Sow the seeds of success
GROWING YOUR OWN PLANTS FROM SCRATCH IS FUN, REWARDING, AND WILL SAVE YOU SPENDING A FORTUNE AT THE GARDEN CENTRE
RAISING plants from seed is the most cost-effective way of producing annual bedding and veggie plants.
You can do the same for many kinds of houseplants, herbs and perennials too. Hygienic growing conditions and spotlessly clean pots or seed trays are essential, but success really depends on attention to detail – follow my simple instructions, and always read the directions on the packets.
TINY SEEDS
(eg. begonia)
Loosely fill a pot with multipurpose compost, level off the top and firm down slightly. Spread a half-inch layer of horticultural vermiculite over the surface. Sprinkle the seeds very thinly and evenly all over and water by standing the pot in a dish of water for 10 minutes until the surface is just moist, then allow it to drain. Label the pot with the plant name and sowing date. Seedlings will be very slow growing, and it will be several months before they are big enough to space out into trays of multipurpose compost – or move to small individual pots.
MEDIUM-SIZED SEEDS
(eg. Tomato, pepper, most bedding plants and many veg such as brassicas) Fill a pot or half-sized seed tray with multipurpose compost, level it off and firm it down gently. Tip the packet of seeds out into the palm of your hand and, taking a pinch at a time, sprinkle them evenly over the surface of the compost so that each seed gets a small space of its own and seedlings aren’t overcrowded.
If you only need a few plants, there’s no need to sow the whole packet. For vegetable seeds, you may want to make several sowings over a period of weeks or months to have a succession of crops.
After sowing, label the container and water it by standing it in a tray or sink of water for 10 minutes, then allow to drain.
When the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into small individual pots. Space bedding plants one inch apart in full-sized seed trays.
LARGE SEEDS
(eg. peas, beans, sweetcorn, courgettes and pumpkins) These seeds germinate fast and grow quickly, so sow them straight into small pots or “cells” (individual compartments in trays). This avoids any need to prick out seedlings. Fill the pots or cells with multipurpose compost, place one or two seeds in the centre of each and press in gently so the seed only just disappears under the surface of the compost.
SOWING OUTDOORS
Sowing seeds of hardy annual flowers straight into their final containers outdoors avoids pricking out and replanting. Use this method for growing tubs of dwarf sunflowers, or hanging baskets of dwarf sweet peas or nasturtium.
It’s also a good way to grow annual herbs (chervil or parsley, also rocket and baby salad leaves).
Hardy plants can be sown out from mid-March onwards if the weather is reasonable. Stand the containers where you want the plants to grow. Fill to within an inch of the rim with a 50:50 mixture of multipurpose compost and John Innes No2, level off, then sow large seeds by spacing them out a few inches apart, or sprinkle smaller seeds thinly and evenly all over the surface. Bury to roughly their own depth with more compost. Water from above using a fine rose on a watering can.
If too many seedlings come up, carefully pull out overcrowded or damaged ones to leave more space. No pricking out is needed.
Hardy plants can be sown out from mid-March onwards, if the weather is reasonable