2022 Spring Home and Garden

Page 26 2022 Spring Home and Garden LINCOLN DAILY NEWS April / May 2022 2022 Spring Home and Garden LINCOLN DAILY NEWS April / May 2022 Page 27 He douses the soil in the tub with water, gives it a good stir and puts the lid on. He leaves the potting mix undisturbed for a couple of days, allowing it to fully absorb the moisture he has given it. On planting day, he fills each well in his seed tray about half-full of soil and applies gentle pressure to pack it down a bit. This is something one will learn by doing. Pack the soil a little bit but don’t mush in down into the cups, you want the roots to grow easily through the mix so be gentle. Next he places his seeds in each of the wells. He covers the seeds with more potting mix, but does not pack it down at all. He keeps that soil light and loose so the seed will sprout through without breaking its neck or stem. CONTINUED u The first piece of equipment needed are the growing trays. Smith buys the kits and uses them year after year. The kit consists of three layers. The bottom layer is the water reservoir tray, then comes the seed tray, and finally the clear plastic dome. Of these three layers, the reservoir trays will from time to time spring leaks, but those trays can be purchased individually at local stores such as Ace Hardware in Lincoln. The other two layers don’t break that often, provided they are taken care of and properly stored when not in use. Another necessary piece of equipment is the grow light. Many will tell you that to get plants to grow, you need to purchase those special plant lights that emit a purple-pinkish light. If one is growing something like an African violet that is probably the best way to go. But for starting garden seeds, Smith uses a simple four-foot shop light with regular florescent bulbs. The shop light fixtures are often on sale at local stores such as Farm and Home, Ace Hardware and even Wal-Mart. The standard fluorescent bulbs are much cheaper than the colored grow lights and are also often offered on sale at these stores. Smith says that the key to growing seeds is to have a light and warm environment. Each year he commandeers a spare bedroom and sets up his growing room with a table with lights hanging about three inches above the trays to start. He adds extra heat to the room by using one of those oil filled radiant electric heaters, and sets the lights on timers so they are on 16 hours a day and switch off on their own. When it comes time to plant the seeds, Smith purchases a good quality potting mix. His favorite is the Miracle Grow potting mix in the green and yellow bag. He says he doesn’t spend the extra money on seed starting mixes or the high moisture mixes because he’s going to be feeding and watering his seeds when needed, and doesn’t mind the extra effort to do those tasks rather than let a soil mix do it for him. About two days before he’s ready to plant seeds, he dumps his mix into a large plastic tub. He uses the storage tubs with a locking lid that are readily available at stores like Wal-Mart and often offered on sale during the late part of the year. These are re-useable year after year, so this is not a recurring expense. CONTINUED u