Questions about the economy and gardening

[patandchickens]

That's great that you do so well out of your greenhouse, punkin!

I would guess that sales of seeds and vegetable transplants will be up this year, dunno about annuals and other ornamentals. Unfortunately I suspect that many of the people just getting into gardening will end up spending a whole lot of money and getting, like, two tomatoes out of it (because it seems like these days peoples' first instinct when taking up a new activity is to say 'ok, what all do I need to buy?' and then figuring that sufficient financial investment will guarantee success). The ones that DON'T spend much -- not buying any tools beyond, like, a shovel and a trowel and a hoe, and ideally buying those at an auction or garage sale, or cadging them from relatives or neighbors -- and focus on improving their soil and growing just a couple easy, productive veggies the first year... they will probably do well.

My whole garden budget, such as it is, will be going into buying a couple young trees to replace the senior-citizen poplars we had to have taken down last summer, sigh. Fortunately I do not consider seeds part of my gardening budget, lol.

Good luck,

Pat, back from a week and a half visiting family in PA, hi y'all

 

[FarmerChick]

HI Pat
glad you are back
I lived outside Scranton a bit, in Clarks Summit. PA is a great state!

 

[Homesteadmom]

Hey Ann thats when you post on freecycle for any leftover seeds that people aren't going to use. You can't be as picky about what you plant, but at least it doesn't cost anything to get seeds then. I save my leftovers to plant the next yr, but there are plenty of people who do not & just throw them away.


Welcome back Pat!

 

[TanksHill]

Speaking of seeds I have worked from the same batch for years. Using leftovers and only buying what is missing and used up.. I never buy veggie plants. One of the things in my emergency pantry is a vacuum sealed can of seeds. Like 47 types. The can is supposed t stay fresh for like 5 Years. I bought it from a Internet company. I don't want to advertise for them... But I think it is a great idea. I also have a huge variety of sprouting seeds. If I have to I can always plant some of those.

My goal this year is to get my seeds started indoors early. For me that would be like Feb. Does anyone have any tips. I like the egg shell idea. How about a heating pad. Would that work? How much light do the seeds actually need anyways?

 

[punkin]

Hey, Crazy Cat Lady, glad you are back. I think you are right about the flowers and ornamentals. Money will be too tight, I think. I didn't fool with them much, unless someone asked me to.

Tanks,

Most seeds don't require light for germination, mainly just warmth and moisture. I get the same results from flats on the top shelves as I do on the bottom shelf.

I've never tried a heating pad. Most seeds will germinate at 55 degrees or above. Peppers like it warmer at about 70 degrees. I use heating mats made for seed flats.

If your young seedlings can get 5-6 hours of sun a day, they will be happy.

After discussing, we cut the size of the greenhouse down about 4 ft. The last 10 feet or so, I am going to use raised beds. Yummy greens all year long!

 

[FarmerChick]

punkin
are you heating this greenhouse?
like with a wood fire
or big black barrels that heat up and release warmth thru the night or anything like that?
just wondering

 

[me&thegals]

Speaking of seeds I have worked from the same batch for years. Using leftovers and only buying what is missing and used up.. I never buy veggie plants.

I've seen online charts that show the germination rates of each type of seed after each year. Some are really doing well even after several years!

 

[TanksHill]

Some of the older one do have a lower success rate. I can usually tell which are the oldest and I compensate by adding extra seeds. This past year I worked in a voulenteer garden at a assisted living facility. I pretty much used everything I had just to plant their beds. So I guess I am up for some new seeds. I would like to buy heirloom so I can save the seeds.

While doing some research on Missouri I ran across Bakersville Pioneer village. They have heirlooms I just have not explored the prices yet. I guess I sould get busy if I am starting indoors this year.

 

[Bebop]

I've saved my seeds from last year and traded my extras.
This year might be bigger, but I'm going to definitely have more herbs and warmer weather veggies because I moved to the South.
I'm glad I saved seeds because it means my husband's parents don't have to buy plants this spring.
I'm going to be starting tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and squash inside, and I'm making portable boxes for my greens and herbs.
I want to try more culinary and tea herbs this year also.
>^.^<

 

[FarmerChick]

maybe under the Buy Sell Trade section we should be trading seeds....we all sure have tons of them. a different variety would always be fun to try.