Park Seed Garden Journal

Directly Sowing Seeds Saves Time & Money

Direct sowing is the shortest path to growing bounds of ripe tasty veggies and layers of bright blooming flowers. Direct sowing is easy: as soon as the danger of frost has passed, just plant the seeds directly into the ground and water regularly. Save a little money on seed-starting this year by getting a few of these hardy varieties, perfect for planting the old-fashioned way.

Park Seed is now offering a few varieties perfect for directly sowing into the ground. We have vegetables: Beans, cucumbers, corn, carrots, and more! And we have flowers: perennials and annuals!

Grow Sweet Melons for a Cool Summer Treat!

Summer is coming fast, and there is nothing better than sweet, cool fruit right off the vine. I remember growing up here in South Carolina, my great grandfather would hoist a huge ripe watermelon from his garden and split it on the picnic table under the apple tree next to his garden. Every white t-shirt I owned had a red stain around the neck.

Melons are some of the easiest and quickest fruits to grow, making them one of the few fruits that give you a strong return the same year you plant them.

A few old-timer hints about melons:

• Don't move the vines while they are growing. Melon foliage grows slowly towards the light, and if moved, it may set back the fruiting process, leaving you with smaller melons.
• If you are trying to grow record-sized melons, remove a few from the vine to allow your plant to focus on fewer fruits.
• (This one is a little more controversial) If you have a noticeable problem with your melons splitting open towards the end of the season or after a strong rain, you might want to cut about half-way through the stem to hinder the flow of sap to the fruit. Of course, we always just assumed that splitting was nature's way of saying, "You deserve a break, go ahead and eat this one."

Park Seed has a wonderful selection of beautiful, colorful, tasty melons this spring. The big favorite among the staff here is Melon Lambkin, which is also an AAS Vegetable Award Winner! My personal favorite is Watermelon Yellow Crunch, sweet, crisp, and up to 20 pounds apiece, just the way I like 'em.

2009 AAS Winners: The Best Seeds of the Year

Since 1932, The All-American Selections (AAS) organization has helped to promote new seed varieties, educating gardeners throughout North America and keeping us all up to date on the latest trends in gardening. New plant varieties are grown every year at one of the AAS Trial Grounds set up at seed companies, botanical gardens, and university campuses. Each Trial Ground is supervised by a Judge at that location. Stephanie Turner, Director of Seed Product, is the supervisor of our trial garden. She is one of official judges who cast votes in the annual AAS process.

Every year Park Seed offers all of the the AAS winners to our customers, and for 2009 the winners were Eggplant Gretel, Melon Lambkin, Viola Rain Blue and Purple, and Squash Honey Bear. Stephanie told me that she was particulary fond of the Melon Lambkin, and she knows her stuff - so you should give it a try.

Stevia Is Now Commercially Available In North America

In October of 2007, I posted a short entry about the super-sweet herb, Stevia, and it's growing popularity. I mentioned that food giants Cargill and Coke were courting the FDA to allow them to market a form of the stevia extract as a food additive/sweeter. Last month, Rebiana (the Stevia additive's trade name) was approved for use in North America, so you may start seeing it on shelves within the next few months.

But you don't have to wait that long - you can benefit from this zero-calorie sweetener within a few weeks by growing it in your own kitchen herb garden. I grew stevia last year. It was fairly easy and the plants were impressively dense with sweet foliage. You will probably not run out even if you grow only one plant. You can dry them and save them for later. Right now you can get a pack of 10 USDA certified organic Stevia Rebaudiana seeds for $3.95 from Park Seed.

I really wish I had taken pictures, I had one stem that was almost 4 feet tall on my patio, with leaves from base to tip. Just one leaf of stevia is more than enough to sweeten a glass of tea or lemonade.

Seed Starting: Being Prepared To Grow

Growing plants from seed is easy--people have been doing it for thousands of years. Essentially, all you need seeds, soil, and water. The difference between your garden and the gardens of thousands of years ago is that you are not a tenth-generation farmer growing native plants on your ancestors' land. You are a busy, modern person working a 40+ hour work week, and you may need a few extra tricks and gadgets to coax your seeds into giving you the garden you want.

Remember these 3 things when you are starting out with a new garden:

1. Choose good quality seeds.
   To ensure good germination rates and healthy, fruitful plant growth, untreated, Non-GMO (genetically modified organism) seed, make sure that you buy from a trusted source. Park Seed is a trusted brand that guarantees the quality of their seed products.
2. Know Your USDA Hardniness Zone.
   Choose the hardiest varieties with resistances relevant to your zone. If you live in a hot dry climate, choose varieties that are drought resistant.
3. Get as much information about your plants as you can.
   At ParkSeed.com, we always list tolerances, hardiness, and specific care instructions for all of our seeds. The seed packet itself will give you planting and germination instructions.

You can read more in this extensive seed-staring guide from our Online Gardener's Handbook which feature other articles and links to helpful gardening sites..

 

Speaking of seed packets--by popular demand, Park Seed has brought back the classic gold foil seed packets. People like them because they keep your seeds safe and dry, and most of our long-time customers associate them with the Park Seed brand.

New Organic Squash Eastern Delight Hybrid!

I hope everyone is having a happy Holiday season! It's the day after Christmas and we are already back on the job, getting ready for the first spring seed orders.

We have plenty of new and exciting seed varieties this season. I'm gonna try to highlight some of the favorites throughout the spring planting season. Today I want to talk about Squash Eastern Delight Hybrid Organic. This plant is tolerant to powdery mildew, yields heaps of fruit, and offers a unique color for your dinner table. These lightly spotted, ivory green squash, also called Mexican White Squash are very popular in Mexico and the Middle-East, and they have a similar taste and texture to zuccini.

Victory Gardens Are Back

With recent economic troubles there has been new interest in Victory Gardens.

Victory Gardens are fruit and vegetable gardens planted originally at private residences throughout Allied English-speaking nations during WWI and WWII. The idea was to reduce the pressure put on the food supply by the wars. With the US currently participating in two wars and the economy making the headlines everyday, Victory Gardens have become very popular once again. Not necessarily to ease pressure on the general food supply, but many people are easing the pressure on their own wallets by growing more food at home.

Recently, more people have bought fruit and vegetable seeds than they have in many years. Many people are getting into gardening for the first time, people who may have never considered gardening otherwise. With all of these new gardeners, many people are looking for tips, hints, and seed suppliers. The Park Seed Company plans to do our very best this year to accommodate the new gardeners as well as the many veterans who have ramped up their gardening needs in light of current events.

We've got seed-starting kits that are easy to use. Most of the people here in the office are young inexperienced gardeners, and they all own a Bio Dome Seed Starter. Often our window sills are lined with little seedlings because everybody wants to try out all of the new stuff.

We are also offering a special Victory Garden seed collection that features 6 easy to grow garden favorite veggies for $9.95. This collection is enough to fill a small garden: cucumbers, crook-neck squash, tomatoes, green beans, red lettuce, and some giant bell peppers.

New Spring 2009 Park Seed Catalogs Are Here!

Park Seed's spring catalogs have been mailed. It is now time to start planning your spring garden and thinking about seed starting.

Our Spring 2009 Seed Book is full of all of your favorite hybrid and heirloom seed varieties, but it is also packed with almost 100 brand new rare varieties. You can also get all of your vital seed starting supplies like Park's famous Bio Dome seed starting system. This is the catalog that many gardeners wait all year for--it gives you everything you need for a strong start in the spring planting season.

If you like the Seed Book, you should also check out Park Seed's Spring Planting Catalog 2009. This books is full of a huge variety of bulbs, roses, perennials, shrubs, and trees that will really make your garden glow this season. This book contains many old favorites, but you will also find many new and exclusive plant varieties.

You can request these catalogs to be delivered free to your home, or you can look through them on our website: Park Seed eCatalogs. The pictures and descriptions in the electronic catalog link to full descriptions on at Park Seed's website.

The Best Light for Growing Your Tomato Seedlings

Once you've got your tiny tomato plants sprouted from seed, it's time to move them into the light.  You'll want to put your seedlings in the strongest light you have available.  For many gardeners this means a sunny window, which will work.  Even better is a strong florescent light or grow light that can be placed just a few inches above the seedlings (an adjustable grow light system can help a lot in this).  The closer and more powerful the light is, the less the light will be diffused, which will mean your tomato plants will grow stockier and not get leggy (tall and spindly).  If you don't have powerful enough light and the plants do get leggy, it's not the end of the world.  Tomato plants have the interesting ability to grow roots along the main stem, which means that even a plant that's too tall to be stable when you transplant it can just be buried deeper. 

When placing your tomatoes in the light, keep in mind that you don't want the light so close that heat from it burns the plants, and it needs to give room for air to circulate over the seedlings (keep them protected from chilly drafts, though).  Around 14-16 hours of this light a day is optimal.  Some gardeners recommend longer, as much as 20 or even 24 hours a day of strong light.  I've never found there to be any improvement with more than 16 hours of light, and in some cases it can even be harmful.  Plus, conserving electricity is a concern for pretty much everyone these days.  If you're growing your seedlings with a directional light source (a window, a smaller light or one that isn't directly above the plants, etc), be sure to change the orientation of your seedlings to the light.  When I'm growing seedlings in a window, I try to turn them around once a day, so that they don't bend over trying to grow toward the light.

Saving Money with Vegetable Seeds

You can't turn on the news lately without hearing talk of a bad economy in America.  Macroeconomics is a long, long way from my specialty, and I'll not pretend to understand the big reasons for what is happening in our economy (whatever that may be).  What I do understand is that people around here are particularly concerned with saving money this year, and gardening is one of the best ways to save money.  So here are a few ways that something so simple, cheap, and readily available as vegetable seeds can ease the burden on your wallet this year.

Eat Well

Probably the more obvious way that gardening can save you money is that growing your own fruits and vegetables can certainly ease the grocery store's footprint on your checking account.  Fresh produce is one of the most expensive things to buy at the store, and we all know just how important a diet including lots of produce is for your health (and your taste buds!).  I'm pretty sure that if I saw exactly how much money I've spent on veggies over the last year, I'd probably have to curl up on the floor for a bit, and the prices for produce are only going up in the foreseeable future.  Even a small garden, or even just a few veggie plants in containers on a windowsill or fire escape, can produce a ton of veggies, fruit, or herbs.  That can save you a great deal of money for very little work.

Live Well

Possibly a less obvious way that gardening can save you money is by giving you something to do that doesn't cost a ton of money.  It's easy to spend hundreds of dollars going to the movies twice a week, or renting movies all the time, or buying video games at sixty-five bucks a pop.  In fact, most entertainment these days is pretty expensive, and this is, again, something that isn't going to be getting any cheaper in the near future.  Gardening, on the other hand, is a great hobby that can cost very, very little.  My first year of gardening in college cost me a whopping twelve dollars for seeds, soil, and containers (I've still got the receipts, one of which is from the Park Seed Garden Center).  With a little planning, you can spend as much or as little time gardening as you want, too.  Anywhere from thirty seconds each morning watering your herb container in the windowsill to hours every day can be dedicated to gardening, all depending on how ambitious your gardening projects are.  And every minute that you spend in the garden is a minute that you aren't out spending money.

Feel Well

The third way that gardening can save you money is more of a "long run" sort of thing.  Health care is expensive.  Really expensive.  Gardening can save you money on health care because gardening is actually really good for you.  It gets you outside in the fresh air getting some exercise, which can have huge health benefits, both long-term and short-term.  I've also found that, when you grow your own vegetables, you're way more likely to actually eat them, partly because you're proud of them, but mostly just because home-grown vegetables just taste so much better.  And, of course, if you eat more fruits and vegetables (especially home-grown), you'll be much healthier.  Gardening is also a great way to get kids interested in eating their veggies, which can be a Godsend for parents.  Another advantage of growing your own food, especially from seed, is that you know exactly what your food has been exposed to.  If there's to be pesticide or fertilizer around your food, you'll be the one who puts it there, and as such you can choose organic or even just more diluted solutions, which could have far-reaching health benefits that scientists are only just beginning to fully investigate.  Another health benefit of gardening is that plants are the best natural air purifiers in the world.  Just a few houseplants in your home can make the air far cleaner and more oxygen-rich.  I had a roommate in college who'd been in poor health off and on for years until I moved in, and brought with me a variety of plants.  Living in that far better, cleaner air made a world of difference for my roommate's health, and he hasn't lived without plants since.

These are just a few of the ways that simple, little vegetable seeds can save you money this year.  I'd love to hear from you on how gardening has changed your cash flow for the better.  Comment below or email me at tandrews@parkseed.com