastic covered greenhouse. It is fairly substantial, held together by metal pipes and covered with opaque plastic. It is surprisingly roomy inside and plenty big enough to start my seeds. My idea was to dismantle it today, transport it home, and reconnect it close to the hedge, just outside the family room door. However, I may wait until the snow has melted. I have a couple of options for heating it, including using portable electric radiators or gas. Dan has offered to run a gas line from the house, but I'm not sure if this is the best option. The greenhouse is more utilitarian than decorative and will look like a big white tent in my back yard. It will certainly raise some eyebrows in the neighborhood, but it is a temporary structure and will only be up for a couple of months. I will dismantle it in June. After setting up the greenhouse and figuring out how to heat it, I will need to set up benches and tables to put the seed trays on. Ideally, the tables will have screen tops for drainage so the trays are not sitting in water. I will also need to purchase a thermometer so that I can keep a close eye on the temperature. One of the more difficult tasks in starting seeds in a greenhouse is regulating the temperature which can fluctuate wildly in a couple of hours depending on the type of day. I plan to start my first seeds early in the week of March 15th. Hopefully by then I'll be all set and ready to go.

A new challenge

I am happy to know that people are reading and commenting on my blog. Not because there are any prize winning editorials being written, but because I want those of you who are planning to be involved in my home garden to be aware of the entire process right from the beginning. There is so much work that goes into creating a community garden long before the first seeds are planted. I made the mistake at my last garden (the Farm) in keeping much of that information to myself. I felt that as the manager it was my responsibility to take care of things like getting the water turned on, running the electric, repairing equipment, collecting deposits, reporting, ordering, record keeping, corresponding, and lecturing in order for the members to have a positive experience later on at the garden once the weather turned nice. However, not involving the members more in the off season, behind the scenes decision making came at a high personal cost to myself and very nearly caused the demise of the Farm. Happily, the Farm will continue under new management. And, even though this new garden is located in my back yard, I do want to create a sense of community here. I realize that blogging is a challenging new medium for most of us, but it is a good tool that will help us to stay connected to each other and the garden. So please let me know what you are thinking. Is there a special variety of green bean or tomato or dahlia you'd like to grow? What have you heard about gardening or organics or nutritional eating lately? What have you read? The more each of you comments, the better this blog will be! I'm sure like me, you are all itching to get outside and get your hands back in the dirt, but until then I'll see you on the internet!

Ordering seeds

There is nothing like sitting in front of the fire with a big stack of seed catalogs to make me happy on a sunday afternoon. The colorful catalogs are filled with pictures and descriptions of the latest gadgets, sprayers, seeders, garden carts, soil mixes, shiny new clippers, pots and containers, hand forged tools, garden stakes, composters, row covers, and pest controls as well as a tempting variety of vegetables, herbs, and flowers in every shape, size and color under the sun. Of course, I have every other page earmarked with notes scribbled in the margins as new varieties catch my eye and hope to compete for space in the garden.
I will order past stars, those varieties that year after year produce high yields of delicious produce, including Sugar Snap peas, Maxibel beans, Super Star onions, Early Wonder beets,and Bright Lights chard. But I am tempted by new names such as Pikant shallots, described as large, high yielding bulbs with mahogany skin and a reddish interior. Badger Gold beets, Purple Haze carrots, Minuet cabbage, and Black Prince tomatoes have all made the list this year.
I have ordered the bulk of my seeds from Johhny's Selected Seeds, an employee owned company from Maine whose informative catalog I carry with me and refer to on a daily basis during the growing season. Go to www.johnnyseeds.com to view their catalog on line or to place your name on their mailing list. In my experience, Johnny's seeds offers a nice selection of good performing varieties that are available in different sized packets for both the home grower and larger commercial farms. Their germination rates are true and their employees are responsive and helpful. But I do order smaller amounts from other catalogs, including Territorial Seed Company, Seed Savers Exchange, Tomato Growers, John Scheepers, Fedco, Baker Creek, Abundant Life Seeds, Botanical Interests, High Mowing, and Landreth's, among others. Check out Landreth's 225 year commemorative catalog that was issued this year. It is filled with replicas of their best covers from the past two hundred and fifty years as well as photographs, anecdotes and offerings of many heirloom seed varieties and good farming advice that was written generations ago and still applies today. It is a catalog I will keep on the shelf next to my favorite gardening books. In a couple of days I'll have most of the seeds ordered. In the meantime, I'm firming up some leads on greenhouse space that I can use and buying the ingredients for my seed starting mix so that when the seeds arrive, I'll be ready to go!
Cost:
Johnny's seeds 301.55

Dance with the daffodils

There is nothing like the sight of lemon and champagne colored daffodils followed by brilliant tulips to announce the arrival of spring. Daffodils not only signal winters end, some say they hold the promise of future prosperity. They symbolize rebirth and new beginnings, so it is especially appropriate for me to have them in my yard to remind me of all the exciting new paths that are opening up for me.
The meaning of tulips is generally perfect love and each color carries its own significance. Red tulips are associated with true love while purple symbolizes royalty. Yellow tulips represent cheerful thoughts and sunshine. White tulips are often used to send a message of forgiveness and variegated tulips represent beautiful eyes.
A vase of cut tulips is enough to brighten my mood any day so I planted about two hundred bulbs along the perimeter fence. I already have several drifts of daffodils planted and both of these flowers will be among the first to bloom in spring.
My friend Debbie Van Bourgondien happens to own a Dutch bulb importing business and she has been very generous in providing me with high quality bulbs for the past several years. Visit their website at www.dutchbulbs.com to see hundreds of different varieties of bulbs that their family owned business has to offer.
Unlike the garlic, where each clove needs its own space, tulips can be planted together, 8 to 10 bulbs per hole. First I placed a handful of bone meal, an excellent source of phosphorous, at the bottom of each hole which will contribute to vital, more colorful flowers and strong roots. Then I sprinkled the area with hot red pepper flakes to discourage the squirrels from digging up the tasty bulbs.
The bulbs (and I) will lay dormant all winter...
"For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils."
William Wordsworth
I can't wait till spring!

Growing garlic

Even though I still had to add some ammenments to the soil, I wanted to plant my garlic before Thanksgiving. Fall is the best time to plant garlic. Ideally I want to get good root growth, but no top growth before winter. Waiting until spring to plant garlic will greatly reduce the bulb size at harvest time.
I bought my garlic from Dave piedmonte of Piedmonte Garlic Farm located in Holley New York. I chose the variety German extra hardy because it grows well here on Long Island, has large firm cloves, and tastes great! It also lasts for months in my kitchen without drying out.
To plant, separate the cloves from the bulb. Each bulb will produce 6 new garlic palnts. I planted the individual cloves, tip side up, about 6 inches apart. I placed the cloves in a furrow about 2 inches deep and covered them with soil. I then mulched the cloves with several inches of leaves. In the spring I will remove the mulch and look for the bright green tops to appear. Then I will fertilize with fish emulsion three times before harvesting the new bulbs around the 4th of July. After much preparation, it was good to finally plant something in the ground and even though it will be months before I harvest the first bulbs, I know it will be worth the wait!
Cost:
$16.00 ($8.00 per pound)

Testing the soil

I am a big believer in 'healthy soil equals healthy plants.'I first heard this back in 1993 when I enrolled in the Cornell Cooperative Extension Master Garden Course and it couldn't be more true. When you start the growing season with healthy, well balanced soil that is full of the proper amounts of nutrients and organic matter, there is less need to fertilize during the season and the healthy plants that result are strong and better equiped to fight off predatory bugs and diseases. That is not to say that my past gardens have been immune to bugs and disease, its just that when the plants are healthy and strong they are better able to recover from whatever it is that might be trying to attack them.
It is a good idea for anyone starting a new garden to have the soil tested to get a baseline account of their soils composition and nutrient makeup. At the very least determine the soil PH which needs to be in a range where nutrients can be available to the plants. This will not happen if the soil is too alkaline or acidic. Even if your soil looks nice and dark and full of organic matter, if the PH is way off, your plants will not thrive. I have been sending my soil samples all the way to California for the past ten years to a place called Timberleaf Soil Testing. Their web address is www.timberleafsoiltesting.com
I like Timberleaf because their comprehensive report is easy to read. Bob and Valerie Russo who own the business, are responsive and available by phone to answer questions. They provide time frames and recommendations on how to achieve maximum soil fertility, which generally takes anywhere from three to five years.
Happily, the soil test for my garden was generally positive. It showed that the soil is already in fairly good balance. The PH is at 7.2, a bit high, but not enough for me to be overly concerned. The potassium was also high which means that I need to be mindful of limiting the amount of manure that I add to my compost this year. Both sulfur and boron levels were low which can be easily remedied by adding these two minerals directly to the garden. Making these simple changes puts me on the road to soil balance and fertility and will create a good environment for my plants to grow healthy and strong.
Cost:
Soil test $63.00

Worm food

Fall is a great time to put all those fallen leaves to good use. I raked up all the leaves from our yard and spread them several inches thick on top of the garden. Then we took the lawnmower and chopped them right into the soil. Adding leaves is another way to add organic matter to the soil as well as trace minerals that plants need. Trace minerals are found deep in the ground and are absorbed by tree roots and eventually make their way to the leaves. By speading the leaves on the garden, the trace minerals make their way back to the soil where they will nourish this season's plants. I watered the leaves in to prevent them from blowing back into the yard and to let the worms know that there was a party going on. The worms will spend the next several months eating the leaves and nurturing the soil in the process. The castings that the worms expel will greatly improve the soil structure. The worms will make tunnels between the soil layers that will help water, air and nutrients to move freely and will allow plenty of space for deep root growth. I will do an informal worm count in the spring. If all goes according to plan, the worms will spend the winter munching, tunnelling, and making more worms which will in turn make my soil healthy.

Fence it in

I chose to define the space with split rail fencing. It is simple and informal and appropriate for the site. The split rail is for aesthetics only as it won't keep rabbits or squirrels from entering the garden and munching on the tender greens. For that I'll have to add small mesh wire fencing along the inside perimeter of the rails. So far, we've put up two sides, the other two will come later this spring when the ground thaws. We found some perfectly good old rails that were being thrown away so we only had to purchase the posts.
Cost:
10 Fence Posts $133.00

Raise it up

I wanted to raise the level of the garden and replace the soil that I had hauled away so I had 25 yards of finished compost delivered from a local nursery. I prefer to make my own compost and was reluctant to bring in soil from an outside source (there is always a risk of introducing unwanted pests and disease,)but I needed a lot of it and the compost looked good. It was clean, black, crumbly, and had a rich earthy aroma. My goal is to add depth to the garden by building it up rather than by rototilling down. Deep rototilling disturbs the layers of the subsoil and brings up a lot of weed seeds that can cause problems later on. For the next several months, worms will continue to loosen and aerate the soil and bring up trace minerals from the subsoil which plants need in smaller amounts. By providing deep, rich, uncompacted soil my seedlings will have plenty of room to grow into vigorous and healthy plants.
Cost:
Compost (25 yards at $20.00) $500.00
Plywood (to protect lawn) $150.00