Gardening – Sowing seed

We’re officially in the depths of winter and Mother Nature is doing her best to remind us of that. No matter how positive I try to be, most days are just too miserable to be in the garden.

However, there is light on the horizon, spring is on its way and there are plenty of gardening jobs that can be carried out inside, or in a greenhouse or garden shed. There’s tool sharpening and maintenance, construction of garden supports and covers (climbing frames, cloches, teepees and the like), but best of all there is the sowing of seed.

For those that are initiated into this most intricate of the garden arts, growing plants from seed is an exercise in patience, frustration and joy. Growing from seed is a huge topic, as seeds come from many different parts of the world, with differing germination requirements of light, moisture, temperature, soil type and pre-treatment.

Some seeds are easiest sown directly into the winter garden. They may prefer to be planted direct due to a need for winter chilling, or the need for a long tap root that doesn’t like to be shifted – examples include carrots, chives, spring onions, radish, peas, parsley, beetroot, poppies and swan plants.

For direct sowing, make sure the bed is well worked over, with no weeds and no large clumps of soil. Follow the sowing instructions on the packet and mark the area they’ve been sown in. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve re-sown or dug over a seed bed. If possible use a cloche to help protect the new seedlings or at least mesh to keep the birds off them. Job done, back inside by the fire!

A very effective and simple technique for seeds that require consistent warmth and moisture to germinate is to place the seed on half sheets of wet handi-towel. Fold this over to cover the seed, then place inside sandwich or snack-sized Snap Lock plastic bags. Label them with the variety and date, then place in a warm spot above 20C. I use a brewer’s heat pad that runs at about 27-30C as some of my seeds are true tropicals.

Other options are the hot water cupboard, on top of the spa lid or similar constantly warm environment.

After a week, start checking for signs of the little tap root emerging (some varieties take much longer). Once this appears, the seed can be very carefully picked up and transplanted into appropriate seedling mix. At all costs, avoid any damage to the tender rootlet. Any seed that hasn’t sprouted a week or so after the first seeds of that variety can be discarded, as they’re probably not viable.

I keep my seedling trays on the sunny kitchen windowsill; the temperature isn’t as consistent as the heat pad, but as the seeds have already started this is fine. Wash out the plastic bags with hot water to sterilise and re-use them. I currently have seeds happily germinating of yellow and red pawpaw, several varieties of frangipani and bauhinia (orchid tree), albizzia (silk tree), stevia, capparis (capers), tamarind and several varieties of tomato, eggplants, zucchini, cucumber, capsicum plus many more to come. A great way to while away the winter weeks!

Andrew Steens