Grow your Veg from Seed

Growing vegetables from seed is fun, and it’s a great way to save tons of money on gardening! There’s nothing like being able to walk out into your backyard and harvest fresh vegetables to feed your family!
Benefits Of Growing Your Own Vegetables
We all know that starting vegetable seeds is cheaper than buying garden starter plants in the spring. But growing your own vegetables is also one of the healthiest things you can do, and it’s OH SO satisfying (not to mention all the money you save on groceries)! Plus, there are way more varieties of vegetable seeds for sale at garden centers than there are starter plants. So you can grow a nice variety of vegetables that you can’t buy at the store.
How To Choose Vegetable Garden Seeds.
Sometimes choosing which seeds to buy is the hardest part. It’s easy to get excited about all the cool vegetables you can grow, and forget to think practically. So, how can you narrow it down and choose what to grow? Stick to this rule,  choose vegetables that you know your family will eat. Some seeds you can plant directly into the ground While others are recommended to start Indoors or in a mini  Grow House container.

Seeds you can Grow Directly  In the Soil 



Radish
Growing radishes from seed is like magic: throw the seeds onto the ground and cover with barely half an inch of soil, then water and watch them grow. Radishes are always grown from seed directly into the soil where they will grow to maturity and do not need to be started indoors and then transplanted. Radishes are great in salads and pastas. They don’t take up a lot of space in your garden either because you really don’t need to plant a lot of them. The best way to grow a radish is to plant the seeds 1/2-inch deep and 1 inch apart in a row. The plants will come up very fast . When growing radish from seed, make sure you plant seeds eight to ten days apart so you can have a steady supply through out the season . One of the best radish planting tips is to keep your garden free of weeds. Weeds rob your radishes of nutrients as they grow, and you won’t have good radishes if you allow weeds to take over your garden.Radishes are ready for harvest when the plant leaves are about four inches long. You can start harvesting them right away at this point because the radishes are best when young and tender.I love the Thompson and Morgan Rainbow mix Radish, The Vibrant Colour of your radishes will make your Salads pop with Colour 

Spinach
Spinach is a fast growing, low maintenance crop that is actually very easy to grow from seed. When it comes to growing spinach from seed, timing is everything! Not only is spinach super healthy, it’s very versatile too! It can be eaten raw or cooked, used in tons of recipes (I especially love it with eggs or on pizza!), and it even makes the perfect addition to smoothies and salad mixes. Given its propensity to bolt, succession sowing is the key if you want a constant supply of spinach during the season.  Sow in module trays, 1.5 cm deep every three weeks from April to August.  Sow three or four seeds in each module. You can also sow direct in the soil outside if you wish, but slugs can be a problem as the tiny seedlings are getting established. Keep your slugs at bay by watering with Crushed garlic in your watering can.

Have you tried  perpetual Spinach .
Perpetual spinach is actually a chard (beet family) but is very similar to true spinach in flavour. We prefer it as it is much easier to grow and far more vigorous than true spinach. It also has the advantage of constantly producing a new crop when picked

Swiss chard is a great Option also . Ideal for Stir fries and Salads. Once you grow this once, you will grow it every year.  It is possible to sow chard seed indoors if you are trying for the very earliest of crops but our advice is to sow them outside direct in the soil which results in a crop at almost the same time. If you sow the seeds under cloche protection (you will have a crop a week or earlier compared to sowing seed without protection. If sown now you  will be harvesting by the end of June , early July
Pick often to encourage the plant to produce tender new leaves. For salad leaves, cut individual leaves as required when about 5cm long. On larger plants, start harvesting leaves from the outside and work your way in to the centre. Whenever harvesting leaves, always leave about 5cm of the stem so the plant can grow back.
Other Seeds to consider would be Carrot ( Sweet Imperator has fabulous colours)  Red epicure beans or Borlotti Beans

Seeds to start Indoors or In a container
Mainly, people start seeds indoors in order to get a jump on the gardening season. Doing so allows you to gain a few weeks of growing time, which can really matter in regions with short growing seasons.
There is many seeds that you should start indoors, Broccoli , lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, Cabbage and water melon to name a few
You can start seeds in almost any type of container, as long as it's at least 2-3" deep and has some drainage holes. If you are the DIY type, you might want to grow seedlings in yogurt cups, milk cartons or paper cups. I prefer the convenience of trays that are made especially for seed starting. The next Most important thing is good Compost, Grosure seed and Potting Compost is ideal as it has right nutrients and Texture for Starting off seeds
If you wish to Grow tomatoes from seed, You will need to start them now, Sow seeds in pots or module trays indoors in a warm, sunny spot.  When they have developed three true leaves prick out in to 3-inch pots.  They won’t be going in to the soil until May. Keep the potting compost moist. The Choice of tomatoes is great . Money Maker are a great cherry tomato or else gardeners delight if you prefer larger tomatoes.  Check out the tomato Pot for Growing bush Tomatoes.  This garden pot comes with a handy rack that allows your tomato plant to grow wild and free wherever you place it. A useful water reservoir keeps your thirsty plants healthy and thriving.

Courgette and Summer squash
They are easy to grow and incredibly prolific, growing very fast in the summer.   Your only problem in fact will be working out what to do with all those courgettes. Sow seeds indoors in pots at a depth of 2cm from April.  They will need temperatures of 20 degrees celsius to germinate so leave the pots on a sunny windowsill.  Harden off well and transplant in June.  Don’t be fooled by their size when you are first planting the seedlings out.  Courgettes grow to large, hungry and thirsty plants so leave 50-75cm between plants. Dig plenty of well rotted compost in to the soil before transplanting.  Harvest regularly when the courgettes are about pencil length. They are at their best at this stage, and quickly become watery and relatively tasteless thereafter. The more you pick the more fruit the plant will produce. Don’t leave big marrows on the plant as it will reduce the production of new fruits.
Container Planting For seeds

The Elho Grow House  XXl is Ideal for Growing your own Salads or Herbs,  Combine this grow house with the elho green grow table super xxl and start growing your own herbs and vegetables. This Durable easy to use Grow House ensures the best growth climate for them. This is partly accomplished by the ventilation controller at the top, allowing you to regulate the temperature and air supply so your plants and herbs will start growing in no time. Simply attach the grips to the grow table with a single click. This will prevent the grow house from being blown away and pests from getting to the seeds, cuttings and plants. I would recommend Having it in a sunny position near your Back door. It will be so quick and easy to pop out  to pick your Own salad leaves and Herbs
Also many grow carrots in this, carrot fly can be ever gardeners nightmare Pest but the dont like to reach a height. The Height of this grow house deters Carrotfly from your Crop.
Short on Space Grow your herbs on a wall rack in a sunny Position. This is an innovative way to grow a full supply of herbs or Salad right at your back Door
Grow veg with Kids, Many Conatiners are now bright and Vibrant like our range of Mini Trough also you can plant up kid friendly seeds. A great way to get your kids outdoors. If you are looking for a Weekend project, you can make your own seed tapes with Children and Then Plant them in the mini trough. Sit back and watch them Grow.

If you would like advice on Growing from seed , Pop into our team at Griffins dripsey or email us on Info@griffinsgardencentre.ie

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