Sharing the Seeds of Love

It's that time of year again and the window sills are lined with starters: beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash. The Green Committee is caring for the seedlings now that will become your family's food at the great giveaway this April. Earth Week at MdTL is my favorite time of year, embodying so much of what we all strive for: a strong community that shares with joyful, expectation-free abundance; an opportunity to learn from one another about how to simplify our lives through practical, responsible living; a time to celebrate the great Earth that we all inhabit; and an occasion when our children can inspire us with compost 'how-to' and planet inspired poetry! This living is a supreme gift and Earth Week provides the sprinkling of wonder, friendship, partnership and generosity that makes our community whole.

EARTHWEEK DAY 1: Seedling giveaway

Please join us Monday morning for a selection of free vegetable and flower starters. These little plants have already sprouted and will need a gentle introduction to the outdoor elements with moist, but not wet soil. After a week to 10 days of transition they'll be ready to go into a large pot or a compost enriched mound outdoors. There is nothing quite like growing your own food. Enjoy!

How to transplant seedlings

(Click on picture for more information about taking care of your seedlings)

EARTH WEEK: DAY ONE

"The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies." ...Gertrude Jekyll

CARING FOR YOUR SEEDLINGS

As your seedlings grow stronger, thorough but less frequent watering is needed to encourage root growth.

They will need partial shade when young but should be increasingly exposed to the sun so they become used to conditions in the garden. Water in the morning rather than at night.

TRANSPLANTING YOUR SEEDLINGS

Mark where you plan to put each of your plants. Use a trowel to make a hole large enough to take the root system.

Gently ease out the vegetable seedling from its container taking as much of the soil as you can with it into the garden bed or new container.

Firm the soil around the plant in its new position, cover the area with mulch and water it gently.

It is best to transplant seedlings in the late afternoon or evening to give the plants time to settle before being subjected to midday sun.

*A note about soil: several failed gardening attempts later and I can tell you that nothing matters more than the soil. Take time to create either a simple mound, raised bed or container that combines your 'native soil' and compost (if you don't have any at home, a small bag can be purchased at any nursery). Soil that maintains moisture without over saturating the roots is ideal. I find in my yard that vegetables grow much better above ground in mounds and beds.